In a sparsely attended meeting, the Mountain Area Safety Taskforce focused on the arrival of the Goldspotted oak borer on the Hill. The discussion addressed future actions, such as a census and mapping of the most vulnerable oak trees as well as potential protective actions and procedures for destroying infected trees. Riverside County Fire Department…

Phyllis Mueller is completing a stint as tree doctor for the Idyllwild Christmas Tree, the giant Sequoia on the land of Jo’An’s Restaurant in the center of town. “We completed a soil analysis first,” said Mueller. “There was no salt from runoff as some had suspected. The soil was low on magnesium.” Mueller organized the…

An injured hiker was hoisted by a CAL FIRE/Riverside County Fire rescue copter from Falls Trail, in a remote area of the San Bernardino Wilderness on Mt. San Jacinto. The hiker had sustained minor to moderate injuries. The incident was reported at 3:43 p.m. on Tuesday, Nov. 29 and the rescue was effected thereafter. CAL…

Preparing for next year’s budget Members of County Service Area 38’s (Pine Cove) Advisory Committee began preparation of its fiscal year 2018-19 budget, which begins July 1. The committee, last week, reviewed the status of several already approved and funded projects, and its current financial balance before discussing some ideas for next fiscal year. At…