Marcos Icahuate
YUMA, Ariz. (KYMA) – A trailer was seen on fire in the area of N. Frontage Rd. and Avenida Compadres.
A sheriff deputy said the driver of the RV heard a popping sound and pulled over, then the fire spread throughout the trailer.
The trailer was being pulled away by the time our reporter was on scene.
No injuries were reported.
Marcos Icahuate
EL CENTRO, Calif. (KYMA) – The City of El Centro announced a partial road closure.
Main Street, between 11th Street and 12th Street, will be closed to all traffic on November 3 and November 4, from 9 p.m. to 6 a.m.
The closure is due to construction related to the new police station.
The City reminds drivers to plan other routes and exercise caution around the area.
Madeline Murray
YUMA, Ariz. (KYMA) – As Breast Cancer Awareness Month comes to an end, we want to bring you a special story of one person with local ties currently fighting the disease.
After years of seeking medical care for a lump in his chest, in March of 2025, Bill Stinemates discovered he had a grade-three tumor growing inside him.
Bill Stinemates, a pickupman for Honeycut Rodeo, says “December of 2021, I actually found a lump in my right breast, next to my nipple, and I went to my primary care doctor, who kind of check it out and sent me in for an ultrasound.”
After the ultrasound, they told him it was nothing and to come back in 60 days.
After multiple visits to the hospital where he was told not to worry, this March, doctors removed the lump for tests. That’s when he discovered he had breast cancer.
“I had a complete mastectomy on my right side, which turned out to be the absolute best decision I made because they did find more cancer,” says Stinemates.
Stinemates encourages people to take care of their health and keep asking questions, even when turned away.
Stinemates says, “the big thing is, we as men, can’t ignore our bodies, and when we find that lump, we find those things, but two more importantly is don’t take the ‘It’s nothing’ answer and push for further testing.”
We spoke to Bridget’s Gift, a local group that provides support to breast cancer patients in our area, about how you can bring more awareness to mens breast cancer.
The statistics or the number of incidents is so low compared to women, we just don’t expect the diagnosis and when it hits, it’s a big surprise,” said Wendy McKay, a board member for Bridget’s Gift.
According to Bridget’s Gift, breast cancer in men accounts for 1% of all cases diagnosed compared to 15.5% of breast cancer cases in women.
As a community, there are ways we can bring awareness to mens breast cancer.
“We need to get the statistics out there, we need to encourage our loved ones who feel like something’s different, we need to encourage them to seek medical attention, but keep talking about it is the most important part to get the awareness out there,” explains McKay.
Stinemates wants to bring awareness to the fact that breast cancer doesn’t just impact women and men need support too.
Karina Bazarte
BRAWLEY, Calif. (KYMA) – The City of Brawley voted unanimously to update their municipal code on abandoned buildings.
During last week’s regular meeting, Brawley City Council members voted five to zero to move forward with updating the city’s ordinance.
Brawley Mayor Gil Rebollar says locals voiced their concerns regarding safety issues with abandoned buildings and vacant properties throughout the community
Mayor Rebollar says last time the ordinance was updated was in 1996.
“Our council made the priority to address it and revise it and we did and so our staff put together an ordinance from looking at our cities. Look at what other councils have done and presented us with this registry to start attacking this issue and build upon it,” said Rebollar.
The City Council members will have a second reading on the ordinance in their regular meeting next week.
Madeline Murray
YUMA, Ariz. (KYMA) – Some people in the community may feel that information can be left out of a press release, but this is not an accident.
When a crime occurs most people want answers fast, but the Yuma Police Department (YPD) can only release certain information to protect the integrity of the case.
“We put out the basic information, just to tell the public, ‘Hey, this crime happened, but we can’t tell you a lot about it because we don’t know at that point, and we want the general public to know, your safety is not in jeopardy,'” says Sgt. Lori Franklin, YPD Public Information Officer.
YPD decides what they can and can’t release to the general public based on what could harm the case.
Releasing too much information could jeopardise the ongoing investigation by the suspect not being charged or even creating a bias jury.
Sgt. Franklin explains, “It’s me sitting down and talking with the detectives, saying, ‘Is this going to hurt the case?’ ‘Is this going to hurt the case?’ ‘Can we say this?’ ‘Can we say this?’ So, it’s kind of like a group effort of what we can actually put out there.”
Franklin says naming a suspect would give them the upper hand.
“We may have a suspect vehicle or a suspect description or a suspect itself, if we release that information, and maybe they know it, they could flee, we’re very close to another country, we could lose them or they could hide the evidence that we need,” Franklin explains.
YPD says the only time names will be stated in a press release are if someone is physically arrested and booked into jail or if they have died.
Franklin says they will put out the information they have, but not unless YPD has the facts to back it up.
Press releases will always be released for homicides, aggravated assaults, and serious fatal accidents, but there are some cases they do not report on, like domestic violence and suicides.
In cases like these its important to highlight the steps taken at the scene of a crime.
Sgt. Nickolas Davis, Supervisor of Property Crimes and Intelligence Unit says, “When investigations first gets on the scene of a crime, we need to get the information that patrol has been made aware of from their initial response.”
Investigations learns the steps patrol has taken, information they have learned about the crime, and who the parties involved are, in order to know what to do next.
From there the department will collect evidence, take photos of the scene, run forensic tests, look for cameras in the area, and interview all parties involved.
Once they have collected enough information, the department will discuss what they have all learned, and divide up tasks.
Sgt. Davis says an investigation isn’t just something that happens over night, it could take up to months or years for certain cases to close.
“Anywhere from weeks, months, years…In some cases, if we’re waiting for laboratory results from the DPS lab, you know, we’re one of many agencies in the state that all send our forensic evidence to the DPS lab, so that may take several weeks or months to get the results back,” Davis describes.
YPD says they are doing the best they can to solve the crimes in this community and they ask for patience and to let them do their job and they will get the information out to the community.
Marcos Icahuate
YUMA, Ariz. (KYMA) – Injury attorneys Lerner & Rowe will be hosting a event to help local families.
Families can pick up a free meal on Thursday, November 20 at the Yuma County Fairgrounds, starting at 4 p.m.
1,000 meal packages will be available for pickup from volunteers at the fairgrounds.
Packages are at a first-come, first-serve basis.
“Everyone deserves a warm meal on Thanksgiving,” said Kevin Rowe, founder of Lerner & Rowe Gives Back and managing partner of Lerner & Rowe, P.C. “Our goal in Yuma is to help families share the joy, comfort, and connection that make this holiday so special.”
Marcos Icahuate
SOMERTON, Ariz. (KYMA) – A local fall event is planned for November.
The Great Fall Stampede will be on November 6 at Somerton High School (1093 Jefferson St.), from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m.
The event includes food, games and prizes with an entrance fee of $3.
Kids 10 and under enter free.
“Our students have worked hard to plan ‘The Great Fall Stampede,’ and it’s amazing to see their ideas come to life,” said SHS Student Council Advisor Kassandra Jasso. “It’s a chance for our Toro family to celebrate together while supporting a great cause in our community.”
Abraham Retana
SOMERTON, Ariz. (KYMA) – A local health provider opens a new place to bring services to the community.
Regional Center for Border Health opened an office on Main Street in Somerton. The goal is to provide social services for south county residents all in one place.
“Bringing the resources to the community rather than the people travel to outside the city and the community to get those services. Maybe the transportation is limited or maybe the family doesn’t have a ride to go to yuma so this the closest we can get to the families that we are serving,” said Amanda Aguirre, CEO of Regional Center for Border Health.
First Things First was the first agency to bring their services to the community at this new location.
Andrea Turisk
YUMA, Ariz. (KYMA) – Diabetes is one of the most common health conditions in the US, but it can quickly turn serious if blood sugar levels get too high or too low.
Laela Martinez, nurse practitioner at Exceptional Community Hospital in Yuma, shared warning signs and things to look out for.
“There is sometimes people have an increased thirst or they’ll have confusion or they’ll have increased urination. Those are signs usually that they should go to the ER and get checked out if they don’t have a glucometer that they can check their blood sugar at home,” Martinez explained.
Martinez adds symptoms to look out for.
“Usually, if you’re feeling more thirsty than usual and you are drinking a lot of water, if you’re losing weight, if you’re just feeling fatigued, get it checked out,” Martinez expressed.
Adrik Vargas
YUMA, Ariz. (KYMA) – As the government shutdown continues, U.S. Senator Mark Kelly’s (D-Ariz.) office is stepping in to help southern Arizonans with federal services.
Senator Kelly’s team is offering one-on-one sessions to assist residents with issues involving agencies like Social Security, immigration, and the IRS.
Even if someone doesn’t have a specific federal issue, staff members say they can still help with local concerns by connecting people to the right organizations.
“We’re well connected in the community, so we’ll research the issue and make sure to connect people with the right organization that can help,” said Humberto Ramos, a constituent services representative for Kelly’s office.
In a statement, Kelly’s office said they’ve seen an increase in requests from Congresswoman-elect Adelita Grijalva‘s district, where offices remain unopened due to the shutdown.
The office added that if Grijalva were sworn in and able to hire staff, constituents would normally reach out to her team directly for help.
For now, Kelly’s office plans to continue holding mobile sessions and expanding access virtually to make sure every Arizonan can get the assistance they need.
To stay updated on future sessions, you can visit https://www.facebook.com/SenMarkKelly/.
