Category: CNN Regional

By Maggy Wolanske

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    DENVER (KMGH) — Colorado’s recent rainfall is bringing color to native gardens and filling research water tanks, but experts say it’s not enough to end the drought.

James Warren and his partner are bringing to life a vibrant native plant garden in their Colorado backyard, but growing in Colorado means adapting to the dry conditions. Warren pointed out the two rain barrels that help provide needed water for the vegetation.

“It’s been so dry and so I think the hardest part is especially with the newest stuff that we’re trying to get on the ground, just making sure that they have enough water,” Warren said.

The rain barrel system has made water management more manageable and has helped during these dry months.

“So it’s been really helpful for those few little instances of rain that we did get or precipitation that we did get, to again make sure that that kind of lasts a lot longer, because if it snows and then the next morning it all melts. It’s like great, well, there’s our precipitation for maybe the next month, but this helps us drag that on a little bit longer,” Warren said.

Backyard gardeners are not the only ones taking advantage of the recent precipitation. Over at Colorado State University SPUR, the Water Technology Acceleration Platform (Water TAP), welcomed the precipitation to help fill their water tanks. Back in April, Denver7 visited the lab to understand how the team uses rainwater collection and learned the 10,000-gallon storage tank had no water.

Sarah Millonig, director of operations for One Water Solutions Institute, shared the recent weather has helped fill both storage tanks outside.

“We have a 10,000 gallon storage tank that was completely empty the last time we got to see each other and then we have a 3,400 gallon tank behind me that is full of precipitation collected from the roof of this building and this morning when we got here, it was quite literally overflowing,” Millonig said.

She explained the water collected supports ongoing research at the facility both inside the labority and in the hydro backyard.

“Since the storm water tank was empty, we actually took the opportunity to completely clean it out,” said Millonig. “So the sampling that we’re going to be able to do now because the tank is halfway ish full, we’ll give us a really representative sample of the real world conditions here outside of campus and at the National Western Center.

While this recent rainfall may be helpful for the plants and trees, Millonig explained there needs to be a lot more to help with our states current drought conditions.

“What I would say is though, this precipitation and cooler weather is really important and very critical for some of our early emerging plants. It does not solve our current drought situation,” Millonig said.

Dealing with the lack of moisture, is a little less challenging for Warren thanks to the rain barrel, who now looks ahead to more rain in the forecast.

“Yeah, just very excited to come out after every storm and just see that that thing is full of usually completely full 55 gallons,” Warren said.

This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. KMGH verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.

Please note: This story was provided to CNN Wire by an affiliate and does not contain original CNN reporting. This content carries a strict local market embargo. If you share the same market as the contributor of this article, you may not use it on any platform.

By Kate Devine

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    MEADE, Kansas (KAKE) — As wildfires continue burning across southwest Kansas, one Meade County woman is sharing the emotional story of losing the home her family says has been in their family for generations.

Jamie Post stood in the ashes of what was once her home, describing the devastation left behind after fires scorched more than 92,000 acres in Meade County.

“It just looked like the devil had come to town,” Post said. “I didn’t feel safe.”

According to the Kansas Forest Service, the Meade Lake Complex fire has burned approximately 92,733 acres. Officials said crews have continued working to gain control of the fire as dry conditions, triple-digit heat and shifting winds fueled flare-ups throughout the week.

Post said the fires started after lightning strikes south of Meade Lake.

“We had lightning strikes, several lightning strikes south of here by the Mead Lake, and then we had the high heat and the winds were just constantly changing, constantly whipping around,” Post said. “It’s dry here. We haven’t had any moisture for months.”

Post said she initially believed her home had survived the fire.

“They started sometime Thursday late afternoon, and then I didn’t know if I’d have a house Friday morning,” Post said. “Then Juan texted me, I don’t know if it was about 9 o’clock in the morning, and showed me a picture that my house had survived.”

But hours later, conditions changed.

“My other neighbor and some other people came out, and they said everything looks good, the house is intact,” Post said. “We didn’t smell any smoldering. We had a couple branches smoldering, but nothing that would touch the house. Then that afternoon, the heat got over 100, the wind switched, and it ignited my asphalt roof.”

Post said leaving the home to rest may have saved her life.

“I would have been gone. Me and Cooper wouldn’t be here today,” she said. “The wind picked up and I wouldn’t have had time to get out because my bedroom was on that side.”

The land had been in Post’s family for decades.

“Her granddad bought the ranch around 1935 or 1937,” Post said. “I’ve lived here since about 1992.”

Her mother, Carole T. Post, also grew up on the property.

“It’s just sad,” Carole Post said. “It’s where I grew up. That’s where I used to live.”

Carole Post said seeing the destruction has been difficult.

“It makes me feel terrible,” she said. “I didn’t see how fire could destroy so much. It was so pretty here before.”

Post said another longtime community member, nearly 90-year-old Frances “Red” Dye, also lost his home in the fires.

“He always helped everybody all the time,” Post said. “He did anything he could.”

She said Dye had left home to get out of the heat shortly before his house burned.

“He didn’t have electricity or water,” Post said. “He got hot and wanted something to drink, so he left his house and went into town. Not too long after that, his house went up.”

Despite the devastation, Post said support from the community has been overwhelming.

“Out here in southwest Kansas, we’re hardworking farmers and ranchers,” Post said. “We love the ground, we love our community, we help each other out.”

Post said while the fire destroyed nearly everything around her, she is trying to focus on faith and moving forward.

“It empties you out, so that you can bring God in and fully have your eyes on Him, and not things,” Post said. “Seeing this is like, wow, I had too many things that kept me from being closer to God, and so I feel cleansed.”

Please note: This story was provided to CNN Wire by an affiliate and does not contain original CNN reporting. This content carries a strict local market embargo. If you share the same market as the contributor of this article, you may not use it on any platform.

By April Baumgarten

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    MOORHEAD (WDAY) — Moorhead police have arrested two parents after “candy” suspected of containing THC made several middle school students sick.

The Moorhead Police Department announced on Wednesday, May 20, the arrests of 40-year-old Martin Jay Hulst and 43-year-old Amanda Rhae Hulst. The Moorhead couple was identified as the parents of a child who brought “candy” that police believe contained THC to Horizon Middle School on Monday, according to a news release.

The candy made 10 students sick, according to the Moorhead Police Department. Two students were taken by ambulance to a local hospital, and the others were released to their parents, the police department said.

Officers searched a home in the 1100 block of 10½ St. N. on Tuesday, according to the release. Police found suspected THC products, including flower, cartridges and wax, as well psychedelic mushrooms and a “large amount of cash,” the release said.

The Hulsts were not present during the search but were arrested early Wednesday in Moorhead, police said.

Martin Hulst is being held at the Clay County Jail on a first-degree felony charge of possessing a controlled substance, according to jail logs. Amanda Hulst also is in custody at the jail on a first-degree felony of selling narcotics, the jail logs said.

“Multiple juveniles residing in the home have been referred to Clay County Social Services,” the release said. This investigation remains active. No further information is available at this time.”

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By KPIX Staff

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    SANTA ROSA, California (KPIX) — Lucas Ye, 8, was over the moon when he was invited by the Charles M. Schulz museum in Santa Rosa for a meet and greet with their Snoopy Zero Gravity Indicator (ZGI).

CBS News Bay Area shared the story of Ye’s plushie, Rise, that won NASA’s global ZGI competition for Artemis II.

“I felt really lucky. And it was very surprising to hear that I won the whole competition,” Ye told CBS News Bay Area.

So, it was an out-of-this-world union for two generations of ZGIs.

“This is so precious. Right?” Ye’s mother, Clara Zhao, asked.

“Yeah!” Ye exclaimed, smiling.

Ye, who is from Mountain View, designed his plushie based on the photographic capture of Apollo 8’s view of the Earth. He and his family also traveled to Florida to watch the launch of Artemis II in April.

“Was really cool, I could like hear a bunch of snapping sounds and I could still feel the vibrations even though it was two miles in the air,” he said.

And now, Ye witnessed another part of space history at the Charles M. Schulz museum.

“I love to see that continuity and story going forward of human achievement,” Benjamin L. Clark, museum curator, told CBS News Bay Area. “And it’s a very special thing that we can be a part of.”

“It’s incredible that we have him here at the Schulz Museum now in our collection,” he added.

The Snoopy was donated by NASA and Peanuts Worldwide and has been housed in the museum since 2023.

Jean Schulz, the museum board president and the late wife of Charles M. Schulz, was also at the ZGI meet-and-greet.

“The first thing I’m thinking is, ‘Lucas, when are you going to take your astronaut training and go up and join Rise?'” Schulz asked Ye.

She also gifted him with his own astronaut Snoopy figurine.

The museum had also hosted the Ye family with a private tour onsite, a trip that certainly left them over the moon.

Please note: This story was provided to CNN Wire by an affiliate and does not contain original CNN reporting. This content carries a strict local market embargo. If you share the same market as the contributor of this article, you may not use it on any platform.

By Julie Sharp

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    LOS ANGELES (KCAL, KCBS) — Young students got to use their green thumbs today at a Pacific Palisades school nursery, planting trees to rebuild the 2025 Los Angeles wildfire-torn region, with a project goal of 5,000 trees over the next several years.

The project called TREEAMS, which stands for trees and dreams) was inspired by Dr. Jane Goodall shortly before she died.

The program brings together students from Altadena, Pasadena, Pacific Palisades, and Malibu.

“This is a new model for wildfire recovery, and it’s led by students,” Shawna Marino, vice president of EF Academy, said.

“They raised their hands. These are student leaders from high school to elementary school age.”

Students learn from local experts which trees to plant, how to plant them, and how to keep them thriving. Marino said the students will help the trees grow in designated nurseries, like the one in the Palisades, then they will be donated to wildfire-affected properties when ready.

“I like it because I grew up here, and it burned, and it’s nice to see that we are planting trees here where I grew up,” student Tecker Kaplan said at Tuesday’s planting.

For more information on the program, visit TREEAMS.org.

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By Tom Wait

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    ARCADIA, California (KCAL, KCBS) — Angered Arcadia residents flocked to the first city council meeting since their former mayor agreed to plead guilty to being a Chinese spy last week.

“You all should have asked her to resign, saving Arcadia the embarrassing international headlines,” said one woman, speaking to the other members of the Arcadia City Council during Tuesday night’s meeting. It came just a week after Eileen Wang agreed to step down from her position as mayor and plead guilty to federal charges.

Wang now faces up to 10 years in federal prison after agreeing to plead guilty to acting as an illegal agent of the People’s Republic of China. She also admitted that she worked with her former fiancé, Yaoning “Mike” Sun, to push pro-Chinese propaganda through a website that the two operated. Sun was sentenced to four years in prison earlier this year on similar charges.

CBS LA questioned Wang about Sun’s sentence earlier this year, to which she refused to comment. Prosecutors have since said that Wang and Sun’s covert work took place from 2020 to 2022.

Arcadia’s other council members faced backlash and heightened scrutiny from some speakers.

“While federal prosecutors handle Ms. Wang, we as constituents must look at the leaders who remain, for now,” said another man who spoke during the public comment section of the meeting.

City Manager Dominic Lazzaretto told the crowd that city guidelines prevented other city officials from removing Wang from her position.

“At no time could the city council have removed Eileen Wang from office,” Lazzaretto said. “The city charter only allows the city council to remove another member if the person is convicted of a serious crime.”

Not only has there not been a conviction, but other officials say they were completely in the dark about the ongoing investigation.

“Nor was anyone informed of any investigation involving any other individual, namely Eileen Wang,” Lazzaretto said.

Residents expressed concerns that they ignored clear warning signs, especially after her former partner pleaded guilty in October 2025.

“I think our community deserves much better,” said one woman.

The final meeting on Tuesday night’s agenda was to find Wang’s replacement. City council members, who act as mayor on a rotational basis, eventually elected Paul Chang as the city’s new mayor.

Please note: This story was provided to CNN Wire by an affiliate and does not contain original CNN reporting. This content carries a strict local market embargo. If you share the same market as the contributor of this article, you may not use it on any platform.

By Libby Smith

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    AURORA, Colorado (KCNC) — During Foster Care Awareness Month, the Colorado Department of Human Services honored foster parents from across the state who are making a huge difference for the children in their communities.

Wendy is one of those foster parents. In nearly 14 years, she’s had some 160 children pass through her home. She specializes in boys ages 11 to 18, and she’s certified in therapeutic care.

“I wanted to do the impossible. I wanted to help the ones that not a lot of people were seeking to help,” she said. “They’ve come through so much already. Trust is something, you know, it’s not given with these kids…it’s definitely earned. So I’ve learned to meet each kid where they are. It can’t be a group thing. I have to tailor each lesson to each kid.”

Wendy had her own foster care journey which helps her connect with the youth. Her military background provides structure and discipline to the household. She’s created an environment where her teens can start to build their own lives.

“I want them to be in a safe and healthy place where they can go out and be productive members of society,” she explained.

When there are missteps, Wendy is right there with a helping hand.

“And they know it’s going to come with a lecture. It’s going to come with a, ‘Hey, this is why we plan. This is what we’re talking about.’ But I help them out,” she said.

Because these are the young people who can use a helping hand the most.

“Wouldn’t it be wonderful if that one kid you decided to bring into your home, you changed their life forever…changed the trajectory of where they are headed? It makes it worth it,” she said.

After nearly 14 years, Wendy makes a tough job look easy, and every day she’s changing lives.

For more information about becoming a foster care parent go to the co4kids.org website.

Raise the Future offers Family Support Services that provide in-home counseling for foster, adoptive, and kinship families. For more information about those services call (303) 755-4756 or (800) 451-5246 or go to the Raise the Future website.

Please note: This story was provided to CNN Wire by an affiliate and does not contain original CNN reporting. This content carries a strict local market embargo. If you share the same market as the contributor of this article, you may not use it on any platform.

By Rob McMillan

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    PASADENA, California (KABC) — Frustration is mounting among survivors of the Eaton Fire, with residents and advocacy groups calling for transparency and accountability over billions in promised recovery funding.

“We’re a community, and we’re going to figure this thing out,” said Florence Annang of Pasadenans Organizing for Progress.

A group of survivors said that of the $2.5 billion Gov. Gavin Newsom pledged to help rebuild, $1.5 billion remains unspent more than 15 months later.

Advocates pointed to the pace of rebuilding as another concern.

“9000 structures; 6000 homes; and only 150 homes completed,” said Annang. “Houston, we have a problem!”

The wildfire relief package was intended to fund efforts such as debris removal and assistance for rebuilding schools.

However, several advocacy groups, including Eaton Fire Residents United, said data from the Department of Finance shows that a formal request has not yet been made for a significant portion of the funds.

“You’re covering up the money,” said Altadena resident Adriana Bautista. “And this is a gut punch after gut punch to our community.”

Newsom on Thursday presented a revised budget that included additional help for fire survivors.

“A family earning up to $281,000 can get a grant-not a loan-of up to $100,000 for 12 months to address their mortgage needs,” the governor said.

Los Angeles County 5th District Supervisor Kathryn Barger said in a statement that the funding could help facilitate rebuilding, though it would not directly provide cash assistance to homeowners.

“My understanding is that while this funding would not provide direct cash assistance to homeowners, it could play an important role by facilitating access to private financing though an interest rate buy-down program and a loan loss guarantee program that would encourage lenders to finance rebuilding projects,” Barger said.

Still, some residents and advocates argue the measures fall short of the need.

“The scale of the need in Pasadena shows that to stabilize 8% of destroyed single family homes would be around $500 million,” said Vladmir Carrasco, chair of the Eaton Fire Collaborative Advocacy Committee.

“So, a $100 million investment in loans is a drop in the bucket.”

Residents said they will continue pushing for answers and additional support as rebuilding efforts move forward.

Please note: This story was provided to CNN Wire by an affiliate and does not contain original CNN reporting. This content carries a strict local market embargo. If you share the same market as the contributor of this article, you may not use it on any platform.