Ballybunion morning update, fire 35 percent contained
Overnight firefighters made significant progress on the Ballybunion fire and now have reported that it is 35 percent contained. Overnight as the wind slackened and the humidity rose, there was no significant growth of the fire. The fire is expected to be contained by Friday.
Update Ballybunion, three hundred firefighters with air power battle brush fire
As of 7:00 p.m. three hundred firefighters were engaged in battling the Ballybunion fire and the blaze is currently contained by 10 percent and reportedly less than one hundred acres. However, fire officials believe that the blaze is under control. Fire department officials report that there was one injury of a Gilroy Fire Department firefighter and that no homes were in danger at the time. Cal Fire hopes to have the fire fully contained by Thursday, but more will be known in the morning.
Arrest on Third Street puts El Roble Elementary School on lockdown
El Roble Elementary School was put on lockdown when police arrested a man on 3rd Street who barricaded himself into a home. Robert Candelaria eventually surrendered to police and was arrested for a parole violation.At 11:20 a.m. GPD got word that Candelaria, 29, was at a home on the 1000 block of Third Street. Officers surrounded the home, with guns drawn and after 45 minutes of non-compliance, Candelaria surrendered and was arrested.At approximately 12:30 p.m. El Roble was notified by GPD of the nearby incident. All doors were shut and locked, window shades were drawn and nobody was allowed in, or out of the school. Officials from Gilroy Unified School District informed all bus drivers and maintenance staff of the lockdown. After police cleared the scene, students were released without incident.
Former chief denies sex scandal allegations
Former Gilroy Police Chief Denise Sellers said allegations of scandalous sex charges against officers in her department are false, the result of “a disgruntled employee making accusations that aren’t true.”
City and Police response to sex suit
Police Chief Scot Smithee and Mayor Roland Velasco responded Friday to a suit that alleges members of the department had sex parties, exposed themselves in front of minors and harassed a female employee who wouldn't take part in the activities and warned others about them.
New Police Chief supports immigrants, worries about press
After a nationwide search, the City of Gilroy didn’t need to look far beyond the city’s limits for a police chief. Last Wednesday, during his official swearing in ceremony at New Hope Church Scot Smithee came out of retirement to become the Gilroy Police Department’s newest police chief.
