News

Two people were shot Thursday night in the Santa Cruz Small Craft Harbor, and police from several jurisdictions are looking for the suspects. Watsonville police were among several law enforcement agencies on the scene. Santa Cruz Police officers found two victims who had been shot.  Both victims...

WATSONVILLE—After more than seven decades in business, Yamashita Market—Santa Cruz County’s only store dedicated to Asian cooking supplies—is set to close its doors for good, likely sometime in July. The store’s owner Goro Yamashita says that business was steadily declining even before Covid-19 forced businesses...

Health officials throughout the nation have said testing is an essential factor in the battle against the novel coronavirus, and with case numbers rising in communities near and far getting a test is critical to understanding where the virus is and how officials can...

WATSONVILLE—For many residents, January 1930 represents a dark time in the history of Watsonville. For five days, hundreds of armed white men took to the city’s streets, targeting and beating Filipino-American farmworkers who they claimed were stealing their jobs and women. The riots came to a head...

Nov. 20, 2019 Tarmo Hannula: Someone called 9-1-1 Wednesday morning after they spotted a man prowling around their carport on Harper Street in Live Oak. An SC Sheriff deputy arrived within minutes and located a suspect at 3:40 a.m. When the deputy confronted the man...

UPDATE (12:57am, 10/25) Watsonville police say a third man was shot before midnight Saturday on Blackbird Circle behind Ramsay Park—a short walk from the scene of the night’s second homicide. The victim was in critical condition, Watsonville Police Department spokeswoman Michelle Pulido said. It is unclear if...

MOSS LANDING—Two women died after their car plunged into the water of Moss Landing Harbor sometime late Friday night or early Saturday morning. The Monterey County Sheriff’s Office has identified the victims as Maria Vanessa Carrango, 35, and Esther Monique Espinoza, 28, both of Salinas....

WATSONVILLE—Watsonville Community Hospital has a new owner. Halsen Healthcare announced Tuesday that the $30 million sale was finalized at midnight. “This is the first day that Halsen actually owns Watsonville Community Hospital,” Chairman and CEO Dan Brothman said. Halsen was holding a celebratory afternoon barbecue for its...

A collection of images from the Watsonville Strawberry Festival from Aug. 2-4.

WATSONVILLE—Mas Hashimoto, a devout defender of civil rights whose name became synonymous with his hometown after decades of service in education, community volunteerism and historic preservation, and whose unrelenting willingness to speak, write and teach about the plight of Japanese Americans during World War...