In other news: Extreme heat in Phoenix withering famed saguaro cactuses; Texas police officer holds innocent family at gunpoint after making typo while running plates

Published 12:00 am Friday, August 4, 2023

The extreme heat in Phoenix is withering some of its famed saguaro cactuses, with no end in sight

Phoenix this week climbed back up to dangerously high temperatures. That means trouble not just for people but for some plants, too. After July saw the warmest monthly average temperature on record for any U.S. city, some residents across metro Phoenix are finding the heat has led to fried flora. The city’s treasured Desert Botanical Garden has had a handful of its saguaro cactuses, which were already stressed from record heat from three years ago, topple over or lose an arm. People are sharing photos of their own damaged cactuses. Nurseries and landscapers have been fielding requests for help for everything from saguaros to ficuses to fruit trees that are losing leaves.

Texas police officer holds innocent family at gunpoint after making typo while running plates

A Texas police department says it’s reviewing errors made by its officers who stopped what they mistakenly suspected was a stolen car and held an innocent Black family at gunpoint. Body camera video released by the Frisco Police Department shows the car’s driver sobbing after officers with guns drawn order her to walk backwards with her hands raised. She tells them: “This is scaring me.” Also in the car were the woman’s husband, their son and a nephew. Officers determined during the traffic stop that they had mistakenly called in the car’s license plate as an Arizona tag. It was registered in Arkansas. Frisco Police Chief David Shilson said he has apologized to the family.

Invasive fruit flies have been found near Los Angeles, prompting a produce quarantine

Nearly 30 invasive fruit flies have prompted a produce quarantine in Los Angeles County as state and local officials try to stop the fly from spreading to more fruits and vegetables. State agriculture officials say it’s the first quarantine ever in the Western Hemisphere of the Tau fruit fly, which is native to Asia. Officials say the fly was discovered in the unincorporated area of Stevenson Ranch, likely brought by a traveler bringing uninspected produce into California. They’re urging residents not to take their produce outside their homes. It threatens to destroy crops or prompt more pesticide spraying if its spreads.