Melissa Gomez is an enterprise reporter on the State Team who joined the Los Angeles Times in 2018. She reports on a range of news and issues, with a special focus on the Central Valley. She previously covered education and the 2020 presidential campaign at The Times. A native Floridian, she graduated from the University of Florida.
Latest From This Author
A new study found that as Central Valley residents go about their day, they regularly breathe in pesticides, including one banned in California.
Oct. 1, 2024
Cal Fire ordered residents in Seven Oaks and the Barton Flats area, including all campgrounds and cabins, to evacuate as the Line fire threatened.
Sept. 29, 2024
Even as October kicks off, the cool weather reprieve in SoCal is ending, and temperatures will climb into the extreme range again, forecasters say.
Sept. 30, 2024
In 2022, GOP Rep. John Duarte beat Adam Gray by just 564 votes. Both men are campaigning hard to win the rematch in a moderate Central Valley district.
Sept. 28, 2024
Voters in Congressional District 22 say the hard-fought race between GOP incumbent Rep. David Valadao and his Democratic challenger, Rudy Salas, will come down to the man, not his party.
Sept. 24, 2024
FireSat, a constellation of more than 50 satellites, will be able to detect wildfires as small as the size of a classroom, about 16 by 16 feet, Google said in an announcement.
Sept. 17, 2024
SWAT officers were called in to help Long Beach police with a gunman whom authorities accuse of killing two people.
Sept. 16, 2024
Young activists on social media stress the urgency of climate change: ‘Once you start seeing it in your life, then you have no option but to act.’
Sept. 12, 2024
Instead of waiting years for their studies and work to be published in academic journals, some climate scientists use social media to extend their reach — and their brand.
Sept. 12, 2024
The Borel fire in Kern County incinerated the historic mining town of Havilah and nearly 60,000 acres. Residents are trying to plot a path forward.
Aug. 20, 2024