A roundup of the biggest news stories in California this week, including coronavirus news, a wildfire update and the latest from Sacramento.
Wildfire Update
Earlier this week, around 345,000 PG&E customers in Northern California had their power shut off amid safety concerns over extremely high winds. Approximately 38,000 Southern California Edison customers lost power due to preemptive shut-offs, while other scattered areas of the Southland experienced unrelated outages.
The Blue Ridge Fire in Orange and San Bernardino counties is 47% contained after being active for three days. It has burned 14,334 acres in the Yorba Linda and Chino Hills areas. The Silverado Fire, also in Orange County, burned 13,390 acres over three days and is now 63% contained. All evacuation orders associated with those fires have been lifted.
The August Complex Fire in Northern California is now 93% contained after burning over 1 million acres, destroying 210 structures and causing one fatality. The Creek Fire in Fresno and Madera counties is now 70% contained. It destroyed 228 structures and burned 170,071 acres. The North Complex fire in Plumas County destroyed 2,352 structures and caused 15 fatalities. It is now 96% contained.
As of today, firefighters are battling 22 wildfires across California. Weather conditions have helped in the containment of fires, although warm and very dry weather is expected throughout the state in the coming days. Fire danger remains high.
LA Dodgers Win the World Series
The Los Angeles Dodgers bead the Tampa Bay Rays to win the 2020 MLB World Series, which ended with Game 6 on Tuesday.
LA Mayor Eric Garcetti said: “This was a season unlike any other — and this is a team that will go down in history for its resilience, determination, talent, hard work, and resolve.
From the first pitch of this season to the last out of the World Series, we got to witness a magical run, an exciting stretch of baseball, and an inspiring display of excellence in the face of adversity. And we were reminded of lessons to carry us through each day: hope springs eternal, and no challenge is insurmountable if we stand together as one team, one city, and one people.”
Los Angeles Times Exposes DDT Dump off Catalina Island
A visually striking piece by Rosanna Xia published in the Los Angeles Times on Sunday exposed the dumping of an estimated half a million barrels of the pesticide DDT in the ocean off Catalina Island. Several dozen barrels were discovered by UC Santa Barbara scientist David Valentine with the use of a deep-sea robot. The story explores the history of DDT, its connections in Southern California, and the potential extensive environmental destruction associated with the dump site.
Covid-19 Update
The California Department of Public Health reports that California has 916,918 confirmed cases of Covid-19 to date, which include 4,014 newly confirmed cases. The seven-day positivity rate is up at 3.1% and the 14-day positivity rate is also up at 3.0%. California has now recorded 17,571 deaths from Covid-19 since the beginning of the pandemic.
The CDPH reminds you to choose alternative celebrations for Halloween and Dia de los Muertos this year, avoiding gatherings and the mixing of households. Trick-or-treating is strongly discouraged. Safer alternatives include candy scavenger hunts at home, scary movie nights, virtual costume contests and car-based outings.
(See last week’s News Roundup to compare the stats.)
Go to covid19.ca.gov to find out the latest Covid-19 statistics in your county.
Time to Change Your Clocks!
Daylight Saving Time ends at 2:00 a.m. on Sunday, November 1, so remember to set your clocks back by one hour. This is also a good time to check your smoke and carbon monoxide detectors, and replace the batteries if needed.
