The latest North State and California news on our airwaves for Wednesday, June 29.
Rices Fire has potential to cross into Yuba County, officials say
A fire burning in Nevada County is threatening more than 500 homes and other buildings, and Cal Fire officials say it has potential to cross over to Yuba County.
At a press briefing last night, Cal Fire Nevada-Yuba-Placer Unit Chief Brian Estes said the agency’s main suppression efforts are to keep the fire from dropping into the Yuba River drainage.
“If it does go into the Yuba River drainage, and then crosses that drainage, it crosses into Yuba County from Nevada County and we could have some tremendous impacts to the communities of Dobbins, Oregon House and Brownsville,” he said.
Officials have issued evacuation advisories for two evacuation zones — YUB-E095 and YUB-E098 — in Yuba County. The advisories mean residents should stay alert to changing conditions of the Rices Fire.
As of 7:19 a.m. today, the Rices Fire was 769 acres in size with no containment. The cause is under investigation.
— Sarah Bohannon, NSPR
Forward progress stopped on Glenn County fire
Firefighters say forward progress has been stopped on the Burrows Fire burning north of the Glenn County community of Elk Creek.
According to Cal Fire, the fire was 75% contained and about 317 acres as of 7:25 a.m. today. No communities are threatened. The cause is under investigation.
— Jamie Jiang, NSPR
Abortion access in California isn’t equal statewide, many North State counties don’t have clinics
With Roe v. Wade overturned, much of the country is looking to California as an abortion sanctuary for those seeking care. But access in the state isn’t distributed equally.
Susie Neilson, data reporter for the San Francisco Chronicle, recently published an article on the issue.
“I think a lot of people nationwide think of California as a haven for abortion, a place where abortion is really easy to access, and while that might be true, relatively speaking on the national level, it is still hard to get an abortion in certain counties in the state,” she said.
Using data from the Advancing New Standards in Reproductive Health research program — which is based at UC San Francisco — Neilson found that 22 counties in California don't have any abortion clinics. Counties in the North State without clinics include Glenn, Colusa, Lassen, Plumas, Siskiyou, Tehama and Trinity.
— Adia White, NSPR
State lawmakers approve bill allowing lawsuits against those selling illegal guns
Gov. Gavin Newsom will soon get the gun bill he requested after Texas passed a law allowing citizens to sue anyone who provides or assists in providing an abortion.
The approval of the bill by the legislature follows two decisions by the Supreme Court last week — one that effectively overturns Roe v. Wade and allows states to create their own abortion laws. The other struck down a New York concealed weapons law. That ruling effectively expanded the rights of gun owners and sellers in states that have restrictive gun laws like California.
The California bill allowing lawsuits over the sale of illegal guns was opposed by groups that are rarely in agreement. Gun rights organizations and the ACLU both criticized creating a bounty to encourage people to bring civil actions to punish crimes.
— CapRadio Staff
Stories from NPR partner stations are edited by NSPR Staff for digital presentation and credited as requested.
In other news
- Californians can vote to add abortion to the state's constitutional rights: “The amendment, which comes three days after the U.S. Supreme Court reversed the landmark 1973 Roe v. Wade case, will go to midterm elections on Nov. 8.” — NPR
- Campers, advocates look forward to Pallet shelter assessments: “Interim City Manager Paul Hahn said shelter assessments and 7-day enforcement notices will be given Wednesday to people camping at Comanche Creek Greenway.” — Chico Enterprise-Record
- Coronavirus in Shasta County: Hospitalizations up. State urges caution before July 4th weekend: “On Monday, the number of COVID patients in Shasta County hospitals reached 25, according to Public Health data. That's more than twice what they were almost every other day in June, and three times what they were throughout most of May and April.” — Redding Record Searchlight
- Yreka man gets 28 years in prison for molesting 2 children: “A Yreka man was sentenced to 28 years in prison Tuesday for molesting two children under the age of 14.” — The Siskiyou Daily News
- With final Shasta County election results in, Supervisors for Districts 1 and 5 won’t be decided until the fall: ”The contentious nature of the local election did not appear to have any effect on voter turnout, which was almost identical to that in the last primary in 2018. For many races, candidates emerged with clear victories, but the top two candidates for supervisor of both District 1 and District 5 must compete again in the fall.” — Shasta Scout
- Memorial procession pays tribute to car-loving Red Bluff teen: “A family's grief over the loss of their son brought the community together Tuesday to honor the late Chance Johnson with a motor procession of classic cars driving by his Red Bluff home.” — Red Bluff Daily News
In case you missed it
- North State demonstrators rally for reproductive rights — NSPR (Headlines, June 28)
- California abortion access to be on November ballot — CapRadio (Headlines, June 28)
- Two Shasta County supervisor races headed for November runoffs — Redding Record Searchlight
- Caltrans provides update on anticipated delays through the Feather River Canyon — Plumas News
- Firefighters knock down fire at Thermalito Afterbay — Chico Enterprise-Record
- Cal Fire urges safety as the Fourth of July holiday approaches — Lassen County Times
- Tehama County sets fee for well registration program — Red Bluff Daily News
- Sutter County Grand Jury report released — The Appeal-Democrat
Headlines is published every weekday morning at 8:30 a.m. Subscribe on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and NPR One. Theme song Borough is courtesy of Blue Dot Sessions.
