O'neals News

If an old fashioned rough and tumble rodeo is any indication, the 61st Coarsegold Rodeo is proof that the American cowboy and cowgirl are alive and well.

A bone-dry winter and heat that's good for fire, as witnessed by blazes in Southern California, have firefighters in the Valley gearing up early this year.

A wildfire started Tuesday afternoon in the O'Neals area and burned up more than 100 acres, as of press time Tuesday evening.

Fire crews are on the scene of a fire in Madera County. The fire is burning in the O'Neals area near Finegold Creek and Road 210.

Firefighters battling a 150-acre grass fire in O'Neals on Tuesday afternoon have the blaze 25% contained and don't expect full containment until Wednesday morning, a Cal Fire spokeswoman said.

The winners of the 29th annual William Saroyan Story Writing Contest will be recognized in an awards ceremony Thursday at Fresno's Woodward Park Regional Library, the William Saroyan Society said.