San Benito County Public Safety Digest

The invasive Aedes aegypti mosquitos have been detected in more areas of Santa Clara County, prompting officials to hold meetings to discuss their response to the threat posed by the species. 

At a CalMatters event, California’s insurance commissioner says the changes he’s making will help homeowners and business owners. One idea: A state grant for those who spend money to protect their property from wildfires.

H5N1 bird flu has been reported in three California dairy herds.

Inland communities with big population booms will experience the most extreme heat days under climate change projections. The combination puts more people at risk — and many cities are unprepared.

CalFire received the first of five planes promised by the federal government, a former Coast Guard C-130 Hercules air tanker.

Early warning systems save lives during disasters, but a recent FEMA survey found that only a third of people are signed up. Use this resource to find your county’s emergency alert sign-up page.

The chemical, used for decades, can harm babies’ developing brains. Farmworkers and people living near fields are most at risk. The EPA issued a rare emergency order.

So many intense wildfires all at once require an intricate chess game for maneuvering firefighters and equipment around the U.S.

About 80 Californians die every year after contracting Valley fever, a fungal disease that typically affects the lungs. A recent outbreak was traced to a music festival in Kern County.

Whether they mean to or not, people are responsible for about 95% of the state’s wildfires. While arson accounts for about 10% of the fires, others can start in a myriad of ways.

In his 2018 campaign, Gov. Gavin Newsom said he would create 500,000 new apprenticeships in the decade after taking office. So far, the state has registered more than 180,000 new apprenticeships. Many of them are firefighters.

After years of delay, a new California regulation to protect indoor workers from extreme heat is now in effect.

The first two human cases of West Nile virus this season were reported in Yuba and Stanislaus Counties.

Assemblymember James Gallagher speaks during the floor session at the state Capitol in Sacramento on June 13, 2024. Photo by Cristian Gonzalez for CalMatters

Almost 400 suppliers, two-thirds in communities of color, don’t meet safety and reliability standards. Fixing them would cost billions.

Before the first official day of summer, almost 90,000 acres have been burned in California wildfires.

With multiple fires already burning in the state, forecasters predict the coming fire season will be "very active."

The California Coastal Conservancy and the California Department of Conservation have provided a $700,000 grant for local agencies to update their Community Wildfire Prevention Plans.

Planned Highway 101/25 interchange sound wall will cut off access to popular destination.

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.

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.

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.