by Aydn Morris

After 9 months of quarantining, there is still an increasing number of COVID-19 cases, leaving California officials reeling as they try to slow the spread and flatten the curve.

For the past 9 months Covid 19 has affected many peoples lives. Most people believed that this virus would end in about a month or two, but they never expected it to go for this long. A majority of people around the world are tired of seeing family members die or get infected by the virus and just want it to stop so they can get back to the way things were before. 

California is one of the states with the highest number of cases and increasing percentages of cases and deaths due to Coronavirus. For the past couple of weeks, California has been giving residents light stay at home orders to try and decrease the cases and deaths.

The stay at home order is where residents are expected to stay at home unless of an emergency, in need of essential services or are essential workers. The stay at home order is is just a lighter version of the lockdown where a few places are still open but only a small amount of people are allowed. 

The stay at home order will close down many public places such as restaurants, personal grooming services, bars, movie theaters, museums and casinos.

Places that are open will be outdoor recreational facilities, hotels, places of worship (which will have to be held outside), professional sports and entertainment production without live audiences and non-urgent medical and dental care. For grocery stores that are open, they have to limit their store capacity down to 20%. Outdoor recreational facilities include beaches, golf courses, and parks. All of these places will require people to masked, socially distanced and in limited capacity. 

According to KTLA5 News, “the new restrictions will go into effect in Southern California at 11:59 p.m. Sunday and last for at least three weeks. The region includes the cities of Los Angeles and San Diego and is home to about 24 million people, almost half of the state’s population. The order was also put in effect for the San Joaquin Valley in central California.”

This will outrage half of California’s population especially since it is the Holiday season, with kids being out of school on their winter break, which most likely puts an end to any plans of traveling to families houses and it will also be harder for people to finish Christmas shopping. 

According to Deadline, L.A. County Sheriff Alex Villanueva sent mixed messages this week as the orders were issued. “I want to stay away from businesses that are trying to comply the best they can. They bent over backwards to modify their entire operation to conform to these current health orders,” he continued, “and then they have the rug yanked out from under them, that’s a disservice. I don’t want to make their lives any more miserable.”

Obviously, it’s difficult for leaders to make these decisions because they all understand how much this is affecting peoples businesses and lives. Furthermore, it also furthers gridlock between politicians and local law enforcement officers, as differing opinions have led to a lack of enforcing restrictions in California and abroad.

Most of us want to get back to the way things were before COVID-19 and California is trying its best to do so.

All we can do as California Citizens is just have to have hope, make the most out of what we have, wear masks, and socially distance.

by Andrew Fierro

The fire erupted Corona Municipal Airport and has since grow to over 500 acres, shutting down Highway 71 and causing air-filled smoke all over Orange County. 

The fire began on Tuesday night, though it really rocketed in size on Thursday due to strong winds. As of 8 A.M. Thursday, the fire is 0% contained.

The fire, due to its size and the smokey air causing vision issues for drivers, has caused a shutdown of State Route 71 on Thursday morning. 

The winds overnight made residents near the flames, in towns like Sonora Ranch which is about 2 miles away from the fire, frightful of whether or not it was going to be able to be contained.

An evacuation order was issued for many areas including, but not limited to, Springs Court, Rock Ridge Court, and Cheyenne Road. However, those orders were lifted as of 10 P.M. 

The fire was reported first on Tuesday behind the airport at the Prado Basin and at the time of the report was at less than five acres. Though because of the strong wind and low humidity, the fire kicked up to 25 acres by Wednesday afternoon and then onto 50 later in the evening. 

So far there have been no damages or injuries reported due to the fire, though the air quality may be unsafe for some people due to the heavy smoke and wind. 

There have also been almost 200 encountered flames in the thick vegetation burning at a mild rate away from the airport. Two water-dropping helicopters were making different runs until nightfall hit, not dissolving the fire but at least slowing it.

Of course, the airport was closed because of the firefighters working on slowing and eventually stopping the fire. There has been a temporary flight restriction that covers a five-mile diameter area around the field. 

People in all areas of Orange County can go out of their homes and see the heavy smoke in the sky, which was very predominant in the morning and the smoke scent is still heavy, which for some people may be unsafe to go out in. 

Though it is not contained, it is slowing and the firefighters are doing their best to keep it from getting worse and too close to towns and cities. 

by Andrew Fierro

The man behind Darth Vader, Prowse had a profound impact on the Star Wars Franchise and fans worldwide, even if he didn’t voice the famed villain. Unfortunately, Prowse passed away at the age of 85 on Saturday due to COVID-19.

Prowse was born in Bristol, United Kingdom on July 1, 1935. He went on to do many amazing things in his life, including becoming a weightlifting champion in Britain and also being the first Green Cross Code man.

However, what most people know him as is portraying one of the most iconic movie villains in history, Darth Vader. 

David Prowse was 41 years old when George Lucas asked him to audition for the role after seeing him in the 1971 Stanley Kubrick film, A Clockwork Orange.

He had the choice between playing Chewbacca or Darth Vader, choosing to play Darth Vader because he believed that everyone always remembers the villain. He would be absolutely correct in that prophecy.

After receiving the role of Darth Vader and playing him for some time on set, George Lucas made the decision that his voice would be scrapped in post-production due to his heavy British accent that didn’t fit the character.

This would lead to the voice being portrayed by James Earl Jones, while Prowse handled actual Darth Vader character duties.

Though Darth Vader was his most popular role, he had other roles in his acting career, including playing Julian the Bodyguard in “A Clockwork Orange”.

He also worked to help other actors prepare for a role, helping Christopher Reeve get ready for his role in the 1978 version of “Superman”. 

Despite his rise to fame during adulthood, Prowse faced many adversities in his younger life that he had to overcome, such as having disabilities, having no father in his life after he passed when David was 5, and being a poor student.

When he was 12 years old, he had to spend 3 years wearing a leg-iron because the doctors suspected that he had tuberculosis, though that was later proved to be unfounded.

When David was younger he found a passion early on for weightlifting and bodybuilding. Due to his passion and hard work, he was regarded as a highly regarded member of the fitness community, receiving many awards for competing in weightlifting competitions, including his win of the British Heavyweight Weightlifting Title. One of his most popular appearances was his appearance in the Mr. Universe contest.

David Prowse lived in the spotlight for most of his life, whether it was in weightlifting competitions or movies. Though he was most known for his role as Darth Vader, he was a very successful man in whatever craft he put his mind to.

He will be remembered as an amazing actor for portraying one of the most iconic and intimidating villains in movie history, as well as for being a well-respected actor and person who overcame lots of adversity. 

Rest In Peace, David Prowse.