Marine scientists ‘alarmed’ after four gray whales found dead in San Francisco Bay

Deaths discovered over a course of nine days are ‘just the tip of the iceberg’ for the species, says expert

Four dead gray whales have washed ashore on San Francisco Bay Area beaches in the last nine days, with experts saying on Friday one had been struck by a ship. They were trying to determine how the other three had died.

“It’s alarming to respond to four dead gray whales in just over a week because it really puts into perspective the current challenges faced by this species,” says Dr Padraig Duignan, the director of pathology at the Marine Mammal Center.

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Tiger Woods driving at 87mph in 45mph zone at time of car crash, police say

  • Police reveal details of crash that left golfer seriously injured
  • Officials have said drugs and alcohol not a factor in accident

Tiger Woods was driving at speeds up to 87mph (140km/h) in a 45mph zone when he was involved in a serious car crash earlier this year, Los Angeles police revealed during a press conference on Wednesday.

Los Angeles county sheriff Alex Villanueva said the speed was “unsafe for the road conditions” and Woods did not brake in the run-up to the collision, perhaps because he pressed the accelerator instead of the brake pedal in a state of panic. Villanueva said Woods will not receive a citation over the crash and blamed the incident of Woods’s excessive speed and loss of control of the vehicle.

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California scrambles as maskless crowds flood vacation hotspots

Tens of thousands flood Santa Monica Pier as authorities send mixed messages about coronavirus safety

Authorities across southern California are scrambling to contain large holiday crowds on beaches, boardwalks, and piers this weekend, anxious about a possible new surge in Covid-19 cases.

But they face a restive public eager to party in the sun after more than a year of lockdowns, and appear to have few tools at their disposal to enforce mask-wearing and social distancing.

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California shooting: four killed, including child, in office building in Orange

Police arrived as shots were being fired; suspect taken to hospital after being shot by officers

Four people, including a child, have been killed and a fifth person injured in a shooting at a southern California office building, with the suspected shooter wounded by police.

It happened at around 5.30pm on Wednesday at a two-storey office building in Orange, south of Los Angeles.

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Surge in gun violence is stress test for Oakland’s defund the police campaign

Homicides in the city have risen 314% and while some back shifting resources to prevention and healing, others want alternatives in place to keep Black and brown people safe

Since the visceral video of George Floyd pinned beneath a police officer’s knee sparked massive uprisings in US cities last summer, movements to defund police departments have grown from siloed local campaigns into a national movement. But in multiple cities, this work is being done amid a disturbing rise in gun violence that is affecting the same Black and Latino communities most affected by police misconduct.

While some crime survivors support shifting resources from police and into prevention and healing services, others who have lost loved ones to shootings and live in high-crime areas worry that depleting police budgets without proven alternatives to fill any gaps will make Black and brown communities less safe.

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Covid-fatigued California’s effort to recall Newsom may be a rallying cry for Republicans

Analysis: more than a serious effort to unseat the governor, it is likely a strategy to rally voters, boost Republican candidates and raise funds

Nearly a year after Gavin Newsom became the first American governor to issue a statewide stay-at-home order to combat the coronavirus, the California leader delivered his “state of the state” address from an empty Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles.

“Let’s allow ourselves to dream of brighter days ahead,” Newsom said on Tuesday.

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Push to recall California governor Gavin Newsom gains steam – but who’s behind it?

Effort to oust governor – though unlikely to succeed – reflects political polarization that has widened amid Covid

Across California, hundreds of thousands of people armed with signs and clipboards are gathering outside of local Walmarts, in shopping center parking lots, and on beachside boardwalks, trying to convince their neighbors that the governor needs to go.

An effort to recall Gavin Newsom has gained momentum in recent weeks, as the California governor’s approval ratings dipped amid mounting frustration over how the state has handled the Covid pandemic, and the economic slump caused by closures.

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‘I’m operating’: doctor makes Zoom court appearance while in surgery

California medical board to investigate after plastic surgeon appeared at a virtual trial from an operating theatre

Medical authorities in California have said they will investigate a plastic surgeon who appeared in a videoconference for a traffic violation trial while operating.

The Sacramento Bee reported that Scott Green appeared for his trial at Sacramento superior court on Thursday, held virtually because of the coronavirus pandemic, from an operating room.

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California death toll from Covid-19 tops 50,000 after winter surge

  • Most populous US state has highest most coronavirus deaths
  • LA county health director: ‘It is heartbreaking’

California’s Covid-19 death toll rose above 50,000 on Wednesday, after Los Angeles county reported another 806 deaths during the winter surge.

The county, which has a quarter of the state’s 40 million residents, said the deaths mainly occurred between 3 December and 3 February. The department of public health identified them after going through death records that were backlogged by the sheer volume of the surge’s toll.

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Victorian house rolls through streets of San Francisco to new address – video

After 139 years at 807 Franklin Street in San Francisco, a two-storey Victorian house has a new address. The green home with large windows and a brown front door was loaded on to giant dollies and moved to a location six blocks away on Sunday. Onlookers lined the sidewalks to snap photos as the structure rolled – at a top speed of 1mph – to 635 Fulton Street

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‘Like moving a herd of elephants’: San Francisco’s history of houses on wheels

This weekend, the city moved a Victorian house six blocks – a practice that has continued for more than a century

Hundreds of San Franciscans lined the streets on Sunday – phones drawn and ready – to glimpse a unique procession slowly making its way through the city. “Ladies and gentlemen, please stand on the sidewalk,” a police speaker blared. “There’s a house coming down the street.”

The two-story, 5,170-sq-ft green Victorian, known as the Englander House, had spent more than a century in the heart of San Francisco. But for years it stood vacant and fell into disrepair, sandwiched behind a gas station and loomed over by new apartment buildings. The city, which suffers from a housing shortage, was ready to build a 48-unit building in its place.

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Police say Tiger Woods ‘lucky to be alive’ after car crash in California

  • 45-year-old undergoes surgery after crash in suburb of LA
  • Reports say golfer suffered compound fractures to legs

Tiger Woods has been taken to hospital with serious injuries to both legs after a car accident, with a Los Angeles police officer saying the golfer is “very fortunate” to have survived.

Carlos Gonzalez, the first LA county deputy to respond to the scene, added that Woods was “calm and lucid” despite being trapped inside his vehicle. Woods was removed from the crash by firefighters, and his vehicle suffered “major damage”.

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‘We’re risking our lives’: California’s slow vaccine rollout leaves essential workers exposed

Millions who cannot afford to stay home still lack access to inoculation, even as their work puts them in harm’s way

Pharmacy workers helping maskless customers. Uber drivers transporting coughing passengers. Janitors cleaning contaminated workspaces.

Amid California’s slow Covid-19 vaccine rollout, millions of essential workers in high-exposure jobs are still waiting to get the life-saving doses, with many uncertain when or how they will get access.

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Trump ally Nunes sees CNN Ukraine lawsuit thrown out by New York judge

  • California congressman sought $435m in damages
  • Story linked him to hunt for Biden dirt in Ukraine

A defamation lawsuit brought against CNN by the California Republican Devin Nunes, a leading ally of former president Donald Trump, was tossed out by a Manhattan judge on Friday.

Related: Icy blast of anti-Ted Cruz outrage shows little sign of abating

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‘California and Texas are warnings’: blackouts show US deeply unprepared for the climate crisis

Both states have faced widespread power outages after failing to plan for extreme weather

When California saw widespread power blackouts last year during wildfires and a summer “heat storm”, Republican lawmakers from Texas were quick to deride the coastal state’s energy policies. “California is now unable to perform even basic functions of civilization, like having reliable electricity,” tweeted senator Ted Cruz during the record-breaking heatwave in August.

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How fires have spread to previously untouched parts of the world

Fires have always been a part of our natural world. But they’re moving to new ecosystems previously untouched by fire – and this is concerning scientists

Wildfires are spreading to fuel-abundant regions of the world that used to be less prone to burning, according to a new analysis of 20 years of data by the Guardian.

While the overall area of annual burn in the world has remained relatively static in this period, the research indicates a shifting regional fire pattern that is affecting more forests and fewer grasslands.

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‘Rock stars of American cheese’: the enduring legacy of Cowgirl Creamery

Over the course of two decades, Sue Conley and Peggy Smith created a beloved California brand – and helped redefine our relationship to food

When Sue Conley and Peggy Smith announced their retirement last month from Cowgirl Creamery – the cheese company they grew from plucky startup to leader in the modern farm-to-table movement – the tributes came in thick and fast.

To their devoted followers, this was no surprise.

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California lifts its statewide Covid stay-at-home orders

Announcement comes after months of a surge in cases and as the governor is sued for restrictions on outdoor dining

California lifted its stay-at-home order statewide Monday after four-week projections showed intensive care unit capacity to be above 15% in beleaguered regions for the first time in weeks.

The announcement follows months of a relentless case surge that exhausted the healthcare system statewide and made California the first US state to record 3m Covid-19 infections. It also comes as more than 50 wine country-based restaurants and wineries have filed a lawsuit against Gavin Newsom, California’s governor, over the state’s restrictions on outdoor dining.

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‘Come with me if you want to live’: Schwarzenegger receives Covid-19 vaccine – video

Hollywood star and former California governor Arnold Schwarzenegger shared a video of himself receiving his first dose of the Covid-19 vaccine. The 73-year-old visited a vaccination clinic at Dodger stadium in Los Angeles after residents aged 65 and over were able to receive dosages. The star of the Terminator franchise encouraged others to receive the vaccine, using one of the series' famous catchphrases: 'Come with me if you want to live'

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Richard Branson’s Virgin Orbit reaches space eight months after first flight

  • LauncherOne rocket carries very small satellites
  • First demonstration launch failed in May last year

Richard Branson’s Virgin Orbit reached space on Sunday, eight months after the first demonstration flight of its air-launched rocket system failed, the company said.

Related: Virgin Orbit looks into cause of LauncherOne test failure

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