California
Winds help wildfire explode in size
JUNIPER HILLS — Strong winds pushed a wildfire burning for nearly two weeks in mountains northeast of Los Angeles onto the desert floor and spread it rapidly in several directions, causing it to explode in size and destroy homes, officials said Saturday.
Meanwhile, officials were investigating the death of a firefighter on the lines of another Southern California wildfire that erupted earlier this month from a smoke-generating pyrotechnic device used by a couple to reveal their baby’s gender.
The death occurred Thursday in San Bernardino National Forest as crews battled the El Dorado Fire about 75 miles east of Los Angeles, the U.S. Forest Service said in a statement.
In northern Los Angeles County, erratic winds pushed the Bobcat Fire onto the Mojave Desert community of Juniper Hills on Friday after churning all the way across the San Gabriel Mountains.
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Earthquake rattles Southern California
SOUTH EL MONTE — A magnitude 4.6 earthquake struck Southern California late Friday night, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.
The earthquake hit around 11:40 p.m., about 2 miles outside of South El Monte, near Los Angeles, the agency reported. Preliminary reports indicate it was about 11 miles deep.
There were no immediate reports of damage or injuries.
Officials warned residents to be prepared for possible aftershocks.
The epicenter of Friday night’s earthquake was close to the location of the Whittier Narrows earthquake in 1987, which was a magnitude 5.9, seismologist Lucy Jones tweeted.
The Whittier Narrows earthquake killed eight people.
Minnesota
Stretch of street to be named after Floyd
MINNEAPOLIS — A stretch of a Minneapolis street that includes the place where George Floyd was killed will soon be named in his honor.
Although the street will still be called Chicago Avenue, the city will refer to the blocks between 37th and 39th streets as George Perry Floyd Jr. Place, the Star Tribune reported.
The City Council approved the naming Friday, and Mayor Jacob Frey’s office said he would likely sign off on it as well.
Michigan
Toilet display mocking mail-in voting is crime
MASON — A Michigan resident’s apparent joke showing disdain for voting by mail is no laughing matter for one election official.
The resident put a toilet on their lawn with a sign that says, “Place mail in ballots here.”
Barb Byrum, the Democratic clerk of Ingham County, filed a complaint with police over the display, saying it could mislead people who aren’t familiar with the voting system.
“It is a felony to take illegal possession of an absentee ballot,” Byrum said Friday.
Oregon
After wildfire smoke clears, protests resume
PORTLAND — Protesters returned to the streets of Portland, Oregon, following a dayslong pause largely due to poor air quality from wildfires on the West Coast.
Police declared an unlawful assembly Friday night in a neighborhood near a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement building where protesters had marched, according to a police statement.
Demonstrators participated in criminal activity and threw items at officers, police said, leading to 11 arrests.
Delaware
Inventor of Gore-Tex fabric dead at 83
NEWARK — Robert W. Gore, whose invention of what created the breathable-yet-waterproof fabric known as Gore-Tex revolutionized outdoor wear and helped spawn uses in numerous other fields, has died. He was 83.
Gore, who was president of W. L. Gore & Associates for almost 25 years and company chairman for 30 years, died on Thursday at a family home in Maryland following a prolonged illness, company spokesperson Amy Calhoun confirmed Saturday.
Gore discovered a new form of a polymer in 1969 at a company lab in Newark, Delaware.
His father, who began the company, asked Bob Gore to research a new way to manufacturer plumber’s tape at a low cost using PTFE, commonly known as DuPont’s Teflon, The News Journal of Wilmington reported.
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