California

"Mad" Mike Hughes reacts after the decision to scrub another launch attempt of his rocket near Amboy, Calif., March 6, 2018. (James Quigg/Daily Press via AP, File)"Mad" Mike Hughes begins work on repairing a steam leak after he scrubbed his launch attempt of his steam-powered rocket near Amboy, Calif., March 6, 2018,. (James Quigg/Daily Press via AP, File) LOS ANGELES — He finally went up — just like the self-taught rocket scientist always pledged he would. He came back down in one piece, too — a little dinged up and his steam-powered vessel a little cracked up. Still, mission accomplished for a guy more daredevil than engineer, who drew more comparisons to the cartoon character Wile E. Coyote from his critics than he did to iconic stunt man Evel Knievel. “Mad” Mike Hughes, the rocket man who believes the Earth is flat, propelled himself about 1,875 feet into the air Saturday before a hard landing in the Mojave Desert. He told The Associated Press that … [Read more...] about California man launches homemade rocket and lands in Mojave desert

Corporate signage hangs at a McDonald's restaurant in downtown Pittsburgh, April 24, 2017. (AP Photo/Keith Srakocic, File) IRVINE, Calif. — All that was missing was the ketchup after a crashed big-rig truck scattered thousands of french fries bound for a McDonald’s restaurant across a Southern California freeway embankment. KNBC-TV reports the big rig went over the southbound side of the Interstate 5 freeway near Irvine on Sunday. The California Highway Patrol says the driver, who wasn’t hurt, might have fallen asleep. CHP Sgt. Todd Kovaletz says the fries were bound for McDonald’s when the crash occurred about 1 a.m. TV video shows fries scattered across the bottom of the freeway embankment. No other vehicles were involved in the crash and the freeway wasn’t closed. … [Read more...] about Thousands of McDonald’s fries scattered over California highway after crash

A swollen Squirrel Creek closes an access road through Western Gateway Park in Penn Valley, Calif., during this week's atmospheric river event Thursday, March 22, 2018. (Elias Funez/The Union via AP)Spectators gather on the historic Highway 49 bridge over the South Fork Yuba River Thursday, March 22, 2018 to witness an intense amount of rain and snowmelt runoff rush downstream during Thursday's atmospheric river event. (Elias Funez/The Union via AP)Workers place sandbags on a washed-out driveway on La Tuna Canyon Road in Sun Valley, Calif., Wednesday, March. 21, 2018. A strong Pacific storm dropped heavy rain Wednesday on a swath of California where thousands of people have been evacuated because of the threat of debris flows and mudslides from wildfire burn areas. (Hans Gutknecht/Los Angeles Daily News via AP)In this photo provided by Northstar California, a resort employee clears a path covered in snow at the top of Zephyr Express Chairlift Thursday, March 22, 2018, in Truckee, … [Read more...] about California gets much-needed rain from strong spring storm