Marcos Icahuate
YUMA, Ariz. (KYMA) – The City of Yuma is offering sandbags in anticipation for possible rain.
Sandbags can be picked up at the Yuma Civic Center (1440 W. Desert Hills Drive) starting October 8 at 10 a.m.
The sandbag station is self-serve and will stay open until further notice.
The City says sandbags are limited to five per vehicle.
Madeline Murray
YUMA, Ariz. (KYMA) – It’s Fire Prevention Week and the Yuma Fire Department (YFD) wants to warn the community about Lithium-ion batteries.
When these batteries go bad, they don’t cool down properly and become a fire hazard. These batteries can be found anywhere like phones, laptops, e-bikes, and power tools.
YFD wants to remind the community in order to prevent fires, they need to charge these batteries with the charger it came with, purchase only listed and tested devices, and recycle responsibly.
Francisco Leon, Public Information Officer for YFD, says, “You can look up videos on YouTube, these things go up in flames super quick, you’ve got probably 20 to 30 seconds to get out, and on top of the extreme heat that they put out they also put out really toxic fumes, so if the heat doesn’t get you or you don’t get burned the fumes may.”
You can properly recycle these batteries by going to www.call2recycle.org to find your nearest recycling center.
Karina Bazarte
BRAWLEY, Calif. (KYMA) – Brawley residents had to be evacuated Tuesday morning after a fire broke out at a vacant structure.
The Brawley Fire Department says the fire was reported at around 3:00 a.m. in the area of Western Avenue and West C Street.
Locals who live nearby say this isn’t the first time the structure has caught fire and they often see people coming in and out of it.
One family says their daughter alerted them about the fire.
“We noticed there were a lot of ambers coming from the property and there is a massive tree they have in their backyard. It was windy last night so we were concerned that the ambers would either carry over the street or that tree may catch. Catching to other properties in front of it and then traveling across,” said Chris Gentry, Brawley local.
The structure was destroyed.
Brawley Fire says they are still not sure what caused the fire.
Danyelle Burke North
YUMA, Ariz. (KYMA) – Yuma County says damage from recent storms brought some delays to the Smucker Park construction project.
The project includes installation of a new storm drain system, a new sanitary sewer system replacement and construction of an embankment. It also includes a new pump station for park irrigation.
The Yuma County Department of Engineering says the storms created more work for them.
“Unfortunately, with their recent rains, it may have set some of that back just a little bit. So right now with the contractors working on the pipe system here at 28th Street, and then up the ways just a little bit at West Ridge Drive. And those are storm drain pipes that are going to go through the park there down to the basin below,” said Dave Nash, Yuma County Communications Director.
The contractor is working on the installation and backfill of the remaining two sections of the storm drain concrete pipe.
The Avenue A storm drain system improvements will start once all storm drain work in the park has been completed.
Eduardo Morales
YUMA, Ariz. (KYMA) – The City of Yuma is looking for the public’s input on how to improve road safety.
The city received a grant worth over $400,000 as part of a safe streets for all project. The goal is to reduce crashes by improving Yuma’s roadways.
They plan on doing this by looking at locations, posted speed limits, and types of crashes.
The city is asking for people to share their ideas on what kind of improvements they should make.
“I truly believe that safety is a responsibility that we all share, and identifying where we have safety issues comes from a lot of different sources, one of them being the public,” said Steve Wilson, Assistant Director of Engineering.
Patricia Quiroz, Shares what kind of improvements they would like to see.
“Maybe pedestrian crossings, I know there’s been a lot of accidents lately, lot of hit and runs, I don’t know maybe installing cameras,” Quiroz says.
There will be a virtual public meeting on October 20.
If you would like to share your thoughts on how to improve the roads, click the link HERE.
Adrik Vargas
HEBER, Calif. (KYMA) – A new program in the Imperial Valley is helping local residents gain skills in sustainability while creating opportunities for meaningful work.
The From Waste to Green Project, led by Southern California nonprofit Raizes Inc., combines technical training with entrepreneurship education.
Participants learn how to launch their own sustainable businesses while contributing to environmental solutions.
The program lasts five and a half months and provides participants with job-search support, a Horticulture Certificate, and a laptop to support their learning and future work.
The program is free for eligible individuals who are unemployed, underemployed, or from low-income communities.
Learn more about Raizes Inc. and the From Waste to Green Project at Raizes.org
Eduardo Morales
YUMA, Ariz. (KYMA) – In Tuesday’s Home Grown report, we highlight a local insect trapping network that monitors trends of insect activity.
The network was established 12 years ago, with the more common insects in the area being worms, thrips, aphids, and whiteflies.
It functions as an early warning system, detecting pests found in higher numbers than usual.
“Think about it as an early warning system for the PCAs so that they can be more vigilant or be more alert on where to look for the pests,” says Dr. Samuel Discua Duarte, the interim Director of the Yuma AG Center.
The Yuma Agricultural Center is currently making efforts to expand this network into Mexico.
Madeline Murray
Reporter Madeline Murray spoke with Neighborhood Services about what the merger means for the community.
YUMA, Ariz. (KYMA) – The City of Yuma Economic Development Department is merging with Neighborhood Services.
The new name of the department is now Neighborhood and Economic Development.
“To attract businesses you have to included both, they want the economic development incentives, and those are all very important, but if their staff and employees aren’t happy then they won’t stay,” said Cynthia Blot, Assistant Director of Neighborhood Services.
Their mission is to create housing and income opportunities for the community by improving neighborhoods and increasing jobs.
They say the merge will help them attract business to Yuma and provide quality places to live.
Yuma Mayor Doug Nicholls talked about why combining both departments was important for growth in our community.
“We focus on as a city is the well being of our citizens, and a lot of that comes down to their personal income, their family income. The more they have opportunity to grow their family income, the happier they are, the more they can do,” Mayor Nicholls explained.
The department says they want people to speak so highly of Yuma that it makes business boom.
Madeline Murray
YUMA, Ariz. (KYMA) – The Yuma County Board of Supervisors proclaimed the month of October as Domestic Violence Awareness Month on Monday.
Domestic violence in Yuma County is a prevalent issue.
According to Amberly’s Place, there is not a single neighborhood in the county their staff has not responded to a call for domestic violence.
On an annual basis, Amberly’s Place provides service to roughly three-sound victims, and 65% of the victims are domestic violence calls.
Tori Bourguignon, Executive Director of Amberly’s Place, shares a message to the community.
“It behooves everybody in our community, if you see something say something, if you need help there are so many resources available in our community from shelter to crisis intervention services,” Bourguignon expressed.
The community can participate in a Domestic Violence Awareness Walk in Somerton on October 29 to show support for those affected.
Madeline Murray
Reporter Madeline Murray spoke with the department about what the program is and how it will benefit the community.
YUMA, Ariz. (KYMA) – The Human Resources Department presented a new leadership program to the Yuma County Board of Supervisors Monday.
The Yuma County Governance, Operations and Vision (YUGOV) program is the first of its kind and is designed to help county directors learn how to become strong leaders.
“It’s to help develop the deputy directors and succession planning to learn about county governance, fiscal operations, to really prepare them for the future,” said Nayeli Flores, Human Resources Training Supervisor.
The program is a nine-week course that has been developing for over a year.
YUGOV teaches skills like budget management, legal responsibilities, and interpersonal development, to management level employees.
The program will be facilitated by county leaders from various departments.
Flores explains how this training will benefit the community.
“In developing our leaders, it also develops a strong work force from all levels, so being that having that training and all of those skills, its going to help the customer service and effectiveness of our community,” Flores shared.
The first launch date of the program will be October 15, and Yuma County is excited to see the benefits that come with this learning opportunity.
