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Felon suspected of secretly recording women in hospital restroom
Families affected in Country Squire RV Park fire provided with temporary housing
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M O N D AY, A U G U S T 07- A U G U S T 13, 2023
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Wildfire near Aguanga nearly contained; blazes strike Santa Ana River bottom, Cabazon, Sage
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County offers back-to-school backpack giveaway By Staff
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s more than 300,000 children in the Riverside area get ready for the upcoming school year, the county hosted an event that featured free backpacks and school supplies. To help ease the financial burden of back-to-school expenses, the Riverside County Department of Child Support Services opened its Riverside branch office Saturday from 8 a.m. to noon. “If you are a parent looking for resources and support, we invite you to join us for a day of education, information and community,” officials said in a statement announcing the event. “We can work towards a brighter future for our children and families.” The event featured presentations and educational workshops on child support services, community resources and employment opportunities for ready-to-hire candidates, according to the county. “Each attendee will receive a bag containing Riverside County and local parent resource packets, including school
By City News Service
See Backpack giveaway Page 27
Smoke from the Bonny Fire near Aguanga bellows from a hillside. | Photo courtesy of the Riverside County Fire Department/Twitter
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he Bonny Fire southeast of Aguanga was 98% contained Friday, with full containment still expected Monday, according to the Riverside County Fire Department. The increase reported at 8 a.m. Friday was the first since the 7 p.m. Thursday update when containment increased from 90% to 95%. All mandatory evacuation orders tied to the fire were canceled Wednesday as firefighters continued building on the work accomplished overnight, reinforcing containment lines and cooling hot spots, according to the Riverside County Fire Department. According to the Riverside County Fire Department, the evacuation orders impacting properties north of the San Diego County line and south of Ramsey Road were no longer deemed necessary as of 3 p.m. Wednesday. However, evacuation
warnings remain in place for the area south of Bowers Road, north of Rim Rock Road, east of Bonny Lane and west of Chapman Road. Crews were being released from the fire lines Wednesday afternoon to join personnel battling brush fires in Sage and Cabazon. The brush fire erupted early in the afternoon July 27 in the area of Bonny and Barber lanes on the edge of the Cahuilla Indian Reservation. The Bonny Fire nearly swept across Chapman and Johnston roads shortly after 2 p.m. last Friday, prompting Cal Fire air tankers and water-dropping helicopters to unload in the immediate vicinity of several homes, protecting them from damage. One outbuilding and a vehicle were destroyed Friday afternoon. One firefighter was injured over the weekend, though not seriously.
At the fire’s peak, an estimated 2,000 personnel were on the ground, including county engine and hand crews, as well as strike teams and other firefighters from the Corona Fire Department, Hemet Fire Department, Murrieta Fire & Rescue and other agencies. Hot shot crews from Kern County were also dispatched to the area, which is sparsely populated. The cause of the fire is under investigation. Blaze in Santa Ana River bottom quickly contained A quarter-acre brush fire that erupted Thursday in the Santa Ana River bottom in Riverside was quickly knocked down. The noninjury blaze was reported at 12:05 p.m. near Market and 24th streets, according to the Riverside Fire Department. Crews from the city and Riverside County Fire Department were sent to the
Woman admits causing deadly fire that killed her children, grandmother
location and encountered flames moving at a slow rate through medium vegetation. Firefighters encircled the brusher within 20 minutes, preventing it from spreading toward homes and businesses. The blaze was completely contained by 12:30 p.m. The cause of the fire was under investigation. Homeless encampments are located throughout the river bottom, and cooking, warming and debris fires are frequent year-round. Cabazon fires fully contained, evacuations orders lifted Two brush fires that erupted Wednesday on the south edge of Cabazon and scorched nearly 100 acres are 100% contained and all evacuation orders have been lifted, Riverside County Fire Department
31-year-old woman who caused a Lake Elsinore house fire that killed her two young children and grandmother, as well as injured her mother and another child, pleaded guilty Thursday to over a dozen felony charges and was immediately sentenced to 12 years in state prison. Devinn Elysse Fisher admitted four counts of causing a fire resulting in great bodily injury or death, as well as three counts each of involuntary manslaughter, child cruelty and animal abuse, and one count each of burning an inhabited structure and elder abuse. The plea was made directly to Riverside County Superior Court Judge David Gunn during a status hearing at the Riverside Hall of Justice. The District Attorney’s Office did not negotiate the agreement, which was proffered by the defense. Deputy District Attorney Sarah Crowley objected to the bargain, telling Gunn that the prosecution offered “a fair trial to the defendant.” Crowley read a victim impact statement from a family member not identified in court minutes, stating Fisher had never expressed remorse for what happened. “She needs to be held accountable and serve a sentence that is appropriate for all the pain and agony
See Fire Page 28
See Deadly fire Page 28
By City News Service
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