In today's newscast:
Timber Fire continues to grow
The Timber Fire in Big Sur has burned 3,775 acres and cut off access to a Ventana Wildlife Society condor sanctuary.
Executive Director Kelly Sorenson says firefighters brought a staffer to the sanctuary Tuesday to release two condors stuck without people to care for them.
He says he’s also keeping his eye on a few condor nests that are close to the fire.
"There is a threat that fire can take the lives of condors. But I just really want to stress that lead poisoning, unfortunately, really is still the biggest problem that we face [for the condor population]," he said.
The birds at the sanctuary were recovering from lead poisoning. He says they would have had a few more days of care in captivity if the fire hadn’t forced their release.
Panetta, others stand with immigrants
Central Coast leaders are reaffirming support for immigrants in the face of changing federal policies.
Local leaders spoke at a roundtable at Cabrillo College on Tuesday, hosted by Rep. Jimmy Panetta, D-Carmel Valley.
"What we have here is a demonstration of leaders at all levels of government who are willing to stand up to the federal government," he said. "Who are willing to stand up in order to push back and then protect the vulnerable communities that contribute so much to the Central Coast."
Housing Matters CEO Phil Kramer says people are hesitating to reach out, and he worries things will get worse with new Housing and Urban Development policies.
" HUD is proposing a rule change that would eliminate housing assistance to any household of a mixed [immigration] status," he said.
Rescinding those Section 8 vouchers would affect more than 1,000 people in Santa Cruz County alone, many of them children.
