Good morning, Salinas.

In May, KSBW 8 led all local news time slots and won the top Nielsen ratings, showing strong viewership on the Central Coast.

The station’s digital platforms reached over 715,000 unique viewers—confirming its role as the main local news source.

A fire has broken out on Laureles Grade and Southview Road in Carmel Valley with a home threatened as the three-acre blaze could grow to 10 acres—Laureles Grade Road is closed while firefighters work to keep the fire from spreading further.

A fire named the Grade Fire forced a hard closure of both sides of Laureles Grade Road between Highway 68 and Carmel Valley Road on Thursday — CAL FIRE said the blaze burned 10 acres and threatened one structure — and officials urged residents to follow alerts for possible evacuation.

County officials are still collecting samples near the Moss Landing Battery Storage plant after the January fire—working with federal and state partners and updating an online dashboard with testing results.

A recent survey of 1,539 residents showed common symptoms such as headaches and sore throats and raised concerns about emergency alert system messages.

Local wildlife experts in Salinas and along the Central Coast warn residents not to rescue or feed baby animals & instead call professionals like the SPCA for help.

They stress that unauthorized care can cause more harm & one meal with an incorrect diet can be deadly for young wildlife.

The U.S. Army Reserve held its largest training exercise at Fort Hunter Liggett—Operation Mojave Falcon—with over 9,000 soldiers participating to practice mass casualty response and live fire gunnery drills.

The exercise built readiness and sharpened skills for future operations.

North Salinas sprinter Clara Adams lost her CIF state track 400 title after celebrating her win by spraying her shoes with a fire extinguisher—she said she only wants the title reinstated as local and international news outlets, including an upcoming CNN interview, focus on the incident and a disputed official’s contact.