Southern California should be prepared for rain and blustery conditions this week.
Residents can also expect to have a rainy New Year’s Eve and Day, with rainfall rates from a quarter to half an inch an hour predicted on Wednesday night into Thursday morning.
“The chances of a wet New Years Parade, and including the night before when people camp out before the parade, are extremely high, 80-90% at this point,” the weather service said in a Monday evening statement. “The last wet New Year’s parade was in 2006.”
Timeline
Tuesday: Windy conditions; chance of rain at night.
Wednesday: Rain chances intensify during day and into the night.
Thursday: Height of storm is Wednesday night through Thursday night.
Friday: 10-12% chance of rain.
Saturday: More rain possible.
Basics
This storm will not be intense as the one last week, which set records.
1-3 inches is expected in basin; 3-5 inches in the foothills and mountains.
Wind gusts could top 30-50 mph.
Useful heads up
When the ground’s already saturated, even moderate rain can change the risk quickly
Florida’s Chief Financial Officer, Blaise Ingoglia, announced a new legislative proposal on Thursday to make local government more accountable and transparent. According to Ingoglia, 11 local governments are projected to have spent $1.6 billion wastefully over the last year. Some of these include $190 million in Orange County, $112 million in Manatee County, $301 million in Miami, $344 million in Palm Beach County and $22 million in Orlando.Ingoglia said local governments are doing this to make excuses to raise property taxes. To protect taxpayers from excessive local government spending, Ingoglia proposed to formally establish the Florida Agency for Fiscal Oversight (FAFO) in state law.The CFO’s legislative proposal: Codifies the “Florida Agency for Fiscal Oversight” in Florida statute to increase accountability and transparency in local government and make this effort a long-term, permanent initiative. Requires both state and local government employees to complete FAFO training on how to report waste, fraud, and abuse. Requires each local government to submit an annual Financial Efficiency Report. Grants government employees, contractors, subcontractors, and taxpayers whistleblower protection if they contact DFS to report waste, fraud and abuse of taxpayer dollars. Allows DFS to pursue financial penalties from local governments if they don’t respond to inquiries promptly, including by withholding any state funds until they do. Obligates local governments to upload all government contracts into the state’s FACTS system or something similar that is searchable and indexed. Codifies the ability of Florida’s CFO to recommend the removal of any elected official who is found to have committed financial abuse, malfeasance or misfeasance. Requires DFS to audit local governments if they propose to raise taxes via referendum.”My legislative proposal will codify much-needed reforms that will positively impact future generations. Government grows when people stop watching, and bureaucrats stop caring. Through my proposal, we will ensure that someone is always watching how your hard-earned tax dollars are spent,” Ingoglia said in a new press release.
WINTER PARK, Fla. —
Florida’s Chief Financial Officer, Blaise Ingoglia, announced a new legislative proposal on Thursday to make local government more accountable and transparent.
According to Ingoglia, 11 local governments are projected to have spent $1.6 billion wastefully over the last year.
Some of these include $190 million in Orange County, $112 million in Manatee County, $301 million in Miami, $344 million in Palm Beach County and $22 million in Orlando.
Ingoglia said local governments are doing this to make excuses to raise property taxes.
To protect taxpayers from excessive local government spending, Ingoglia proposed to formally establish the Florida Agency for Fiscal Oversight (FAFO) in state law.
The CFO’s legislative proposal:
Codifies the “Florida Agency for Fiscal Oversight” in Florida statute to increase accountability and transparency in local government and make this effort a long-term, permanent initiative.
Requires both state and local government employees to complete FAFO training on how to report waste, fraud, and abuse.
Requires each local government to submit an annual Financial Efficiency Report.
Grants government employees, contractors, subcontractors, and taxpayers whistleblower protection if they contact DFS to report waste, fraud and abuse of taxpayer dollars.
Allows DFS to pursue financial penalties from local governments if they don’t respond to inquiries promptly, including by withholding any state funds until they do.
Obligates local governments to upload all government contracts into the state’s FACTS system or something similar that is searchable and indexed.
Codifies the ability of Florida’s CFO to recommend the removal of any elected official who is found to have committed financial abuse, malfeasance or misfeasance.
Requires DFS to audit local governments if they propose to raise taxes via referendum.
“My legislative proposal will codify much-needed reforms that will positively impact future generations. Government grows when people stop watching, and bureaucrats stop caring. Through my proposal, we will ensure that someone is always watching how your hard-earned tax dollars are spent,” Ingoglia said in a new press release.
Firefighters battle blaze at Orlando apartment complex; 7 residents displaced
WESH TWO NEWS STARTS NOW WITH BREAKING NEWS. GOOD MORNING EVERYONE. I’M ALAN CAMPBELL AND I’M MEREDITH MCDONOUGH. WE BEGIN WITH THAT BREAKING NEWS OF A FIRE IN ORLANDO. WESH TWO BOB HAZEN IS LIVE AT THE ROYAL ISLES APARTMENT COMPLEX NEAR SOUTH SEMORAN BOULEVARD. BOB. WHAT HAVE YOU LEARNED IN THE LAST 30 MINUTES? WE TALKED TO A YOUNG LADY WHO LIVES HERE, LIVES RIGHT UNDERNEATH THAT APARTMENT THAT CAUGHT ON FIRE, AND SHE SAYS SHE WAS ABLE TO GET OUT ALONG WITH HER FAMILY. AND AS FAR AS WE’VE HEARD RIGHT NOW, NO ONE HAS BEEN SERIOUSLY HURT IN THIS FIRE. I WANT TO SHOW YOU WHAT IT LOOKS LIKE HERE. THERE’S STILL SOME FIREFIGHTERS ON THE SCENE, BUT MOST OF THEM HAVE CLEARED OUT. THIS IS IN THE SECOND STORY OF THIS APARTMENT BUILDING HERE. THE ROYAL ISLES APARTMENT, AS YOU SAID, NEAR CIMARRON, RIGHT OFF OF ROBERTO CLEMENTE ROAD. AND I WANT TO SHOW YOU SOME VIDEO FROM OUR DRONE, TOO. WE’VE HAD THIS FLYING JUST A LITTLE WHILE AGO TO GET A BETTER LOOK AT WHAT THIS APARTMENT COMPLEX LOOKS LIKE NOW, AFTER THIS FIRE. AGAIN, THIS WAS ON A SECOND STORY UNIT. THE FIRE BROKE OUT A LITTLE AFTER 4:00 THIS MORNING. SO THE PEOPLE WE TALKED TO HERE SAID THAT THEY WERE SLEEPING WHEN THEY HEARD EVERYTHING START GOING CRAZY IN THE FIRE BURNING ABOVE THEIR APARTMENT. WE AGAIN, DON’T HAVE ANY WORD OF ANY PEOPLE BEING INJURED. BUT I ALSO WANT TO SHOW YOU SOME VIDEO THAT WE GOT FROM THE PEOPLE WHO LIVE HERE, WHERE YOU CAN ACTUALLY SEE THOSE FLAMES COMING OUT OF THE TOP OF THE BUILDING. AT THIS POINT, WE HAVEN’T HEARD ANYTHING FROM THE ORLANDO FIRE DEPARTMENT ABOUT WHAT MIGHT HAVE CAUSED THIS. OF COURSE, WE KNOW IT’S BEEN COLD WEATHER LATELY, SO THERE’S ALWAYS A POSSIBILITY THAT THERE WAS A SPACE HEATER OR SOME OTHER KIND OF HEATING MECHANISM USED TO TRY TO KEEP PEOPLE WARM IN THEIR APARTMENT. BUT AGAIN, NO WORD FROM ORLANDO FIRE DEPARTMENT YET ABOUT WHAT DID CAUSE THIS. WE DO KNOW THEY DO HAVE THEIR INVESTIGATORS HERE AT THE SCENE AT THIS POINT, INVESTIGATING WHAT DID SPARK THAT FIRE AT THIS APARTMENT BUILDING. BUT AGAIN, JUST ONE MORE TIME. THE GOOD NEWS IS NO WORD OF ANY SERIOUS INJURIES AFTER THIS FIRE AT THIS APARTMENT BUILDING EARLY THIS MORNING COV
Firefighters battle blaze at Orlando apartment complex; 7 residents displaced
The Orlando Fire Department battled an apartment fire on Thursday morning. The fire was reported at the Royal Isles apartment complex, located off Semoran Boulevard and Lake Underhill Road.Once crews arrived on scene, they found fire coming out of multiple second-floor windows of an apartment.A resident living under the unit that caught fire said that she was able to evacuate safely with her family. All occupants were out of the building before the OFD’s arrival.A video captured the moment the flames erupted from the apartment complex.The blaze caused significant damage to some units, but details about what prompted the fire were not revealed.Four occupants were treated for non-life-threatening medical complaints, according to OFD.Officials stated that seven occupants were displaced from two separate apartments due to the fire.
ORLANDO, Fla. —
The Orlando Fire Department battled an apartment fire on Thursday morning.
The fire was reported at the Royal Isles apartment complex, located off Semoran Boulevard and Lake Underhill Road.
Once crews arrived on scene, they found fire coming out of multiple second-floor windows of an apartment.
A resident living under the unit that caught fire said that she was able to evacuate safely with her family.
All occupants were out of the building before the OFD’s arrival.
A video captured the moment the flames erupted from the apartment complex.
The blaze caused significant damage to some units, but details about what prompted the fire were not revealed.
Four occupants were treated for non-life-threatening medical complaints, according to OFD.
Officials stated that seven occupants were displaced from two separate apartments due to the fire.
Police in Chesapeake identified a man who was shot to death early Thursday morning in the Deep Creek section of the city.
Just before 2:10 a.m., police officers responded to reports of gunshots in the 2900 block S. Military Highway, according to a release.
Officers found a man who had been shot, according to police. First aid was given, but he was pronounced dead at the scene.
He was identified Friday morning as 30-year-old Yhuri Vashon Brinkley, of Norfolk.
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No other information about the shooting has been released.
The department had previously asked that anyone with information about the shooting contact police on the Crime Line, 1-888-LOCK-U-UP, or by submitting a tip at p3tips.com.
A Los Angeles city councilmember has openly opposed Home Depot’s plans to open a new location at Eagle Rock Plaza, claiming the home improvement retailer has been complicit with immigration enforcement operations.
In an Instagram post, Councilmember Ysabel Jurado wrote, “Take your orange aprons somewhere else,” citing a raid that occurred Thursday morning at Westlake Home Depot, one of several at that location since June. Jurado’s district spans from downtown to El Sereno and Eagle Rock.
Home Depot plans to demolish the former Macy’s department store in Eagle Rock Plaza to make space for its new location, The Eastsider reported.
On Thursday, surveillance video obtained by The Times shows federal agents arriving in several vehicles across from the Home Depot and CARECEN Day Labor Center, and immediately running after people, including vendors and day laborers.
As people scattered, federal agents can be seen deploying tear gas.
A man who was apprehended and pinned to the ground by federal officials was punched in the face, according to a statement by the Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights.
“We are disturbed by what can only be described as an act of terror and indiscriminate roundup of Latino street vendors, day laborers, and people who were going about their daily lives,” the organization stated.
At least eight to 15 people were arrested during the operation, according to CHIRLA.
This specific home improvement store on Wilshire Boulevard and South Union Avenue has been the site of four immigration operations since June 6, including “Operation Trojan Horse,” in which half a dozen border patrol agents jumped out of a Penske truck and arrested 16 people.
These raids, Jurado said, “are part of a disturbing pattern across Los Angeles, with ICE repeatedly targeting Home Depot parking lots — common gathering spots for day laborers — without judicial warrants, in clear violation of people’s rights.”
In her post, the councilmember accused Home Depot of “remaining silent.”
“When your name becomes associated with terror and you refuse to speak, you are complicit,” the post read. “Home Depot has chosen power and profit over the working people who sustain it.”
In a statement to The Times, Home Depot spokesperson Sarah McDonald said the company isn’t notified of planned ICE operations and “we’re not requesting them.” In many cases the company doesn’t know arrests happen until after they’re over, she said.
“We’re required to follow all federal and local rules and regulations in every market where we operate,” McDonald said.
The Department of Homeland Security did not respond to the Times’ request for comment before publication.
Earlier this month, the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the lower court’s block on “roving patrols” across much of Southern California. The ruling maintains a temporary restraining order barring masked and heavily armed agents from snatching people off the streets without first establishing reasonable suspicion that they are in the U.S. without documentation.
The excessive use of force that occurred during Thursday’s raid “and apparent disregard of community safety standards by federal agents is deeply disturbing, may be a violation of the TRO currently in place, and must be investigated,” CHIRLA stated.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average and other major stock market indexes were in the red Thursday morning as a key inflation reading came in higher than expected in September.
The Consumer Price Index increased by 2.4% in September on an annual basis, according to data released Thursday by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. That was slightly above the 2.3% forecast. Month-over-month, prices rose 0.2% from August, also surpassing the expected 0.1% increase. Core CPI, which excludes volatile food and energy prices, rose 3.3% year-over-year, slightly higher than the expected 3.2%. On a monthly basis, core inflation climbed 0.3%, above projections of a 0.2% rise.
The data point to ongoing inflationary pressures on the U.S. economy, with attention now shifting to Friday’s release of the Producer Price Index (PPI), which will provide insight into wholesale inflation. Both data points will help inform the Federal Reserve’s next moves, including whether, how much and how fast to cut interest rates in the months ahead.
The Dow dropped 100 points, or 0.24%, to 42,411 shortly after markets opened Thursday. The tech-heavy Nasdaq and S&P 500 dipped 0.39% and 0.31%, respectively. Oil prices rose on Thursday, with West Texas Intermediate trading at $74 per barrel and Brent crude at $77 per barrel, both up 1.4%.
Elon Musk’s Tesla robotaxi reveal is finally here
Tesla (TSLA) CEO Elon Musk will finally unveil the company’s highly anticipated robotaxi on Thursday at Warner Bros. Studios (WBD) in Los Angeles. Dubbed “We, Robot,” the event is expected to provide a first look at a “Cybercab” prototype, along with a booking platform for owners and riders. There will be also an update to the company’s Full Self-Driving (FSD) technology, along with a production timeline.
Delta and Dominos fall on earnings
Domino’s Pizza (DPZ) posted its earnings report before the market opened, and its shares were down 2.9%. Delta Air Lines (DAL) stock was also down 2% after the release of its earnings report.
Blazing heat and increased wildfire risk will grip Southern California through the Fourth of July weekend and into early next week, with temperatures peaking above 115 degrees in desert areas Friday and forecasters issuing heat warnings and advisories throughout the region.
Extreme temperatures and gusty winds will also combine with dry conditions to create a high risk of new wildfires throughout the state as the Thompson fire continues to burn across more than 3,500 acres north of Sacramento.
“Tomorrow is going to be an absolute scorcher,” Joe Sirard, a meteorologist at the National Weather Service office in Oxnard, said Thursday morning. “It’s not your typical heat wave. This is a dangerous heat wave, this is a high-end heat wave. Very dangerous.”
Heat warnings were in place Thursday for much of L.A. County’s valleys and deserts as well as the Santa Monica Mountains.
Construction workers on a sidewalk improvement site toil as temperatures rose into the triple digits in Palmdale over the holiday.
(Brian van der Brug / Los Angeles Times)
The predicted highs for July 4 hovered around 106 degrees in the valleys, 103 in the lower mountains and 111 in desert areas, according to the National Weather Service. On Friday, temperatures are expected to soar as high as 110 to 112 degrees in the county’s valleys and mountains, and between 112 and 118 in the desert. The only parts of the county that aren’t experiencing extreme heat conditions, Sirard said, are coastal communities.
Officials advised Southern California residents to take precautions against exposure to high temperatures, which can elevate the risk of heatstroke and heat exhaustion. The National Weather Service called on people to stay in air-conditioned spaces during the day and early evening, stay hydrated, check on neighbors and the elderly and avoid strenuous outdoor activities.
“It’s just too hot,” Sirard said. “Just use common sense. It’s a dangerous heat wave and that’s why we have the heat warnings.”
Jacque McDonald, 39, drove with her husband and their two young children from their home in Tarzana to Hermosa Beach on Thursday morning to beat the high heat in the San Fernando Valley.
“We came here just because we know it’s going to be hot. I’m not about it,” McDonald said as crowds of people in bathing suits and sunglasses strolled by on the Strand and gray clouds helped keep the temperature down. “We have a pool at our complex, but we figured it would be packed. So we planned to come down here to the beach.”
Annie Seawright celebrates while being carried by people after winning the Hermosa Beach Ironman competition on July 4.
(Michael Blackshire / Los Angeles Times)
Just before noon, dozens of visitors shuffled down the dirt path at Eaton Canyon Natural Area, a popular L.A. County park in Altadena with a stream and a waterfall.
At the trail’s first water crossing, Mercedes Monje, 29, of Los Angeles sat along the bank with her partner and 2-year-old son splashing in the water while the rest of her family sat nearby. Monje said her family usually hits a beach or river on the Fourth of July.
They originally planned Thursday to go to the East Fork of the San Gabriel River. But when they arrived about 8 a.m., they were told by authorities that it was full.
“We’re a little bit disappointed that we couldn’t be where we actually had planned to go, but we’re trying to make the best out of it,” Monje said.
Meanwhile, the risk of wildfires is high in inland areas, as is the chance that even small fires could quickly become larger conflagrations, given the extreme conditions.
“We’re expecting high heat today, which increases the chances for fire growth,” said David Acuna, a Cal Fire battalion chief. Fire departments across California urged people to resist the temptation to celebrate the Fourth of July by shooting off fireworks that could spark new blazes.
In Butte County, the Thompson fire remained just 7% contained as of Thursday morning, Acuna said, though it had remained steady at 3,568 acres overnight. He said 1,962 personnel, 20 helicopters, 214 engines, 46 dozers, 43 water tenders and 37 crews were fighting the fire. At its peak, about 12,000 structures were evacuated, affecting about 28,000 people.
“The firefighters on the line will continue to remain hydrated and ready in the event the fire acreage increases,” Acuna said, adding that though some have been downgraded, “a number of fire evacuations and warnings” remained in place near the blaze Thursday.
In Simi Valley, the Sharp fire was holding at 133 acres, and the containment was updated from 15% to 60% Thursday morning, according to Ventura County Fire Department spokesman Andy VanSciver.
Airn Barnes enjoys a cool fountain at Courson Park Pool as temperatures rose into the triple digits in Palmdale.
(Brian van der Brug / Los Angeles Times)
No structures have been damaged by the fire, which at one point prompted an evacuation order for 60 nearby homes and an evacuation warning for an additional 340. The orders and warnings were lifted Wednesday evening, VanSciver said.
“The containment lines have been holding and they’re being reinforced,” he said, adding that he didn’t anticipate wind conditions to cause the blaze to spread. “We have enough resources on hand to handle it.”
With the help of bulldozers, items including tents, chairs and yoga mats were removed Thursday morning from the UCLA encampment occupied by pro-Palestinian protesters and shoved into a large gray dumpster.
Packages of unopened plastic water bottles lay on the grass. Nearby, two white trucks held pieces of wood that had been used by protesters to barricade the camp. A group of four UCLA graduate students walked over to Dickson Court, the area on campus where the encampment once stood, carrying medical masks and other supplies for protesters, only to learn the camp had been taken down.
They decided they would give the donations to one of the other Southern California universities with encampments.
Such camps have spread to college campuses across the nation in a student movement unlike any other this century. Protesters are calling on universities to stop doing business with Israel or companies they say support the war in Gaza. On Tuesday, police arrested at least 25 protesters at Cal Poly Humboldt, where war demonstrators had taken over buildings, spurring school officials to close campus.
“I think it’s really important to stand up for what you believe in,” said a 29-year-old UCLA graduate student who requested anonymity because of the fear of reprisals. “I’ve been here a few times to give donations to people here in the encampment, and every single time, people have met me with grace and a lot of respect.”
She and her friends have brought donations of water, chips, masks and protective eyewear to the protesters throughout the week.
“I feel honored that our school is partaking in something that’s making a difference, hopefully,” said a 24-year-old graduate student who was part of the group.
Outside Dickson Court, pro-Israeli students also gathered to watch the clean-up process.
A 20-year-old UCLA undergrad, who requested anonymity because he said he feared being attacked, participated in a counterprotest on Sunday. A crowd of people from the Jewish community gathered in front of the camp and sang the Israeli national anthem, brought out a DJ and held a dance party, he said.
The undergrad, who said he is Jewish, was disheartened by the encampment, he said. But he stressed that he didn’t participate in any of the other counterdemonstrations and condemned the violence that began Tuesday night just before midnight.
Over several hours, counterdemonstrators hurled objects — including wood and a metal barrier — at those inside. Fireworkers were launched into the camp, and some counterprotesters tried to force their way in. Fights broke out, and the pro-Palestinian side used pepper spray to defend themselves.
“It was deplorable,” the undergrad said of the attack on the encampment. Violent counterprotesters “need to be punished under the maximum extent of the law. They do not represent our movement, and as such they must be punished for not acting in accordance with the law and the values they purport to uphold.”
He said he’d lost a lot of friends since the Israel-Hamas war broke out because of their different perspectives.
“It’s unfortunate because, for me, this is quite personal because I am from the Middle East,” he said. “I have family in Israel, I have family in Iran, and seeing the chaos break out in the region where my ancestry is from, it’s cutting to see individuals who have no connection to the ongoing violence say that I don’t know what I’m talking about or they can’t be friends with me because of their political stance.”
With the camp now razed, some protesters told The Times on Thursday they feared the pro-Palestinian protest’s momentum in Westwood might have stalled.
“There’s a lot of anger and frustration and desire to keep protesting, but we’re really still figuring out what that would look like,” said a 19-year-old UCLA freshman who declined to give her name.
Many seemed eager to return to protesting at UCLA, though what awaited them was unclear. A current and former student from Occidental College said they’d heeded “a call for bodies” at UCLA put out Wednesday night but figured they wouldn’t be called again with the encampment gone.
Some staff seemed more optimistic the protests would quickly be revived.
“I might go back on Friday,” said a staff member who was arrested Thursday, though she noted her plans might be dampened by sleep deprivation. When she was arrested, she said she was standing with 10 to 15 faculty or staff who were booked along with her.
Like many on Friday, the staff member declined to give her name due to fear of retaliation from the university, saying she worked in a part of the school where some colleagues seemed wary of the protests.
Some students said they were unclear whether they would face academic repercussions from protesting — although they said they’d seen some unambiguous emails from the university saying there could be “disciplinary action including suspension or expulsion.”
