Major funding for Kpbs Evening Edition has been made possible in part by Bill Howe, family of companies providing San Diego with plumbing, heating, air restoration and flood services for over 45 years.

Call one 800 Bill Howe or visit Bill howe.com.

And by the Conrad Prebys Foundation.

Darlene Marcos Shiley.

And by the following.

And by viewers like you.

Thank you.

Thank you for joining us.

I'm Maya Trabulsi.

Hundreds of unsheltered people are getting some much needed services in Escondido, thanks to a group of organizations who came together to help them.

As Kpbs North County reporter Alexander Nguyen shows us, without these volunteers, many would go without health care and more.

Getting blood drawn.

How about over here?

Or a simple check up may be routine for most people, but for people experiencing homelessness, this can be life changing.

I think that health care is a human right.

Christian Absi is a physician assistant with the Neighborhood Health Care Street Medicine team.

He says events like this are critical because homeless individuals often do not seek care at clinics.

I think being able to have an event like this to help, really address a lot of just not only like, like their health care needs, but their needs as a whole, as a human being.

That includes treating not only the symptoms, but also providing the supportive care to go with it.

Like this man here who has a wound on his foot.

Okay, let me see if we have any shoes or socks for you.

Okay.

In addition to medical care people, the event held at Interfaith Community Service Escondido campus have access to showers, clothes and haircuts.

Arbor student Noah Carroll volunteer his time to provide haircuts.

He says it gives people the confidence back.

Before somebody gets a haircut, they can be going from quiet, not saying much during the haircut to being, oh, they pull out their phone and take a selfie, or they just compliment you nonstop after the haircut.

And that's what this event is about, helping people feel whole again.

We're breaking those barriers for people that really aren't able to come on an everyday basis to the services we're providing a day, especially for them to come in, you know, be, made to feel human again.

Take that dehumanization away.

Organizers were expecting about 200 people today, but more than 350 people showed up proving just how great the need is.

In Escondido, Alexander Nguyen, KPBS news.

Well, heat wave continues across the West and we are facing some nasty heat across the interior deserts.

The worst of the heat is centered over the interior west, a great basin and just searing, searing heat here in all the usual spots, some areas facing near record highs.

Now, tonight we're going to find some relief out there and we'll get down to 61 in Ramona.

But similar to last night a low in the low 80s in Borrego Springs, 70 in San Diego, 67 in Chula Vista.

Your full forecast is coming up.

We now know what caused the deadly Eaton Fire in the Los Angeles area in January of 2025, a report from the L.A.

County Fire Department finds southern California Edison equipment sparked the wild fire, specifically electrical arching on an out of service tower.

The Eaton Fire killed 19 people, destroyed or damaged more than 9000 homes and businesses.

14,000 acres were burned.

A spokesperson for Southern California Edison did not immediately comment.

A property owner proposing to build homes in Escondido is facing growing backlash from neighbors, and that's because the homes would sit near a notorious hazardous waste cleanup site.

Kpbs environmental reporter Tammy Murga says the Escondido City Council will decide how the project moves forward tomorrow.

This is the project site.

It sits on the corner of Hamilton Lane and Bernardo Avenue.

It would turn a long vacant lot into five houses.

Neighborhood residents say they welcome new housing, but worry about the land on which the homes would be built.

Yeah, just up gradient of this project site is a state Superfund site.

It is called the Chatham Brothers Barrel Yard site.

It has been shut down since 1981, and has been officially deemed a clean up since 1982.

Heidi Whitman lives directly across the street from the project site.

She's appealing the project.

The yard she's talking about closed because synthetic chemicals, contaminated soil and groundwater.

A toxic plume has stretched south past the project site.

State officials have said cleanup efforts through the years have helped.

Groundwater monitoring shows contamination levels have been non detectable, but in recent years, levels near the project site have increased slightly.

What the levels are directly beneath the project site are unknown.

That's because there are no monitoring wells on site.

That monitoring well 57 was removed under the direction of a former landowner.

Whitman and her neighbors hired a hydrogeologist to evaluate the project.

The Hydrogeologist concluded that because nearby contamination levels have been inconsistent, groundwater testing should be done on site.

Dan Weis is the project's environmental consultant.

He says groundwater testing is not the landlord's responsibility.

It's a Chatham Brothers issue.

It's Chatham brothers contamination.

He tested shallow soil and soil vapor on the property.

There were no contaminants of concern identified in the soil.

We kind of expected that going into it as far as the shallow soil gas.

And there were no detected concentrations of volatile organic compounds.

Whitman says she wants the city and developer to do more in-depth studies on the property.

First.

The city council could decide as early as Wednesday whether more is needed.

Tammy Murga, Kpbs news.

The City Council meeting begins at 5 p.m.

tomorrow.

Anyone can make a public comment in person or online on the city's website.

After months of public outcry over data centers in the Imperial Valley, a number of cities are hitting the brakes.

Kpbs reporter Kori Suzuki says there's a growing patchwork of pauses and even potential bans taking shape across the region.

Across the Imperial Valley, more local officials are trying to slow things down when it comes to data centers.

One of those places is Cala Patria, a small town at the rural north end of the Imperial Valley.

Here's Cal Patria mayor Michael Luellen speaking at a city council meeting last month.

Let's rewrite our energy consumption rules, says, let's see what contracts we have with Golden State water and nothing.

That's respectfully, in my opinion, very superficial.

It seems like a temporary solution in air quotes, and I believe a ban is the only way forward.

The concern in the Valley started back in November, when the city of Imperial warned that a massive data center complex was being planned next to a residential neighborhood.

Since then, there have been rumblings of other projects being planned too data centers or the giant computing warehouses that power programs like ChatGPT.

AI companies are pitching the facilities as new sources of tax revenue and construction work, and some long term jobs.

But many residents worry about the energy data centers need about water use and air pollution, about research that shows that these facilities can heat up their surroundings by up to 16 degrees.

Now, a growing number of local officials in the Imperial Valley are responding.

County Council no data center project, past or present, would be moving forward under this ten month moratorium.

Correct?

No final permits or approvals will be issued under this moratorium.

Last month, county supervisors voted to pass a moratorium or emergency pause on data center development through the middle of next year.

Also, the Valley's regional energy and water utility is considering a special energy contract for data centers and other large power users.

That contract would put data centers first in line to have their power cut.

When there's a surge in demand.

At least three other cities in the region have also talked about pausing data center development.

The city of Calexico, the second largest city in Imperial County, is going farther and considering a permanent ban.

So then I want a motion, to ban data centers in Calexico.

Developers and labor unions have pushed back forcefully against those restrictions.

One company has already sued the county over its moratorium.

Next thing you know is ten years down the road.

Back in Cali Patria union organizers asked the city council to consider what data center projects could mean for workers.

Here's Sean Ellis with the Imperial County Building and Construction Trades Council.

The median income in this community right now is like $38,000 a year.

What a data center brings.

Construction jobs.

You bring maintenance jobs.

You bring a whole lot, so bang, it just takes you out of the game.

Some residents pushed back.

Jesus Garcia worries about balancing those opportunities against the cost that he fears.

Data centers could have for their water quality and energy prices The council's decision wasn't unanimous.

One council member said they shouldn't be afraid of technology.

Another worry that the city could be sued like the county.

But in the end, they voted to start putting together a data center ban.

It's true that Cal Patria is a poor town.

Mayor Luellen says many residents also have health issues like asthma, including him and his little brother.

A lot of people here feel like they've been left out of county wide conversations for a long time.

But Luellen thinks data centers could be the end of his community.

It pains me to see my family members waking up, gasping for air in the middle of the night, and to think that ambient temperatures can increase 17 degrees while our pollution gets worse.

That's unacceptable.

For a little bit more money in the general fund.

This time, Luellen says, Cali Patria isn't getting left out of the conversation.

This time, they're leading the fight, Kori Suzuki, Kpbs news.

I'm Geoff Bennett tonight on the NewsHour.

A man suspected of starting a wildfire in Washington state is arrested as the blazes continue to rage.

That's at seven.

After Evening Edition on Kpbs.

Back to school shopping is underway, and despite years of inflation, families may not be spending much more than they did before the pandemic.

A new analysis finds lower electronics costs are helping offset higher prices for clothing, shoes and school supplies.

Ivan Rodriguez explains.

The latest study by LendingTree found families with children in kindergarten through high school spend more than $850 on average last year on back to school supplies.

Now, that's just $5 more than what we spent back in 2019.

But that small increase doesn't mean every family is feeling relief from new backpacks and shoes to notebooks, calculators and computers.

The back to school shopping list can add up quickly, but lending Trees analysis found total K through 12 Back-To-School spending has remained almost flat since before the pandemic.

The biggest reason electronics electronics prices had basically fallen a little bit, over the past 6 or 7 years.

Estimated spending on devices fell from $338 in 2019 to $296 in 2025.

Prices for common school electronics, including Chromebooks and calculators, have also fallen more than 12%.

I don't think there's any question that some families are spending less and dialing back their spending a little bit, and maybe letting that laptop or that tablet, last another year or two rather than investing in a newer one.

But the rest of the shopping list is getting more expensive.

Spending on clothing, accessories, shoes and school supplies increased.

Schultz says the numbers also reflect a k-shaped economy.

When you have a significant group of Americans who are spending freely and a another significant group of Americans who are dialing things back, you add it all up and it comes out to basically flat spending, which is what we're seeing.

Slightly more than 60% of people surveyed began shopping for the school year in early July, according to the National Retail Federation.

However, some have been delaying purchases or spreading out their shopping to manage budgets.

46% said that they're still waiting for the best deals In Atlanate, I'm Ivan Rodriguez.

National city is trying to close a $12 million deficit.

One way they're looking to do it is through a new gross receipts tax.

City Council is set to vote tonight whether to put this tax on the ballot.

It would tax businesses based on their revenue, not just profit.

City staff recommend a range anywhere from no rate to 0.3%.

You'll see a breakdown on your screen right now.

For context, that would mean a small business making just $25,000 would pay a flat fee of 25 bucks on the high end, a dealership making 40 million would pay just over 40,000 a year.

It's very reasonable tax now for all of the retailers who sell $1 million or less, and which is 95% of that.

So actually, we should all be in favor of it.

The amount that's being taxed as well in the thousands, right?

That's not easy for anyone, especially for business owners that are already struggling.

The tax is capped at 150,000 if it's approved tonight and by voters in November, the new system will go into effect January 1st of 2028.

A new national survey by the American Cancer Society, Cancer Action Network, highlights the challenge cancer patients face trying to stay in the workforce.

Kpbs health reporter Heidi DeMarco says that raises questions about how people with serious health conditions will handle the new medical work requirements.

The survey of cancer patients and survivors found that nine out of ten were forced to miss work due to their illness.

That has big implications for patients on Medi-Cal.

Under new federal rules, some adults will have to complete 80 hours a month of qualifying activities to keep their coverage unless they qualify for an exemption.

That's where things get tricky for people with serious health conditions that make it difficult to work consistently.

Part of the challenge is that the guidance has been changing.

New rules were released by CMS in June, kind of tightening the eligibility requirements and the work requirements, and kind of clarifying who might qualify due to medical frailty.

Todd Gilmer is a UC San Diego health economist.

He says the new guidance from CMS, the centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, could make it harder for some people with serious illness, including cancer, to qualify for an exemption prior to the June guidelines.

It was thought that people with active cancers would be exempt, from the work requirements, but, these, rules clarified that, even people with active cancers would need to demonstrate, that, that their condition affects their ability to work.

So how do you show that?

Currently, the thought is it's going to require, a physical kind of examination and attestation by a private provider, and they would need to submit, some sort of, justification or assessment that, you know, your ability to work is, is limited.

In a statement to Kpbs, the California Department of Health Care Services says the federal rule will create administrative barriers and could cost people, especially those with serious health needs, to lose coverage.

The agency says California is fighting the rule in ongoing litigation.

The new requirements are expected to take effect in California in 2027.

For people with serious health conditions who rely on Medi-Cal, Gilmer says it's not too early to start preparing.

I would reach out to your insurer, see if you're going to be subject to these requirements and then start asking them, you know, how you can meet them.

Again, it's in flux.

The insurers themselves might not know yet, but it is a place to start.

Heidi DeMarco, Kpbs news.

Prescription medications are an essential part of life for many people in the US.

One study estimates nearly 65% of U.S.

adults take at least one of these medicines for chronic conditions annually.

But getting a prescription takes time.

Mandy Gaither has more on how one hospital system is testing technology to make prescription pickup as painless as possible.

In the skies over Beachwood, Ohio, residents may see something different.

It's not a bird.

It's not a plane.

It's a prescription.

About three years ago, we started on this project.

The Cleveland Clinic has partnered with zip line drones.

Currently, they're testing drone delivery of prescriptions to patients who live within a five mile radius of the hospital systems suburban facility.

And we can get those deliveries to the patient within a matter of minutes, rather than a matter of, hours or days.

Pharmacist Matt Soder says patients who live within that delivery radius can register for drone delivery.

The prescription package is loaded into a drop box and a tether retrieves it, returning the medication to the drone hovering at 300ft.

From there, the company's Geo location is used to drop the package in a designated area in a patient's yard.

They've got the area mapped to ensure that when we load an address that that delivery is, delivered accurately and correctly.

Soder says that's why a small radius is first being tested measuring for reliability, and that the package makes it to the right person.

If all continues to go well.

He's hoping to reach patients even further away with the drone program.

You know, we can get that medication to the patient in a much more timely manner, which, you know, if if if you're a patient waiting on a medication that you need in that moment can make a real difference, for that patient and how they're feeling for health Minute.

I'm Mandy Gaither Soder hopes the program won't stop with just prescription drug deliveries.

He says there are other possible options in the future through drone technology, including potentially making deliveries, building to building and moving.

Lab work quickly between sites.

Two nonprofits came together to address a firefighter shortage in our state, while creating job opportunities for veterans and the formerly incarcerated.

Alice Martinez reports.

Remember, there's a lot of stuff going on.

It's really loud.

So you got to be.

When Eddie Herrera is not fighting fires for Cal Fire.

Nice and loud.

Water coming and water coming.

He's training the next generation at the future fire Academy.

Herrera spent nearly two decades in prison.

While incarcerated, he became an institutional municipal firefighter.

And when he got out, he started working for the state.

And now he's giving back.

Fires in front of you.

Okay, keep it right there.

We're allowing individuals to overcome a lot of the trauma they experienced in their lives, and redirecting it in a positive way.

And what better way is to be in a life of service?

And that's what they're doing now.

There's kind of this narrative on folks that come from our background.

The thing is, like, you know, we're changing it.

Anthony Pedro started the future Fire Academy.

He spent nine years behind bars, but ultimately turned his life around, becoming a firefighter.

Pedro devotes his time to help others like him find a pathway into the fire service.

Maybe folks that normally wouldn't have access to doing a fire academy.

You know, we have grant funding to provide it to them for free.

We pay them while they're here training.

Everyone's going to leave a few thousand dollars to go home once they graduate.

The Future Fire Academy has teamed up with the Anti Recidivism Coalition, which has a training center of its own.

But by joining forces, fewer people are getting turned away and they're busy recruiting people in schools, jails and juvenile halls.

And we started hitting every institution and we would plant the seed.

Hundreds of people have been directly impacted by those recruitment trips.

21 year old Jason Rojas is one of the people who they approached in juvenile hall, and he just completed the Future Fire Academy, along with 18 others.

But this isn't the end of the road.

All will get the help they need to apply for a job.

It's a new direction.

I'm heading a life and I want to be successful and make a change for not just myself.

More for my family and those around me.

It's a relentlessly hot weather pattern here.

No real end in sight for the heat across the interior.

And that'll be with us.

Not just this week, but right through next, the next several days, through the weekend into early next week as well.

There is a persistent fire risk, especially in the mountains.

It's not a tremendously high fire risk because there's not a whole lot of wind, but it is persistently dry.

It's hot out there.

Vegetation has been drying out for months now.

We're deep into the dry season.

The beach probably the best place to be if you're looking for relief from the heat.

70 degrees tonight.

Partly cloudy skies and it's going to be a warm one tomorrow.

79 in San Diego, 80 into Oceanside and Chula Vista.

But you step east and look at this.

El Cajon, 97 degrees 110 in Borrego Springs, 90 up even at about Laguna.

So even the mountains are pretty steamy and extreme heat warnings continue into the eastern part of San Diego County.

Heat advisories for inland areas like Julian and in the Pine Valley as well.

And the heat wave just persists mid to late week.

It's going to be with us this weekend to a strong ridge of high pressure over the interior west.

Daily record highs will continue to be challenged.

So the fire risk still with us.

The worst of it is in the northwest.

A lot of headlines out of Spokane and into the state of Oregon as well.

But moderate fire danger into the inland areas, mountains and east.

It's just so dry out there.

We're deep into the dry season.

So here we are with the coastal forecast consistently in the low 80s, 80 to 82, a little more humid near the coastline.

That's good news.

It does mitigate some of the fire danger as well.

But again compared to our inland areas it's much hotter.

You gain about 12 degrees heading into inland areas 9294 degrees.

Saturday.

Little bit less hot on Sunday.

Heading into the mountains.

Even here it's very warm, low to mid 90s.

Not a drop of rain or a hint of cooling later in the weekend.

And deserts.

Here we are.

Big pinnacle of heat 115 on Friday, 112 Saturday still 112 on Sunday.

Relentless heat there in the deserts.

Stay safe.

The killer tomatoes are back.

The homegrown franchise first terrorized San Diego in 1978.

Kpbs arts reporter Beth Accomando says the ferocious fruit is about to invade theaters again, so beware.

Attack of the Killer Tomatoes.

The attack of the Killer Tomatoes was hailed as one of the worst movies of all time, which it wore as a badge of honor.

The cult film spawned three sequels, including one with George Clooney, Down Under, Good day mate.

Although the killer Tomatoes have not posed a threat since 1992, Bombs Away!

They were seen at Comic-Con, where Costa Dillon revealed some startling information.

People say I'm the creator, the titular killer tomatoes, but that's not entirely accurate.

I'm more of the revealer of the attack of the Killer Tomatoes.

I found out that tomatoes were dangerous.

People did not believe me.

The first film came out.

People laughed at it because the government made people think it was a comedy.

We know all this.

We're the ones who did it.

This plan appeared to have worked.

Hardly anyone saw the movie.

The public has no recollection of the dramatic events of 1978 and the uprising was stomped out.

But just when you thought it was safe, the Killer Tomatoes are returning to theaters in an all new film.

I mean documentary.

And I can once again sound the alarm.

That organic intelligence is how killer tomatoes will rule the world if we don't stop them.

And yes, I do expect a Nobel Peace Prize for it.

Attack of the Killer tomatoes.

Organic intelligence will begin splattering ultra star Michigan Valley Cinemas this Friday.

Beth Accomando, Kpbs news.

So fun.

And here is a look at what we are working on for tomorrow in the Kpbs newsroom.

We can't keep from getting older, but we can remain young at heart.

NPR's Morning Edition is joined by the host of the popular series Recess Therapy, about his new book, How to Grow Up Without Becoming a Grown Up.

And on Kpbs Midday Edition, we are joined by University of San Diego professor to discuss ways to keep your kids curious.

You can find tonight's stories on our website, kpbs.org.

Thanks for joining us.

I'm Maya Trabulsi.

Have a great evening.

Major funding for Kpbs Evening Edition has been made possible in part by Bill Howe, family of companies providing San Diego with plumbing, heating, air restoration and flood services for over 45 years.

Call one 800 Bill Howe or visit Bill howe.com.

And by the Conrad Prbys Foundation.

Darlene Marcos Shiley.

And by the following.

And by viewers like you.

Thank you.