The eight individuals aboard the B-52 Stratofortress that crashed early Monday at Edwards Air Force Base, California, were killed, U.S. Air Force officials confirmed.

Gen. Ken Wilsbach, the Air Force chief of staff, said in a social media post Monday night that the force is grieving the loss of the individuals involved.

“It is with profound sadness that we mourn the loss of eight teammates today at Edwards AFB,” Wilsbach said in the post. “My thoughts are with the bomber and test communities during this difficult time.”

Air Force Secretary Troy Meink also lamented the deaths in a public statement, saying, “We mourn this loss and honor the service of our Airmen, civilians, and contractors who work every day to advance our mission.”

At 11:20 a.m. local time, or 2:20 p.m. Eastern Standard Time, the bomber aircraft crashed shortly after takeoff for a routine test mission and burst into flames, according to service officials. Initial indications of the crash were that it was not survivable.

Emergency personnel responded immediately to the scene, and as of late Monday were still working to account for all personnel, alongside base officials.

At a Monday afternoon news conference, Air Force officials said they were still attempting to locate personnel, as well as the aircraft’s black box, which could be used in the investigation of the incident.

The individuals on board were not all service members, Edwards Deputy Commander Col. James Hayes said at the news conference. The eight were a mix of military personnel, government civilians and contractors.

The crashed B-52 was in support of the radar modernization program, Hayes said.

The cause of the incident is still unknown, and it is currently under investigation by an interim safety board. The investigation will be taken over by a Safety Investigation Board that will determine the cause and will be followed by an Accident Investigation Board that will determine what information can be revealed to the public and next of kin.

The Air Force has yet to reveal the identities of the eight individuals. Teams were in the process of notifying family members by Monday afternoon.

A California Republican senator says it is time to have a “serious discussion” about putting a measure on the ballot to potentially “reverse” legalization of marijuana in the state—also raising concerns about President Donald Trump’s move to reschedule cannabis at the federal level.

“I think it’s time to assess the effects, the significant unintended consequences of the legalization of marijuana, which has not just happened in California, but in other states too,” Sen. Roger Niello (R) said at a hearing of the Senate Business, Professions and Economic Development Committee last week.

“Now we can’t change it without going back to the people, but I think we should have a serious discussion, a serious analysis of the obvious…unintended negative consequences I don’t think that the writers of the proposition cared about,” he said as first reported by State Affairs, referring to the cannabis legalization ballot initiative that California voters approved in 2016. “I think these could have been predicted. They just wanted recreational use to be legalized.”

Niello raised concerns that “we’re even seeing our current president now advocating that by downplaying the classification of marijuana at the federal level.”

“We have seen significant negative consequences of this legalization, both here as well as in other states,” the senator, who was speaking at a hearing at which lawmakers approved a bill to legalize marijuana dispensary drive-thru windows in California, said. “I think it’s time for us to have a serious analysis of that, and whether or not we want to develop a proposition to go back to the voters and either reverse it or somehow reform it so that we don’t continually deal with the problems that we do.”

“I oppose the legalization of marijuana,” he said, citing data about cannabis use by young people and an alleged link to mental health problems and claiming that the 2016 reform was “written to please everybody” which resulted in a “dysfunctional policy that is bound for unintended consequences.”

Elsewhere in the U.S., marijuana legalization opponents are currently collecting signatures to put measures to roll back the reform in Maine and Massachusetts—though those anti-cannabis campaigns have faced accusations of misleading petitioning tactics.

A separate anti-marijuana effort in Arizona for a similar measure was dropped after its lead organizer said his initial concerns about the legal cannabis industry were misplaced.

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Back in California, regulators recently adopted emergency rules changes for the state’s marijuana licensing process that are intended to make it easier for businesses to qualify for benefits in line with the Trump administration’s recent move to federally reschedule medical cannabis.

They also separately launched a new AI tool to help businesses identify marijuana product packaging may appeal to kids in violation of state rules.

Gov. Gavin Newsom (D), meanwhile, recently took credit for helping to lead the push for the state to legalize marijuana and discussed his own limited experience with using cannabis.

In October, however, Newsom vetoed a bill that would have allowed certain marijuana microbusinesses to ship medical cannabis products directly to patients via common carriers like FedEx and UPS, stating that the proposal “would be burdensome and overly complex to administer.”

Newsom did sign a bill earlier that month aimed at streamlining research on marijuana and psychedelics.

In September, the governor also signed a measure into law to put a pause on a recently enacted tax hike on marijuana products.

Separately, the state attorney general says Indian tribes cannot independently engage in marijuana commerce with licensed cannabis businesses without first obtaining their own commercial license from state officials.

California officials recently awarded nearly $30 million in grants for marijuana-focused academic research projects.

FRESNO, Calif. (FOX26) — After a four-year absence, the Miss California competition is returning to Fresno, bringing dozens of contestants back to the city that long served as the pageant’s home.

Contestants gathered at River Park on Sunday afternoon to kick off competition week.

Organizers said 63 contestants for Miss California and Miss California Teen took part in the event.

They emphasized the competition is about more than what happens on stage, saying contestants spend months developing leadership skills, advocating for causes they care about and earning scholarships.

“And when you hear that pageants are just girly stuff, no. No, these are intelligent, bright, beautiful women,” said Sandy Johnson who volunteers for the event.

Another speaker highlighted the focus on service and advocacy: “They’re all here with their passions and their community service initiatives to go forward and change the world as one of them becomes the next Miss California and another becomes the next Miss California teen.”

Reigning Miss California Rachel Axt of Clovis said her experience has helped her share her community initiative, advocating for children on the spectrum.

“It’s also helped me in my career as a special education teacher be able to get the word out and to show people what it’s really like to live life on the spectrum,” Axt said.

This year’s competition also marks a homecoming for the pageant. From 1994 to 2022, Fresno served as the host city. Now, after four years, the competition has returned.

“It’s special to me because I was born and raised in Fresno County, but it’s very special to the community because in many ways, this is the historical home of Miss California,” said Axt.

Volunteer Sandy Johnson said events like the pageant provide an economic boost to the area.

“They’re bringing their parents, their guests, and they’re in the city and eating and shopping and doing all those things,” Johnson said.

The Miss California competition is scheduled for June 15-20, 2026, at the Saroyan Theatre in downtown Fresno.