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Weather shift gives firefighters an edge in battling three large Southern California wildfires

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Weather shift gives firefighters an edge in battling three large Southern California wildfires


Falling temperatures and rising humidity will give firefighters a brief window to gain more ground against three major Southern California wildfires, officials said Sunday.

“It’s helping out tremendously,” said Capt. Steve Concialdi, acting as public information officer on the Airport fire in Orange and Riverside counties, where overnight humidity levels topped 90% in some areas Saturday.

“It is helping us increase our containment lines and firefighters are able to work longer in these cooler temperatures,” Concialdi said. “We’re not getting heat-related illnesses.”

But there is a mixed blessing in the weather shift.

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“We are expecting some fairly strong winds through [Monday] night and also at higher elevations, which could present some issues,” said Bryan Lewis, meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Oxnard.

Even as a moist blanket of air in the marine layer thickens, rising to 4,500 feet by Sunday, conditions above that remain parched. Upper peaks could see wind gusts of up to 45 mph, Lewis said, spelling fresher air for valley residents but posing a challenge to fire crews. Lewis said the marine layer, with its cool, moist air, could deepen to 6,000 feet by Monday.

In San Bernardino County, the Line fire moved at a crawl over the weekend, but the Department of Forestry and Fire Protection said humidity and the chance of light rain late Sunday should give firefighters a chance to douse hot spots and solidify control lines that surround a third of the 36,000-acre fire. The fire was 36% contained as of Sunday afternoon.

Paul Faulstick, 67, walks among the ruins of his friend, David Mix’s, property that was destroyed in the Bridge fire along Bear Canyon Road in Mount Baldy on Thursday. “It was Armageddon-like,” said David Mix, 50, about the fire. “This place is like a relative. I had to know if she was gone,” Mix concluded.

(Genaro Molina/Los Angeles Times)

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The nearby Bridge fire sprawling nearly 55,000 acres in the San Gabriel Mountains of San Bernardino and Los Angeles counties continued to press north and west, but the agency said firefighters are holding lines to the south and east, though the Mount Baldy area remains under evacuation orders. The fire is only 9% contained.

In the Santa Ana Mountains, the Airport fire made no new advances Saturday night, holding under 24,000 acres and giving ground crews a chance to reach hard-to-access areas around Trabuco Canyon and establish fire lines. To date, 115 residences and three businesses have been destroyed, with injuries reported to 12 firefighters and two civilians. The fire is 19% contained.

Fire plans called for crews of hot shot firefighters to be flown in and dropped off in these remote areas, to establish camps from which they will work for several days dousing anything smoldering. “If the wind shifts or the Santa Ana [wind] kicks up, we want to make sure all of those hot spots are extinguished,” Concialdi said.

With other ground gains, Riverside County on Saturday downgraded evacuation orders in some areas to warning status.

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Dry conditions still dominate at upper elevations. State officials said the Line fire near Big Bear Lake continued to be active on higher ground. In the Airport fire, Modjeska Peak remained dry, and state officials warned smoldering vegetation above 4,000 feet still had the potential to flare and roll downhill to ignite unburned vegetation.

The high pressure system that locked Southern California in a heat dome last week has been displaced by the passage of a weak and dying cold front. Local weather forecasts called for temperatures slightly below normal, thick night fog and high humidity, and chances for light rain leading into Monday. Light rain returns to the forecast for Wednesday before National Weather Service forecasts call for temperatures to rise again to slightly above normal.

Air quality advisories remained in effect for all four counties, with smoke choking the air with fine-particulate matter. The South Coast Air Quality Management District advised residents to limit outdoor activity.

A firefighting helicopter battles the Airport fire, dropping water near Santiago Peak.

A firefighting helicopter battles the Airport fire, dropping water near Santiago Peak on Tuesday. The Airport fire has charred more than 9,000 acres.

(Allen J. Schaben/Los Angeles Times)

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Republican governor candidate Chad Bianco says he’s the ‘antithesis to California state government’

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Republican governor candidate Chad Bianco says he’s the ‘antithesis to California state government’


We are counting down to the California governor’s race. Chad Bianco, the sheriff of Riverside County, is one of the two biggest names running on the Republican ticket.

In a one-on-one interview with Eyewitness News political reporter Josh Haskell, Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco said, “I am the antithesis to California state government because I am going to take a nuclear bomb into that building and absolutely destroy everything that they do to us behind closed doors.”

Although he’s been elected by the voters twice, Bianco says he’s not a politician — which is why he believes his campaign for California governor is resonating, as reflected in the polls.

“President Trump, in one year, from 2025 when he took over, until now, did absolutely nothing to harm California. What’s harming California is 30 years of Democrat one-party rule that have created an environment here that no one can live in anymore. They’ve only been successful here in California because we vote D no matter what. You vote D or die. I mean, that’s it. Charles Manson would be elected in California if he was the only Democrat on the ballot,” Bianco said.

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Bianco isn’t the only conservative Republican running for governor, and according to polling, he’s neck-and-neck with former Fox News host Steve Hilton.

SEE ALSO: CA governor candidate Steve Hilton says ‘everybody supports’ Trump’s immigration policies

Leading in some polls in the wide-open California Governor’s race as the June primary creeps closer is Republican and former Fox News host Steve Hilton.

“Steve has no chance of winning in November. The Democrats know that I’m going to win in November, and so they have to do everything they can to keep me out of that,” Bianco said.

When asked about the affordability crisis in the state, Bianco said, “Almost the entire issue of affordability in California is because of regulation, excessive regulation imposed by government. Every single regulation can be signed away with the governor’s signature.”

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“It is a drug and alcohol addiction problem that, and a mental health problem,” he said about the homelessness crisis. “Every single bit of money that is going to these nonprofits that say ‘homeless,’ zero money. You’re getting absolutely nothing. I can’t tell you that we would end what we see in the homeless situation within a year, but I guarantee you we would never see it again after two years.”

When challenged on that prediction, pointing to how the state doesn’t have the facilities to treat the number of people living on our streets, Bianco responded, “We have been conditioned to believe that buildings take five years to build. It takes 90 days or less to build a house, but in California, it takes three to five years because the government won’t allow it. The regulations that are destroying this state are going to be removed with me as the governor.”

Bianco also said California jails shouldn’t have to play the role of treatment facilities.

Although he says he supports the Trump administration and wants the president’s endorsement, Bianco has been traveling the state — meeting not just with Republicans, but Democrats and independents as well. He says all of our state government officials have failed.

The primary election is June 2.

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No clear front-runner in race for California governor, new poll shows

A new poll shows there’s still no clear front-runner in the race to replace Gov. Gavin Newsom.

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PlayOn Sports fined $1.1 million by California watchdog over student data violations

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PlayOn Sports fined .1 million by California watchdog over student data violations


California’s privacy watchdog has ordered PlayOn Sports to pay a $1.10 million fine and change how it handles consumer data after finding the company’s practices violated state law in ways that affected students and schools in the state.

The California Privacy Protection Agency Board issued the decision following a settlement reached by CalPrivacy’s Enforcement Division.

The decision is the first by the board to address privacy violations involving students and California schools.

Schools across the country use PlayOn Sports’ GoFan platform to sell digital tickets to high school sporting events, theater performances, and homecoming and prom dances, with attendees presenting tickets at the door on their mobile phones.

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Schools also use PlayOn Sports’ platforms for other sports-related activities, including attending games, streaming them online, and looking up statistics about teams and players.

In California, about 1,400 schools contract with PlayOn Sports for these services.

[RELATED] X faces possible fines as EU probes Grok nonconsensual, sexualized deepfakes

GoFan is also the official ticketing platform for the California Interscholastic Federation, the governing body for high school sports.

According to the board’s decision, PlayOn Sports used tracking technologies to collect personal information and deliver targeted advertisements to ticketholders and others using its services.

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The company allegedly required Californians to click “agree” to tracking technologies before they could use their tickets or view PlayOn Sports websites, without providing a sufficient opt-out option.

“Students trying to go to prom or a high school football game shouldn’t have to leave their privacy rights at the door,” said Michael Macko, CalPrivacy’s head of enforcement. “You couldn’t attend these events without showing your ticket, and you couldn’t show your ticket without being tracked for advertising. California’s privacy law does not work that way. Businesses must ensure they offer lawful ways for Californians to opt-out, particularly with captive audiences.”

The decision also describes students as a uniquely vulnerable population and warns that targeted advertising systems can subject students to profiling that can follow them for years, expose them to manipulative or harmful content, and develop sensitive inferences about their lives.

Instead of providing its own opt-out method, PlayOn Sports directed students and other users to opt out through the Network Advertising Initiative and the Digital Advertising Alliance, which the decision said violated the company’s responsibility to provide its own way for consumers to opt out. The company also allegedly failed to recognize opt-out preference signals and did not provide Californians with sufficient notice of its privacy practices.

“We are committed to making it as easy as possible for all Californians — from high school students to older adults, and everyone in between — to make the choice of whether they want to be tracked or not,” said Tom Kemp, CalPrivacy’s executive director. “Californians can opt-out with covered businesses, and they can sign up for the newly launched DROP system to request that data brokers delete their personal information.”

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Beyond the $1.10 million fine, the board’s order requires PlayOn Sports to conduct risk assessments, provide disclosures that are easy to read and understand, and implement proper opt-out methods.

The order also requires the company to comply with California’s privacy law prohibiting the selling or sharing of personal information of consumers between 13 and 16 without their affirmative opt-in consent.



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California bill to bar police from taking second job with ICE advances in state Assembly

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California bill to bar police from taking second job with ICE advances in state Assembly


Wednesday, March 4, 2026 4:43AM

CA bill to keep police from moonlighting with ICE advances

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (KABC) — A bill that would prevent police officers from moonlighting with federal immigration enforcement agencies, such as U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, is advancing through the California State Assembly.

AB 1537 passed the State Assembly’s committee on public safety on Tuesday.

The bill also requires that officers report any offers for secondary employment related to immigration enforcement to their place of work.

Those failing to comply could face decertification as a peace officer in California.

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The bill was introduced by Assemblymember Isaac Bryan, whose district includes Mar Vista, Ladera Heights, Mid-Wilshire and parts of South Los Angeles.

Copyright © 2026 KABC Television, LLC. All rights reserved.



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