As we saw in the 1978 film "Grease," drag racing was once quite common in Southern California, providing a quick yet dangerous solution to almost any problem and serving as a sport and hobby for many SoCalians. Though the SoCal tradition has continued to dwindle since the 1960s, a trio of tracks remains in the region, clinging to what once was a prevalent form of entertainment. more ›

A new report, "Racially Balanced Cities in Southern California, 1999 to 2010," released by the University of Southern California (USC) today shows that SoCal cities are on average more racially balanced than they were 20 years ago. However, the study also reveals that some cities show a decline in multiracial balance. more ›

SoCal Starbucks fiends will soon be able to get a different kind of buzz from the coffee giant. While the company already offers beer and wine at some of its stores in the Pacific Northwest, Starbucks announced today that a handful of Southland locations will serve said alcoholic beverages by the end of 2012. more ›

Following a record 1,144 cases of whooping cough in 2010, the number of reports of the illness has dropped by 50 percent in Southern California, reports CBS. And last week, no new cases were reported in San Diego County for the first time in eight months. Despite the encouraging news, it's still too early to say what will happen in coming weeks and months, says CBS. more ›

Now that Labor Day weekend is past, the political season is heating up. As of this morning, there were three debates scheduled between gubernatorial candidates Jerry Brown, who finally began running ads this week, and Meg Whitman -- two in Northern California and one in Central California. more ›

Blame pollution: 2008 was another banner year for troubled waters at our nation's beaches, according to the results of the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) annual study. Although last year was a dry one, "aging and poorly designed sewage and stormwater systems hold much of the blame for beachwater pollution [and] stormwater runoff contributed to two-thirds of the closing/advisory days in which a contamination source was reported." more ›

The California Department of Public Health announced today that thirteen hospitals have been fined $25,000 per violation "after a determination that the facilities’ noncompliance with licensing requirements has caused, or was likely to cause, serious injury or death to patients." Of the thirteen statewide, nine of those are within the Los Angeles region, ten if you count San Diego in the mix. Is one of them yours? Check below for the list of SoCal hospitals and what they did. These fines stem from incidents in 2007 and 2008: more ›

Thanks in part to the collapsing real estate market in Southern California, the Los Angeles region is expected to lose 164,000 jobs in 2009, according to a a forecast report (.pdf) released Saturday by the U.S. Conference of Mayors. "In Southern California, metro economies have been stung by the sharp decline in their housing markets," they note. "The collapse of these local markets led to tens of thousands of construction job losses, while the subprime mortgage meltdown dramatically affected the Los Angeles MSA, where many of those lenders were headquartered." Unemployment will reach close to 10% in Los Angeles and will hit 11.6% in the Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario area, they predict. New York City, which will lose 181,000 jobs, sits at the top of list next to Los Angeles. more ›

Believe it or not, Southern California's San Clemente was once a sea serpent haven. The June 1934 issue of Esquire Magazine For Men featured an intriguing article by a Ralph Bandini who spoke quite openly of his two encounters with the San Clemente Monster. In his article "I Saw A Sea Monster," Bandini commented, "San Clemente Island is a lonely, wind-swept bit of rock and sand lying some fifty miles south of Los Angeles Harbor. It is little frequented except by fishermen. Its waters are lonely too...The Thing itself appears to like this remote bit of ocean - that windy channel between San Clemente and Santa Catalina." more ›

An "urgent weather message" from the National Weather Service at 2:45 a.m. warns of a dense fog advisory throughout portions of the Los Angeles region including downtown, coastal areas in LA County, San Gabriel Valley, Santa Clarita Valley, Ventura and Santa Barbara. It could reduce freeway and roadway visibility to "one quarter mile or less through mid morning," the service says. The advisory officially will end at 9 a.m., so enjoy it while it lasts. more ›

Numerous showers and isolated thunderstorms will continue through this evening. "While rainfall coverage is not expected to be as widespread, there will still be pockets of high intensity rainfall," warns to the National Weather Service. "With the potential for rainfall rates over one half inch per hour, there will continue to be a risk for flash floods and debris flows in the near recently burned areas. The flash flood watch is for these areas only." Across the region, total rainfalls are expected to range from three quarts of an inch to three inches, depending on where you live. more ›

And this is why smoke related air quality and public health advisories are being issued everyday as the fires continue. more ›

Officials at a press conference say that many of the fires igniting across the region, including the original Marek/Little Tujunga Fire, look suspicious and are still under investigation. Fire and police are asking for any suspicious activity to be reported to police (license plate numbers are especially helpful). more ›

The House voted Monday and didn't pass the bailout, but today was another day. Most Los Angeles area representatives didn't change their vote from Monday, but four democrats went from a no vote to a yes vote, ultimately helping the bailout plan pass today and sending the bill over to President Bush to sign it into law. Those who had a change of heart were Adam Schiff from Pasadena/SGV, Hilda Solis of El Monte/East LA, Diane Watson of Los Angeles, and Joe Baca of San Bernardino all switched from No to Yes today. And the rest of the list, thanks to ABC7, who has complete info on the reps: more ›

After a two-year investigation into alleged Medicare fraud involving homeless patients, federal agents raided three hospitals this morning: City of Angels Medical Center, Los Angeles Metropolitan Medical Center and Tustin Hospital and Medical Center. The schemes involved defrauding the state and federal governments out of millions of dollars by using homeless skid row residents. A top executive at City of Angels was arrested as well as one other person, according to the LA Times. City Attorney Rocky Delgadillo plans to announce civil litigation this morning. Earlier this year: FBI raids LACMA. more ›

Running is one of the most dangerous things you can do," explained Brian Humphrey, Spokesman for the Los Angeles Fire Department and a previous Community Emergency Response Team instructor. "People can lose their lives when they run, especially when windows or glass mirrors are near. You should duck, cover and hold." more ›

Metrolink service was restored to normal speeds at 4:00 p.m. this afternoon, according to Denise Tyrrell, Public Information Officer for the transit agency. "Afternoon commuters are cautioned to anticipate 15-30 minutes delays as we recover from earlier service delays," she said in an e-mail. Interruptions and delays occurred earlier today because all tracks had to undergo mandatory post-earthquake inspection. more ›

Glad I wasn't in that aisle when this happened. This is from a security camera inside Incycle Bicycles in San Dimas. more ›

We can't emphasize enough that this earthquake is considered a "moderate" one and caused relatively little damage throughout the region. However, with that said, some damage and a handful of minor injuries did happen. Today's quake, a 5.4, was just one percent of the energy of the 1994 Northridge 6.7 earthquake, according to CBS2. more ›

All still minor damage being reported throughout the Southern California region after this morning's earthquake, but here's a photo of some cement bricks fallen on a sidewalk in downtown Los Angeles in the 300 block of South Broadway. It appears they may have been swept up into a pile.
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At the South Coast Plaza in Costa Mesa, there was some damage to what looks like lighting and tables on two floors after this morning's 5.4 earthquake in Chino Hills. Flickr user, Jason Sherwin, quickly snapped photos and uploaded them to the web. more ›

Acting Mayor Wendy Greuel (Mayor Villaraigosa is on vacation in London) spoke to the press at 1:50 p.m. today updating what was happening within the city limits of Los Angeles after this morning's earthquake. more ›

Google Trends provides insights into broad search patterns by users on Google. A look into what is being searched nationally this afternoon is obviously the earthquake. Today's 5.4 magnitude quake was only considered "moderate," which is big enough to knock things off shelves and cause minor damage to buildings. However, Google searches across the country are intensely focused on the incident. The majority of top 100 trends ("hot trends") are quake-related. more ›

Whether it was the shaking or a surge of readers checking the LA Times' website, it was shut down temporarily after the 5.4, 11:42 a.m. earthquake in Chino Hills. more ›

"I am totally serious. My Ob/Gyn was IN my vagina and an earthquake started rattling the room!" tweeted MissRFTC. She was later interviewed about the experience: "Was just interviewed via phone by senior writer at CNet about my vaginal earthquake experience." On a more serious note, VentureBeat cited Twitter's importance in instances as such. "Well before the information was anywhere on the major news outlets, tweets (Twitter messages) were flowing in at a rapid clip. I say again, events such as this showcase the power of the micro-messaging service Twitter." more ›

Did you feel that? Yes you did. That was a 5.4 magnitude earthquake (preliminary reports stated that it was a 5.8 and then 5.6) out of the Chino Hills area that struck at 11:42 a.m., according to the USGS, who considers this to be a "moderate" earthquake. Chino Hills is 29 miles southeast of Downtown Los Angeles. more ›

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As temperatures easily reach over 100 in some parts of the region, it is affecting those who are vulnerable. An 90-year-old woman driving in San Bernardino County died when she stepped out of her car to search for her husband who left the car for unknown reasons. They were found 50 yards from their car and the 116 degree heat killed Virgil Sanders and the husband had 2nd and 3rd degree sunburns. more ›

As Spring turns to Summer this weekend, the temperatures are expected to mark the season change with a bang starting today. The National Weather Service is predicting today's temperatures to range from 95 to 105 in region's valleys. Downtown is expected to be in the 90s and beaches should stay normal (upper 60s, low 70s). more ›