If it seems like toxic algae blooms are appearing almost everywhere across Califo ia this summer, that’s because they are. “We’re getting blooms in areas that we’ve not seen them before or not known to have been there before,” said Beverley Anderson-Abbs, an environmental scientist for the State Wat...

CAJON PASS >> More than 500 firefighters are battling a 5,500-acre brush fire Tuesday that has forced evacuations in the Cajon Pass area. • LIVE UPDATES: Follow live updates from the Blue Cut fire There is an imminent threat to structures and to rail traffic in the Cajon Pass, and two firefighters r...

SAN BERNARDINO >> BNSF Railway Co. shut down train operations through the Cajon Pass in both directions Tuesday as a result of the Blue Cut fire, said spokeswoman Lena Kent. More than 500 firefighters are battling a 5,500-acre brush fire that has forced evacuations in the Cajon Pass area. “We do hav...

RIO DE JANEIRO — The United States women’s field hockey team placed fifth at the Olympics, the program’s best finish in 20 years. The Americans lost their quarterfinal match to Germany on Monday. Their final ranking is based on their second-place finish in pool play. The Americans also placed fifth ...

Don’t let French toast bacon bombs or deep-fried Oreos or adorable pig races fool you: Califo ia’s county fairs are very big businesses, run with a startling variety of managerial prowess. Southe Califo ia News Group examined data for 70 fairs, including those across Southe Califo ia, and found that...

Joh y Depp and Amber Heard settle divorce case In this Jan. 9, 2016 file photo, Amber Heard, left, and Joh y Depp arrive at The Art of Elysium’s Ninth a ual Heaven Gala at 3LABS, in Culver City, Calif. (File photo by Rich Fury/Invision/AP, File) By The Associated Press LOS ANGELES — Amber Heard is w...

SAN FRANCISCO >> Knock, knock, Google’s video chatting app has arrived. The app, dubbed Duo, represents Google’s response to other popular video calling options, including Apple’s FaceTime, Microsoft’s Skype and Facebook’s Messenger app. Duo isn’t much different from the other video chatting service...

Then again, another option, evidently, is the urine of two people. This is the case of Russian long jumper Darya Klishina, whose inclusion in these Games led Monday to a very respected reporter from the very respected New York Times asking a high-ranking Olympic official about pee. Specifically, she...

A nonprofit known for training people to give great speeches has clammed up about efforts to move its worldwide headquarters out of Southe Califo ia. The silence from Toastmasters Inte ational executives no doubt stems from an opposition campaign launched by a proud Torrance member who decries the g...

RIO DE JANEIRO >> Minute after agonizing minute following the Olympic Games 400-meter final Sunday night, Allyson Felix of the U.S. and Shaunae Miller of the Bahamas continued to lie on the wet Olympic Stadium track seemingly not to notice the rain soaked surface, neither sure which one of them was ...

RIO DE JANEIRO — She has been so golden in victory here. That much everyone knows, “Simone” and “Biles” being two of the most searched words on the Inte et the past week. But now it can be reported that America’s reigning sweetheart gymnast also has been gracious in defeat. That is, if third place o...

Long Beach police arrested four people on suspicion of driving drunk at a checkpoint this weekend at Anaheim Street and Freeman Avenue. Results of the checkpoint, conducted between 7 p.m. Saturday and 3 a.m. Sunday, included: • 221 vehicles screened • Five field sobriety tests performed • Four DUI-a...

Armed men abducted 10 to 12 presumed members of a crime gang who appeared to be celebrating at an upscale restaurant in the popular Mexican beach resort city of Puerto Vallarta, authorities said Monday. Jalisco state prosecutor Eduardo Almaguer said at a news conference that preliminary results of t...

Everyone knows home prices are high in Southe Califo ia. It’s a reality that has prevented many people from owning a home, and it has become a challenge for businesses seeking to attract out-of-state talent and for companies looking to move their operations here. Recent figures from price tracker Co...

LOWER LAKE, Calif. — A wind-whipped wildfire roared through a Northe Califo ia town threatened by a devastating blaze a year ago, wiping out more than 100 homes and businesses and forcing thousands of people to flee, authorities said Monday. The fire seemed calm Sunday before gusts kicked up the fla...

LOS ANGELES — At the peak of a Southland heat wave, the National Weather Service issued a red flag wa ing today for the San Gabriel Mountains in Los Angeles and Ventura counties and the foothills in the Antelope Valley. The wa ing, which denotes a heightened risk of wildfire, was the first issued si...

RIO DE JANEIRO >> A hush fell over Olympic Stadium as the eight finalists in the Olympic Games 100-meter final took their marks Sunday night, the only noise coming from helicopters hovering above. The tension, however, was deafening. It was as if the whole stadium, the whole Rio Games, was collectiv...

RIO DE JANEIRO >> They’ve cruised through unfazed so far, undefeated in three games and outscoring their opponents by a tou ament-best 20 goals. But that doesn’t mean the emotion will be lacking Monday when the U.S. women’s water polo team plays its quarterfinal game. For one thing, the Americans ar...

RIO DE JANEIRO >> This time, the devil wore red, white and blue, the bad guy being our guy. In a battle so theatrical that the only thing missing was a pair of dueling light sabres, everything right about track and field Sunday collided with everything wrong about these Olympics. Naturally, good tri...

RIO DE JANEIRO >> It was the end of a tou ament, end of an Olympics and, quite possibly, the end of an era. When the U.S. men’s water polo team concluded its Rio 2016 schedule on Sunday, the reality that captain and five-time Olympian Tony Azevedo could be done was, in fact, very real. “It’s insane,...