San Francisco, CA
Coyote stuns observers by braving rough waters to swim to Alcatraz
A coyote recently stunned observers by swimming to Alcatraz, braving the treacherous waters surrounding the notorious former prison island off the coast of San Francisco in plain view of a tourist recording video.
The coyote in question is thought to be the first ever to reach Alcatraz, now a tourist attraction, in that manner. While it’s uncertain why the animal doggy-paddled there, the consensus is that the creature probably came from San Francisco – about 1.25 miles away – or other islands near Alcatraz where coyotes have been spotted.
Aidan Moore of Alcatraz City Cruises published clips of the coyote video on his Facebook account on 11 January. “A coyote swim to Alcatraz from the main island!” wrote Moore, who later told the news outlet SFGate that he got the videos from a tourist who approached him while at work. “The most exciting thing to happen here in ages! That’s a mile and a quarter swim!”
The clips depict the coyote swimming all by its lonesome in the San Francisco Bay, bobbing its head as it determinedly headed toward Alcatraz. The coyote eventually emerged on to the island’s rocky shore, cutting a bedraggled figure as water dripped from the animal’s body, which seemingly shivered with the Golden Gate Bridge looming in the background, according to one of the videos.
Moore said to SFGate that he called in the sighting to rangers at Alcatraz, which is under the jurisdiction of the US national park service. But it had disappeared by the time the rangers went looking for the coyote, and the canine’s fate was unclear.
SFGate reported that a spokesperson for the Golden Gate national recreation area – which oversees Alcatraz – confirmed the authenticity of the coyote sighting. The spokesperson, however, could not elaborate on what motivated the coyote to go there.
Citing what it described as a self-taught naturalist who has been documenting local coyote behavior for two decades, San Francisco’s CBS affiliate reported on Tuesday that the animal may have been seeking out new territory amid interspecies population pressure.
“This one was probably pushed around by other territorial owners and decided that he could make this trip,” Janet Kessler told the outlet, adding that coyotes have been in and around San Francisco for generations. “So, he attempted it, and he made it.”
Both Kessler and Moore remarked on the coyote’s evidently worn state. “He didn’t look like he was in very good condition, which I’m not surprised by given the harrowing experience,” Moore told SFGate.
Kessler, meanwhile, said to CBS: “He can barely make it. He’s depleted. He is shivering. He is cold.”
It wasn’t immediately clear what happened to the coyote after it was recorded getting to Alcatraz. Nonetheless, Kessler noted to CBS that the coyote had resources on the island with which to survive, including banana slugs, mice, rats, birds and puddles of rainwater.
“They are survivalists,” Kessler said to the outlet of coyotes in general. “That’s why they continue to expand.”
The federal government shut down its maximum-security prison on Alcatraz in 1963 after nearly 30 years in operation.
Some of its most infamous prisoners included the mob boss Al Capone, bootlegger George “Machine Gun” Kelly and Boston gangster James “Whitey” Bulger. The frigid, rough waters surrounding Alcatraz lent to it a reputation of being virtually inescapable.
The prison was later reopened as a public museum that attracts more than 1 million visitors annually.
San Francisco, CA
49ers Sign DL Gracen Halton to a Four-Year Deal
The San Francisco 49ers today announced they have signed DL Gracen Halton to a four-year deal. With the signing, the 49ers now have all eight of the team’s 2026 draft picks under contract.
Halton (6-3, 293) was the first of two fourth-round draft picks (107th overall) selected by the 49ers in this year’s draft out of Oklahoma. He appeared in 47 games (10 starts) over four seasons at Oklahoma (2022-25) and finished with 84 tackles, 17.5 tackles for loss, 8.5 sacks, three forced fumbles and two passes defensed. In 2025, he appeared in 13 games (seven starts) and tallied 33 tackles, 7.0 tackles for loss, 3.5 sacks, two passes defensed and one forced fumble (returned for a TD), earning Second-Team All-SEC honors. In 2024, he appeared in 13 games (three starts) and recorded 30 tackles, 6.0 tackles for loss, 5.0 sacks and two forced fumbles. In 2023, he appeared in 11 games and tallied 11 tackles and 3.5 tackles for loss. As a true freshman in 2022, Halton appeared in 10 games and recorded 10 tackles and 1.0 tackle for loss.
A 22-year-old native of San Diego, CA, Halton attended St. Augustine (San Diego, CA) High School.
San Francisco, CA
Multiple people lose eyes, hands in illegal fireworks-related injuries in San Francisco
SAN FRANCISCO (KGO) — San Francisco emergency departments and first responders experienced a sharp increase in serious injuries over the Fourth of July weekend, with illegal fireworks and electric scooter crashes contributing to some of the busiest days in recent years.
At Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital and Trauma Center, medical teams treated a wave of patients suffering severe trauma. In one incident, bystanders rushed to help a person who was bleeding heavily after a hand injury. A 911 dispatcher described the call as “Extreme Trauma. Hand injury.”
Dr. Christopher Colwell, chief of emergency medicine at Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital, said surgeons worked to treat patients with devastating injuries.
“We are able to do a lot with and sometimes save the function of the hand and eye. Unfortunately, there are injuries that exist every year where we are not able to do that even with the expertise that we have,” Colwell said.
MORE: SF police in riot gear crack down on 4th of July illegal fireworks shows: ‘It was crazy’
According to Dr. Colwell, four people lost eyes, five lost hands and at least 15 people suffered serious injuries related to electric scooters over the weekend.
“We saw a lot of electric scooter accidents. And I think part of it was that their traffic was such that that was a more efficient way of getting around town. But we also learned very clearly that the combination of electric scooters and how fast you can go in San Francisco, particularly going downhill along with not wearing a helmet and adding alcohol on board, is a really bad combination,” Colwell said.
ABC7’s data team reviewed San Francisco EMT data and found that medical incidents on July 4 and July 5 were about double the number reported during the same period in 2025.
Lt. Mariano Elias of the San Francisco Fire Department said emergency crews handled significantly more calls than usual.
“We had almost 200 more calls than we normally have so we had roughly 576 calls in a 24-hour period,” Elias said.
MORE: Over 400 people arrested during chaos at Newport Beach July 4th celebrations, police say
Illegal fireworks activity also sparked fires across the city. Firefighters responded to Telegraph Hill, where crews quickly contained a blaze.
“We did have two house fires that night on the 4th of July, due to fireworks activities,” Elias said.
City officials estimated that more than 100,000 people were in San Francisco to watch Fourth of July fireworks, creating traffic congestion that complicated ambulance response efforts.
“All the gridlock between, people coming and going from, the Golden Gate Bridge. The city was very impacted on the streets. So that was an issue. The one particular ambulance did, involve themselves in an accident. So, someone hit the ambulance. So that patient had to be transported and moved to a different ambulance,” Elias said.
First responders warned that illegal fireworks activity typically continues for days after the Fourth of July and urged the public not to take unnecessary risks.
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San Francisco, CA
Terrified passengers film Waymo autonomous vehicle driving into live fireworks in San Francisco
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Passengers in a Waymo vehicle were terrified as the car drove into lit fireworks in the middle of a San Francisco street during Independence Day celebrations over the weekend.
Video footage of the incident shows a group of passengers who were shocked as the driverless car seemingly approaches lit fireworks in the middle of a street as the explosives are about to launch.
As the car gets closer, someone on the street appears to warn the vehicle to stop by waving their hand.
DELTA FLIGHT STRUCK BY FIREWORKS WHILE LANDING IN CHICAGO ON FOURTH OF JULY, FAA INVESTIGATES
Passengers in a Waymo vehicle were terrified as the autonomous car drove into lit fireworks in the middle of a San Francisco street during Independence Day celebrations. (Rose Peterson via Storyful)
“No, no, no, don’t go, don’t go, don’t go,” one of the passengers is heard saying off-camera.
The autonomous vehicle then passes over the colorful flames and sparks.
“Our Waymo just drove into a firework,” a passenger says in the clip.
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A Waymo vehicle sits idling at an intersection with no operating traffic lights due to power outages, in San Francisco, Saturday, Dec. 20, 2025. (Jeff Chiu/AP Photo)
“Are we on fire, dude?” a fellow passenger asks.
A Waymo spokesperson told Fox News Digital that the company “is committed to keeping our riders safe and earning the trust of the communities where we operate.”
“We take situations like this seriously and are committed to evaluating and learning from these events,” the statement continued.
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No injuries were reported to either the passengers or the vehicle, and the company reached out to the riders after their trip. The possession of fireworks, even “Safe and Sane” explosives, is illegal in San Francisco, the city’s fire department said.
One woman was killed and two other adults and a child were injured Saturday in a separate fireworks explosion, the San Francisco Chronicle reported.
Elsewhere in San Francisco, some Waymo vehicles were towed when their batteries died after vehicles became stuck in traffic for hours.
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“Our priority is keeping San Francisco moving safely, especially during major city celebrations,” the Waymo spokesperson said. “On the Fourth of July, extreme traffic congestion in northern San Francisco disrupted normal operations for several Waymo vehicles.”
“In coordination with local authorities and emergency services, our roadside assistance team worked quickly to clear our vehicles from the area,” the statement continued.
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