MADERA/MARIPOSA COUNTIES – Recent rains and cooler temperatures across the region have lowered the threat of wildfires allowing Cal Fire’s Madera-Mariposa-Merced Unit (MMU) to transition out of fire season effective Monday, Dec.15, at 8 a.m. in Madera, Mariposa and Merced Counties. Cal Fire MMU Chief Nancy Koerperich reminds citizens that this has been an especially devastating fire season for our ...

MADERA COUNTY – After a notice went out from the Sheriff’s Office yesterday concerning a U-Haul type truck possibly scoping out neighborhoods to steal UPS packages left on people’s doorsteps, Oakhurst resident Ron Fisherman was shocked to receive a message from a friend telling him that his truck was being considered the suspect vehicle.

MADERA COUNTY – Late this afternoon, the Sheriff’s Office received a call about a suspicious U-Haul truck that appears to be canvassing neighborhoods, looking for packages left on doorsteps. The truck was seen at around noon on Monday, Dec. 15, on Little Lake Road in Oakhurst. According to the Sheriff’s Office, there were two white males inside the truck. One ...

YOSEMITE – The Tioga and Glacier Point Roads in Yosemite National Park are closed for the season because of deep snow and icy conditions. A series of storm systems have passed through the Yosemite region over the last several weeks, resulting in snow accumulations of up to two feet of snow in the higher elevations of the park, including Tuolumne ...

Submitted by Kristi Winter Yosemite High School has won the 2014-2015 Honorable Edward P. Moffat Madera County Mock Trial held on December 9, 10, and 11. Yosemite High School battled Liberty, Madera, and Dos Palos High Schools. “It was a highly competitive event and we are proud of all of our teams,” said Cecilia Massetti, Madera County Superintendent of Schools. ...

OAKHURST – Sheriff John Anderson was honored today by a room full of Citizens on Patrol (COPs) Volunteers – one of many programs he created as Sheriff, and one of numerous programs for which he will be best remembered when he retires next month. Forty volunteers surprised Sheriff Anderson with private farewell luncheon at El Cid in Oakhurst.

MADERA COUNTY – The Sheriff’s Office is asking for the public’s help in locating a wanted man who has eluded capture and led police on several high-speed chases. This morning, the Sheriff’s Office posted this booking photo from February 2014 on their Facebook page, titled, “Wanted Wednesday.” Brandunn Wilson, 20, is known to frequent both Fresno and North Fork. He ...

CALIFORNIA – As a major winter storm prepares to hit California, Cal Fire is reminding residents to take steps to heat their homes safely. While the cooler weather and rain is a welcomed event during a time of severe drought in California, it also means that many will need to turn on home heating sources to keep warm indoors. Cal ...

OAKHURST – A brazen burglary at the Sears Home Store in Oakhurst last week has ended with two arrests and the recovery of two stolen vehicles. Keith Lundy Stump, 22, of Oakhurst, who is on active probation out of Fresno County, and Cherise Agueros, 21, of Ahwahnee, were arrested last week in Ahwahnee, after a CHP officer saw the pair ...

SIERRA NATIONAL FOREST – On November 22 and 23, a group of volunteers with the Upper Merced Watershed Council and the Sierra National Forest Trailshots crew worked together to improve trail conditions on the South Fork Merced Trail in the Hite’s Cove area. Under the supervision of Trailshots Trail Leader, Andrew Fish, the group cleared brush and used rock bars ...