El Dorado County Public Safety Digest

It's time to work on home defensible space and fire hardening.

Cameron Park Community Service District staff preparations of the 2024-2025 budget is leasing to discussion of fire protection services and the possible closing of Fire Station 88 on Alhambra Drive.

CalFire announced the opening of the Ponderosa Fire Center on Palmer Drive in Cameron Park, which will serve as a base of operations for seven firefighter crews.

The El Dorado County Department of Transportation is starting construction of a pedestrian and bike path in Pollock Pines soon.

Local county residents recount recent sightings of mountain lions near schools in populated areas.

The Firewise USA Community designation recognizes the results of the Coloma-Lotus Fire Safe Council fire resistance and defensible space programs.

The family of two men attacked by a mountain lion in El Dorado County released an update of the survivor and fundraising details for those who wish to contribute to funeral and medical costs.

A man was fatally attacked and his brother injured by a mountain lion in a remote area near Georgetown.

The El Dorado County Grand Jury 2023-2024 report includes safety concerns at the Georgetown Airport.

A tornado stuck Kings county briefly, and another touched down in Madera county, as favorable conditions came together during a powerful winter storm which swept the region.

A report of a 12 month study which ended in February indicates almost half of those cited for drug usage were not residents of the city, leading to questions about city approaches to drug addiction.

Georgetown Fire Protection District Board of Directors President Larry Anderson greeted Sparky, a new member, during the fire board’s monthly meeting.

As sandwich board signs proliferate along Main Street and impinge on space along narrower-than-normal sidewalks, the Placerville City Council discussed what the city could do to cut down on the clutter.

California’s law that requires background checks when purchasing ammunition is back in place.

A handful of super powerful tropical storms in the last decade and the prospect of more to come has a couple of experts proposing a new category of whopper hurricanes: Category 6.

Los Angeles County flood control network withstands punishing rains—for now.

The storm fed off of unusually warm waters as it grew. It also reached “bomb cyclone” status as it neared California.

The Shasta County Board of Supervisors voted to allow guns in local government buildings, defying California law.

An updated earthquake hazard map from USGS shows a high shaking risk in California.

Hundreds of San Diego homes and businesses were damaged or ruined in devastating floods after punishing rainfall fell on Jan. 22.

If you’re driving on Interstate 80, you might spot a billboard displaying an animal wildfire mascot. But it isn’t Smokey Bear. It’s Burnie the Bobcat, with a new slogan: Only you can decide our fiery future.

Our understanding and preparedness have come a long way since Southern California’s magnitude 6.7 earthquake in 1994. We’re still learning from that destructive temblor.

Michel Moore, chief of the Los Angeles Police Department, announced he will resign. The departure of Moore, who has been in the job since 2018, will spur the appointment of an interim chief and a nationwide search for his replacement, according to Mayor Karen Bass.

The U.S. Supreme Court has agreed to hear a case related to whether cities and towns can ban camping on public property. The high court could overturn Martin v. Boise, a 2018 federal court decision that keeps western cities and counties from blocking public camping when sufficient shelter space is unavailable.

Cal State San Bernardino’s Center for the Study of Hate & Extremism found that hate crimes rose 12.9% between 2022 and 2023. The spike follows a particularly stark increase in crimes against Jewish people.

California correctional officers train like ‘they are going to war’ to work in state prisons. Gov. Gavin Newsom’s plan to transform San Quentin could require a kinder approach.

Munition boxes, depth charges and smoke floats have been found 3,000 feet underwater off the coast of Los Angeles. More than 100 square miles of ocean might be contaminated.

Heavy snow is projected in the Sierra Nevada mountains. Previously, warmer storms had been bringing precipitation mainly to higher elevations in the Sierras.

California state law dictates that property owners are responsible for repairing damaged sidewalks. In Sacramento, this has left some owners facing bills of thousands of dollars or tax assessments from the city.

San Francisco police officers have been operating for more than a year with guidance from their chief that California’s vehicle code doesn’t provide authority for them to ticket driverless cars for infractions like speeding or running red lights. Officers are still encouraged to report relevant information about incidents.

A law passed by the California legislature in 2023 has gone into effect banning licensed gun holders from bringing their firearms to places like playgrounds, churches and casinos. The law faces an ongoing challenge in the federal court system.

A judge has refused to order the father and son duo charged with starting the 2021 Caldor Fire—which destroyed Grizzly Flat and burned across three Northern California counties—to face charges that they recklessly started the fire by target shooting.