Newsom declares state of emergency for chemical leak as officials seek solutions

Local News Newsom declares state of emergency for Southern California chemical leak as officials search for solutions By Austin Turner, Austin Turner Web Producer, CBS News Los Angeles Austin Turner is a web producer at CBS News Los Angeles. An Inland Empire native, Austin earned a degree in journalism from San Jose State University in 2020. Before joining CBS News in 2025, he worked at KTLA, the San Jose Mercury News, the Sedona Red Rock News and various other outlets as a news and sports reporter. Read Full Bio Austin Turner, Julie Sharp, Julie Sharp Web Producer, CBS Los Angeles Julie Sharp is a digital producer at CBS Los Angeles. She is a South Bay native and majored in print journalism at Cal State University Long Beach. Julie previously reported for the Beach Reporter, contributed to the Palos Verdes Pulse and worked as a video journalist for CBS News before joining the CBS News Los Angeles website team. Read Full Bio Julie Sharp, Matthew Rodriguez, Chelsea Hylton, Chelsea Hylton Chelsea Hylton is a web producer for CBS Los Angeles. An Inglewood native, Hylton has her master's degree from USC. She covers local breaking news across the Southern California region. Before joining CBS in 2024, she worked at NBC LA, Telemundo 52, The Los Angeles Times and KOMO 4 News in Seattle. Read Full Bio Chelsea Hylton, Dean Fioresi Dean Fioresi Web Producer, CBS Los Angeles Dean Fioresi is a web producer for CBS Los Angeles. He covers breaking news throughout Southern California. When he's not writing about local events, he enjoys focusing on sports and entertainment. Read Full Bio Dean Fioresi Updated on: May 23, 2026 / 3:15 PM EDT / CBS LA Add CBS News on Google California Gov. Gavin Newsom proclaimed a state of emergency in Orange County on Saturday as officials desperately search for a safe resolution to a leaking toxic chemical tank at an aerospace facility."The safety of Orange County residents is the top priority," Newsom said. "We are mobilizing every state...