OAKHURST – Sierra National Forest (SNF) fire officials will implement their winter/spring prescribed burning program over the next five months within the Bass Lake Ranger District, the agency announced this week. This season’s projects are on Sugar Pine, Double-gate, Lone Sequoia, Timberloft, Greys Mountain and Cedar Valley as well as administrative sites at Batterson, Jerseydale and Clearwater stations. The total ...

OAKHURST — After getting dozens of complaints last week about traffic problems on Highway 41 following the start of a months-long project to replace more than a mile of the town’s main sewer line, District 5 Supervisor Tom Wheeler and members of the County’s public works department met with officials from Caltrans and the project contractor to make some late ...

NORTH FORK — An engine fire torched a 22-year-old North Fork man’s 1987 Jeep Cherokee Sunday morning. The incident occurred about 9:15 a.m. in the parking lot of La Cabana restaurant, which was closed at the time. Local firefighters quickly extinguished the blaze but the vehicle was a total loss. The driver told first responders that he was going north ...

I finally had a window between house projects, weather and commitments to escape, so Sally and I loaded up the camper and headed to Moss Landing. Just north of Monterey, it was the perfect place to relax and smell that ocean air. As soon as I checked in at the KOA and got the camper set up, there was a ...

MOUNTAIN AREA — Sierra News Online is looking to grow our network of local correspondents. Are you a good storyteller who can also write clear, concise reports about community events and area news makers? Or maybe you shoot a good photo and would like to take your photography to the photojournalism level? If you live in the mountain community and ...

BASS LAKE — The Madera County Sheriff’s Office “snow patrol” stayed active as the long, Martin Luther King Day weekend — and abundant recent snowfall — drew throngs of visitors to the high country. MCSO Corporal Ian Roth and Deputy Jose Iniguez spent their holiday weekend teaming with U.S. Forest Service Law Enforcement Officer Melissa Wise conducting OHV (off highway ...

By Ryan Abner, student journalist for Minarets Press O’NEALS — It’s film season at Minarets High School. Known for its outstanding film making, tech and media programs, which have garnered praise at Slickrock and other California media festivals, it’s no surprise that the high school now has a film festival of its own. The Southgate Film Festival has been a ...

By Therese Righter O’NEALS — We have all been touched by the horrible disease — cancer. It is unrelenting, and nobody wants to hear the word uttered by their doctor. Fortunately, there is a way that you can help fight this ugly disease — join the 2020 Relay for Life: Sierra Mountain Communities for a Cure event, and help us ...

SAN FRANCISCO — The United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit will hear oral arguments next month in the appeal currently blocking efforts by the North Fork Rancheria of Mono Indians to build a casino near Madera. A court date has been set for Tuesday, February 11 at 9:30 a.m. in Courtroom 1 of the James R. Browning ...

MADERA — Madera County Sheriff’s Office Corporal Amy Roussell was awarded the prestigious 2019 Chairman’s Culture of Excellence Award by the Madera County Board of Supervisors at Tuesday’s (Jan. 7) first board meeting of 2020. Corporal Roussell was recognized for her outstanding work overseeing the boat operations unit in Bass Lake. Roussell, a long time Madera County resident, is assigned ...