MADERA COUNTY – You probably never give much thought to ambulances – that is until you need one, or see one go screaming by and wonder where it might be headed. Fortunately, the folks at Sierra Ambulance give a great deal of thought and attention to making sure their vehicles are always ready to go at a moment’s notice.

MADERA & MARIPOSA COUNTIES – Madera County Sheriff John Anderson and Mariposa County Sheriff Doug Binnewies are both offering the public the opportunity to prevent pill abuse and theft by ridding their homes of potentially dangerous, expired, unused or unwanted prescription drugs in a safe manner. The service is free and anonymous, no questions asked.

MADERA COUNTY – Alfredo Morales, 32, of Hanford, was sentenced to a lengthy prison sentence this week for felony battery on a domestic partner and for causing the victim great bodily injury, according to Madera County District Attorney Michael Keitz. The evidence presented at trial, showed that deputies were dispatched to a residence in a south county area near Highway ...

OAKHURST – A fire that started behind the Oakhurst Community Park on Sunday, Sept. 29, may have put up a lot of smoke, but was quickly extinguished by those on the scene. Around 8 p.m., a full wildland fire dispatch was called up when reports came in of a fire burning near the river in Oakhurst. Those first on the ...

MARIPOSA – On Saturday, Sept. 28, just after midnight, a verbal fight broke out on 5th Street near Highway 140 in the town of Mariposa, leading to the arrest of one of those involved. The altercation was between two small groups of people. One group of Mariposa County residents were conversing outside of the Pizza Factory and the second group, ...

NORTH FORK – Madera County residents are being invited to participate in a quick, online survey to help frame the economic development of our communities. On Tuesday Oct. 1, the North Fork Chamber of Commerce in partnership with Fresno State University and Yosemite/Sequoia Resource Conservation & Development Council(YSRC&DC), will launch its first ever county-wide research study to analyze consumer behaviors ...

MARIPOSA COUNTY – Another illegal marijuana grow was eradicated on Friday, Sept. 27, in the Hell’s Hollow area near Bagby in Mariposa County. Mariposa County Sheriff Deputies, assisted by Yosemite National Park Rangers and a Cal Fire Prevention Officer, descended on a garden which appeared to be tied to a Drug Trafficking Operation (DTO), possibly a Mexican-based Cartel.

Submitted by the artists Camille Fisher and Kaitlyn FisherSierra Art Trails 2013 Catalog # 64 and # 65 Camille Fisher (artist #64) is a creative, bright and lovely 9-year-old student at Oakhurst Elementary School (OES). She incorporates color playfully into her work, which is greatly inspired by her love of the natural sciences and by many generations of artists in ...

YOSEMITE LAKES PARK – A YLP resident had a rude awakening in the early morning hours of Thursday, Sept. 26, when a car crashed into the side of his house. Shortly before 2 a.m., Austin Tucker, 20, of Coarsegold, was southbound on Revis Drive at what witnesses say was a high rate of speed.

TUOLUMNE COUNTY – The numbers listed of structures lost on the Rim Fire are just data to some. But for Donn Harter of Fish Camp, one of those structures consumed by the fire was his boyhood home along the south fork of the Tuolumne River. “When I saw this photo go up on the news, I said ‘that’s my little ...