The county is busy with a number of disaster response plans, initiatives and trainings. Mountain Emergency Services Coordinator Gina Moran-McGough highlighted them at the monthly meeting on Thursday, Feb. 9. First, McGough recapped the county’s and local agencies’ interest in designating an alternate local emergency operations center where emergency responders could coordinate communication and disaster…

At the Idyllwild Fire Protection District’s commission meeting last week, Fire Chief Patrick Reitz said the Riverside County Registrar of Voters has accepted the IWD’s proposed parcel fee increase. It will be included on the November presidential election ballot as Measure W. Commissioner Nancy Layton, chair of the Education and Dissemination Committee, reported that a…

Stephen Patrick Medlock, 52, a transient, charged with arson for igniting the 2013 Silver Fire, had his July 26 felony settlement conference moved to Aug. 9. While negotiations with the prosecutor continue, Medlock has not received an offer. Since his March 21 preliminary hearing, the Riverside County District Attorney’s Office has amended the original formal…

Plastic bags. Love ‘em, hate ‘em, need ‘em, environmental threat, so what? They are ubiquitous. In our pantries, in our trash, on the roads, waterways and especially at the transfer station. So what, they’re recyclable. Or are they? The number of plastics generated has increased nearly six times since 1980 and more than 40% in…

A teenage boy was injured with a log splitter Saturday afternoon at Camp Ronald McDonald in Garner Valley. Cal Fire Engine 53 and Idyllwild Fire Department responded to the incident. When the first responders arrived on the scene, they were confronted with a victim suffering a partial amputation to his upper extremity. They called for…