Category: CNN Regional

By Mythili Gubbi

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    OGDEN, Utah (KSTU) — A company based in Ogden is using an ancient way of watering plants to help people conserve water in gardens.

The company, called Thirsty Earth, makes “CottaCups” to help use less water, increase harvests and create an automatic watering system.

“We’ve got all kinds of fun stuff in her — parsley and shallots and bunching onions,” said Jared Orvis, who is proud of his garden.

From tomatoes to squash, his garden is in full bloom. But with the lack of water and snowpack last winter, he said he’s worried about what that could mean the rest of the summer.

“We’re in a tough spot, and I’m guessing restrictions are on their way to everybody,” said Orvis.

But he’s not too concerned about having enough water this year for his garden, thanks to his CottaCups.

His company makes the terracotta cups. The concept, he says, is based on something people a long time ago would do — placing large pots of water, called “Ollas,” in the soil to water their plants.

With their product, reservoirs, or containers for water, sit on a level above the ground, sending water to the unglazed, unsealed terracotta cups buried in the soil near the roots. Orvis explained that the sweat from the porous cups is sufficient to water the plants.

The reservoir bucket only needs to be filled once a week, and since it can be filled through a faucet periodically, Orvis said this system is also convenient and lets people not have to continuously water their gardens.

The sweat from the pots forms a moisture plume around the plant, giving it all the water it needs.

“The amount of water used through the system is even less, is around or below 10 percent of the water used with the next most efficient water system, which is drip emitters,” Orvis said.

Eric Jordan, who also co-founded Thirsty Earth, is an avid gardener himself, and helps people who use their CottaCups.

“This is something we get to share with the world, and people can see it and be inspired by it, maybe they do their own, like get the traditional olla, or slap Home Depot pots together like I did, or maybe it inspires other people to come up with other water-wise solutions,” said Jordan.

Orvis said this system has also given them a better harvest so far. He already has tomatoes growing on the plants watered with the CottaCups, but not on the ones that the sprinklers water yet.

“The technology has been around since the Roman Empire, but getting it to where it’s accessible to just regular gardeners has been a ton of fun,” he added.

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 Julia Sandor

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    BEAVER COUNTY, Utah (KSTU) — The pews inside The First Baptist Church of Beaver are typically filled on a Sunday morning, but they opened their doors for all of Beaver on Wednesday night.

Pastor Mark Dupont hosted a prayer meeting for people of all religions in response to the Cottonwood Fire.

“We just need God’s mercy right now,” Dupont said. “So we’re giving people the opportunity to come and look to him.”

“There are differences in our churches and such as that, but there is the community camaraderie that goes on. In a crisis, people are ready to help each other,” Dupont said.

With flames still visible from town Beaver City declared a local emergency on Wednesday afternoon. This comes after Beaver County also declared an emergency.

They held a public meeting and spoke with residents about their concerns. Beaver City Mayor Matt Robinson said they want to be prepared for whatever happens next.

“To open up the conversations and the resources we need to fight the fire, support the fight of the fire, but also to take care of our citizens moving forward in regards to flood mitigation which is quickly becoming maybe our primary concern here in this valley,” Robinson said.

But being prepared now doesn’t make it any easier to see neighbors dealing with these losses.

We talked to one property owner, Marc Leduc, who shared a video of his cabin surrounded in flames.

“I don’t 100% know right now, but I think it’s still standing. Made it through that wind, looks like a fire tornado, but I don’t know for sure. My cameras are out now, I don’t have power, so it’s kind of just wait and hear,” Leduc said.

Three days and counting, and officials said they don’t think there is an end in sight.

“We’re going to continue to get on our knees and ask for help from above and then get up off our knees and go to work,” Robinson said.

Right now, they said they’re going to pray for their surrounding communities, as the fire shifts with the winds.

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 Alan Gionet, Jennifer McRae

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    Colorado (KCNC) — A former DNA analyst with the Colorado Bureau of Investigation changed her plea to guilty in court on Tuesday to four charges, as part of an agreement in which prosecutors dropped 100 other counts she was facing.

Yvonne “Missy” Woods reached a plea agreement with prosecutors after she was accused of mishandling or manipulating data in dozens of criminal investigations, casting doubt on many cases in which she was involved. She pleaded guilty to one count each of cybercrime, perjury, attempt to influence a public servant and forgery.

The case was tried in the First Judicial District, where CBI lab techs have done their work.

Colorado First Judicial District District Attorney Alexis King said in a statement: “Today, Ms. Woods accepted responsibility not only for individual acts of misconduct but for the full scope of criminal conduct that spanned decades. Despite Colorado law allowing for these offenses to be probation eligible, this disposition guarantees a prison sentence and eliminates any possibility of a community-based sentence. Securing a term of imprisonment, protecting the interests of the community, and our shared expectations of integrity in the justice system is reflected in this resolution.”

Woods agreed to a stipulated sentence of between eight and 16 years of prison as part of the guilty plea agreement.

Woods was charged in Jefferson County Court in January 2025 with forgery, attempting to influence a public servant, perjury, and cybercrime. She initially pleaded not guilty to the charges in February of this year.

CBI said it launched an investigation into over 1,000 cases in which Woods had some sort of involvement. The agency said it looked at cases from 1994 to 2023, when she was placed on administrative leave and then retired.

According to an arrest affidavit, investigators said Woods intentionally left DNA samples out of tests or reports and sometimes would test samples until the results showed what she wanted. CBI asked the South Dakota Division of Criminal Investigation to conduct an outside investigation into the case since it involved one of its own employees.

Investigators alleged that Woods deleted some findings of what are called “specific values” in more than 30 sexual assault cases. She was accused of submitting reports that said no male DNA was found, when there was, in fact, male DNA or possible contamination that should have been retested.

Woods worked at CBI’s Denver regional laboratory in Lakewood until the facility moved to Arvada in 2016, where she worked until she retired in 2023.

A Colorado man convicted of murder over a decade ago in Boulder was released from prison in April 2025 after his lawyers say DNA evidence in the case was mishandled by Woods. Michael Clark spent 12 years behind bars but always maintained his innocence in the 1994 murder of Marty Grisham.

The district attorney in Boulder, Michael Dougherty, says the DNA evidence wasn’t the only problem with the case.

“The Clark case I look at somewhat differently, because in addition to the concerns we had about Missy Wood’s involvement, we also had really significant concerns about juror misconduct, also ineffective assistance of counsel,” said Dougherty. “But there are other cases where the DNA evidence played a really important role, and the misconduct by Missy Woods had an incredibly damaging effect on our ability to do justice for the case. And it’s caused us to revisit different cases and open old wounds for victims and their families, and that’s true in offices around the metro area.”

Dougherty tried cases in which Woods tested and testified. He says he has not talked with her since she left her position with CBI.

“I’ve always thought about how that conversation would go, and the incredible disappointment and just shock that I had when I first learned of her misconduct. And today’s guilty plea certainly cements that what she did was absolutely wrong and criminal, and against the public interest,” said Dougherty.

Dougherty did not have a count on how many cases might be affected in his district. In the First Judicial District, the Colorado Bureau of Investigation identified 107 cases with anomalies. The district attorney’s office said 56 of those cases were never filed by police, and 51 were prosecuted.

“She doctored testing results to avoid testing,” pointed out Jud Lohnes, an attorney with the Korey Wise Innocence Project at CU Boulder Law. “And that has a dramatic effect on both defendants and victims. Defendants who may have been deprived of DNA testing that could have proved their innocence, and victims of crimes who, whose cases may have withered on the vine because she didn’t conduct the DNA testing that could have brought the true perpetrator to justice.”

The Innocence Project is looking at multiple cases involving Woods’ work.

Last year, state lawmakers passed a bill sparked by the Woods investigation that creates procedures for reporting misconduct.

“I have at least 2 clients. where Missy Woods did testing in their cases,” said Lohnes. “And they did not receive a notice from the district attorney, because it got lost in the shuffle in CBI’s review.”

There is a backup caused by problems with the case. The cost was estimated at over $ 11 million two years ago, but there’s been no recent estimate.

“There are so many cases, and so many defendants, and so few attorneys who are capable of doing this work, that it’s going to take a long, long time to truly find out how many people were affected by our misconduct,” Lohnes explained. “To be frank, not every case that Missy Woods worked on is going to be one where her work caused prejudice. But just a small percentage of the thousands of cases that she worked on would be an enormous number.”

The CBI said today in a statement that it has undertaken reforms that go beyond routine compliance.

“This moment is not about moving on, for CBI, it’s about moving forward,” said Armando Saldate, Director of the Colorado Bureau of Investigation. “Today’s guilty plea is an important moment of accountability.”

Judge Andrew Poland set Woods’ sentencing hearing for Sept. 8.

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 Matt Schooley

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    SALEM, New Hampshire (WBZ) — A New Hampshire police department is looking for a man who allegedly stole a purse out of a car, and they say the man caught on surveillance camera bears a striking resemblance to Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce.

The Salem Police Department posted about the incident Wednesday on Facebook.

In photos shared by police, the bearded man can be seem walking out of a Best Buy store while wearing a bucket hat and Calvin Klein t-shirt.

“But THIS GUY allegedly stole a purse out of someone else’s vehicle and then decided that the credit cards in that purse were now his to use all Willy nilly,” police posted. “GUESS WHAT PAL, you may look like Travis Kelce, TE for the Kansas City Chiefs and, possibly his more well known claim to fame, current fiancé of Taylor Swift, but your good looks and cool sty (kids call it “sty” I think.) can’t get you outta this one!”

Police went on to joke that maybe the suspect was actually Kelce himself.

“Are we sure this isn’t Travis, actually? Anyone know where he’s been? Have times been tough? I mean I know the Chiefs missed the playoffs,” police wrote. “Na, it can’t be. He’s a Swifty. He wouldn’t do this.”

Salem police didn’t add more details about what was stolen during the incident. Anyone who recognizes the man is asked to call police at (603) 893-1911.

As for the actual Travis Kelce, his impending nuptials with Taylor Swift has had a different New England town buzzing. Rumors have swirled around Westerly, Rhode Island where Swift has a home, as people wonder if the celebrity couple will be getting married there or at Madison Square Garden in New York sometime this summer.

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 Kayla Moeller

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    SACRAMENTO, California (KOVR) — It’s a pest problem many Sacramento homeowners know all too well this time of year, but experts say a relatively new invasive cockroach is helping drive the surge in complaints across the region.

The Turkestan cockroach is an invasive species that’s been taking over in the Sacramento region for about the last five years. This cockroach is primarily an exterior roach, but recently, they’ve been making their way inside.

Entomologists speculate that the Turkestan cockroach landed in the United States by way of military equipment coming from the Middle East. The invasive species is now one of the most common roaches found in the Sacramento region.

“We’ve got bases all over the place. I’d argue this is far more favorable than where they even come from,” said Josh Fleenor, president of Pest Pros Pest Solutions.

That’s because, he said, Sacramento’s warm climate, coupled with regular moisture, serves as the perfect breeding ground for the Turkestan cockroach.

They’re easy to misidentify, which can be a problem because different species require different extermination techniques.

“Traditional methods for treating exterior roaches aren’t as effective on these guys as, say, oriental roaches that we used to deal with consistently,” Fleenor said.

Fleenor has been in the industry for 26 years and said their phones have been ringing off the hook recently for the Turkestan cockroach. He suspects our past few milder winters might have something to do with it.

“They tolerate the heat fairly well, to a certain extent. It starts getting warm enough they’re going to push inside. However, they do not tolerate the cold weather well at all. So if we get to freezing temperatures, you’re going to see a population drop,” he said.

But it’s not just the weather helping these pests spread. Fleenor said rapid development is creating the ideal habitat for the roaches to thrive.

“We’re building all over the place –– West Roseville, Elk Grove, all over. We’re creating these new communities with new lawns and lots of moisture and new irrigation boxes,” Fleenor said.

The cockroaches are most commonly found in irrigation boxes, but also within cracks in the concrete, underneath bark, in leaves and in drains. And the pests will even enter homes if they’re in search of water.

“There was an exterior cockroach season, but we’re getting calls January through December, all year,” Fleenor said.

Experts say the best defense is prevention. Eliminate standing water, patch up any leaky pipes and seal your entryways because with Turkestan cockroaches, the one you see is a sign of a much larger population nearby.

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 Austin Turner, Chelsea Hylton, Iris Salem, Dean Fioresi, Julie Sharp, Matthew Rodriguez

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    LOS ANGELES, California (KCAL, KCBS) — Officials are confident that the fire at a cold storage facility can be extinguished in the near future, after about a week of the blaze creating health hazards in the East Los Angeles neighborhood of Boyle Heights.

In a news conference on Wednesday morning, Los Angeles Fire Department Captain Jacob Raabe said crews are “very close to final extinguishment” on the blaze that started last week at the 500,000-square-foot Lineage Big Bear cold storage facility at 1400 S. Los Palos Street.

“The fire chief has set a goal for us … to get this fire put out today,” Raabe said.

The LAFD said in an update Tuesday evening that smoke conditions have improved significantly and residents in the nearby area should expect better air quality in the days to come. Some smoke could remain in the area through the week, Raabe said, even after the blaze is extinguished.

Raabe on Wednesday detailed the firefighting strategy, which included knocking down exterior walls in order to reach the flames in the center of the massive building with what he called “water cannons.”

“We’re using those large volumes of water from the exterior of the building,” he said. “Half of this building has been peeled back.” When the fire is fully extinguished, the LAFD will partner with private contractors to remove the food stored inside the building. Raabe described the building as a massive “ice chest,” and said there’s more than 85 million pounds of food inside, and some has already burned or spoiled. It’s unlikely

The cause of the fire is yet to be determined, Raabe said, but Lineage, the building’s tenant and operator, said that the fire may have originated from work being performed by a third-party contractor handling solar panels on the roof.

“Lineage is the tenant-operator of this building,” the company said in a statement. “At this time, we believe the fire began while testing was being conducted by contractors of the third-party owner of the solar array located on the facility’s roof. This facility is not used for the storage of hazardous materials. It primarily serves as a temperature-controlled storage facility for frozen food before it makes its way to Greater Los Angeles area communities and beyond. Our understanding from LAFD and AQMD is that there have been no measurable ammonia concentrations recorded in the community since the fire started. Additionally, Lineage has proactively taken additional steps to pump out the ammonia and transport it offsite, removing the possibility of ammonia posing a risk to the community. This facility and the supply chain it connects with employ hundreds of local jobs. We are grateful that no team members at the facility were harmed.”

On Monday, Lineage told CBS LA that the building is owned by Chill Build Los Angeles I, LLC, and that the solar array on the building is owned by Los Palos Street Operating, LLC, which is a subsidiary of Altus Power. The building’s solar contractor is Pearce, which is a subsidiary of CBRE.

In a statement, Altus said the cause of the fire was yet to be determined.

“Our first concern is for the residents of Boyle Heights, everyone affected by this fire, and for the firefighters working to contain it. The cause of the fire where our rooftop solar array is located at the Los Palos Street facility has yet to be determined,” the statement said. “We are cooperating fully with the authorities as they investigate.”

The South Coast Air Quality Management District’s Particle Pollution Advisory will remain in effect until at least 12:30 p.m. Wednesday for parts of LA County. No shelter-in-place orders were in effect, but officials recommended that those in affected areas limit their exposure to the outside air and to consider wearing an N95 mask.

A spokesperson for Adventist Health White Memorial hospital in Boyle Heights told CBS LA that its emergency department has seen a moderate increase in visits related to respiratory issues since the fire began last week.

Mayor Karen Bass and Gov. Gavin Newsom on Saturday declared a state of emergency in Boyle Heights, enabling state resources to be used.

On Tuesday, the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors ratified a local emergency proclamation as well to expand community support, environmental monitoring and business recovery assistance. The emergency proclamation was declared by Supervisor Hilda Solis, who said that thousands of air purifiers and masks have been distributed to residents impacted by fire and smoke.

LAUSD relocates schools due to fire Monday was the first day of summer school for the Los Angeles Unified School District. Citing air quality concerns, the LAUSD has relocated students in the Boyle Heights area to different campuses through Wednesday.

Dean Elementary and Dacotah Early Education Center students will be moved to Sunrise Elementary at 2821 E. 7th St., Los Angeles, 90023.

Eastman Early Education Center will relocate to Humphreys Elementary at 500 S. Humphreys Ave., Los Angeles, 90022.

Stevenson Middle School students will report to Belvedere Middle School at 312 N. Record Ave., Los Angeles, 90063

“At all surrounding sites, all activities will take place indoors to support the health and safety of students and staff,” the district said. “We will continue to closely monitor conditions and work with Los Angeles Unified Office of Environmental Health and Safety, Air Quality Management District (AQMD), and public safety partners.”

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.