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After spending Friday afternoon extinguishing a fire that consumed about 50 acres of vegetation in west Morgan Hill, crews will spend the night “mopping up” the area and making sure all remaining hotspots are out, according to authorities.

Gilroy Police Department Officer Noel Lemus pleaded not guilty to a misdemeanor charge of resisting arrest at Merced County Courthouse July 10, opting instead to take the case to trial. Officer Lemus will return for his pre-trial hearing at 8:15 a.m. Friday, Aug. 16 at the Merced County Courthouse located at 2260 N-Street in Merced.

Fire crews responded to a report of smoke at T.J. Maxx Friday morning when an electrical box inside a jewelry case caught on fire, authorities said. No injuries and no major property damage were reported, according to the Morgan Hill Fire Department and the store manager. Crews from MHFD, CalFire and South County Fire District responded to the store at 401 Vineyard Town Center about 10 a.m.There was no visible fire when crews arrived, but firefighters located the source of the smoke inside a jewelry box, where a metal light and ballast case had caught on fire, MHFD Battalion Chief Tim Main said. “We were able to quickly isolate the fire under the jewelry case,” Main said. The responding emergency crews were “concerned,” however, to find that store employees had not evacuated the building of customers as soon as they noticed the fire, Main said. “Whenever there’s any smoke, folks need to evacuate,” Main said. The store remained busy with a steady stream of customers entering and exiting after the fire was extinguished, and while firefighters were leaving the area. “The fire department’s response was excellent,” T.J. Maxx manager Leticia Esnaurrizar said. 

Fireworks

Meghan Maiwald looks like your average soccer player.

It's been less than a month since City Council directed staff to further investigate financing options for downtown’s 18 unreinforced masonry buildings (deemed structurally unfit to survive a major earthquake) and to report back in the fall.

Municipal and agricultural rates in the Santa Clara Valley Water District will increase soon due to a large, statewide project aimed at conserving species in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta and increasing the state's ability to pump water from the delta.

Say hello to the newest Herbie the bobblehead, the first after a five-year hiatus and the eighth since the festival began producing Herbie dolls in 2002. The newest model sports a raspberry-colored Hawaiian shirt with small white garlic cloves on it, khaki shorts and blue sandals. The Herbie doll costs $20 and can be purchased at the festival’s mercantile, which will have two locations: One on the ranch side, and one on the park side of Christmas Hill Park.

Bay Area teens, rejoice! The Gilroy Garlic Festival's Teen Zone is back for it's second year due to popular demand.