water

When Compton Unified School Board President Micah Ali checked his mailbox last week, he was in for a shock.

The school district has been making headlines as a state and national leader in student performance gains, and it has been upgrading and replacing its aging campuses to help advance that growth. Next week’s ballot includes a $360-million bond measure called CPT, which would keep that momentum going and replace badly dated Dominguez High School.

So when Ali opened a slate mailer titled “Congresswoman Maxine Waters’ Sample Ballot and Voter Recommendations,” he couldn’t believe her advice on Measure CPT.

Vote “no.”

Given Waters’ stature as a congressional representative for 35 years, Ali said, her slate mailers can swing outcomes.

“Yes, it does carry weight,” Ali said, and the thumbs-down recommendation “can literally cripple our ability to pass this bond.”

Ali was doubly surprised because the mailers went out to voters just a few weeks after Waters attended an unveiling ceremony for the new Compton High School campus. Compton High alums and hip-hop heavyweights Kendrick Lamar and Dr. Dre joined the celebration, and the latter was honored for his $10-million donation to the new performing arts center.

Lunch tables and a temporary cafeteria are set up outdoors at Dominguez High School because of a fire three years ago.

(Eric Thayer / Los Angeles Times)

A second district high school, Centennial, is being replaced with a modern campus, and district officials are hoping Measure CPT passes so Dominguez students aren’t left behind, but also because the district’s other schools would get multiple upgrades and repairs, from infrastructure to classrooms to athletic fields.

I met with Ali on Wednesday afternoon at Dominguez, along with Principal Caleb Oliver. The school turned 70 this year, and it shows. The grounds are scruffy, wiring and plumbing are outdated, the gymnasium air conditioning hasn’t worked in years. To walk the campus is to step back in time — to the Eisenhower administration.

While we were talking, Oliver called out to a senior named Angelina Ramirez, referring to her as a superstar student. I asked Angelina what kind of upgrades the campus could use.

Dominguez High School Principal Caleb Oliver.

(Eric Thayer / Los Angeles Times)

“Well, I like to use the cafeteria as an example,” she said, pointing to where it used to be.

What happened to it?

“It burned down,” she said. An electrical problem was the suspected cause, her principal added.

That was more than three years ago, and since 2023, the cafeteria has been an outdoor plaza.

“I feel like that’s affected students a lot,” Angelina said.

The big question, of course, is why Waters’ campaign committee — Citizens for Waters — recommended a no vote.

I’d like to tell you why it is that a rapper has written a $10-million check in support of Compton’s students while a congresswoman has told them to go fly a kite. But I’ve asked by phone, text and email, and I still don’t have an answer.

After contacting Citizens for Waters, which referred me to the congresswoman, I called her office and emailed her press office, which sent me this response at 7:43 p.m. Thursday:

“Per US House Ethics rules, we are unable to respond to your request.”

I don’t know what rules those are, but the rulebook needs some rewriting if a congresswoman can’t answer a simple question about why her campaign mailer recommends a no vote on a school bond measure.

“We have no idea, and we’re baffled,” Ali said. “Who would oppose the construction of a new school in a community like Compton?”

In the working-class community, the student population is roughly 84% Latino and 14% Black.

I suggested that Ali consider having students march over to Waters’ district office and ask for an explanation.

“We’d rather have these children’s butts in seats and learning,” Ali said, adding that “we need … to continue driving up these test scores.”

Compton school board candidate Tana McCoy talks to school board President Micah Ali about the mailer.

(Eric Thayer / Los Angeles Times)

It’s not as if there is no reasonable opposition to Measure CPT. These kinds of bonds cost taxpayers real money over the course of many years, and CPT would add about $60 per $100,000 of assessed property to annual tax bills.

That would hit working folks and retirees with an added tax burden of between a few hundred and several hundred dollars a year. And taxpayers have been paying off two previous school improvement bond issues, one passed in 2015 and one in 2022.

In addition to the financial burden, according to district parent Anthonia Limon, who wrote the statement against CPT for the L.A. County sample ballot, safety issues have undermined community trust in district leadership.

“Infrastructure alone does not create safe schools,” Limon wrote.

If Waters has similar concerns, that would be one thing. But to my knowledge, and to Ali’s, there has been no public explanation for recommending a no vote. And when you read the fine print on the slate mailer, which advises voters to “take Congresswoman Maxine Waters’ recommendations with you to vote,” it only raises more questions.

“This document was prepared by Citizens for Waters, not an official party organization. Appearance in this mailer does not necessarily imply endorsement of others appearing in this mailer nor does it imply endorsement of, or opposition to, any issues set forth in this mailer,” it says.

Huh?

Are they endorsements or aren’t they?

The Times reported in 2004 that the rep’s daughter, Karen Waters, “has charged candidates for spots on her mother’s ‘slate mailer,’ a sample ballot that many voters in South Los Angeles use to guide their choices.” Last year, the Waters campaign paid a $68,000 fine for campaign finance law violations following a Federal Election Commission investigation that involved Citizens for Waters.

Rep. Maxine Waters’ slate mailer.

(Eric Thayer / Los Angeles Times)

Also in the fine print on the current mailer:

“Appearance is paid for and authorized by each candidate and ballot measure which is designated by” an asterisk.

So are these endorsements or paid advertisements? There’s an asterisk on nearly every endorsement in the mailer, from city council to governor to judgeships to Measure CPT. The way I read this is that various parties paid for endorsements, but the mailer does not reveal who paid, or how much they ponied up. Such mailers, by the way, are not uncommon in California, according to election law experts.

“I think this is misleading for voters,” said Erwin Chemerinsky, dean of the UC Berkeley law school. Although he thinks the endorsements are a form of protected free speech, he said this “reflects a very deep problem in our elections with dark money, when we don’t know where the money is coming from.”

On Thursday, I visited Tana McCoy, a Compton High grad and retired city employee who is running for Compton Unified school board. She showed me the slate mailer delivered to her home, but said she’s going to vote yes on CPT despite Waters’ recommendation.

“Children need to feel good about their environment, because that’s all part of their mental health,” McCoy said.

At Dominguez, where graduates have a 96% college acceptance rate, according to district officials, junior Zaiden Ross gave me a tour that included a stop at a gymnasium fountain that he said hasn’t worked in years. Some fountains are dirty, he added, “and some of the pipes on campus produce water that has, like, extremely high amounts of lead and magnesium.”

Student Zaiden Ross demonstrates a nonworking sink in a bathroom on the campus of Dominguez High School in Compton.

(Eric Thayer / Los Angeles Times)

Zaiden took me to a classroom to show me water samples he’s still testing. Then we visited the robotics classroom, where he turned on a faucet, and the flow was closer to the color of apple juice than water. The air conditioner was rattling, and teacher G.C. Esiobu, who runs the engineering and robotics club, said there had been an “emergency” fix for a busted system. Zaiden gave me a quick rundown of dated computers and other equipment students use to design drones and robots.

And yet despite all that, a display case was filled with trophies. At competitive meets, Esiobu said, “we have been winning with little or nothing.” With equipment upgrades, she added, “just imagine the level we will go.”

There’s still time, before Tuesday’s election, for Waters to visit Dominguez High and maybe get a tour from Zaiden and Esiobu.

If she does, she might rethink that endorsement.

steve.lopez@latimes.com

A HUGE water attraction launching in the UK for the first time has revealed plans for five more attractions across the country.

Therme Manchester – a giant water attraction with pools, saunas and beaches – is currently under construction and now new plans have been revealed to build more Therme attractions in the UK.

Follow The Sun’s award-winning travel team on Instagram and Tiktok for top holiday tips and inspiration @thesuntravel.

According to Spa Business, David Russell, CEO of Therme UK explained that new locations under consideration include Glasgow in Scotland; Cardiff in Wales,Bristol; London and possibly Birmingham.

The first of these to open would be Glasgow, where the site would be around the same size as Therme’s attraction in Bucharest, Romania, spanning 2,787sqm.

The site would be between the Kelvin and Clyde rivers, opposite Glasgow’s Transport Museum.

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The site is only in the early stages with Therme currently working on the lease for the location.

The plans are part of Therme’s ’90:90′ aim – 90 per cent of the UK public being within 90 minutes of a Therme attraction.

Therme also has a number of other attractions planned for the rest of the world, such as in Toronto, Canada; Washington and Dallas, America; Seoul, Korea; Singapore; Dubai, UAE and Frankfurt, Germany.

It comes as more details have been revealed about Therme Manchester which is currently under construction and is set to open in late 2028.

The £500million attraction is set to host up to 2.8million people each year, with a maximum of 6,500 to 7,000 at the attraction at any one time.

Inside visitors can expect a large-scale waterpark split into three zones (Play, Relax and Restore) heated to 33C, with numerous spa and wellness facilities.

In the Play zone, visitors will find ‘next-generation’ water slides, as well as a wave pool, warm water pool, steam rooms, saunas and lounging and family dining experiences.

This zone will boast an outdoor beach too.

In the Relax zone – which will be adults-only – there will be a “focus on premium wellbeing experiences”, which includes indoor and outdoor pools, waterfall showers, mineral baths, steam rooms, saunas and casual dining.

In the Restore Zone – which is also an adults-only area – there will be “industry leading health, nutrition and wellbeing therapies”, “sauna rituals”, experience showers, wellbeing consultations and dining.

Therme Manchester will also have some of the latest technology including robots that will take guests’ belongings and store them away.

Guests will get a wristband which they scan each time they want paid-for experiences inside Therme, as well as food.

Russell even shared that visitors will be able to get a discount if they arrive at Therme by public transport.

Visiting the new attraction is set to cost £48 per person.

Russell said: “There won’t be anywhere in this country that has the facilities we have in terms of slides, pools, thermal pools, cryotherapy, snow rooms, heat rooms – like 30 saunas.

“We want to do it through volume and that’s brave because it’s a challenge. But it’s a leap of faith.”

WITH the sun shining brightly across the country, many families are itching to get out to a waterpark and cool off from the soaring spring heat.

And there’s no more fun way to cool off than in a waterpark – and the UK is home to plenty of world-class ones, with thrilling slides, rides and even their own spas.

Whether you want to try an adrenaline-fuelling trap-door waterslide, tackle a Total Wipeout-style obstacle course, or let a lazy river do all the work – we’ve got you covered.

From indoor tropical waterparks with adults-only spas, to the UK’S largest wave pool and water rollercoaster, we’ve rounded up the top waterparks for families of all ages.

And to top it all off, the entry prices start from £5.31pp – proving you can have an action-packed summer day out on a budget.

Here are some of the best on offer across the UK…

Waterworld, Stoke-on-Trent

Crowned the UK’s number one indoor tropical aqua park, Waterworld is a massive water wonderland packed with over 30 different rides.

The top attraction for adrenaline junkies is Thunderbolt – the UK’s very first trap-door drop waterslide.

You stand inside a capsule, wait for the floor to drop beneath your feet, and plummet straight down a vertical flume at a staggering 25mph.

For more thrills, you can tackle Hurricane, a high-speed slide that hurls you down at 17mph through glow-in-the-dark neon lighting.

For something a little more family-friendly, the newly refurbished Python ride has plenty of slithery twists and turns that are gentle enough for toddlers.

You’ve also got a classic wave pool and fast-flowing rapids that swirl you around the tropical temperature waters.

Plus, if you visit when the weather‘s hot, you can soak up the sunshine outside.

The park has an outdoor pool and sun loungers where parents can relax while kids splash around.

You can also wind down in the calming bubble pools and relaxation areas, or hit the on-site restaurant to refuel the family on fresh pizza, bubble waffles, and thick milkshakes.

Single tickets start at £17.50 online for adults and children, including spectators. Baby tickets cost £7. Make sure to book online in advance, as walk-in tickets will cost you up to £8.50 extra.

Sandcastle Waterpark, Blackpool

Sandcastle Waterpark is the UK’s largest and home to Britain’s longest indoor water rollercoaster and 18 thrilling rides.

If you want to feel like you’re on holiday abroad, head here for a 29C tropical climate.

The Masterblaster holds the record for the UK’s longest indoor rollercoaster waterslide, with a 200m stretch of water tubing fun.

Meanwhile, the Sidewinder is the world’s first indoor half-pipe waterslide, resembling a giant, slippery skating ramp.

For the little ones, there’s the Treetops Water Chutes, multi-lane slides perfect for racing, and the HMS Thunder Splash – a giant pirate ship packed with water activities.

Another kid-friendly favourite is the Caribbean Storm Treehouse, a massive water climbing frame complete with a giant coconut that dumps 600 gallons of water onto unsuspecting swimmers every few minutes.

If you need a breather from the screaming and splashing, grown-ups can escape to the Sea Breeze Spa.

For an extra £7, adults can spend three hours unwinding in the sauna and steam room while making use of the foot spas and aromatherapy room.

And for the ultimate VIP treatment, you can upgrade to a Tiki Cabana experience.

For £60pp, adults get access to a private oasis with their own hot tub, a flatscreen TV, a fridge packed with cold drinks, and a dining and seating area.

You also get full-day admission to the waterpark and a meal deal included in the price.

Tickets start at £25.50 for ages 8+, £16.50 for children aged 3 -7, with under 3s going free. Make sure to book online in advance, as same-day tickets can cost you £2 extra.

Alton Towers Waterpark, Staffordshire

You don’t need to brave the theme park’s rollercoasters for an action-packed day out at Alton Towers.

The Alton Towers Waterpark at the Splash Landings Hotel is a massive, tropical-themed park with Caribbean-type temperatures in the middle of the Staffordshire countryside.

The Wacky Waterworks Treehouse is a sprawling interactive play area packed with more than 70 interactive features, including water cannons, pull-cords, and buckets.

Thrill-seekers can twist and turn down the Rush ‘N’ Rampage waterslides, or slip down the outdoor Flash Floods slides into a giant pool – perfect for a sunny day.

And if you just want to take it easy, you can drift along the lazy river or laze on a lounger while the kids hit the slides.

When you want something to eat, head to the Calypso Cave for lunches like burgers and chicken tenders, or grab an ice cream float or sundae from the Ice Cream Shack.

Tickets start at £18 online for adults and children, with those under 90cm going free. There are also parent and toddler tickets from £23. Make sure to book online for the best rates.

Dorset Adventure Park

If you prefer muddy knees, fresh air, the sun on your back and giant outdoor obstacles, Dorset Adventure Park is for you.

Set across two massive lakes on the grounds of Corfe Castle, Dorset Adventure Park is home to an action-packed outdoor inflatable course.

The Total Wipeout-style floating playground has huge trampolines, balance beams, wobbly bridges, and high-flying slides that launch you straight into the lake.

Plus, little ones even have their own inflatable, Splash Castle, manned by lifeguards and designed for kids aged 2 to 6.

If that isn’t muddy enough for the kids, the park is also home to a legendary Mud Trail.

On this 2km assault course, you can tackle mud pits, climbing walls, cargo nets, and tyre crawls that guarantee nobody leaves clean.

Back on dry land, the grounds have plenty more to see and do. There’s everything from axe throwing to relaxing woodland sauna pods.

For a bite to eat, the Snack Shack and Watering Hole have hot food, ice-cold drinks and ice creams with views of Corfe Castle.

The park provides wetsuit and buoyancy aid hire too, so you don’t need to worry about bringing anything other than a towel and a change of clothes.

Tickets start at £22pp for waterpark admission, £11 for the Mud Trail and £5 per child for Splash Castle.

The Wave, Coventry

Home to the largest wave pool in the UK which cycles 20 million litres of water per day, The Wave in Coventry is a high-tech indoor waterworld.

Above the huge pool are six speedy waterslides, including the colourful Cascade with its bright lights and The Rapids water coaster, described by the park as the ‘Big Dipper’ rollercoaster on water.

There’s also The Riptide, a rubber-ring ride that launches you down an exhilarating 90-degree angle.

The Cyclone, on the other hand, hurls you around a massive open bowl before dropping you out of the bottom.

Families with toddlers can head straight to The Reef, a colourful splash zone packed with mini-slides and water jets away from the big flumes.

Adults can slip away to the dedicated lane-swimming pool, work out at the fitness centre, or book into the luxurious Mana Spa to use its steam room, sauna, or enjoy a relaxing massage.

Tickets start at £15 per adult, £13 for ages 11 and under with under 1’s going free.

Time Capsule Water Park, Scotland

The Time Capsule Water Park in Coatbridge, Lanarkshire is an affordable option with plenty of activities for mixed-age families.

Plus this waterpark is attached to an indoor ice rink, making it an ideal spot to visit and cool off on a hot day.

Inside you’ll find a lazy river, splash zones and waterslides, plus water cannons and a giant tipping bucket.

The most unique attraction here is the Tornado Tantrum – a setup of 10m-high Storm Chasers, thunder and lightning effects and twisting water flumes.

For families with young children, the Cove Island area has plenty of splash play zones for toddlers.

There’s also a Tiny Tots Play Zone on site, a soft play area for children aged 5 and under.

Head to the Tsunami Café for poolside burgers or a sit down with a cold drink.

The Time Capsule Water Park is one of the most affordable on the list, costing £6.50 per adult to enter and £4.50 per child. There is also free parking available.

LC Swansea Waterpark, Wales

LC Swansea is Wales‘ biggest water park, packed with exciting rides, relaxing pools and even an indoor surfing machine.

Try out surfing or body-boarding on the Boardrider – a never-ending wave machine built for those who want to learn to ride waves like a pro.

Here you’ll also find the MasterBlaster water coaster, launching rubber ring riders uphill before gravity plummets them back down into the pool.

Younger kids can make a splash at Volcano Bay, an interactive zone with fountains, a smaller slide and tipping buckets.

For a slower pace, you can drift along the peaceful, lazy river or soothe your muscles in the bubbling whirlpool.

There’s a range of sessions to book, including Toddler Splash early mornings, women’s only and evening splash sessions.

To burn off some energy outside of the pool, there’s a water-themed Climb and Play area with four storeys of obstacles plus a 30ft climbing wall.

There’s also a Costa Coffee on site, plus a shop where you can pick up any extras you might need like swim hats and goggles.

Tickets start at £5.31 per adult or child for a General Splash session, with infant tickets for ages 1 to 3 starting at £2.97 and under 1s going free.

A woman has lost a court battle after she claimed that “water is a natural resource and a universal human right” having been refused a glass of tap water by the Hotel Sassongher in Corvara

A hotel has won a legal fight with a tourist who asked for a glass of water.

In the UK, the right to ask for a glass of water from certain establishments is enshrined in the law. Restaurants that serve alcohol are legally required to provide free tap water to paying customers, although they may charge for the glass or service.

The same cannot be said for other countries.

In Italy, the land’s highest court has just ruled that a five-star Dolomites hotel acted lawfully when it refused to provide tap water to a tourist.

Way back in 2019, the woman, from Rome, asked for a glass of H2O, only to be told that she couldn’t have one and that she’d have to make do with a £6 bottle of mineral water instead.

What followed was a legal fight that has run on until this week. Eventually settled in the Italian Supreme Court, the tourist claimed that “water is a natural resource and a universal human right”.

However, such arguments failed, with the five-star Hotel Sassongher in Corvara eventually victorious and the tourist’s request for £2,300 in compensation for emotional distress and economic damage dismissed.

Silvio Belardi, the lawyer representing the hotel, told the Corriere Alto Adige newspaper that the court held that “there is no obligation to supply tap water”.

According to the lawyer, the case had been rejected first by a court in Rome, then by an appeals court and now the Court of Cassation.

The Roman had argued that her consumer rights had been violated. She compared the denial of tap water to a hotel not putting sheets on a bed or soap in the bathroom.

“The woman claimed she had suffered damage, including financial and moral harm. This was rejected for lack of evidence,” Mr Belardi told the BBC.

Supreme Court judges dismissed her claim, eventually ruling that Italian laws and regulations do not require venues to provide tap water to guests. It is up to individual establishments whether they decide to do so.

“We also argued that if a person wanted running water, they could easily get that in the hotel – just not at the restaurant,” the lawyer added

European countries where free tap water is legally required

France: Requires restaurants to provide a carafe of water with every meal at no extra charge.

Spain: Passed a law in 2022 requiring bars and restaurants to offer unpackaged drinking water for free.

Lithuania: Restaurants must give guests tap water if they ask for it.

What about the EYU as a whole?

The EU as a whole has passed no laws requiring establishments to provide free tap water, although that could change soon. The EU’s Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation, approved by the EU Council, encourages member states to ensure restaurants, bars, cafés, and catering services provide tap water for free or for a minimal service fee, with rules set to take effect in August this year.

A family of travel enthusiasts were left in awe when they visited what has been hailed the ‘Hawaii of the UK’ that’s the home to white-sand beaches, wild dolphins and seals

Travellers have been left stunned after discovering the ‘Hawaii of UK’, which features breathtaking beaches and countryside, and is even home to wild dolphins and seals. While the UK isn’t know for it’s nice and sunny weather, with most tourists imagining grey skies and constant rain, there are some areas that get better weather than others that can be enjoyed with it’s stunning nature.

While Cornwall alone is packed with stunning beaches and natural beauty that can make visitors feel like they’ve travelled abroad. But if you fancy venturing beyond Cornwall, there are plenty of alternatives for a memorable staycation within the UK, with many taking to social media to reveal their favourite staycation recommendations.

The Wirths, a family of travel lovers who regularly use TikTok to document their adventures, frequently share their preferred family-friendly locations with their 69,900 followers.

In a recent clip, the family travelled to what’s been dubbed the ‘Hawaii of the UK’, boasting spectacular scenery, pristine sandy shores and glorious weather that creates the illusion of a tropical escape.

“We thought getting to this tiny island was cool… we weren’t prepared for it to look like this,” the caption declared at the beginning of the footage.

The clip continued to document their voyage to the destination in question, which involved boarding a compact Skybus aircraft before departure, soaring above dazzling turquoise seas and islands fringed with white sandy beaches prior to touching down at the airport.

“BRB, mentally relocating to Tresco Island,” they wrote in the caption. “Can you believe this is the UK? Welcome to the Isles of Scilly – a tranquil, subtropical archipelago located just 28 miles off the Cornish coast!”

Nestled 28 miles off the Cornish coastline, the Isles of Scilly are an unspoilt, subtropical archipelago that remains one of Britain’s best-kept secrets. Celebrated for their immaculate white-sand beaches, crystal-clear waters and remarkably temperate climate, the islands are frequently dubbed the ‘Hawaii of UK’. Just five of the landmasses are inhabited — St. Mary’s, Tresco, St. Martin’s, Bryher, and St. Agnes.

Tresco itself is a private, car-free island, renowned for its subtropical climate, stunning beaches and the world-famous Abbey Garden. It provides a serene, upmarket retreat complete with fine dining, a spa and an abundance of coastal wildlife.

Although the islands are entirely car-free, getting there is straightforward — hop aboard a Skybus plane and you’ll arrive in just 20 minutes, or take the much-loved Scillonian ferry for a scenic voyage where dolphin sightings are not uncommon.

The family went on to share their personal highlights, including cycling through the island’s traffic-free sandy lanes, spending leisurely days on the beach hunting for shells and spotting seals, exploring ancient castles, and unwinding at the Tresco Spa and its swimming pool.

The family also ventured to Tresco Abbey Gardens, which houses plants from every Mediterranean climate zone. Established in the 19th century, it has become a haven for more than 2,000 exotic species from the southern hemisphere and subtropics — spanning from Brazil to New Zealand, Myanmar to South Africa. The family revealed there’s also an entertaining scavenger hunt available for children.

Regarding the balmy conditions, the Isles of Scilly enjoy an almost tropical feel courtesy of the Gulf Stream, enabling tourists to experience the sensation of an overseas getaway without ever leaving British shores.

Viewers quickly flooded the comments section with their reactions, with many expressing astonishment that such a place existed in the UK.

“I WANNA BE A LOCAL SO BAD,” one individual declared, while another commented: “literally found these islands scrolling on Google maps bored at work once… obsessed ever since.

“I need to visit a Tesco in Tresco just because I’m sad like that,” a third person remarked.

May 25 (UPI) — A World Surfing League event was temporarily suspended on Monday after a photographer in the water suffered an animal bite to his foot.

The photographer, identified as Australian Ed Sloane, suffered what WSL described in a statement as “a wildlife injury” Monday morning while photographing a surfing heat from the waters near Raglan in northwestern New Zealand.

WSL Commissioner Renato Hickel said in an Instagram story that Sloane was transported to a hospital in stable condition. In an update, Hickel said Sloane was in “great spirits” and that following consultations with the competing surfers and other stakeholders, it was decided that the competition would restart at 1:05 p.m. NZST.

In the event broadcast, streamed live on YouTube, Hickel said WSL activated what he called a code red, halting the heat and clearing the water.

“He’s well considering what happened,” he said, describing the injury as “minor, small puncture wounds.”

He added that officials were unsure if the animal responsible was a shark or sea lion, though they were inclined to think it was a sea lion.

“Nevertheless, very scary,” he said.

Sloane said in a written statement read during WSL’s broadcast and later published to WSL’s Instagram story, that he was bitten on the foot and was receiving medical attention.

“Massive thank you to our water patrol for the quick response, our medical team and all the support from our teams for the immediate assistance I received,” he said.

“I love this place and can’t wait to watch an epic Finals Day.”

Sloane was shooting the final day of the New Zealand Pro.

Hickel said heightened wildlife surveillance, including jet skis, drones and spotters, would be put in place when the competition resumed.

A coalition of conservation groups wants Southern California to get 85% of its water locally, up from the 50% it gets now, by 2045, and says a new plan shows how.

It’s urging state leaders to scrap plans for a 45-mile tunnel beneath the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta and consider asking voters to approve a bond measure to fund local water solutions. The 34-page strategy was released as critical decisions loom for local officials, California’s next governor and legislators.

Over the last century, Southern California has grown and thrived thanks to giant aqueducts it built to bring water from hundreds of miles away — the Eastern Sierra, the Colorado River and Northern California.

But with water costs rising and climate change jeopardizing these distant sources, there is growing interest in finding ways to get more water locally.

The allied groups are calling for recycling more wastewater, capturing more stormwater, improving efficiency and cleaning up contaminated groundwater.

“We have to prioritize our investments, and prioritizing them in local water makes the most sense,” said Bruce Reznik, executive director of the group Los Angeles Waterkeeper.

The coalition includes fishing groups, environmental organizations and Northern California’s Winnemem Wintu Tribe.

Its plan calls for a “new urban water renaissance” in California that prioritizes local water. This approach would reliably yield more and cost far less than Gov. Gavin Newsom’s proposed Delta Conveyance Project beneath the Delta.

The state estimated in 2024 the tunnel would cost $20.1 billion, but opponents say it could cost three to five times more.

“Local water is reliable, it’s more affordable, and it’s more flexible, so that we’re not committing California ratepayers to higher bills that they don’t need,” said Kyle Jones, a water expert and consultant who helped prepare the plan for the coalition.

Southern California imports about half of its water from other regions.

The coalition’s plan says the region can secure up to 2 million acre-feet of local water per year. It estimates the costs of more conservation and efficiency, more stormwater and groundwater cleaning, and more water recycling at $44 billion over two decades. The Delta tunnel, in contrast, could cost $60 billion to $100 billion, it says.

Whether the tunnel project is ultimately built may hinge on whether large water agencies, including the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California, decide to participate and pay for it.

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2

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1. Cranes rise above the Donald C. Tillman Water Reclamation Plant in Van Nuys. 2. When completed, Los Angeles will nearly double recycled water for 500,000 residents. 3. Storage tanks sit behind a fence before being placed in the ground at the plant. (Myung J. Chun / Los Angeles Times)

“Metropolitan Water District really does have a significant choice on it, that not just impacts their ratepayers but impacts every single person in the state,” said Barbara Barrigan-Parrilla, executive director of the group Restore the Delta. “Are we going to spend $20, $60, maybe upward to $100 million on a tunnel? Or are we going to invest significant money in local solutions that provide water resiliency and sustainability for everyone in California? That is what is at stake right now.”

The Metropolitan Water District already is planning a large new facility in Carson to transform wastewater into purified drinking water. Los Angeles and San Diego are also building water recycling plants.

“At the same time, water imported from the northern Sierra and the Colorado River provides the foundation of water supply reliability for Southern California,” said Shivaji Deshmukh, the MWD’s general manager.

He noted that the MWD invests in water efficiency and capturing stormwater, and has helped reduce per-person water use by more than 40% since 1990.

The agency’s 38-member board last year adopted a climate adaptation strategy that sets goals for lining up additional water.

Los Angeles city leaders and L.A. County supervisors have also set goals for becoming more locally self-sufficient.

The advocates who wrote the policy plan said these efforts should accelerate and expand. They pointed out that the Colorado River’s reservoirs are falling to perilously low levels, and native fish in the Delta are in decline as the pumping of water takes an ecological toll.

“Climate change is exacerbating the challenges in those ecosystems, meaning that less and less water will be available to import,” said Ashley Overhouse, water policy advisor for the group Defenders of Wildlife. “All the while, the cost of water is continuing to rise.”

About 20 other environmental groups endorsed the coalition’s strategy.

“We have got to do a better job in the next 100 years than we did in the last 100 years, if we truly want to create a place of abundance once again,” said Frankie Myers, a member of the Yurok Tribe in Northern California. “This idea that we can steal … and divert water however we want with no consequences has got to end.”

Construction continues at the Donald C. Tillman Water Reclamation Plant in Van Nuys in October 2025.

(Eric Thayer / Los Angeles Times)

Benjamin Bass, a UCLA scientist who studies how climate change is affecting the Colorado River and other water sources, joined the group as they presented their proposal in an online briefing.

“Traditional sources for imported water are less reliable than they used to be,” Bass said. “The most reliable source of water in the future is local water.”

Other experts have reached similar conclusions.

Researchers at the Pacific Institute, a water think tank in Oakland, have examined improvements such as fixing leaks in pipes, switching out inefficient washing machines and toilets, and replacing thirsty lawns with plants suited to the state’s Mediterranean climate.

In a 2022 report, they found that a set of standard practices and technologies could reduce total urban water use by 30% or more.

CLOVIS, Calif. — In the waning days before California’s primary election, the two top Republicans running for California governor delivered closing arguments in front of a friendly Central Valley audience Friday evening.

Though Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco and former Fox News host Steve Hilton have attacked each other throughout the campaign, they abstained from feuding and instead focused on common enemies — Gov. Gavin Newsom and Democratic lawmakers who control the Legislature.

Hilton criticized Newsom’s new $20-million program to provide free diapers for families of newborn babies, referring to the outgoing governor as “the great loaded diaper of California himself.”

Earlier this year, Hilton and Bianco topped the governor’s race polls as a packed field of Democrats split many of the state’s liberal voters. Under California’s “jungle primary” system, where the top two candidates advance from the primary to the general election regardless of political affiliation, that led to fleeting hope among Republicans that the two candidates could shut Democratic candidates out of the November election.

“That idea was always a fantasy,” Hilton wrote in an op-ed published in the New York Post earlier this week in which he urged Bianco to drop out of the race “for the sake of the state we both love.”

“Steve, it is time for you to drop out,” Bianco retorted in a video posted to social media soon after. “In no world, no world does Steve Hilton beat a Democrat in November.”

After winning an endorsement from President Trump in early April, Hilton has steadily outpaced Bianco in polls. A poll commissioned by the California Democratic Party released last week showed Hilton leading the field with support from 22% of likely voters, followed by Democrat and former Biden Cabinet member Xavier Becerra with 21%. Bianco was at 10%, down from 15% in a previous poll conducted two weeks prior.

Still, Bianco, the two-term sheriff of California’s fourth most populous county, is a favorite of many Republicans in the state and won more support from delegates during the party’s recent endorsing convention than Hilton, though neither reached the necessary 60% to win the party backing.

While the two candidates have needled each other with personal digs and insults throughout much of the campaign, they appeared to set that energy aside during the Clovis forum and even traded some compliments. Hilton praised “sheriffs like Chad who actually understand what public safety looks like” while Bianco acknowledged that his opponent “should be very proud” to have Trump’s endorsement.

State Sen. Shannon Grove (R-Bakersfield), who moderated the more than 90-minute event, praised their “extraordinary civility” before she pressured each to commit to backing whichever Republican makes it through the June 2 primary — or if they both advance, continue to focus on policy debates over attacks.

The forum was hosted by the Fresno County & City Republican Women Federated as part of a fundraiser and dinner honoring the upcoming 250th anniversary of the nation’s founding. About 450 attendees were served dishes inspired by presidential favorites including sirloin steak for Theodore Roosevelt, a chopped salad from Chasen’s, a favorite Los Angeles eatery for Ronald Reagan, and a chocolate pie with cherry vanilla ice cream for Trump.

The Central Valley stretches from Bakersfield to Redding and is home to some of the nation’s most lucrative farmland. It also includes the heart of California oil country in Kern County. Yet residents feel largely neglected by statewide politicians who are more drawn to the ample votes and wealthy donors in Southern California and the Bay Area.

“We are the breadbasket of the world but we’ve been overlooked for too long,” said Andrea Shabaglian, a vice president of the Fresno Republican women’s group. “When gubernatorial candidates come here to sit down and listen to our communities, they realize that a stronger Valley means a stronger California.”

Though he lost California handily to former Vice President Kamala Harris in the 2024 election, Trump dominated in the state’s midsection. Even in Fresno County, where the Republican forum was held, Trump beat Harris by a four percentage point margin despite Democratic voters slightly outnumbering Republicans.

“We need a Republican in office because California is a mess. I mean, anybody with common sense can see that,” said LuAnne Pinedo-Madden, a retiree living in the Sierra foothill community of Coarsegold who listed transgender girls being allowed to compete in girls’ sports and government corruption as her top concerns.

Pinedo-Madden said she was “pretty sure” she had decided which of the Republican candidates to vote for but declined to say whom. “I feel that if we don’t get a Republican in office, we’re looking at moving” to Utah, Idaho or Nevada, she said. “We can’t take this anymore.”

Bianco and Hilton spoke about their plans to improve public safety, small businesses, homeowner’s insurance and water management, a crucial issue for the conservative-leaning owners of vast swaths of California’s agricultural heartland.

Signs along the major highways that straddle California’s Central Valley proclaim that “Food grows where water flows” and criticize Newsom for allowing water to flow into the ocean instead of capturing and storing more of it for farming.

Both of the GOP candidates described their visions for the state, which include building new dams and raising existing ones to store more water.

“We don’t have the water problem. We have a water management problem,” Bianco said before falsely arguing that “we get more water every single year than any other state in the country” and that California has “never, ever, ever been in a drought.”

“The water will be flowing to our farmers, the oil will be flowing to our refineries, the forests will be managed, the timber will be harvested” and used to build new single-family homes, Hilton said. “We’ve got the best weather, we’ve got the best people, we’ve got the best farmers, we’ve got everything we need to make this place amazing, except a good governor. Very soon we’ll have that as well.”

Though a Republican governor would likely face a hostile Legislature intent on blocking many priorities, Bianco and Hilton both promised sweeping cuts and cutbacks of state agencies. Both pledged on Friday to replace every member of the state’s parole review board, which drew criticism in February when it granted elderly parole to a man convicted of 16 counts of kidnapping and child molestation in 1999.

“California criminal justice is absolutely broken and it was forced upon us in the name of reform. What I’m going to do is make it a crime to hear the word reform again, because we lost track of what that word even means,” Bianco said.

He also pledged to eliminate laws and environmental regulators often blamed for slowing housing development: the California Environmental Quality Act, the California Coastal Commission and the state Air Resources Board.

Though his opponent has the coveted Trump endorsement, Bianco argued that it will hurt Hilton’s chances of winning the general election. The Republican president has never been popular in deep-blue California; just 25% of adults in the state approved of Trump’s performance according to a February survey by the Public Policy Institute of California.

“Steve should rightfully be proud of being endorsed by President Trump [but] we have to actually realize, is that a good thing in California? It’s a good thing in this room,” Bianco said as the crowd cheered at the mention of the president’s name. “We have to realize strategically that President Trump ran three elections in this state, and he lost 60-40 in all three of them.”

The Riverside sheriff argued he is “the only person that can actually sway Democrats to vote for a Republican across party lines on a public safety platform.”