Category: kesq-local-news

Haley Meberg

CATHEDRAL CITY, Calif. (KESQ)– Five adults were arrested over the evening hours of this Fourth of July weekend by the Cathedral City Police Department. 

The Cathedral City Police Department (CCPD) reported that they received over 65 calls for service regarding illegal fireworks being detonated throughout the city. In response to this the CCPD sent out a firework suppression detail made up of Police Officers and code Compliance Officers to look into the violations. 

Following this detail, five adults were arrested and charged with possession of illegal fireworks; a misdemeanor, and were issued the proper citations. 

In addition, two other individuals received citations for disruptive activities and several fireworks were confiscated throughout the weekend. 

The CCPD asks that anyone with additional information related to these incidents contacts them directly at (760) 770-0332, tips@cathedralcity.gov or via the Cathedral City Police Department website at: cathedralcitypolice.com 

Tips can also be made anonymously through Coachella Valley Crime Stoppers by calling (760) 341-STOP or through the WeTip hotline at 1-(800) 78-CRIME 

Stay with News Channel 3 for more updates. 

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Shay Lawson

INDIO, Calif. (KESQ)  – Law enforcement agencies across the Coachella Valley are reporting firework citations after Independence Day celebrations.

Indio

In Indio, Sergeant Abraham Plata, Indio Police Department, said officers issued multiple citations for illegal fireworks.

“We ended up with 26 people who were cited for illegal fireworks,” Plata said. “Six of those were actually caught with the use of the drones.”

The department used drones to monitor neighborhoods and respond to complaints.

“Our social media team was very aggressive with posting a lot of messages on social media and getting the word out,” Plata said. “It looks like a lot of residents saw those messages and cooperated because we did have less incidents in comparison to last year.”

Palm Springs

Palm Springs Police Lieutenant Gustavo Araiza reported the department did not have any citations.

“We received a few complaints,” Araiza said.

Cathedral City

During July 4th into July 5th, the Cathedral City Police Department (CCPD) received over 65 calls for service regarding illegal fireworks said Commander Andrew Diaz, CCPD.

“CCPD deployed a fireworks suppression detail composed of Police Officers and Code Compliance Officers to address the violations,” Diaz said. “As a result, 5 adults were arrested and were issued citations.”

He said 2 additional individuals received Administrative Citations for disruptive activities, and severalfireworks were confiscated throughout the evening.

Riverside County Sheriff’s Department

News Channel 3 reached out to the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department and is still waiting for a response.

Stay with KESQ at 10 and 11 p.m. to learn more about the success of the Indio Police Department’s drone program.

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John White

Six months into the Trump administration, News Channel 3 anchor John White sits down for a wide-ranging interview with local Republican Congressman Ken Calvert, asking the hard questions on important local issues.

“Does ICE need to be more open about what they’re doing?”

What the Congressman says on the local impacts of immigration enforcement, foreign policy, tariffs, and how they’ll affect the Coachella Valley.

Click here to follow the original article.

Jesus Reyes

PALM DESERT, Calif. (KESQ) – The Living Desert announced the death of the zoo’s striped hyena Kipenzi, affectionately known as Kip by guests and those who cared for him.

Kip arrived at the Living Desert from the San Diego Zoo in 2014. He quickly became a staff and guest favorite.

Zoo officials said that last week, Kip exhibited some sudden difficulty in breathing and was immediately rushed to the Vet Hospital for testing. The team was unable to find an immediate underlying cause for his distress and despite numerous attempts at medical intervention to help him recover, Kip continued to decline.

“The sad decision was made to compassionately release him,” officials said.

Kip was 19 years old. The maximum life expectancy of a striped hyena in human care is 24 years old.

“Kip taught everyone who worked with him about perseverance and patience, it was his innate nature to be skeptical of anything new, and it was one of the many things his care team loved him for. He became a guest favorite for his majestic appearance and demeanor and to say he will be greatly missed by all who knew him would be an understatement,” Zoo officials wrote.

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Peter Daut

PALM SPRINGS, Calif. (KESQ)– The Desert Healthcare District and Foundation has provided a new $236,000 grant to “Planned Parenthood.”

The grant aims to help the organization pay for its first Coachella Valley based physician. 

Planned Parenthood says this will help it to expand sexual and reproductive healthcare access, including low-income communities across our valley.

The Desert Healthcare District and Foundation CEO says bringing on the new physician will help to provide our community a variety of lifesaving services. 

“Some of those services include support for menopause management, gynecology type issues. There’s a special procedure called Leap, which helps to treat pre-cancerous conditions and cancer.” says Chris Christensen, CEO of Desert Health District and Foundation.

The District and Foundation has a grant program that awards about five million each year to advance community wellness. 

Stay with News Channel 3 for more information. 

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abc-news

By Emily Shapiro, Jack Moore, Nadine El-Bawab, and Ivan PereiraLast Updated: July 8, 2025, 11:55 AM PDT

At least 108 people are dead after heavy rain led to devastating flooding in Texas.

Kerr County was hit the hardest, with at least 87 deaths, including 30 children. President Donald Trump signed a disaster declaration for the county and the Federal Emergency Management Agency is on the ground there.

Click here to follow the original article.

Haley Meberg

PALM SPRINGS, Calif. (KESQ)- Palm Springs Pavilion and Swim Center is temporarily closed due to a power outage. 

This Saturday, it was announced that The Palm Springs Pavilion and Swim Center would be closed due to a power outage from equipment failure at Sunrise Park causing the city to cancel Fourth of July festivities including the Dive-In Movie and the Power Baseball game. 

Currently, backup generators are providing power to key facilities including the Palm Springs Public Library and Leisure Center.

There have not been any updates as to when the Palm Springs Pavilion and Swim Center and Power Baseball Stadium are set to reopen but the City of Palm Springs plans to set new dates for the canceled events.

For more information on this topic contact the Park and Recreation Dept. at (760) 323-8272 or email recinfo@palmspringsca.gov.

Stay with News Channel 3 for more updates

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Jesus Reyes

COACHELLA VALLEY, Calif. (KESQ) – Firefighters are working to contain a structure fire in the Windy Cove area north of Palm Springs.

The fire was reported at around 1:10 p.m. on the 15000 Block of La Vida Drive in the county area of Palm Springs.

According to CAL FIRE, there was “heavy smoke and fire from a residential structure.”

No injuries have been reported.

We have a crew on the way to the scene to gather more details. Stay with News Channel 3 for continuing updates.

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Jesus Reyes

UPDATE: 7/7/2025 7:00 PM – CAL FIRE reports that the fire is 100 percent contained and the fire burned a total of 13 acres.

BANNING, Calif. (KESQ) –  A vegetation fire that broke out today burned 13 acres in the Banning area before crews stopped its forward spread.   

The non-injury blaze was reported shortly before 12:45 p.m. Monday at Bluff Street, north of Mias Canyon Road, according to the Riverside County Fire Department.   

Crews will be at the scene for an additional two hours for mop-up and full containment.

The cause of the fire was not immediately known.

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Haley Meberg

COACHELLA VALLEY, Calif. (KESQ)- Coachella Valley Adopt the Arts Honor Choir helped Ringo Starr celebrate his 85th Birthday with the annual “Peace & Love” campaign on July 7 with the help of the Artemis Space Program.

Adopt the Arts Honor Choir is a program made up of 3rd-5th graders from four different elementary schools in the Coachella Valley that is set to perform in a music video adaptation of Starrs hit “Give More Love.” 

The video showcases students from all different backgrounds singing alongside a few legendary friends like Mick Fleetwood, Stewart Copeland, Fred Armisen, Jane Lynch, Jane Seymour, John Stamos and longtime Beatles collaborator Peter Ashe to emphasize the legacy that Starr’s music has on future generations. 

Monday marks the celebration of his birthday, Ringo Starr along with his friends and family is set to gather for his annual “Peace & Love” celebration filled with special guests, musical tribute performances and a broadcasted message set to reach the moon and back. 

T Bone Burnette is set to MC this event and performers from 38 different countries are all coming together to spread this message of peace and love as it orbits the planet. 

With the help of Goonhilly Earth Station and the Artemis Space Program this event will be beamed up to the moon and back to earth. Following this transmission the message of Peace and Love will be sent to the International Space Station (ISS) where it will continue across the universe to distant stars. 

“It’s so great how this keeps growing – we are in 38 countries!!! And we can’t forget the guys in the spaceship! I want to give thanks to the crew up in the ISS and the teams getting the message to the moon and back…Artemis, Intuitive Machines…meanwhile here on Earth, I am sending special thanks to all the Peace & Love Ambassadors for all they do in each of their countries. So see you on Monday and remember all you have to do to participate is post, say or even just think Peace & Love at Noon your local time,” said Ringo Starr. 

To support the Coachella Valley, Adopt the Arts Honor Choir visit https://adoptthearts.org/ and stay with News Channel 3 for more updates. 

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