Month: September 2011

More than 80 rescue workers from across Riverside County gathered for a large-scale training exercise Wednesday hosted by the Morongo Band of Mission Indians, marking the first time members from a tribal emergency services unit were involved in such a drill. The exercise by the Countywide HAZMAT Operations Group (CHOG) simulated a chemical leak from

Riverside County sheriff’s are investigating the chain of events that led to a deadly shooting just south of Desert Hot Springs on Tuesday. Deputies responded to a call reporting a domestic disturbance shortly before 2 p.m. at a home on the 15500 block of Avenida Mirola, which is just north of Dillon and in between

The string of unplanned electric grid shutdowns that blacked out the southern Coachella Valley this month was first exacerbated when a power plant in Baja California protectively shut down, it was reported today. The San Diego Union-Tribune quoted California officials who said the first power generating station to shut down after an equipment failure in

Services will be held next week for Palm Springs philanthropist and local television station owner Jackie Lee Houston, the station said today. Houston will be remembered Sept. 23 at 4 p.m. at the Palm Springs Convention Center, and her family asked for donations to one of many charities she supported, in lieu of flowers. Palm

The Southern California Gas Company shut gas service down for the shopping center at the corner of Country Club and Cook Street on Thursday after a leak was reported. Cal Fire and Riverside County firefighters report the 1-inch gas line was ruptured around 10:30 a.m. Construction crews were repaving portions of Cook Street, although it’s

The University of California, Riverside, was listed 97th in U.S. News and World Report’s ranking — released today — of the best universities in the United States. UC Riverside tied in the 97th spot with the University of San Diego, Iowa State University in Ames, and Texas Christian University in Fort Worth. Harvard cliched the

One of the Coachella Valley’s most-known and perhaps most-loved philanthropists, Jackie Lee Houston, has passed away at the age of 76. Her death was announced by the City of Palm Springs in a mass e-mail alert on Wednesday. Houston died after a long fight with Pancreatic Cancer at Eisenhower Medical Center on Wednesday morning with

California Highway Patrol officers sent out a travel advisory on Tuesday, advising drivers in the Coachella Valley of places they need to avoid after Monday night’s thunderstorms. Here are the latest closures affecting area streets: * Adams Street near Highway 111 in La Quinta was shutdown at around 5:30 p.m. on Tuesday by the La

Hundreds of seismologists and students have gathered in Palm Springs to answer one question: what’s shaking? The annual convention of the Southern California Earthquake Center gives experts in the field of natural disasters to share knowledge and new findings about earthquake activity in Southern California. The convention also helps these experts learn ways to communicate

San Bernardino County sheriff’s deputies fanned out to help find an 8 year old boy who vanished from the school playground on Monday morning. In a news release sent out shortly after the manhunt began, deputies said Joshua Robb was last seen playing at Grandview Elementary School at around 11 a.m. and didn’t return to

According to records kept by the Federal Communications Commission, KESQ-TV is one of the oldest television stations in the Palm Springs area. KESQ-TV first went on air as KPLM-TV in 1968. KPLM-TV was named for the “Palm” as in “Palm Springs,” and it changed call letters in late 1979 to KESQ-TV under ownership of Esquire

Gulf California Broadcast Company, the parent company of KESQ News Channel 3, KDFX Fox 11, KBCW CW 5, KUNA-TV Telemundo 15 and La Poderosa 96.7FM, along with KESQ.com and KUNAmundo.com, is your one-stop shop to target potential customers in the Coachella Valley and high desert areas! With a multi-platform, multi-language plan that utilizes the best

There will be no more long drives to Ontario, Los Angeles or San Diego for those desert residents who like to play ice hockey or practice figure skating. Ice hockey in the desert has returned. The Desert Ice Castle officially opens its doors Friday, and people hit the rink almost as soon the the ribbon

Power was back on today in areas of eastern and southwestern Riverside County that went dark because of a historic blackout that left some 5 million people without electricity from Mexico to southern Orange County. But some east valley schools were set to remain closed Friday because of the outage. Tens of thousands of Imperial

Henry Sandoz of Yucca Mesa, Calif., is the latest recipient of the Medal of Merit given by Veterans of Foreign Wars during their annual convention in San Antonio last week. “I kind of teared up, and I don’t tear up easy,” said Sandoz, who was recognized for his commitment to the Mojave Cross Memorial. “The

California lawmakers passed a law allowing landlords to ban smoking in rental properties. The law doesn’t force landlords to prohibit smoking in their buildings, but it gives them the choice to make their properties smoke-free. One renter, Don Vallier, said he thinks this is unfair. “It just kind of takes away your rights, just one

A massive power outage caused by a tripped wire hit a wide area of Southern California on Thursday afternoon exposing millions of people to the summer heat. The outage affects residents of the Coachella Valley, Orange County, San Diego County, parts of Mexico, Arizona and possibly New Mexico. The California Independent System Operator released a