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Armed arsonist caught on video using accelerant to start fire at Orange County business

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:58:10 GMT

Authorities in Orange County on Wednesday announced that they’re seeking the public’s help in identifying an armed man captured on surveillance video using an accelerant to start and spread a fire inside an auto parts business.  The incident occurred on Mar. 20, at approximately 3:30 a.m., in the 1000 block of East 6th Street in Santa Ana, according to a news release from the Orange County Fire Authority.  Surveillance video shows the suspected arsonist, armed with a handgun, enter an office with desks and computers against the wall at Freeway Auto Parts.  After looking around, he picks up a blue and white container and examines it. Moments later, the man tucks the gun in his waistband and begins pouring the unknown accelerant out of the container across the top of the desks.  The fire department received a call not long after that, with initial reports saying the building was engulfed in flames.  OCFA Capt. Brian Abney said it only took firefighters 11 minutes t...

Photos: Tornado touches down in Montebello, leaves damage in its wake

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:58:10 GMT

A tornado touched down in Montebello Wednesday, leaving extensive damage in its wake. Video from Sky5, residents and motorists alike showed the damaged roofs and debris swirling around during the rare weather event. ‘Craziest thing I’ve ever seen’: Tornado damages buildings in Montebello The tornado was reported a few minutes before 11:30 a.m. and firefighters responded to the 1200 block of South Vail Street. Here are some images of the destruction left behind. A roof in Montebello was damaged by a reported tornado on March 22, 2023. (KTLA) A roof in Montebello was damaged by a reported tornado on March 22, 2023. (KTLA) A roof in Montebello was damaged by a reported tornado on March 22, 2023. (KTLA) A roof in Montebello was damaged by a reported tornado on March 22, 2023. (KTLA) A roof in Montebello, California was damaged by a reported tornado on March 22, 2023. (KTLA) A tree toppled over a vehicle during a suspected tornado in Montebello on March 22, 2023. (Gurgot Singh) Debris...

Woman attacked at memorial of East Bay homicide victim by group who blamed her for fatal shooting

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:58:10 GMT

ASHLAND — Alameda County prosecutors have filed felony charges against a man who allegedly participated in the group beating of a woman who suffered a broken jaw as she visited the memorial of a January homicide victim, court records show.The defendant, a 37-year-old Alameda County resident, was charged March 9 with battery involving serious bodily injury. He was also charged in connection with a November 2022 armed carjacking, court records show. On March 10, he pleaded not guilty to all charges and remains out of custody while the case is pending.The victim was assaulted Feb. 2 as she visited a memorial for Lamar Converse, 35, of Ashland. Just days earlier, Converse had been fatally shot near E. 14th Street and 166th Avenue in Ashland, an unincorporated area of Alameda County.According to police, as the woman stood next to Converse’s memorial, she was accosted by a group of women and one man who blamed her for the fatal shooting. Several of them identified themselves a...

Witnesses sought in fatal Palo Alto crash

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:58:10 GMT

PALO ALTO – Police are looking for witnesses to a collision that left an elderly pedestrian dead earlier this week in Palo Alto.The crash was reported around 10:25 a.m. Monday at Charleston Road and Commercial Street, the Palo Alto Police Department said in a statement. Officers and firefighters arrived to find the pedestrian, a man in his 80s, unconscious in the roadway.The man was taken to a hospital, where he died Tuesday. The Santa Clara County Medical Examiner-Coroner’s Office will release his identity once it is confirmed and his next of kin is notified.Police said an investigation revealed that a driver, a man in his 60s, hit the pedestrian with his 2002 Ford F-150 while making a right turn onto Charleston Road from westbound Commercial Street. The pedestrian was in an unmarked crosswalk at the time.The impact caused the pedestrian to fall over backward and hit his head on the ground, police said. The driver called 911; he also remained at the scene and cooperated with the in...

“They let us down”: California flooding victims demand answers as town hall devolves into shouting match

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:58:10 GMT

WATSONVILLE — Nearly two weeks after a levee failure forced hundreds of families in the small Monterey County community of Pajaro to leave their homes in the middle of the night, both county officials and residents are demanding answers for why federal assistance promised by the governor has yet to materialize.At a heated town hall meeting Tuesday, county authorities told Pajaro residents that emergency evacuation orders could be lifted by the end of the week and that they are “hoping” evacuees will be able to return starting Friday. Still, the meeting quickly devolved into a shouting match as residents excoriated officials over a lack of information, miscommunication and a failure to deliver the financial aid they need to rebuild their lives.“What else do you want or how else do you want me to ask you? Do you want me to get on my knees and beg?” evacuee Elba Carrillo said to officials, through tears, as she and about a dozen others surrounded Monterey ...

San Francisco hit hard by deadly wind storm

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:58:10 GMT

SAN FRANCISCO (KRON) -- Fierce wind gusts blew into San Francisco and a deadly March storm toppled hundreds of trees, sent broken glass shattering down from skyscrapers, stirred up unusually big waves in the bay, and shut down both the Third Street Bridge and the Bay Bridge. The brunt of the storm hit Tuesday afternoon. Two victims died after they were struck by falling trees in separate parts of the city. The Chief Medical Examiner identified the victims as Ryan Taylor, 36, of Clark County, Nevada, and Qiaoying Han, 55, of San Francisco. On Wednesday, city crews were out assessing, repairing, and cleaning up damages."We saw areas of significant damage, as well as dangerous conditions caused by falling glass and downed trees. Tragically, two people lost their lives, which is a grave reminder of how serious and dangerous this storm became," Mayor London Breed said. Mission Street remained blocked off Wednesday due to windows broken on floors 11-30 at Salesforce east building and the ...

World Baseball Classic keeps growing despite injury risks

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:58:10 GMT

MIAMI (AP) — Shohei Ohtani’s strikeout of Mike Trout, Trea Turner’s go-ahead, eighth-inning grand slam against Venezuela, Japan’s walk-off semifinal win and Mexico’s comeback from a four-run deficit against Puerto Rico will be replayed over and over.Edwin Díaz’s season-ending knee injury and Jose Altuve’s broken finger will be discussed all year, too.This year’s World Baseball Classic left lasting memories, 47 games over two weeks that restored Japan’s supremacy and reinforced Ohtani’s unmatched ability while expanding the sport’s global footprint. While not an international fixation like soccer’s World Cup, the event has grown though its five editions since launching in 2006.“This is kind of our Olympics. We don’t get that opportunity to really play wherever the Olympics are at,” Kyle Schwarber said before the Americans lost to Japan 3-2 in Tuesday night’s final, when Ohtani fanned Trout to seal Japan’s first title since 2009 and third overall. Baseball is no longer a permane...

Rising floodwaters lead to more evacuation orders in Arizona

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:58:10 GMT

SEDONA, Ariz. (AP) — Some evacuation orders were lifted while others remained Wednesday as heavy rains began to dissipate in northern Arizona, but flooding threats lingered.Yavapai County Sheriff’s Office officials said residents in Sedona could go home after determining that Oak Creek waters had gone down enough but said they should still be prepared to evacuate if needed. Nearby in Cornville, people at lower ground along Oak Creek were also told to consider evacuating or be ready to.Meanwhile, residents in one area of Camp Verde were told to evacuate because of flooding in low-lying areas along the Verde River. A shelter has been set up.For the past two days, authorities have said rising floodwaters have made some neighborhoods in the Sedona and Cottonwood areas unsafe. Evacuations also were ordered for portions of Black Canyon City, including an RV park, along the Agua Fria River in Yavapai County.The National Weather Service in Flagstaff said Wednesday afternoon that even though...

Gonzaga’s Timme, UCLA’s Jaquez to meet one more time

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:58:10 GMT

LAS VEGAS (AP) — Drew Timme and Jaime Jaquez Jr. grew up in different states, yet often came across each other at AAU tournaments, sometimes as roommates.The two fancy-footworking forwards with fantastic facial hair will be reunited Thursday night in the desert, when Gonzaga meets UCLA in the NCAA Tournament’s West Region semifinals.“We’ve just kind of grown up at the end of our careers together and just to kind of see him from afar, it’s awesome to see,” Timme said Wednesday.Since those early high school days, Timme and Jaquez have become the focal points for the West’s two powerhouse programs.The 6-foot-11 Timme has been one of the nation’s best big men during his time in Spokane, Washington, leading the Zags to four of their eight straight Sweet 16 appearances, including the 2021 national title game.Timme’s impeccable footwork, multitude of up-fakes, soft touch and basketball smarts have made him a near-impossible matchup for opposing defenses. He’s ...

India police seek Sikh leader, arrest separatist supporters

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:58:10 GMT

NEW DELHI (AP) — Indian police are searching for a separatist leader who has revived calls for an independent Sikh homeland, stirring fears of violence in northwestern Punjab state where there’s a history of bloody insurgency.Police have accused Amritpal Singh, a 30-year-old preacher, and his aides of creating discord in the state, which is haunted by the memories of an armed insurgency in the 1980s for an independent Sikh state called Khalistan. The insurgency had prompted a controversial military operation by the Indian government that killed thousands of people, according to official estimates. Authorities have deployed thousands of paramilitary soldiers to the state and suspended mobile internet services in some areas to prevent unrest, Sukhchain Singh Gill, the inspector general of police for Punjab, said Wednesday. He said police have so far arrested 154 supporters of Singh and seized 10 guns and ammunition.Singh has been on the run since the search for him began on Satu...