Porter Ranch gas leak: all but unfinished

The destructive Aliso Canyon/Porter Ranch gas leak may repeat itself after the worst gas leak in decades left a portion of the state at a standstill last October.

KPCC Staff reports: "The Southern California Gas Co. says a new natural gas and oil leak occurred in the area where a leak spewed massive amounts of gas into the air for nearly four months and drove thousands of people out of their homes."

"The utility reported to the California Governor's Office of Emergency of Services (OES) on Saturday that a private oil and gas company that operates a well in the Aliso Canyon gas storage field spewed less than 50 gallons of oil spray and an unknown amount of natural gas."

"Calls to an emergency contact for Denver-based Crimson Resource Management went unanswered."

The Reeps' Ron Unz has a tough road ahead of him, and Unz's U.S. Senate campaign is highlighting the divisions in the GOP.

From the Chronicle's John Wildermuth: "Republican Ron Unz may have jumped into the high-profile race to replace retiring Democratic Sen. Barbara Boxer, but he’s not drafting the speech he’s planning to deliver on the Senate floor in January."

“I’m an honest person, and I say what I believe,” said Unz, a Palo Alto software developer and entrepreneur who made an unsuccessful GOP primary bid for governor in 1994. “Sure, I could say I’m going to be the next senator, but that wouldn’t be honest.”

"A Field Poll earlier this month shows just how tough a road Unz and other Republicans face in the Senate race, where only the top two finishers, regardless of party, advance to the November general election."

The Capitol annex building may be getting remodeled after Sen. Richard Pan brought to attention the lack of basic safety features that could spell potential disaster if an emergency were ever to occur, 

The Bee's Jim Miller writes: "As legislative hearing rooms go, the second-floor space in the state Capitol is among the smallest, with witnesses, lobbyists and others frequently forced to stand at the back of the room or wait in the hallway."

"But at a recent budget hearing, state Sen. Richard Pan directed people’s attention to what he called an example of a much more pressing problem."

“We have all these visitors coming here, second only to Disneyland, and yet, when you look up, there’s something missing – fire sprinklers,” said Pan, D-Sacramento, pointing at the room’s ceiling. “We have all those people walking through here, but if there’s a fire, we’re in big trouble.”

SEE ALSO: Speaking of fire, in an effort to stifle unsafe cooking practices, SCUSD searches for relief in the form of a central kitchen due to the overcrowding of small-scale cafeterias at public schools. 

This year's presidential election has become seemingly nothing more than a reality tv show, with Donald Trump and company at the forefront. 

Chronicle's Joe Garofoli reports: "If you’re a Donald Trump supporter in California, what is more worrisome to you: that the candidate just hired his state director last week, less than two months before the nation’s largest state’s primary puts 172 delegates up for grabs, or that the new director has never met Trump?"

“No, we haven’t met,” Tim Clark said 24 hours after taking the gig. He caught the Trump campaign’s attention after writing a March 3 opinion piece in the Sacramento Bee where he compared Trump to Teddy Roosevelt, saying, “Conservatives want someone who will knock some heads and stop the madness in Washington.”

Clark also wrote: “Yes, Trump has a track record of abrasiveness, of knocking heads and brazenly firing people. ... In normal election times, these might be liabilities. But, in the eyes of conservatives, Trump has the right qualifications to be president at this time in history.”"

SEE ALSO: Trump pushes for "showbiz feel" on the campaign trail despite GOP worries of convention chaos. Phillip Rucker and Robert Costa report in Washington Post.

And finally, from our "High and the Mighty" file, comes the tale of the FedEx employee who fell asleep and wound up in Lubbock, Tex. Frightening.

An unidentified FedEx Express employee reportedly stowed away on a cargo plane traveling from Memphis to Lubbock, Texas after falling asleep among its contents."

"The worker is said to have woken up from his snoozing mid-flight Friday before knocking on the pilot's cabin door."