The fire was reported just before 1:50 p.m. in the area of 215 N. Sumner Ave. near the Black Jack Campground, according to the Los Angeles County Fire Department.  

SCE filed a request with the California Public Utilities Commission to also increase bills by a much smaller amount, 29 cents, for all of its 15 million customers to help pay for drought and environmental expenses on the island.

The mouse-like creature with a long snout, which was listed as a Species of Special Concern in 1996 by the California Department of Fish and Wildlife, was observed using a remote camera for the first time since 2004 by researchers with the Catalina Island Conservancy.  

As the number of visitors to the island ebbs and flows, and regulations on the reopening of the economy change on a weekly basis, the business of ferrying people from the mainland to the town of Avalon has changed as well.

It’s unclear where the bales came from and the case remains under investigation by federal authorities.

“It’s not something that I ever thought we would do,” said Marine Sgt. Rebecca Beltran. “Getting out here to do this project, it opens up our eyes on our capabilities on what we’re able to do as a unit. So if we’re ever forward deployed, we know our capabilities and how long it may take us to do something, ie: lay an airstrip.”

About 70 troopers, flown in on helicopters to the Airport in the Sky, arrived Wednesday to help about 30 others who arrived last week to work on the 3,000-foot runway.

The repair operation will upgrade the airport and provide the Marines with a training base to prepare troops for deployment to repair airfields in foreign stations.