Category Archives: California

First outbreak of rare bird flu strain reported at California poultry farm

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Discovery of H5N9 came alongside detection of the more common H5N1 on the farm, leading to 119,000 birds’ deaths

The first outbreak of a rare bird flu in poultry has been detected on a duck farm in California, the World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH) said on Monday.

Authorities said the discovery of H5N9 bird flu in poultry came alongside the detection of the more common H5N1 strain on the same farm in Merced county, California, and that almost 119,000 birds on the farm had been killed since early December.

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The framing of the shrew: California students photograph mammal never caught on film

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Three young scientists set traps to capture and film species of special concern in move that can help conserve the shrew

In a 7,000ft-high marshy spot in the cold, rugged eastern Sierra mountains, two groups of mammals scurried around at night. One was going about their normal nocturnal routine of hunting worms. The other was hoping for a glimpse of an elusive creature: the Mount Lyell shrew, the only known California mammal never photographed alive.

The three young student scientists faced a tight timeline. They baited 150 pitfall traps – small cups dug into the earth to catch wandering creatures – with cat food and mealworms and monitored them across a 600ft area, checking each trap every two hours for any signs of their goal. They slept no more than two hours at a time. Shrews have such a fast metabolism that they die in traps quickly, one of the reasons this species had never been photographed or studied live.

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Firefighters battle to keep upper hand on new wildfire north of Los Angeles

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Hughes fire near Castaic Lake broke out on Wednesday and led to evacuation orders or warnings for more than 50,000

Firefighters fought to maintain the upper hand on a huge and rapidly moving wildfire that swept through rugged mountains north of Los Angeles and resulted in more than 50,000 people being put under evacuation orders or warnings.

The Hughes fire broke out late Wednesday morning and in less than a day had charred nearly 16 sq miles (41 sq km) of trees and brush near Castaic Lake, a popular recreation area about 40 miles (64km) from the devastating Eaton and Palisades fires that are burning for a third week.

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California governor signs $2.5bn relief package for LA wildfire recovery

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Announcement comes day before Donald Trump will visit fire-torn areas and amid criticism around state water supply

Gavin Newsom has signed a $2.5bn relief package to help areas of Los Angeles recover from the devastating fires that have been burning for nearly two weeks. The funds were announced during a press conference on Thursday in Pasadena, just outside of Altadena, the town hit hardest by the Eaton fire, which ignited on 7 January.

The signing of the bipartisan aid package comes a day before Donald Trump is set to visit the fire-torn areas and amid continued criticism of the California governor and other state officials’ management of the state’s water supply. It also follows a new blaze, the Hughes fire, which sparked on Wednesday morning and quickly grew. It is now 36% contained and has burned nearly 10,400 acres (4,209 hectares), according to Cal Fire.

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New California fire spurs evacuations as residents endure dangerous winds

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Hughes fire ignites north of Los Angeles late Wednesday morning as Eaton and Palisades fires burn for third week

Additional evacuations were ordered for residents near a large fast-moving wildfire north of Los Angeles, as parched southern California endured another round of dangerous winds ahead of possible rain over the weekend.

The Hughes fire broke out late on Wednesday morning and quickly ripped through nearly 5,000 acresof trees and brush, sending up an enormous plume of dark smoke near Castaic Lake, a popular recreation area about 40 miles (64 km) from the devastating Eaton and Palisades fires that are burning for a third week.

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Academy says Oscars will go on as planned and ‘honor’ LA amid fires

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Letter from Academy leadership also says show will ‘move away’ from live performances to celebrate songwriters

The Oscars will go on as planned in March, though with special accommodations to acknowledge to devastating wildfires in Los Angeles, according to a new update from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.

A letter from the CEO, Bill Kramer, and president Janet Yang, sent to all members on Wednesday, confirmed that the ceremony will “celebrate the work that unites us as a global film community and acknowledge those who fought so bravely against the wildfires”.

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Two Americans freed from Afghanistan in prisoner swap for Taliban figure

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Ryan Corbett and William McKenty swapped for Khan Mohammed, who was held in California for drug trafficking

A prisoner swap between the United States and Afghanistan’s Taliban has freed two Americans in exchange for a Taliban figure imprisoned for life in California on drug-trafficking and terrorism charges.

The Taliban praised the swap as a step toward the “normalization” of ties between the US and Afghanistan, but that probably remains a tall order as most countries in the world still do not recognize their rule and another two Americans are believed held.

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California wind forecast worsens as red flag fire weather warning expected on Monday

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Experts say fire weather likely to return as firefighters make progress containing wildfires and Trump plans trip to state

As firefighters in Los Angeles made progress on Sunday containing wildfires that have destroyed much of the Pacific Palisades and Altadena neighborhoods, forecasters warned that fire weather is likely to return on Monday.

Donald Trump told NBC news he plans to travel to California to inspect the damage after his inauguration, “probably, at the end of the week”. California governor Gavin Newsom had initially invited the president-elect to visit more than a week ago, even as Trump attacked him on social media and spread misinformation about the state’s Democratic leadership response to the fires.

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Fema’s message to LA wildfire victims: ‘carefully consider’ GoFundMe appeals

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Having a GoFundMe does not disqualify someone from aid – but it might affect their eligibility to cover specific needs

After the house that she grew up in burned down in the Eaton fire in Altadena, California, last week, Steven Celiceo’s wife Kiri suggested that the couple visit the local library. As a librarian herself, she knew there were resources being distributed – and Fema agents available – at nearby branches.

The couple had heard some concerning claims on social media and wanted to sort fact from fiction. Like hundreds of other Angelenos, Celiceo had launched a GoFundMe for his in-laws – but rumors were floating around that its existence could prevent the family from receiving badly needed funds.

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Former Oakland mayor Sheng Thao indicted on bribery charges

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Thao, 39, removed from office in November recall, accused of key role in sprawling corruption and bribery scheme

Sheng Thao, the former mayor of Oakland, and three others have been indicted for a slate of federal charges including conspiracy and bribery. The indictment, which was unsealed and announced in California on Friday, is the culmination of an investigation led by the FBI, the US Postal Inspection Service, and the US Internal Revenue Service.

Also charged in the indictment were Andre Jones, Thao’s longtime romantic partner, and David and Andy Duong, a father-son business duo who own Cal Waste Solutions, the company that picks up the recyclables of Oakland’s more than 436,000 residents. The foursome are accused of orchestrating a scheme in which Thao allegedly extended contracts for Cal Waste Solutions, appointed high-level officials who would allegedly help the Duongs’ business interests, and bought housing units from another company owned by the Duongs.

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Big fire at California battery plant prompts evacuations amid toxic smoke

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Blaze erupts at one of world’s largest battery storage plants in Monterey county, leading to highway and school closures

A large fire burning on Friday at one of the world’s largest battery storage plants in northern California is sending up flames of toxic smoke, leading to the evacuation of 1,700 people and the closure of a major highway.

The blaze in Moss Landing started on Thursday. Fire crews were not engaging with the fire but were waiting for it to burn out on its own, the Mercury News reported.

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Big oil pushed to kill bill that would have made them pay for wildfire disasters

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Legislation has new life in wake of Los Angeles catastrophe but US fossil-fuel industry is already mobilizing against it

In the year preceding the devastating Los Angeles county wildfires, big oil fiercely lobbied to kill a “polluter pay” bill that moved through the California senate and would have forced major fossil fuel companies to help cover the costs of climate disasters.

Fossil-fuel industry lobbying in California spiked to record levels during the 2023-24 legislative session, and the polluter pay bill was among the most targeted pieces of legislation, a Guardian review of state lobby filings found.

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Hip-hop producer Madlib’s home and record collection destroyed in LA fires

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Influential musician confirms loss of extensive record collection amassed over 30 years

The celebrated hip-hop producer Madlib has confirmed the loss of his extensive record collection and much of his recording equipment along with his home in the wildfires that have swept across California and killed at least 25 people.

The influential musician, who has worked with some of the most prominent names in rap including Kanye West, Kendrick Lamar, Snoop Dogg and MF DOOM, is known for his sample-heavy production style. His record collection, amassed over 30 years, acted as the backbone of that work.

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Insurance firms are sending firefighters to defend homes amid LA wildfires

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Private efforts to combat wildfires are not just for the superrich – many work for insurers seeking to minimize the policies they’d have to pay out

When a wildfire started spreading through the Pacific Palisades last Tuesday morning, employees of Wildfire Defense Systems, which provides “loss intervention services” to insurance companies, were already nearby, Dave Torgerson, the company’s founder, said.

Once they arrived at the scene, the private company’s workers stood back for a while, waiting for the government firefighters to complete the most urgent life-saving efforts. When they got clearance from public fire officials, they started their job, which focuses on protecting insured homes and businesses, Torgerson said.

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Dangerous winds expected to amplify California wildfires as death toll hits 24

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Warning of ‘particularly dangerous situation’ with gusts expected as LA fire chief says: ‘We are not in the clear yet’

Firefighters battling the disastrous wildfires around Los Angeles were prepared for a return of dangerous winds that could again stoke the flames as the death toll in the tragedy has hit at least 24.

Fierce gusts known as Santa Ana winds have been largely blamed for turning the wildfires into devastating infernos that leveled huge tranches of neighborhoods around America’s second-largest city, which has also been hit by drought.

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Chuck D pleads for people to stop using Public Enemy’s Burn Hollywood Burn on videos of LA fires

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The 1990 protest track ‘has nothing to do with families losing everything they have’ says the rapper, hitting out at TikTok and Instagram videos

Public Enemy’s Chuck D has asked people to stop using the rap group’s song Burn Hollywood Burn as a soundtrack on videos of the California wildfires, saying it has “nothing to do with families losing everything they have”.

The rapper issued the statement on the weekend in response to several videos uploaded to TikTok and Instagram that use the 1990 Public Enemy song over footage of the wildfires, which have killed at least 24 people, destroyed more than 12,300 buildings and displaced more than 200,000 people so far.

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California fires live: 16 deaths confirmed as flames threaten UCLA campus and worsening winds predicted

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Los Angeles county sheriff says death toll expected to rise, with firefighters racing to contain Palisades fire

34,646 homes and businesses in Los Angeles are currently without electricity, according to Poweroutage.us, an outage monitor that tracks blackouts across the US.

Roughly 18,400 Southern California Edison customers remain without power, as well as about 16,100 Los Angeles Department of Water & Power customers, and about 100 with Pasadena Water and Power, according to the latest data.

San Bernadino: 8,333

Riverside: 7, 152

Santa Barbara: 2,081

Palisades: At least 23,654 acres, 11% contained

Eaton: At least 14,117 acres, 15% contained

Kenneth: At least 1,052 acres, 90% contained

Hurst: At least 799 acres, 76% contained

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Politicians quibbling as LA burns: Gavin Newsom’s latest beef with Trump

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California governor calls president-elect’s claim that water is being withheld from southern California ‘delusional’

Gavin Newsom, California’s Democratic governor, appeared briefly to put his long-running feud with Donald Trump to one side on Friday, when he invited the president-elect to Los Angeles to survey devastation from the wildfires and meet with first responders, firefighters and the “Americans” affected.

“In the spirit of this great country, we must not politicize human tragedy or spread disinformation from the sidelines,” Newsom wrote in a letter to Trump on Friday. “Hundreds of thousands of Americans – displaced from their homes and fearful for the future – deserve to see all of us working in their best interests to ensure a fast recovery and rebuild.”

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LA fires: evacuation orders expand as Santa Ana winds are expected to pick up

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Neighborhoods now under evacuation orders include Encino and tony Brentwood in west Los Angeles

Evacuations have been ordered for areas of Los Angeles east of the uncontained Palisades fire – as the Santa Ana winds that initially fueled the four-day inferno are expected to moderately pick up.

The Los Angeles fire department issued a new immediate evacuation order at 7pm local time on Friday to areas that cover Sunset Boulevard north to the Encino reservoir and from the 405 Freeway west to Mandeville Canyon.

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California fires live: progress made against some LA blazes but thickening smoke prompts ‘health emergency’

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Palisades and Eaton fires start coming under control as fierce winds ease but forecasters predict another red flag warning for Monday

Here are some of the latest images coming in from Los Angeles via the news wires.

Weather forecasters in Los Angeles are expecting fast, dry winds to return towards the end of the weekend, threatening to fuel the devastating wildfires.

There are areas where everything is gone. There isn’t even a stick of wood left. It’s just dirt.

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