Author: KYMA

Madeline Murray

YUMA, Ariz. (KYMA, KECY) – Vehicle burglary suspects, Enrique Rios III and Clarita Carr, are scheduled to make their second appearance in court Tuesday, facing additional charges.

The break-ins happened in local neighborhoods by the Civic Center area such as La Mesa, Saguaro, Sheffield, and Ocotillo Estates. The Yuma Police Department (YPD) say thousands of dollars worth of items and money were stolen.

Rios and Carr were taken into custody Wednesday, July 9, and initially seen in court last week.

Reporter Madeline Murray will have more on this story this afternoon.

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Jailene Aguilera

YUMA, Ariz. (KYMA, KECY) – A local church spread kindness and acts of service over the weekend.

Over 250 volunteers from Church for the City participated in the annual Serve Day while wearing “We Love Our City” T-shirts.

Volunteers gave thanks by doing many things like buying strangers coffee, holding doors open, and cleaning up local schools.

They also packed 500 school supply boxes with the United Way.

The event shows church’s commitment in inspiring others to spread kindness in simple but powerful ways.

To learn more about the event, read the press release below.

Serve Day Press ReleaseDownload

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Eduardo Morales

YUMA COUNTY, Ariz. (KYMA, KECY) – Tuesday is the Arizona Special Primary Election, and voters across Yuma County will have their voices heard on who advances to the General Election in September.

Voting centers across the county opened at 6:00 a.m. for the Special Primary Election in Congressional District 7.

Mary Lackey, a local voter, shared why she thinks it’s important to come out and vote.

“I think voting is a civic responsibility and if you want to have a say in your government, in what’s happening in your country, in this country, it’s very important to vote,” Lackey.

Several candidates are on the ballot to fill the seat one held by the late Congressman Raul Grijalva, including five Democrats, three three Republicans, candidates from other parties and several write-ins.

Voters can cast their ballots at any of the six voting centers:

Martin Luther King Jr. Youth Career Center

Yuma Main Library

Arizona Western College’s Schoening Conference Center

Somerton Community Center

San Luis Library

The Cesar Chavez Cultural Center

Voters were able to cast their final votes at the 7 p.m. deadline at these locations:

Yuma County Recorder’s Office

Main Library

Foothills Library

Wellton Library

San Luis Library

Somerton Library

The projected winners for the race are Adelita Grijalva and Daniel Butierez respectively.

Butierez shared some words of encouragement as the race came to an end.

“I think we all need to come together and work together and set parties aside which is why we’re coming together tonight, bringing party Democrats, Republicans, we’re all coming together to show unity,” he said.

Meanwgile, Grijalva shared the response she received from the public.

“We’ve had a really wonderful opportunity to talk to thousands of voters and we drove all over CD-7 and had really good responses from people everywhere we’ve gone,” Grijalva says.

Once the two winners are formally announced they will head to the General Election in September.

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Danyelle Burke North

YUMA, Ariz. (KYMA, KECY) – There’s a vending machine for firefighters, but it’s not for sodas or snacks. It’s for items that help save lives.

The UCapIt machines work like vending machines but for medical supplies and some pharmaceuticals.

“They allow us to restock medications faster,” said Yuma Fire Department Captain David Padilla Jr.

In the past, Padilla says firefighters would have to spend about 45 minutes traveling to a hospital pharmacy to restock. Now, they can restock quickly right at the station.

Instead of having to manually count supplies like in the past, their new operative IQ program also helps them digitally keep track of inventory and more efficiently restock and purchase.

“Now the guys show up, they have a scanner in their hand. It immediately downloads with RFID all of the information right to it, and then it sends that information up to our inventory specialist,” Padilla shared.

Everything is tracked and requires a code, fingerprint access, and one to two-person authentication depending on the item.

“Both members will have to place their fingerprints on the system, and then the system will dispense whatever’s needed. Everything is tracked and requires authentication. All of that is tracked and all of that information once dispensed is sent to the EMS division, so they know immediately when something has been dispensed and what we’ve tracked out of it, and they can track each item out of there,” said Padilla.

The vending machines are located at every fire station in the city.

“And so overwhelmingly, it’s been a positive for the fire department and again for the budgets in the EMS division. They’re able to now very specifically order what they need, we’re reducing waste as a whole, and we’re being great stewards of our taxpayer dollars,” said Padilla.

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Dillon Fuhrman

YUMA, Ariz. (KYMA, KECY) – The military has now officially taken over a portion of the U.S.-Mexico border in Yuma as part of a newly-formed National Defense Area.

The U.S. Marine Corps. confirmed Monday that Marines and sailors now have control over this part of the southern border.

The Marines will work alongside U.S. Customs and Border Protection and U.S. Border Patrol.

This is one of two additional expanded military zones at the border set up by the Trump Administration.

The goal is to militarize the boundary with Mexico to help reduce migrant crossings and keep the border safe.

Migrants who enter the areas can be detained by the military until Border Patrol agents arrive.

To learn more about this, read the press release below.

Press Release – Task Force Forge relieves Task Force Sapper at southern borderDownload

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Manoah Tuiasosopo

YUMA, Ariz. (KYMA, KECY) – In hopes to explore our military’s history, the Territorial Young Marines are asking for the community’s help.

The group plans to travel to Hawaii this December to attend the annual Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day.

To help cover their costs, the Young Marines have been holding car washes and various fundraisers.

A leader of the program, Chas Johnson, says the trip will have a great impact on them and be an unforgettable experience.

“This is a great opportunity for them to see, [in] real life, what happens in the military so they can understand why we teach them, what we teach them, and why they learn what they learn so they can become better people and give back to the community,” Johnson expressed.

They’re holding a fundraiser next Thursday, July 24, at Sage and Sand Cocktail Lounge starting at 5:30 p.m.

If you would like to donate, click here.

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Manoah Tuiasosopo

WELLTON, Ariz. (KYMA, KECY) – A house fire in Wellton caused a brief power outage and left one family without a home.

The Wellton Fire Department (WFD) says the fire happened around 12:30 a.m. Sunday in the area of San Jose and South Arizona Avenue.

When firefighters arrived, they found the home engulfed in flames.

Assistant Fire Chief David Rodriguez with WFD says, “The child woke up to the smell of smoke, went to the parents’ bedroom, and woke them up. By the time they went back to their bedroom, there was already flames and smoke coming out.”

Due to the large blaze, a nearby power pole was also on fire.

For safety reasons, fire crews were forced to shut off the power for more than 100 homes for approximately two hours.

“For firefighters to successfully fight that fire, they had to cut the power off so that the fire department can operate their ladder truck and not worry about touching any live power lines or firefighters on scene stepping on any power lines,” said Chief Rodriguez shared.

Thankfully, the family was able exit the home safely and no injuries were reported.

WFD says the home was a complete loss and that the American Red Cross has stepped in to help the family.

They also said power lines have been fully repaired.

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Dillon Fuhrman

YUMA, Ariz. (KYMA, KECY) – The Yuma County Sheriff’s Office (YCSO) has issued a notification regarding a Level 3 sex offender in the Yuma community.

YCSO says 55-year-old Dennis Knight told them he was living in the area of E. 44th Street and S. Paula Avenue, near S. Foothills Boulevard.

Knight is five-feet, seven-inches tall, weighing 153 pounds, and has blonde hair and blue eyes, and is not wanted by YCSO at this time.

According to YCSO, Knight pled no contest to three counts of third-degree sexual abuse in the Douglas County Circuit Court in Roseburg, Oregon back in November of 2010.

Knight was sentenced to 23 days in the Douglas County Jail, and the victims were three underaged girls who knew him, according to YCSO.

Knight is considered a Level 3 sex offender with a high risk to reoffend.

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Dillon Fuhrman

EL CENTRO, Calif. (KYMA, KECY) – The City of El Centro’s Community Development Department Planning Division is hosting a public workshop this week.

Talking place at the Council Chambers, located at 1275 W. Main Street, Thursday, July 17 at 6:00 p.m., the workshop is said to “present proposed revisions to the city’s Mobile Vending Ordinance.”

During the workshop, the City says their staff will “outline updates to the ordinance, including regulations related to permitted locations, hours of operation, safety requirements and permitting procedures.”

Courtesy: City of El Centro

Courtesy: City of El Centro

The City says the El Centro community is encouraged to attend the workshop to provide feedback and “help shape the final ordinance.”

To view the current draft of the ordinance, click here.

For more information about the workshop, call Andrea Montaño, the city’s Associate Planner, at (760) 337-4599 or amontano@cityofelcentro.org.

mobileworkshopPREngDownload

mobileworkshopPRSpaDownload

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Dillon Fuhrman

IMPERIAL, Calif. (KYMA, KECY) – The Imperial Irrigation District (IID) has awarded over $1.1 million in grants to 20 schools in the Imperial County.

According to a news release obtained by KYMA, this is part of their Grants for Energy Modernization in Schools (GEMS) program, which launched earlier this year.

IID says the GEMS program are a part of their “commitment to support energy efficiency in education,” with public, private and charter K-12 schools being encouraged to apply for this competitive grant to upgrade their heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning (HVAC) systems, enhancing learning environments, reducing energy consumption, and cutting operational costs.”

“This is an exceptional way to give back to the community that not only supports education, but helps reduce energy demand through the use of energy-efficient equipment,” said IID Board Chairwoman Gina Dockstader. “We are pleased to support schools in creating more comfortable environments for students and educators.”

IID says the grant distribution totals to $1,120,000, with eight applicants receiving $35,000 for single-site projects while 12 applicants will receive $70,000 for multiple qualified sites.

Imperial’s Faith Academy School, who is a $35,000 grant recipient, will use the grant to “replacement of three rooftop air conditioning units, which will better cool all classrooms while reducing energy demand,” according to Cindy Bruce, principal of the K-Eighth Grade school.

“The new units will help the classrooms be more conducive to study, improving the educational process, helping our students concentrate more on their school duties,” Bruce said.

Meanwhile, Central Union High School, who is a $70,000 grant recipient, will use the grant “to replace multiple outdated air conditioning units at four of its school sites, saving on ongoing energy usage,” according to IID.

“Partnering with the IID on this and other projects is a huge benefit to the school district, the students, and our community by maintaining safe and efficient facilities,” said Jeff Sturdevant, Director of Facilities, Maintenance & Grounds. “We look forward to our ongoing partnership with the IID.”

The Imperial County Office of Education (ICOE) also echoed similar statements, with Chief Operations Office Antonion Romayor Jr. saying:

“ICOE is delighted to be a recipient of the Grants for Energy Modernization in Schools. The $70,000 in funding will replace aging HVAC units at multiple Calexico, Brawley, and El Centro school sites. We thank the Imperial Irrigation District for their continued strong partnership and for supporting our students and teachers.”

The $35,000 GEMS grant recipients include the following:

Magnolia Union Elementary School District

Faith Academy School

Westmorland Union Elementary School District

St. Mary’s School

Seeley Union School District

Mulberry Elementary School District

Meadows Union School District

McCabe Union Elementary School District

The 70,000 GEMS grant recipients include the following:

Heber Elementary School District

Brawley Union High School District

San Pasqual Valley Unified School District

Central Union High School District

Calipatria Unified School District

ICOE

Brawley Elementary School District

Holtville Unified School District

Imperial Unified School District

Coachella Valley Unified School District

Calexico Unified School District

El Centro Elementary School District

“Funds will be distributed upon each school’s successful completion of their approved projects,” IID says.

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