SACRAMENTO – Nearly 12,000 firefighters are battling nearly two dozen major fires and complexes across California. Overnight firefighters continued to make progress despite extreme weather conditions. Since the lightning siege started on Saturday, August 15, 2020 there have been nearly 12,000 lightning strikes. During this time-period, there have been more than 560 new wildfires, most of which have been contained ...

SACRAMENTO – California has experienced an unprecedented lightening siege that has resulted in approximately 11,000 lightning strikes up and down the state resulting in more than 370 new fires. There are approximately 10,000 firefighters who are aggressively fighting these fires currently and Governor Gavin Newsom has declared a statewide emergency, calling for additional equipment and personal to fight the fires ...

MADERA COUNTY MOUNTAIN COMMUNITIES – The Madera County Sheriff’s Office (MCSO) Search and Rescue (SAR) has been very busy! On Saturday, Aug. 15, they performed three back-to-back rescues in the Madera County mountain communities. Search and rescue is strenuous even under the best of circumstances and working in extreme conditions (especially with the recent heat wave) creates even more pressure ...

 NATIONAL – According to the latest data provided by the Better Business Bureau (BBB), the Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3), and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), 80% of money being lost by individuals over 65 is due to lottery, sweepstakes, and prize schemes. An in-depth investigative study on lottery and sweepstakes schemes was conducted in June of 2018 by the ...

SAN FRANCISCO — Tuesday, Aug. 11, was National Safe Digging Day, serving as a reminder to PG&E customers, contractors and anyone digging to call 811 a minimum of two business days prior to starting any digging project, no matter how large or small. Dialing 811 is a free service, and utility workers will mark the location of any underground lines, ...

MADERA — As families and schools prepare for online learning, all Madera County Library locations continue offering curbside services for the community. Patrons can place holds on books, DVDs, and other materials via the library’s mobile app, online catalog, or by phone. Staff will prepare items and contact patrons with instructions and scheduled times for contactless curbside checkout. ‘Grab bags’ ...

MARIPOSA — Two John C. Fremont Healthcare District’s staff members have tested positive for COVID-19. Our Infection Control department has conducted contact tracing with support from the Mariposa County Health & Human Services Agency. Staff members identified as close contacts have been placed into quarantine. All staff, including the COVID-19 confirmed staff member, have worn face masks, performed hand hygiene ...

Madera – Madera County Department of Public Health (MCDPH) will be holding two Facebook Live Events this week: Tuesday, July 21st in English and Thursday, July 23rd in Spanish from 6-7pm. Join Sara Bosse, Public Health Director and Dr. Simon Paul, Public Health Officer as they provide an update on COVID-19 and discuss important and commonly requested topics such as: ...

OAKHURST — During these unprecedented times, Sierra Tel knows that many families are working from home, students are participating in on-line school programs, and many of our customers are temporarily unemployed. To help ease the economic hardship our customers are incurring, we will be discounting the DSL internet service portion of your bill by 25% for the months of June ...

OAKHURST — The California Highway Patrol has announced that beginning this week, the Oakhurst area office’s VIN officers will be accepting appointments for VIN (vehicle identification number) inspections. Mountain area residents in need of a VIN verification may call the CHP office (658-6590) Monday through Friday during regular business hours to schedule an inspection. “We will have safety protocols during ...