Author: KESQ

Julia Castro

INDIO, Calif. (KESQ)— Authorities are investigating a commercial fire that erupted Sunday evening at a towing yard in Indio.

The fire was reported just before 7:30 p.m. at a business on Commerce Street near Van Buren Street — across the railroad tracks from Indio Boulevard.

Flames tore through a portion of the yard, engulfing a trailer, a box truck and at least seven vehicles, according to an employee on scene. The blaze sent plumes of dark smoke visible for miles across the Coachella Valley.

The flames were largely extinguished within about an hour of the initial report.

No injuries have been reported. The cause of the fire remains under investigation.

This is a developing story. Check back for any updates.

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Timothy Foster

PALM DESERT, Calif. — Mirabelle Lee, a recent graduate of Palm Valley School, has received a prestigious scholarship in recognition of her outstanding work in promoting diversity and literacy in education.

Lee, who has worked in the entertainment industry since her childhood, founded the Beatrice Martin Foundation during her sophomore year of high school. The nonprofit is named after her great-great-grandmother and is dedicated to increasing access to culturally diverse books in schools, particularly in under-resourced communities.

The foundation provides free books to elementary and middle schools across the country. Since its launch, it has expanded to four chapters nationwide. The organization also offers literacy support and affordable college essay editing services to help close opportunity gaps for high school students preparing for higher education.

Her advocacy stems from a lifelong passion for storytelling and a personal understanding of the lack of representation in traditional school curricula. Through her foundation, Lee addresses both the content gap in classroom libraries and the financial challenges schools face in acquiring diverse books, which are often more expensive to purchase in bulk.

In recognition of her leadership and impact, Lee was awarded a national scholarship honoring young women making a difference in their communities. She will attend Stanford University this fall, where she plans to study communications and continue her work in education and media advocacy.

Lee’s efforts reflect a broader movement to improve representation in educational content and foster a love for reading among children who have historically been overlooked by mainstream literature.

To support or learn more about the Beatrice Martin Foundation, visit www.thebeatricemartinfoundation.org.

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Shay Lawson

INDIO, Calif. (KESQ)  – Martha’s Village and Kitchen is taking a big step toward breaking the cycle of homelessness by investing in early education.

News Channel 3 first told you about the Child Development Center expansion back in March.

Now — that expansion is nearing completion, and News Channel 3 is getting a look inside.

Rosa Verduzco, Chief Operating Officer, Martha’s Village and Kitchen said the new classrooms will give more Coachella Valley families access to critical childcare and early learning.

“Our capacity right now is four classrooms — one for infants, one for toddlers and two for preschoolers,” Verduzco said. “With the addition of three more classrooms, we’ll have two for infants, two for toddlers, and three for preschoolers.”

This expansion is boosting capacity from 55 to 102 children.

Now, Verduzco is calling on the community.

She said a $680,000 fundraising push is underway — to support teacher training and a full year of scholarships for local children.

To see how you can help, head to the organization’s fundraising page.

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Tori King

THERMAL, Calif. (KESQ)– Car fans rolled out to Thermal on Sunday for the BMW Performance Center West’s “Cars, Coffee, & Hot Laps’ event.

The event, which is part of a series hosted several times throughout the year, was unique this time because it featured free rides for adult attendees with a professional driver at the specially designed course.

Riders got to experience speeds up to 75 miles per hour throughout the morning.

Aside from the hot lap experience, the BMW Performance Center also offered attendees the chance to check out an array of colorful BMWs at the facility, free coffee, donuts, and pastries.

The center plans to host future Cars & Coffee event in the future, for more information on events, or to buy an experience during their summer sale, click here.

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Garrett Hottle

PALM DESERT, Calif. (KESQ) The Palm Desert Aquatic Center’s lap pool may shut down earlier than planned after ongoing issues with its aging filtration system caused persistent cloudiness in the water.

The facility, which opened in 2011 and holds nearly a million gallons of water, was already scheduled for a full restoration of its filtration system and pump house this fall. But city officials now say an earlier closure could be necessary.

City officials say the issue is specifically in the lap pool.

The recreation pool, however, remains open and fully operational.

“Our Public Works team is actively evaluating the situation and doing everything possible to keep this important amenity open for residents and visitors from across the Coachella Valley,” said Community Relations Supervisor Rylan Penta for the City of Palm Desert in an email.

No official closure date has been announced.

For more information on the City of Palm Desert including the Palm Desert Aquatic Center visit this link.

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Kendall Flynn

PALM SPRINGS, Calif. (KESQ) – The American Institute of Floral Designers will be setting up shop in the Palm Springs Convention Center from July 12-15 to bring “joy, color and kindness” to the community, according to the AIFD press release.

In AIFD’s Symposium, thousands of floral arrangements will be repurposed and delivered to local senior centers and shared with the public. Over the course if the weekend, volunteers and designers will gather in educations seminars to create hundreds of fresh bouquets.

The celebration is open for the public Monday, July 14 at 6:00 p.m. at the Marilyn Monroe statue in Downtown Palm Springs.

Volunteers will hand out the bouquets they helped create, along with a special public floral installation. These volunteers will have gone through educational seminars with top floral designers, putting in heartfelt time to give back to the community.

Stay with News Channel 3 to hear about the educational process, and what it means to volunteers and organizers to fulfill AIFD’s mission of giving back to the community.

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Tori King

LA QUINTA, Calif. (KESQ)– Democrats of the Desert is hosting an “Unmask Ice & Stop Deporting our Neighbors” sidewalk rally Saturday, July 12th.

The rally will run from 9 to10 AM, on the sidewalk in front of  the La Quinta City Hall on Washington and Calle Tampico.  

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Peter Daut

PALM SPRINGS, Calif. (KESQ) – The City of Palm Springs renewed a six-figure deal with the local hospitality industry to devote tax dollars to tourism.

The deal was meant to funnel a portion of the city’s transient occupancy tax to PS Resorts – a nonprofit composed of several Palm Springs hotels.

The amount was estimated to be about $780-thousand in the current fiscal year.

The council voted unanimously to renew the deal, which had been in place since 2012 – for another ten years.

Watch Peter Daut’s full interview with Peggy Trott – PS Resorts Chair.

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Cynthia White

LOS ANGELES, Calif. (KESQ) – A federal judge late Friday ordered the Trump administration to immediately stop broad, untargeted immigration stops and arrests in seven California counties, including Riverside County.

The two temporary restraining orders (TRO) granted by the judge come after a lawsuit was filed by immigrant advocacy groups, accusing federal agents of targeting Latino communities.

TODEC Executive Director Luz Gallegos says the restraining orders “apply to Los Angeles and six surrounding counties, which encompass Riverside County. The lawsuit that led to this ruling specifically named Los Angeles, Riverside, San Bernardino, Santa Barbara, San Luis Obispo, and Ventura Counties.”

The court found that the federal government’s ongoing immigration raids in Southern California and its denial of access to counsel for arrested immigrants likely violated the Constitution.

The TROs prohibit the federal government, including the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) from continuing these unlawful actions.

The first TRO bars immigration agents from stopping individuals without reasonable suspicion and from relying on four factors – alone or in combination, including:

apparent race or ethnicity

speaking Spanish or English with an accent

presence in a particular location like a bus stop, car wash, or agricultural site

the work a person does

The second TRO orders DHS to provide access to counsel on weekdays, weekends, and holidays for people who are detained in B-18, the federal building in downtown Los Angeles.

In a statement responding to the court’s action, the White House said, “No federal judge has the authority to dictate immigration policy – that authority rests with Congress and the President. Enforcement operation require careful planning and execution; skills far beyond the purview (or) jurisdiction of any judge. We expect this gross overstep of judicial authority to be corrected on appeal.”

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Cynthia White

PALM SPRINGS, Calif. (KESQ) – College of the Desert officials reported to Palm Springs City Council on Wednesday that progress is being made on the Palm Springs Campus project.

The official groundbreaking was last November, and currently progress is being made on underground utilities and infrastructure work that is expected to be completed by mid-September.

After that, work will begin on the first area of campus to go vertical – the campus support building. COD is planning a “going vertical” ceremony later this year to celebrate the construction milestone.

Of the anticipated start of construction on the first building, COD Superintendent/President Val Martinez Garcia told councilmembers, “After more than two decades of visioning, planning, and perseverance, this moment will mark the shift from ground work to skyline, when steel begins to rise and the communities can finally see what has long been believed can transform this community.”

Martinez added that the campus will expand COD’s offerings in programs such as Hospitality and Tourism, Healthcare Certification, Digital Media and Artificial Intelligence, plus more, describing them as “Educational opportunities that directly respond to regional employer needs.”

The new Palm Springs Campus represents a massive $405 million capital investment, the largest higher education infrastructure project in the history of the west valley.

When fully open and operational, the campus will serve over 3,000 students, faculty and staff.

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