2+ hour, 29+ min ago (253+ words) Orange County Coast, Orange County, San Bernardino and Riverside County Valleys, Riverside County Mountains and San Gorgonio Pass Near Banning are the focus of an air quality alert reported at 7:32 a.m. on Sunday by the National Weather Service. The alert is in effect until Monday Dec. 1, at 7:45 a.m. The NWS San Diego CA states to prepare for, "The South Coast AQMD has extended a mandatory wood-burning ban for residents in the South Coast Air Basin. The No-Burn rule bans burning wood, pellets, and manufactured fire logs in any indoor or outdoor wood-burning device." When an air quality alert pops up on the radar, deciphering its implications is crucial. These alerts, issued by the NWS, come with straightforward yet essential guidance to ensure your safety: When you can't avoid going outdoors, keep outdoor activities to the bare essentials. Reducing your time outdoors is…...

1+ day, 4+ hour ago (94+ words) Restaurants and other food vendors ordered to close and allowed to reopen by Orange County health inspectors from Nov. 20 to Nov. 27. Mercadito El Quetzal, 13911 Harbor Blvd., Garden Grove Liquor Center, 311 W. Orangethorpe Ave., Fullerton Raw's, 1169 W. Central Ave., Brea Brothers, 12135 Brookhurst St., Suite C, Garden Grove Food service at Garden Park Care Center, 12681 Haster St., Garden Grove This list is published weekly with closures since the previous week's list. Status updates are published in the following week's list. Source: OC Health Care Agency database....

1+ day, 21+ hour ago (219+ words) Orange County Coast, Orange County, San Bernardino and Riverside County Valleys, Riverside County Mountains and San Gorgonio Pass Near Banning are under an air quality alert which was reported by the National Weather Service on Friday at 12:50 p.m. The alert is in effect until Saturday Nov. 29, at 1 p.m. The NWS San Diego CA states to expect, "The South Coast AQMD has extended a mandatory wood-burning ban for residents in the South Coast Air Basin. The No-Burn rule bans burning wood, pellets, and manufactured fire logs in any indoor or outdoor wood-burning device." When an air quality alert is in effect, following the NWS guidance is pivotal. Here are some simple tips from the NWS for safeguarding your well-being: Be mindful of activities that increase pollution, like driving cars, operating gas-powered lawnmowers, or using motorized vehicles. Limit their usage during air quality alerts....

4+ day, 4+ min ago (233+ words) Scores and stats from Orange County games on Wednesday, Nov. 26. Villa Park 66, Walnut 55 VP: Salem 14 pts, 8 rebs, Chung 12 pts, 6 rebs, Perez 11 pts, (2 3-ptrs), Cain-Graves 8 pts (2 3-ptrs) 6 rebs. Brea Olinda 62, Irvine 57 Brea: Haluska 23 pts (4 3-ptrs), 8 rebs, 2 stls, Chamberlain 7 pts, 8 asts, 6 stls, Tayag 9 pts, Vivek 4 stls. Cypress 66, Los Angeles CES 28 Cyp: Gov 13 ppts, Kroll 13 pts, Woods 7 pts, Monney 7 pts Aliso Niguel 56, Foothill 42 AN: Mysin 23 pts, Tjin 11 pts, Keys 10 pts Estancia 53, San Gabriel 37 El Dorado 80, Garden Grove 56 Torrance 68, Dana Hills 39 Ayala 52, Beckman 43 Santa Paula 71, Laguna Beach 57 MATER DEI HOLIDAY CLASSIC Mater Dei 66, Sierra Pacific 52 EL TORO THANKSGIVING CLASSIC El Toro 63, Mission Viejo 25 ET: Turner 26 pts, Cubacub 10 pts Other El Toro Classic scores Orange Lutheran 45, San Juan Hills 33 Irvine 40, Northwood 22 Foothill 55, Marina 51 Trabuco Hills 71, Whitney 46 Pacifica Christian/OC 50, Great Oak 35 CORONA DEL MAR TOURNAMENT Saint Joseph 58, Los Alamitos 28 Rosary 68, Edison 19 Segerstrom 47, Ayala 40 Whittier Christian…...

4+ day, 8+ hour ago (218+ words) What began as a literal shed operation outside a Home Depot has since evolved into a brick-and-mortar success, spawning a first location in Cypress and now a second spot in Orange. LJ's Lil' Cafe, a breakfast-lunch spot noted for its breakfast burritos and sandwiches, officially opened in Orange on Friday, Nov. 21. Sauces and salsas, like creamy cilantro crema spicy habanero, are also available. ALSO READ: One of the hottest new eateries in OC? A little Cypress burrito shack outside Home Depot LJ's Lil' Cafe took off shortly after husband-wife co-founders Lydia and John Clarke opened their Home Depot operation, a shed structure affixed to the facade of the chain store, getting the attention of Eater LA in 2022. Three years later, the couple chose Orange as their second spot on Chapman Avenue. Holmes, who grew up in Cypress, and Clarke, who…...

4+ day, 17+ hour ago (698+ words) His passion, palate and pink shorts are pitch perfect. Brendon Bigcas, 28, is built like a man who spends his mornings braving the glacial waters of the Pacific, not staring down a pastry case. The Laguna Beach resident maintains the calibrated frame of a triathlete, of someone who willingly endured the Ironman 70.3 in Oceanside to, in part, conquer a fear of open water. "I was terrified of swimming, you know, 100 feet away from the shore," said Bigcas. "Now I'm a much better swimmer." But these days his most grueling endurance event isn't a swim-bike-run. It's his personal odyssey of Orange County's 200-plus doughnut shops. Bigcas is the founder and face of Maple Bar Co., a social media project where he reviews maple bars with the seriousness of a Michelin inspector and the rigor of, well, an Ironman. On Instagram, TikTok and…...

4+ day, 17+ hour ago (63+ words) Here are the Orange County high school football stat leaders after the semifinals round of the CIF-SS playoffs. Here are the Orange County high school football stat leaders after the semifinal round of the playoffs. The leaderboards are based on season stats published on MaxPreps.com. To be included, teams must have stats updated on MaxPreps each Monday by 2 p.m....

1+ week, 2+ day ago (779+ words) The 19th season of "The Real Housewives of Orange County" ended Thursday, Nov. 20 with Tamra Judge and Gretchen Rossi inside the octagon in a no-holds-barred battle to the death. Reality TV death, that is " no housewives were harmed in the filming of this third and final reunion show. Well, at least not physically, because at times it was emotionally brutal. This was the housewives" version of Joe Frazier versus Muhammad Ali in the Thrilla in Manila 50 years ago this year. Tamra is Frazier, relentlessly on the attack, with a devastating verbal jab that could shatter a housewife"s glass ego.That leaves Gretchen as Ali, rope-a-doping just out of Tamra"s reach, wearing her down until she can lure her into a fatal mistake. In the early rounds, Gretchen played defense against the body blow Tamra delivered at the end of…...

1+ week, 5+ day ago (252+ words) Four Orange County girls volleyball teams are one win away from playing in the CIF State Championships. Capistrano Valley Christian, Cypress, Mater Dei and Santa Margarita play in CIF Southern California Regional finals Tuesday. All four county teams play away matches. All matches are at 6 p.m. CIF Southern California Regional champions play the CIF Northern California Regional champions in the CIF State Championships on Saturday at Santiago Canyon College in Orange. Capistrano Valley Christian (13-21-1) plays at Mammoth (37-5-1) in a SoCal Regional Division IV final. The one-way trip to Mammoth High at Mammoth Lakes is 352 miles. Elevation at Mammoth Lakes is 7,771 feet. Capistrano Valley Christian made the trip to Mammoth Lakes on Monday afternoon. The Eagles made it to the eastern Sierra town of Bishop in time for dinner there. "We wanted to get up here early to get acclimated," said Capistrano…...

1+ week, 5+ day ago (430+ words) Orange County is the focus of a flood advisory issued at 6:49 p.m. on Monday by the National Weather Service. The advisory is in effect until 7:48 p.m. Orange County is the focus of a flood advisory issued at 6:49 p.m. on Monday by the National Weather Service. The advisory is in effect until 7:48 p.m. The NWS San Diego CA said, "Flooding caused by excessive rainfall is expected." "Minor flooding in low-lying and poor drainage areas," the NWS said. "Turn around, don't drown when encountering flooded roads. Most flood deaths occur in vehicles." Understanding the differences between advisories, watches, and warnings A flash flood warning is issued when a flash flood is imminent or occurring. If you are in a flood-prone area, move immediately to high ground. A flash flood is a sudden violent flood that can take from minutes to hours to develop. It is even…...