Monterey County Public Safety Articles

As massive wildfires devastate entire neighborhoods in and around Los Angeles, local agencies from Monterey County have joined in the firefight.

What does it mean when firefighters call a fire "contained?" Here's a brief guide to commonly used fire prevention terminology.

As local governments try to stretch their budgets to accommodate a new wave of mental health cases, a new program is trying to shift the emergency response from uniformed officers to trained mental health counselors. Since the killing by police …

MONTEREY COUNTY — Montage Health’s Prescribe Safe program has announced a collaboration with the Monterey County Office of Education (MCOE) aimed at raising awareness and preventing fentanyl-related overdoses among youth in Monterey County.

The first weekend after Natividad hospital’s Level II trauma center in Salinas opened on Jan. 5, 2015, patients with major injuries were showing up for care, so much so, the radiologist on duty was astonished.

Smoke and burned trees are pictured near Sylvan Lake State Park during a wildfire that erupted south of Eagle in the White River National Forest on June 20, 2021. With intense wildfires becoming a greater threat in the West, homeowners …

The Santa Lucia Mountains are deceptively rugged. Between Carmel Valley Road to the north and Highway 46 to the south, in San Luis Obispo County, there is just one east-west paved road that connects the coast to the Highway 101…

The glamour of flashy cars and high speeds in Fast & Furious don’t translate the same way in real life. A sideshow – or illegal street racing – can be exhilarating for some, but can also be dangerous. Sideshows can…

Erik Chalhoub here. The first time I watched Alfred Hitchcock’s Vertigo, I was pleasantly surprised to see a shot of the eucalyptus trees on Highway 101 near San Juan Bautista. It amazed me how little the scene, just a stone’s…

GONZALES — Gonzales Fire Department has received a grant totaling $42,933 from the California Office of Traffic Safety (OTS) to purchase new extrication equipment.

MONTEREY COUNTY — Effective Nov. 4, the burn permit suspension in San Benito and Monterey counties has been lifted.

In recent months the city of Salinas has seen an increase in pedestrian fatalities, including the death of a 3-year-old in July, after a driver ran a red light on East Alisal Street. Anecdotally, residents report more jaywalking, groups of…

As the pandemic spotlighted, access to the internet is no longer a luxury but a necessity. From health care and online banking to education and disaster communication, much of everyday life requires being online.

Gary Griggs, UCSC Distinguished Professor of Earth Sciences tells us about his new book, California Catastrophes: The Natural Disaster History of the Golden State, about the history of disasters in our state and what we can expect in the future.

Flu season is here once again, which means everyone six months old and up is eligible for a flu shot.

The path to developing anything locally is littered with pitfalls and often unforeseen challenges, particularly if the proposed project is on the former Fort Ord. That being the case, sometimes plans change, as they did Sept. 19 when Seaside City…

On a hot day it's only natural to want to head to the beach to cool off. That's apparently as true for mountain lions as it is for humans. One mountain lion made its way through Pacific Grove on Wednesday,…

Erik Chalhoub here. As a 20-year North County resident, a dozen of those covering the area for various outlets, I’ve heard all the talk and witnessed the delays and inaction when it came to the sorely needed rebuild of the…

KING CITY — In a continued effort to bolster public safety, King City is offering a grant program designed to help residents offset the costs of installing security cameras at their homes.

CENTRAL COAST — In a significant boost to wildfire prevention efforts, the City of Greenfield has been awarded $189,263 in grant funding through Cal Fire’s Wildfire Prevention Grants Program as part of a larger initiative aimed at enhancing wildfire resilience …