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We’re counting down to the final hours of 2023 -so we thought we’d take a look at some of the news stories reported this year by the talented and dedicated news team here at Z107.7.
Last January still felt like it was going to be a calm winter, and news wise San Bernardino County’s illegal marijuana task force Operation Hammerstrike wrapped up, while Operation Dust Devil continued to monitor and enforce illegal off-road activity.
Old Woman Spring’s Road made early 2023 news with black ice causing 3 collisions in a row on the two-lane highway, and an attempted traffic stop in Joshua Tree National park led deputies on a chase that topped 100 MPH and ended in the Sheephole Mountains Wilderness with a P.I.T. maneuver and an arrest of a Florida Man for failure to yield.
David Smith announced his new role as Golden Gate National Recreation Area’s new superintendent, with Jane Rodgers stepping in to become the acting Superintendent of Joshua Tree National Park. In August she was officially appointed as Superintendent.
In February- the beloved gem & mineral show announced their spring show was cancelled, but the show returned in fall. The Western Joshua Tree’s protected status was still on the line, with Mike Lipsitz reporting on the California Fish & Game Commission’s delayed decisions to put Joshua Tree’s namesake resident on the endangered species list. The Western Joshua Tree Conservation Act was eventually passed in late June. Mike Lipsitz is always on the water beat and reported rising water rates for Joshua Basin Water District customers in his Wednesday water round-ups – a news topic that is uniquely important to us here in the desert.
King of the Hammers returned and as February ended, the wet weather began with blizzard warnings being issued for San Bernardino county as snow socked in mountain towns and cut off food, power and services for thousands of residents who were taken by surprise from the unusually brutal precipitation.
That weather dominated most of the news for March, alongside a few notable stories such as the 640-acre glamping site that was proposed for Flamingo Heights, and was just recently denied this December. And Heather Clisby continued her reporting on the Twentynine Palm’s Wastewater treatment plant – which as of December is currently looking at alternate sites.
The Sinclair dinosaur in Yucca Valley disappeared around on the last day of March – still a very hot topic and one of my most visited news stories of 2023.
In the month of April I also reported on the trial of Pejman Elahi, the man who was eventually found guilty of attempted murder and assault with a firearm when he shot a man in a wash in 29 palms and left him for dead.
A series of break-ins hit businesses in Yucca Valley and Twentynine Palms that month, but in happier news on April 19th – two perfect 300’s were thrown at the Twentynine Palms Bowladium League Opener.
In May, Gabriel Hart continued his comprehensive coverage of tumultuous Morongo Valley CSD meetings which were frequently canceled or rescheduled due to a lack of quorum, amongst other shakeups. The Fringe Festival returned in May – and art shows, live theatre, performance and dance all delightfully made appearances every month in 2023, bolstering the Morongo Basin’s well-deserved reputation for being a destination for nature and art.
As May wrapped up, News Director Jef Harmatz went on what he thought would be a routine ride along with the Sheriff’s Department, but that day a suspect led deputies on a grand-theft-auto style pursuit of a suspected stolen truck, which also bizarrely involved the attempted theft of a mail vehicle.
June saw a lot of activity at the Yucca Valley Planning Commission meetings and Land Development reports, with Hilary Sloane’s reporting on new and changing businesses in Yucca Valley being some of the most discussed on social media.
July and August really brought the heat, alongside visitors in unprecedented numbers when the Perseid meteor shower made Joshua Tree National Park the destination for thousands of stargazers who witnessed the majesty of the falling meteors in bumper to bumper traffic from Twentynine Palms all the way to the grade heading down the hill toward Morongo Valley.
Speaking of down the hill – Tropical Storm Hilary closed out August by knocking out roads in Palm Springs and dumping rain in the basin, which caused flooding and road closures here in the hi-desert alongside damage in the Big Morongo Canyon Preserve, Joshua Tree National Park, Death Valley and the Mojave National Preserve which was still recovering from a massive fire that burned thousands of acres of Joshua Tree forest.
There isn’t enough time on air to go into all the stories that the z107.7 news team covered this year. Alongside the beats that each reporter stays on, everyone has written fantastic features this year on theatre, native plants, desert clean-up, 3-legged coyotes, tipping, charismatic birds, housing, mining, and dozens of other great stories that illustrates what makes living here in the Morongo Basin so special.
