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The best places to see the superbloom in California

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 11:14:02 GMT

With California's historic wet winter firmly in the rearview mirror, many Californians are flocking to state parks to catch a glimpse of the spectacular superbloom.Many wildflowers have sprouted all at once, providing plenty of beautiful photo opportunities throughout the Golden State. The California Department of Parks and Recreation is recommending several places for people to see the colorful superbloom in person.Southern CaliforniaAnza-Borrego Desert State ParkAntelope Valley California Poppy ReserveChino Hills State ParkColonel Allensworth State Historic ParkEastern Kern County Onyx Ranch State Vehicular Recreation AreaRed Rock Canyon State ParkTule Elk State Natural ReserveNorthern CaliforniaMount Tamalpais State Park China Camp State Park Trione-Annadel State Park Sugarloaf Ridge State ParkLake Elsinore, a popular spot to view the superbloom, is closed to visitors this year to ensure "the safety of public land and wildlife," the city said. Officials want to prevent the chaos ...

Warning issued over high algae levels in Lake Perris

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 11:14:02 GMT

State water managers issued a warning Monday for people and pets to stay out of Lake Perris in Riverside County due a hazardous algal bloom.Lake Perris, or Perris Reservoir, is a popular fishing, boating, and camping site between Moreno Valley and the City of Perris.California’s Department of Water Resources issued an advisory after tests showed elevated levels of blue-green algae or cyanobacteria.DWR says algal blooms are typically caused by warm water temperatures, calm conditions, and certain nutrients in the water. They can produce toxins harmful to people and pets.The signs of Harmful Algal Blooms, according to DWRSmall blue-green, green, white, or brown particles in the waterStreaks in the water that look like spilled paintMats, scum, or foam at the surface or along the shorelineCan have an odor described as gasoline, septic, or fishyWhat are the Dangers?Some algal blooms can produce toxins that are harmful to people and petsDogs and small children are most likely to be affect...

Police chase ends with PIT-maneuver, arrest in Orange County

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 11:14:02 GMT

A driver who led police on a short pursuit in Orange County on Monday was arrested and faces felony charges, authorities with the Costa Mesa Police Department announced.  The chase started after Costa Mesa police attempted to pull over the driver, who has a felony warrant, at around 11 a.m. The suspect failed to yield and led authorities on a pursuit into Huntington Beach, officials said.  The Orange County Sheriff’s Department assisted in the pursuit by tracking the suspect’s vehicle from its helicopter, while officers with the Huntington Beach Police Department took over the chase on the ground, ultimately performing a successful PIT-maneuver.An officer with the Costa Mesa Police Department seen here after the pursuit of a driver with a felony warrant ended with an arrest on April 10, 2023, in Huntington Beach. (CMPD)Costa Mesa police seen at the end of a pursuit that ended with an arrest in Huntington Beach on April 10, 2023. (CMPD)“The suspect was taken into custody and boo...

Louisville bank employee livestreamed attack that killed 4 people

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 11:14:02 GMT

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) — A Louisville bank employee armed with a rifle opened fire at his workplace Monday morning, killing four people — including a close friend of Kentucky's governor — while livestreaming the attack on Instagram, authorities said.Police arrived as shots were still being fired inside Old National Bank and killed the shooter in an exchange of gunfire, Louisville Metro Police Department Chief Jacquelyn Gwinn-Villaroel said. The city's mayor, Craig Greenberg, called the attack "an evil act of targeted violence.” The shooting, the 15th mass killing in the country this year, comes just two weeks after a former student killed three children and three adults at a Christian elementary school in Nashville, Tennessee, about 160 miles (260 kilometers) to the south. That state's governor and his wife also had friends killed in that shooting. In Louisville, the chief identified the shooter as 25-year-old Connor Sturgeon, who she said was livestreaming during the attack.“That’s t...

Surveillance video shows man vandalizing Islamic Center in Los Angeles

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 11:14:02 GMT

Police are looking for a man who allegedly used a permanent marker to vandalize an Islamic Center in Koreatown with hateful comments over the weekend.The incident occurred around 12:40 a.m. Sunday at the Islamic Center of Southern California, located at 434 S. Vermont Avenue, according to the Los Angeles Police Department. A man who allegedly vandalized an Islamic Center in Koreatown is seen in surveillance video released by the LAPD on April 10, 2023. The man is accused of writing “anti-Islamic hate words” on the property and then running from the area north on Vermont Avenue.Police released a surveillance image of the suspect and described him as being around 40 to 50 years old, 5 feet 9 inches tall and 180 pounds. He was wearing a black jacket, a black shirt with an unknown type of design, black pants, black shoes and a black beanie.LAPD Chief Michel Moore said Monday afternoon that the suspect may be homeless and is believed to still be in the area. The writing on three pillars ...

Joey Bart returns to SF Giants with new opportunity, renewed urgency

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 11:14:02 GMT

SAN FRANCISCO — Delayed by a back strain to start the season, there should be no shortage of opportunities in Joey Bart’s immediate future. Back from a brief rehab assignment, the embattled 26-year-old backstop made his first start of the season Monday night against Julio Urías and the Dodgers.The matchup with Urías, who limited the Giants to a 0.90 ERA over five starts in 2022, kicks off a string of left-handed pitching that should provide Bart ample chances to get in the lineup and, the club hopes, seize the role that has been up for grabs since the beginning of last season. This opportunity, however, comes with added urgency for both sides: the Giants having lost their Opening Day catcher, Roberto Pérez, to the 60-day IL, and Bart knowing that another option, free agent addition Gary Sánchez, is readying to go in Triple-A.“The only thing anyone can ask for is more great chances to perform,” manager Gabe Kapler said before Monday’s series opener with Los An...

Attorney: Mom used money, power, sex to get what she wanted

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 11:14:02 GMT

By Rebecca Boone | Associated PressBOISE, Idaho — A mother accused in the triple murder of her two youngest children as well as her new husband’s previous wife was willing to “remove any obstacle in her way to get what she wants,” a prosecutor told jurors Monday morning.“The defendant used money, power and sex to get what she wanted,” Fremont County Prosecutor Lindsey Blake said. “It didn’t matter what it was.”Prosecutors charged Lori Vallow Daybell and her husband, Chad Daybell, with multiple counts of conspiracy, murder and grand theft in connection with the deaths of Vallow Daybell’s two youngest children: 7-year-old Joshua “JJ” Vallow and big sister Tylee Ryan, who was last seen a few days before her 17th birthday in 2019. Prosecutors also charged the couple in connection with the October 2019 death of Chad Daybell’s late wife, Tammy Daybell.Both defendants have pleaded not guilty, but are being tried separa...

In Oakland, it’s landlords who are unhappy with a plan to end eviction ban

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 11:14:02 GMT

OAKLAND — An end to the city’s pandemic-era eviction moratorium is on the horizon, but it’s farther away than fed-up property owners have demanded.Under a proposal that city officials will begin discussing Tuesday, the ban on evictions that has now lasted for over three years would come to an end on Sept. 1, part of a gradual process that seeks to ease struggling tenants back into their rent obligations.The new proposal has sparked a political firestorm among landlord and renter advocacy groups alike, with dual rallies planned and lobbying efforts underway, in the hopes of influencing which of the robust tenant protections included in the moratorium ultimately remain.Oakland’s leaders had initially held off addressing the question of when their eviction ban will end, but pressure grew after California concluded its COVID state of emergency in February, and Alameda County decided its own moratorium would expire at the end of this month.The new laws, though, wi...

Former Stanford star Haley Jones selected by Atlanta Dream in WNBA Draft

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 11:14:02 GMT

After spending her entire basketball life near home, Haley Jones will head to Atlanta for the start of her professional career.And she’ll be joined by a fellow Archbishop Mitty Monarch, too.The two-time All-American was taken by the Dream with the sixth overall pick in the 2023 WNBA Draft on Monday night.Even after winning a national championship at Stanford, Jones admitted to ESPN’s Holly Rowe after being drafted that she hadn’t ever felt like this before.“This is more nervous than I’ve been in any basketball game so far,” Jones said. “It’s just surreal right now. There aren’t really words to describe it.”The former Final Four Most Outstanding Player was once considered the top recruit in the country coming out of high school. But her draft stock fell in the last year, mostly because she stopped taking and making jump shots and 3-pointers.South Carolina’s Aliyah Boston was, as expected, taken first overall by the Indiana Fever. After that, the Minnesota Lynx selected Diamond Miller...

Los Gatos settles Shannon Road lawsuit against county for $1.5 million

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 11:14:02 GMT

Los Gatos settled its lawsuit with Santa Clara County over an annexed portion of road that needed several costly repairs last month.The town will get $1.565 million to help fund the estimated $4.3 million in repairs needed to fix the problematic stretch of Shannon Road. Los Gatos accused the county of covering up the required repairs so the road would no longer be their problem.“The town is grateful to have reached the settlements,” Los Gatos Mayor Maria Ristow said in a statement. “We look forward to a collaborative working relationship with the county on our many shared interests.”A county representative did not respond to a request for comment in time for publication.Los Gatos sued the county in spring 2022 for $5.5 million, citing fraud, breach of contract and negligence after the portion of Shannon Road the town had annexed came with a long list of repairs and significant safety concerns.The 1,300-foot stretch of road from Santa Rosa Drive to Diduca Way was owned by the county ...