Author: KESQ

Matthew Pearce

THOUSAND PALMS, Calif. (KESQ) — In a bipartisan vote, the U.S. House advanced the ‘Sunshine Protection Act,’ a bill that would make daylight saving time permanent and end the twice-yearly clock changes.

Versions of the proposal have been introduced numerous times in state legislatures and in Congress over the years but have repeatedly fallen short. Now, with support from President Donald Trump, the measure is headed to the Senate for consideration.

News Channel 3 is hearing from residents across the Coachella Valley to hear their thoughts on the topic. Stay tuned for more tonight.

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Garrett Hottle

VALLEY CENTER, Calif. (KESQ) – More than 800 birds and two dogs were seized from the man behind a troubled Riverside County duck sanctuary following reports of neglect, San Diego County’s Animal Services announced on Friday.

The 820 birds — including 400 ducks — were removed from a Valley Center property on Thursday. County animal services officers were tipped off by their counterparts in Riverside County after the property owner moved to Valley Center.

Animal control officers spent about 12 hours removing the animals and transporting them to the county’s Bonita and Carlsbad animal shelters for treatment. he public can help by donating to the fund athttps://www.sddac.com/content/sdc/das/donate-volunteer/donate.html. Every dollar donated to the Spirit Fund goes directly to animal care — none is used for administrative costs, the county says.

News Channel 3 spoke to the operator of that sanctuary, Howard Berkowitz, earlier this year when Riverside County took nearly 500 ducks from his property over in Anza.

San Diego County’s chief veterinarian says officers found birds in overcrowded, unsanitary conditions.

Berkowitz was arrested on a Ramy warrant, but no criminal charges have been filed in either county.

Animal Services will continue to investigate, and next steps in the enforcement process are yet to be determined.

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Jesus Reyes

PALM DESERT, Calif. (KESQ) – The head coach of the Coachella Valley Lakers has been moved to the NBA side, leaving their G-League affiliate without a head coach ahead of its debut season in the desert later this year.

Zach Guthrie, coach of the then South Bay Lakers, is now a Lakers assistant coach and head of player development, ESPN Senior NBA Insider Shams Charania reported on Friday.

Guthrie guided South Bay to the G League’s best record last season in his first year as head coach.

There has been no word on who could take over the bench for the Coachella Valley Lakers.

The Coachella Valley Lakers will play their home games at Acrisure Arena beginning in the 2026-27 G-League season, which is set to start in November.

Stay with News Channel 3 for continuing coverage of the CV Lakers.

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Tommy Gallegos

Deputies arrested a wanted suspect Thursday afternoon after a brief foot pursuit that ended at a nearby closed school campus.

At approximately 3:03 p.m., deputies located the wanted suspect near Blackhawk Way and Adams Street. As deputies attempted to take the suspect into custody, the individual fled on foot and ran onto the grounds of a nearby closed school campus. Sheriff’s did not disclose what school the pursuit ended at, but the closest campus to the location of the arrest is La Quinta High School.

Deputies quickly established a perimeter around the area and requested assistance from the Sheriff’s Aviation Unit. The suspect was subsequently located and taken into custody without further incident.

The investigation remains ongoing, and no additional information is being released at this time.

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Haley Meberg

CALEXICO, Calif. (KESQ) – Imperial County Sheriff’s Office (ICSO) teamed up with Customs and Border Protection (CBP) to carry out a gun bust near Calexico on Thursday afternoon.

The stop began at approximately 12:00pm Thursday, July 16th, when the ICSO officers assigned to South County Patrol conducted a traffic stop for a 22 year-old male driver. The stop took place on Interstate 8, west of Highway 89, where the driver refused consent for a vehicle search.

ICSO reached out to the CBP, who sent out officers and a gun detection K-9. Following their arrival CBP Officers received a positive alert and a search of the vehicle commenced.

Multiple assault rifles, a grenade launcher, ammunition, ballistic vest and helmets were found in the car and the driver was taken into custody.

The suspect was booked at the Imperial County Jail in connection to multiple felony weapon possession charges at a $55,000 bail.

For more information stay with News Channel 3.

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Timothy Foster

COACHELLA VALLEY, Calif. (KESQ) – A nationwide foodborne illness outbreak linked to contaminated shredded iceberg lettuce served at Taco Bell restaurants is raising concerns among Coachella Valley shoppers, even though no local cases have been reported.

Federal health officials say at least 1,644 people in Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio and West Virginia have become sick with cyclospora, a microscopic parasite that causes an illness known as cyclosporiasis. The outbreak has resulted in 94 hospitalizations, but no deaths have been reported.

According to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s investigation, the contaminated lettuce was supplied by Salinas-based Taylor Farms, one of the nation’s largest producers of fresh-cut vegetables and a major supplier to Taco Bell.

Taco Bell said it has taken immediate action to voluntarily remove potentially impacted lettuce from a supplier in the affected states. Taylor Farms also announced that it is voluntarily removing all iceberg lettuce sourced from central Mexico while the FDA’s investigation continues.

Cyclospora can cause severe diarrhea, nausea, bloating, stomach cramps and fatigue. Symptoms can last for days or even weeks, and the illness is typically treated with antibiotics.

Although the affected Taco Bell restaurants are located outside California, the outbreak is making some Coachella Valley shoppers more cautious about purchasing fresh produce.

Some residents said they are concerned about buying lettuce and worry about the possibility of cross-contamination, causing them to be more hesitant when shopping for fresh produce.

Others said they still plan to buy lettuce but will be more careful by washing it thoroughly before eating it.

Some shoppers were less concerned, saying they already grow their own vegetables or believe washing produce is a simple but important step because consumers do not always know where their fruits and vegetables come from.

Health officials continue to recommend washing hands before and after handling fresh produce, rinsing fruits and vegetables under running water, and following any food safety advisories as the CDC’s investigation remains ongoing.

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Tommy Gallegos

(Desert Hot Springs, Calif.) — Southern California Edison (SCE) crews are continuing restoration efforts in the City of Desert Hot Springs after a power outage initially impacted more than 11,000 customers in the area.

According to the utility, the outage first affected 11,224 customers in the city. As of the latest update, service has been restored to the majority of those impacted, with approximately 3,700 customers still without electricity.

SCE has established an estimated restoration time of 6:30 p.m. for the remaining affected customers.

Utility officials said their immediate priority is restoring power safely and as quickly as possible. Once electrical service has been fully restored, crews will begin investigating the cause of the outage.

“We’re focused right now on safely restoring power and then will look into the cause,” Southern California Edison said in its latest update.

Southern California Edison will continue providing updates as restoration efforts progress and additional information becomes available.

A small vegetation fire broke out today around 1:35 pm near a warehouse building in Desert Hot Springs before it was contained, according to the Riverside County Fire Department.

A transformer and downed power lines were initially believed to be involved in the fire, but crews did not encounter any signs of either matter, according to reports from the scene.

The agency said crews contained a 20-foot-by-20-foot spot of fire in less than 30 minutes.

There was no immediate word on what might have started the blaze and if it triggered the power outage.

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Tommy Gallegos

Soccer fans and families are invited to The Shops at Palm Desert on July 18-19 for the free Palm Desert Community Soccer Watch Weekend. Presented by the City of Palm Desert, the two-day celebration will feature live championship match viewing, a DJ, kids’ activities, local vendors, giveaways, and special shopping and dining discounts.

Guests can also participate in the Palm Desert Playbook Passport for prize opportunities and the “Wear Your Team” Instagram contest. Advance registration includes a commemorative giveaway, bottled water, and entry into daily grand prize drawings while supplies last.

The event will take place in the Main Court at The Shops at Palm Desert, with seating available on a first-come, first-served basis. More information and registration are available online.

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City News Service

RIVERSIDE (CNS) – Payroll losses offset gains throughout the regional economy, pushing Riverside County’s unemployment rate back above 5% in June, according to figures released today by the California Employment Development Department.

The countywide jobless rate last month, based on preliminary EDD estimates, was 5.4%, compared to 4.7% in May.

The June rate was four-tenths of a percentage point lower than the year-ago level, when countywide unemployment stood at 5.8%.

The latest agency estimates indicated Cherry Valley had the highest unemployment rate within the county in June at 10%, followed by Blythe at 9.9%, Coachella at 8.9%, Rancho Mirage and March Air Reserve Base at 7.9%, and Cabazon at 7.5%.

The combined unemployment rate for Riverside and San Bernardino counties — the Inland Empire — was 5.3%, up from 4.6% in May, the EDD said.

Bi-county data indicated payrolls shrank by the widest margin in the public sector, where about 1,800 positions were recorded as lost, mainly in education, reflecting summer inactivity on campuses.

Additional losses were posted last month in the financial and hospitality sectors, along with miscellaneous unclassified industries, which altogether shed 700 jobs, according to the EDD.

Payrolls expanded in the agricultural, construction, health services, information technology, manufacturing, professional business services and warehousing sectors, which collectively added 2,800 positions, figures showed. The mining sector was unchanged.

The statewide non-seasonally-adjusted unemployment rate in June was 5.2%.

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Kiera McKinney

THOUSAND PALMS, Calif (KESQ)- Monsoon season can bring blowing dust with little warning, making roads dangerous in seconds. What drivers should do if they’re caught in a dust storm, the biggest mistakes officers see when visibility drops, and how people can prepare before getting behind the wheel.

We talked to driving officials and people if they are educated on what to do when a dust storm occurs.

The monsoonal winds can change those roadway conditions in just a few moments. Those conditions can cause drivers to lose visibility and have to make quick decisions behind the wheel.

Dan Covey, a resident of the valley said, “I had to stop driving because I couldn’t see, you know, it was blowing sand and wind and the whistle to. And vision was bad. It was totally bad.”

Some residents don’t know what to do when the blowing dust hits…

“I worry about pulling over because, again, are you going to cause an accident by stopping on the freeway” said Randy Griffin, a resident of the desert.

Andrew Wunderlich, the President at Teen Road to Safety says if weather conditions change, “you got to go slower speeds, its just like when you’re driving in bad weather, any type of bad weather conditions, you got to reduce your speed.

Wunderlich also says “If it gets to the point where you feel like the the wind is starting to maneuver your own car, then that’s the that’s the time where you want to start getting off the freeway and and just wait till the sand storm passes.”

CHP also says dust storms can become dangerous quickly, especially when drivers lose sight of the road around them.

CHP Officer Williams says “when the dust storms come, you lose control your vehicle and you lose, visual, horizon as well. You can’t see”

Experts also warn that trying to push through a dust storm can put more than just one person at risk.

“You’re not only taking the risk of your own self, but the passengers that you have in their car and also the other people that are driving on the roads as well,” Wunderlich says.

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