Coachella Valley air quality has diminished dramatically since the end of August due to the impacts of Tropical Storm Hilary. Local experts now say they are worried about the valley’s wind-borne dust problem, which has intensified since the storm, and whether this could become a permanent hazard to our health and local economy. Riverside County Supervisor Manuel Perez
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It was a dramatic 911 call during Tropical Storm Hilary. An emergency dispatcher’s “Hello” was answered by a caller’s panic. A man shouting, “The house is getting flooded!” That call in Cathedral City August got through despite traditional 911 connections being down throughout the Coachella Valley during the height of the storm. We all know to
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The Coachella Valley has seen a rise in smash-and-grab robberies in the past five years. Shop owners and employees are on guard as the threat of violence and theft is very real. In Karen Devine’s I-team report “Smash and Grab Crackdown” she uncovers what desert cities and law enforcement are doing to deter big
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The City of La Quinta’s long-delayed TALUS luxury resort development remains in limbo as money troubles continue to plague the Robert Green Company project. Formerly known as SilverRock, TALUS missed the city’s latest 60-day mid-July deadline to secure its financing and present a plan to move forward with construction. Without a financing breakthrough, the project could be headed toward litigation. It’s a topic
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Approximately 19,000 students are bused to and from classrooms each day on school buses around the Coachella Valley, and an I-team investigation reveals the information every parent or guardian needs to know about the safety and maintenance of those buses. All three local school districts earned ‘satisfactory’ marks on their two most recent California Highway Patrol Terminal Inspections. However, CHP
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Students are returning to classrooms around the Coachella Valley this month as our summertime desert temperatures remain well-embedded in the triple digits. For parents with children who ride school buses to and from school each day, concerns about hot buses have long been a reality. Those who ride school buses at the start and end of their
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Local school districts are about to start the new year and one of their big challenges is making sure they have enough teachers. There is a teacher shortage nationwide, and especially in California. There will be more than 250 new teachers on the job in the Coachella Valley’s three school districts this fall, after months
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Our extensive coverage on the fentanyl crisis continues with some explosive new information from the Riverside County Sheriff’s Office. So far this year, there have been more fentanyl-related deaths in the Coachella Valley than in any other part of Riverside County. I-Team Reporter Karen Devine speaks with the people on the front lines of the fentanyl fight
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It’s marketed as a dietary supplement to help you relax. But it’s also highly addictive, and in some cases, deadly. The street name is “gas station heroin,” and as News Channel 3’s Peter Daut uncovered, it’s very easy to get. The capsules are sold under names like “Zaza Red,” “Pegasus,” and “Tianna.” The drug is
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An I-Team Investigation reveals developers still cannot say precisely when La Quinta’s Talus resort development, formerly known as SilverRock, will get the money needed to complete its construction. Construction crews have made little progress on the main resort since last summer. And the city has now issued a 60-day deadline. The Robert Green Company promises
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The debate over racial reparations continues to intensify in Palm Springs. It’s centered on one square mile of land known as Section 14 next to downtown Palm Springs which was cleared for new development over 50 years ago. The attorney representing Section 14 families and their descendants pointed out that Palm Springs apologized for its role in the
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KESQ News Channel 3 has been awarded a regional Edward R. Murrow Award in the category of Excellence in Diversity, Equity and Inclusion. The honor recognizes the story “I-Team Investigates: Water Woes.” The Murrow Awards are presented by Radio Television Digital News Association (RTDNA), “the world’s largest professional organization devoted exclusively to broadcast and digital journalism.”
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Riverside County District Attorney Mike Hestrin says weak California laws are partially to blame for an epidemic killing people right here in Riverside County. Reporter Karen Devine’s I-Team Investigation shows how severe the problem is and asks what it will take to make changes to this “Fatal Flaw.” Jennifer Loza of Bermuda Dunes lost her
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In an I-team investigation, a local wastewater treatment district is backing off plans to raise customer rates dramatically. “On this proposal, we had out, that is completely out,” said Debra Canero who serves as Board President of the Valley Sanitary District. The district’s 400 percent rate hike is postponed indefinitely, according to a release issued Thursday afternoon. That was
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An I-Team investigation reveals College of the Desert paid more than a million dollars in digital ransom to recover data after a 2020 malware attack. And as KESQ News Channel 3 has extensively reported the college suffered another malware attack this past summer. That second July attack may have compromised the personal data of hundreds
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It’s becoming harder than ever to find a place for people to call their own. Rising costs have made home ownership, or an apartment, too expensive for more people struggling to deal with higher costs for everything. An I-Team in-depth report shows how some local cities are doing more than others to increase the number
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Some Coachella Valley homeowners and communities are saving water and meeting new state-mandated water conservation targets by taking a number of dramatic actions to avoid costly drought fines. But in an I-Team In-depth report, some higher-than-expected monthly bills from the Coachella Valley Water District, or CVWD, are taking customers by surprise. Jeff Stahl spoke with
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Human trafficking is a $150 billion industry, it’s happening worldwide including right here in the Coachella Valley. In Tonight’s I-Team Investigation: Trafficked and Terrified, hear firsthand from a woman forced into the sex trade for more than a decade, and how a county task force is now working to rescue and save the lives of those
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Last Thursday’s massive haboob wind storm swept into the Coachella Valley from the east with little notice. It left a trail of dust and wind damage behind and fouled the air for more than a day. The damage to your good health from this event and this year’s numerous spring and summer wind storms can
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The Coachella Valley Association of Governments is moving ahead with new plans to build some short bridges and culverts through the Whitewater Wash on Indian Canyon Drive along with two other major roadway connectors. The idea is to keep the roads open and clear of sand and flood waters. Feb. 2019 photo of Indian Canyon
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