| Popular Phoenix Trails to Close During Extremely Hot Days | https://www.phoenix.gov/newsroom/parks-and-recreation/3080 | Parks and Recreation | | 4/22/2024 4:30:00 PM | https://www.phoenix.gov/newssite/Lists/NewsArticle/Attachments/3080/Trail-Closure-at-Piestewa-Peak.jpg | | Popular Phoenix Trails to Close During Extremely Hot Days | <div class="ExternalClassED91D3EB345F479CB56F4199D66815AB"><html>
<p>Three popular City of Phoenix hiking trails will close during extremely hot days.<br></p>
<p>On days when the National Weather Service issues an Excessive Heat Warning, Camelback Mountain's Echo and Cholla Trails and all trails associated with Piestewa Peak Trailhead in the Phoenix Mountains Preserve will close from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.<br></p>
<p>During Excessive Heat Warnings, trail access is limited, parking lot gates will be closed, and signage will be posted. Closure information will be posted on the Phoenix Parks and Recreation Department's website and social media accounts, and to local resorts and hotels. Additionally, Phoenix Park Rangers will be visible at those locations to remind and educate trail users about the restrictions. Email notifications are also available by <a href="/parks/trails/take-a-hike-do-it-right" target="_blank"><strong style="color:rgb(139, 0, 0);">signing up for “Hiking and Heat Updates" online.</strong></a> </p>
<p>To help with that recommendation, extended summer hours are in effect annually from June through September at North Mountain Park and Piestewa Peak Trailhead in the Phoenix Mountains Preserve, and Pima Canyon Trailhead in South Mountain Park/Preserve. To provide an extra two hours of availability and promote hiking after 7 p.m., parking lot entrances are open until 9 p.m. at those locations. Year-round at those three trailheads, parking lots open at 5 a.m., and trails are open until 11 p.m. All other trails within the Phoenix parks system will remain open.</p>
<p>During the Valley's warm weather months, and regardless of whether an Excessive Heat Watch is in effect, it is recommended that trail users hike during the early morning or evening hours when it is cooler and there is more shade.</p>
<p>Looking for an open trail? There are more than 200 miles of open trails within the City of Phoenix. Visit <a href="http://www.phoenix.gov/trails" target="_blank"><strong style="color:rgb(139, 0, 0);">Phoenix.gov/trails</strong></a><span style="color:rgb(139, 0, 0);"> </span>to plan your next hike.</p>
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<strong>BACKGROUND</strong>
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<p>In summer 2021, the Parks and Recreation Department ran a 2 ½ month pilot program from July 13 to September 30 in which they closed these same trails to reduce heat-related injuries and deaths and reduce the risk of injuries to rescue personnel.</p>
<p>In October of 2021, the Parks and Recreation Board formally adopted the program limiting hiking on some trails from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. on National Weather Service issued Heat Warning days.</p>
<p>The first full season of the Trails and Heat Safety Program ran from May 1, 2022, through Sept. 30, 2022, for a duration of 153 days. There were 18 <a href="http://www.weather.gov/" target="_blank"><strong style="color:rgb(139, 0, 0);"><span style="">National Weather Service</span> </strong></a>(NWS) issued Heat Warning Days and, therefore, 18 resulting trail closure days in 2022. In 2023, there were 42 trail closure days. </p>
<p>In August of 2023, the Parks and Recreation Board expanded the trail closure program to cover the entire year (previously May – October) and extended the closure hours to begin at 9 a.m. (previously 11 a.m.). <a href="/newsroom/parks-and-recreation/2852" target="_blank"><strong style="color:rgb(139, 0, 0);">Read more about the board's decision.</strong></a> </p>
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<strong>TAKE A HIKE, DO IT RIGHT</strong>
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<p>The Phoenix Parks and Recreation, and Fire departments have worked in partnership since 2015 to share the <a href="/parks/trails" target="_blank"><strong style="color:rgb(139, 0, 0);">“Take a Hike. Do it Right. </strong></a><span style="color:rgb(139, 0, 0);">"</span> hiking safety message and continue to lead with education about responsible hiking. All trail users should follow these important and potentially life-saving hiking guidelines:</p>
<p>•Dress Appropriately: Wear proper shoes, clothing, hat, and sunscreen.</p>
<p>•Bring Water: Hydrate before you go. Have plenty of water, more than you think you need. Turn around and head back to the trailhead before you drink half of your water.</p>
<p>•Keep in Contact: Carry a mobile phone.</p>
<p>•Team Up: Hike with others. If hiking solo, tell someone your start and end times, and location.</p>
<p>•Be Honest: Do you have a medical condition? Asthma, heart problems, diabetes, knee or back problems? Don't push yourself! (Even trained athletes have been caught off guard by getting dehydrated on Arizona trails.)</p>
<p>•Don't Trailblaze: Enjoy the Sonoran Desert's beautiful and undeveloped landscape, but please stay on designated trails.</p>
<p>•Take Responsibility: Don't be "that person" – the one who wasn't prepared, shouldn't have been there for health reasons, or ignored safety guidelines. Be the responsible hiker, who takes a hike and does it right!</p>
<p>For the safety of pets, dogs are prohibited on any City of Phoenix trail when the temperature is 100 degrees or warmer. The Arizona Humane Society advises that temperatures in the 90s are also unsafe for pets to be outdoors. <br></p>
</html></div> | https://www.phoenix.gov/parks | News | parks-and-recreation |
| Fire Ban in Desert Parks and Preserves Starts May 1 | https://www.phoenix.gov/newsroom/parks-and-recreation/3078 | Parks and Recreation | | 4/19/2024 9:00:00 PM | https://www.phoenix.gov/newssite/Lists/NewsArticle/Attachments/3078/Phoenix-Mountain-Preserve.jpg | | Fire Ban in Desert Parks and Preserves Starts May 1 | <div class="ExternalClass707B3004499A4E278C1DBC87932404E8"><html>
<p>The Phoenix Parks and Recreation Department will put into effect its annual ban of open fires in the City's desert parks and mountain preserves starting Wednesday, May 1, 2024. The Maricopa County Parks and Recreation Department's annual fire ban goes into effect the same day .</p><p>In consultation with the Phoenix Fire Department, smoking and charcoal fires are included in the ban due to the extreme fire danger that the combination of low humidity, increased temperatures, excessive dry vegetation, and frequent high winds create each spring.</p><p>The ban applies to <strong>Camelback Mountain, Deem Hills Recreation Area, Lookout Mountain, Papago Park, Phoenix Mountains Park and Recreation Area, Phoenix Mountains Preserve, Phoenix Sonoran Preserve, North Mountain Park, Rio Salado Habitat Restoration Area, and South Mountain Park/Preserve.</strong></p><p>The ban does not apply to the City's flatland parks.</p><p>For those using the City's desert parks and preserve land, the fire ban stipulates the following:</p><p>· Open wood and charcoal fires are prohibited</p><p>· Propane or gas grills may be used, but only in established picnic areas<br></p><p><strong>The following activities continue to be prohibited year-round:</strong></p><ul style="" class="" dir=""><li>Smoking outside enclosed vehicles </li><li>Fireworks</li></ul><p>Motorists traveling through or near Phoenix's desert parks and mountain preserves should use extreme care with smoking materials and dispose of those only in their vehicle's ash tray.</p><p>To protect their homes, residents whose property borders the City's preserve land may remove dry shrubs, brush and grasses, and trim dead branches from trees within the 10-foot strip of land that borders their property. By creating this 10-foot "buffer zone" residents can help to protect their homes from potential brush fires in the adjacent preserve land.</p><p>Preserve neighbors also should check irrigation lines and pool back-flush hoses to ensure that water is not seeping into the preserve. Outside water sources encourage unnaturally dense vegetation growth, which increases fire risk.<br></p>
</html></div> | https://www.phoenix.gov/parks | News | parks-and-recreation |
| City Exhibit Takes Aim at Sexual Assault Victim “Shaming” and “Blaming” | https://www.phoenix.gov/newsroom/human-services/3079 | Human Services | | 4/19/2024 4:30:00 PM | https://www.phoenix.gov/newssite/Lists/NewsArticle/Attachments/3079/library.jpg | | City Exhibit Takes Aim at Sexual Assault Victim “Shaming” and “Blaming” | <div class="ExternalClass42B88EECDE6A4A67B3CBCE0CA2D77D7B"><html>
<p>The City of Phoenix's Strategic Initiatives team invites you to visit a powerful exhibit to raise awareness about sexual assault as part of April's “Let's Talk Teal Campaign." April is Sexual Assault Awareness Month, and the city provides resources and awareness events all month.</p>
<p>The exhibit titled “What were you wearing?" draws attention to the “rape culture," where questions and statements like these are common, and put the blame on the victim. Victim shaming and blaming discourages victims from coming forward to report the crime and seek help. The display features the stories of several survivors and a representation of the clothes they were wearing when they were assaulted. </p>
<p>The exhibit is on display at Burton Barr Library on the 2nd floor through April 24th.</p>
<p>The <a target="_blank" href="/humanservices/programs/strategicinitiatives">City of Phoenix's Strategic Initiatives</a> section collaborates with community partners to combat domestic violence, sexual assault, unhealthy youth relationships, human trafficking, and to end the HIV/AIDS epidemic. We achieve this mission through prevention, training, community awareness, and enhancing services for the overall well-being of those we serve.<br></p>
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| Operation Makeup Breakup | https://www.phoenix.gov/newsroom/police/3077 | Police | | 4/19/2024 12:00:00 AM | | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b_2RWf2kCis | Operation Makeup Breakup | <div class="ExternalClassD2BFF659F0AD40889598610F676EACBE"><html>
<p>The Phoenix Police Department recently made multiple arrests and recovered hundreds of thousands of dollars in stolen property in an organized retail theft investigation, Operation Makeup Breakup.</p>
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<br>On Thursday, April 18, 2024, the Department and the Maricopa County Attorney’s Office provided statements to the public as well as video surveillance, body worn camera footage, and photographs highlighting the investigation and what was seized after executing multiple search warrants.<br><br>The six-month long investigation looked into an organized cosmetic retail fence; a fence being the individual or group who are purchasing stolen goods and reselling for a profit.<br><br>As a result of the investigation, three women were arrested and detectives were able to recover over 20,000 items, valued at over $560,000.<br><br>The fence was operating three “stores” out of homes in the Phoenix and Tonopah area. Rooms in these homes had been converted into the store fronts that people were invited in to purchase the cosmetics. These stores were not the only way the items were being sold, they were also being sold online and shipped, in some cases in bulk to other states and countries.<br><br>Over the course of the investigation, detectives learned that this fence had been operating for five years.<br><br>The fence purchased the stolen cosmetics from various boosters, individuals who steal or shoplift the goods to sell. Boosters are known to have a “shopping list” of items they know a fence will pay them for.<br><br>The suspects in this case are facing charges of Illegal Control of an Enterprise and Trafficking in Stolen Property.<br><br>“My hope is that this sends a strong message that we are committed to investigating and arresting individuals of all crimes, and theft of this magnitude will not be tolerated,” said Interim Police Chief Michael Sullivan.<br><br>These crimes are taken seriously by the department and the County Attorney’s Office.<br><br>“We need to pay particular attention to this kind of crime – especially when it’s at this scale – because it affects everyone’s bottom line,” said County Attorney Rachel Mitchell. “Retailers have to offset their losses which can mean those of us who are law-abiding citizens pay higher prices.” <br><br>This is still an open investigation and details available for release are limited. <br><br></p>
</html></div> | https://phoenix.gov/police | Video | police |
| Phoenix Police Unveils Newly Renovated Victim Center | https://www.phoenix.gov/newsroom/police/3076 | Police | | 4/15/2024 7:30:00 PM | | https://youtu.be/nXBTOnrKQ2M?si=hNHOrmMnSYZUa-hI | Phoenix Police Unveils Newly Renovated Victim Center | <div class="ExternalClass998DE69D666F4803AC00AD9A9E79D05F"><html>
<p>After nearly four years, the newly renovated Victim Center was unveiled Thursday at the Phoenix Family Advocacy Center.<br></p>
<p>The Victim Center is the home base of the Phoenix Police Department's Family Investigations Bureau where detectives, nurses and victim advocates investigate sexual and domestic violence cases as well as interview victims, some of whom may be reporting crimes for the first time. The center first opened in 1999 and last renovations happened more than 10 years ago.</p>
<p>In collaboration with the Phoenix Police Foundation, the City of Phoenix was able to fund a significant renovation of the center through a public-private partnership.</p>
<p>The new center now has private waiting rooms that can accommodate families and children, warmer interview rooms and enhanced privacy measures.</p>
<p>"Anyone that comes through these doors is having a really terrible day," said Phoenix Police Commander Sara Garza, “so whatever we can do here to make sure that we're doing everything that we can to make it less terrible is our goal."</p>
<p>In 2023, Phoenix PD received just under 34,000 calls for service involving domestic violence and investigated just over 800 sexual assault cases. For those victims, having a warm, comfortable and safe environment is crucial.</p>
<p>"These victims had a very tiny waiting room, so they had no privacy," Garza said. “So, if you were reporting something and we had another victim waiting for, let's say, a nurse's exam or a detective interview, they might be sitting together, and victims always value privacy, especially during these sensitive investigations."</p>
<p>“It's crucial for a victim to come into a space that is comfortable and a safe place," said Debbie Valenzuela, a victim advocate with the City of Phoenix Victim Services. “It's not just a big deal for us as advocates and detectives, but also the nurses. But it's big on the victims knowing that they are here in a nice, comfortable place, will welcome them when working with victims of sexual and domestic violence."</p>
<p>The new design will provide a comfortable setting that respects the privacy and needs of victims during their most challenging times.</p>
<p>"This is going to make an environment for somebody that's really having a horrible day into something that is a little bit more pleasant, allows the detectives to do their jobs, allows people to report their crimes and feel more comfortable doing so," said President of the Phoenix Police Foundation Tim Thomas.</p>
<p>"I hope that all victims that come through the center leave with their dignity and their respect intact," said Garza, “that they have trust in the police and our victim advocates and the whole system, that we will give it the best chance towards justice for them and they leave as a whole person."<br></p>
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</html></div> | https://phoenix.gov/police | Video | police |
