Riverside County has begun using Facebook Local Alerts to quickly reach residents during emergencies. The Facebook Local Alerts tool allows government agencies to alert residents during emergencies such as flash floods, evacuation warnings and power outages. Shane Reichardt is with the Riverside County Emergency Management Department. Reichardt: “It's definitely a challenge for emergency communicators such as myself, we've started working with some of our social media partners like Facebook to

Tomorrow, voters in District 41 – which includes Riverside, Moreno Valley, and Perris – will have a choice between four candidates: Democratic incumbent Mark Takano, Democratic challenger Grace Williams, Republican challenger Aja Smith, and write-in candidate Azra Akram with no party preference. We’ll start with the incumbent. Mark Takano says his 8 years in Congress have been substantive, and that he’s managed to accomplish a lot despite not having a Democratic majority in Congress. Takano: “

A mural is being painted at Auto Club Speedway in Fontana to honor seven-time NASCAR Cup Series Champion Jimmie Johnson. KVCR’s Lillian Vasquez spoke with Dave Allen, President of Auto Club Speedway, and Muralist Jonas Never, about NASCAR Auto Club 400 race weekend and the mural. To learn more about Auto Club Speedway, visit http://www.autoclubspeedway.com

More and more economists are openly worrying that the coronavirus epidemic could plunge the U.S. into a recession. If it does come to that, how would it play out in the Inland Empire? Dr. Manfred Keil is the Chief Economist at the Inland Empire Economic Partnership. He says a potential recession would be very bad for the logistics industry, including the many warehouse workers whose livelihood depends on goods coming through the ports. Keil: “And basically, the idea is the following: so as far

Monday through Thursday at lunchtime, Empire KVCR News has your daily news rundown. Stories highlighted today include: Riverside County has been awarded more than 14 million dollars for the construction of a sports park and a community park. The eight teams still standing in the 38 th annual Riverside County Mock Trials Competition will confront each other in the elite round today. Meth addicts in California would be paid to stop using drugs under a bill introduced this week in the state Senate.

A lawyer who has sued Riverside and San Bernardino Counties on behalf of social workers says the departure of a top official in Riverside County’s Department of Public Social Services is indicative of much larger problems within the department. Earlier this month, Department of Public Social Services director Sarah Mack left her post, marking the second leadership change at the department since September 2018. The agency’s child protective services unit has been involved in a number of high

On Tuesday, Loma Linda University Health and the World Affairs Council of Inland Southern California held an informational event on coronavirus. Dr. Adrian Cotton is the Chief of Medical Operations at Loma Linda University Health. Cotton says there are different kinds of coronavirus. Cotton: “There's the coronavirus that's been in the community for years and years that basically acts like a cold. And then there's this new coronavirus which has come, it was found the end of December in China,

Monday through Thursday at lunchtime, Empire KVCR News has your daily news rundown. Stories highlighted today include: A state audit found the California lottery failed to give tens of millions of dollars to schools as required by law. The corona virus has slowed production at Chinese factories and that’s expected to hurt workers at California’s ports, warehouse, and distribution centers. The California Legislature is weighing a proposal that would allow people to turn their bodies into compost

Monday through Thursday at lunchtime, Empire KVCR News has your daily news rundown. Stories highlighted today include: Kobe Bryant fans from near and far find closure at LA memorial. Kobe Bryant’s widow sues helicopter operator for deaths. State lawmakers announce a package of bills to limit development fees in their latest bid to combat California’s affordable housing crisis. A lawsuit by homeless people against Caltrans has been settled for $5.5 million. Riverside County supervisors are

Monday through Thursday at lunchtime, Empire KVCR News has your daily news rundown. Stories highlighted today include: Corona man accused of chasing down and killing boys in crash was arraigned. Police have identified a 20-year-old woman and her boyfriend who are suspected of killing three of her roommates. Skeptic of world being round dies in California rocket crash. The public change rule that affects people applying for permanent residency through a family member went into effect today. A man