I was in the Los Angeles area on the morning of Saturday, May 17, because the California News Publishers Association’s journalism awards event was that evening. We’d just sat down for brunch at a restaurant when a friend called.
He told us he’d seen claims on social media that a helicopter had crashed into Desert Regional Medical Center. My heart sank, and I felt sick to my stomach.
I jumped on social media. In addition to a lot of posts effectively asking, “What in the hell was that boom?!” I saw the same reports my friend had. I also saw claims that there had been a gas-line explosion, that a car bomb had gone off, and that whatever the explosion was “completely destroyed” multiple buildings. I also saw posts proclaiming an “abortion clinic” was involved.
As details started to come in from reliable news sources about what had really happened, accusations of partisan/ideological blame started flying willy-nilly. This had to have been done by an angry Trump supporter, some said, or perhaps a “Christian pro-lifer.” Others blamed the radical left. (My favorite post, however, was a rambling, grammatically challenged claim on X saying that due to the explosion, “There has been a serious increase in air surveillance UFO HUnters in morongo valley sky valley palm springs tonight is a great night to see the aircraft they claim does not exist i personally spotted 10 of them tonight look up.”)
Of course, we now know what really happened: A suspect identified as Guy Edward Bartkus, a 25-year-old from Twentynine Palms, drove a 2010 Ford Fusion into the parking lot of the American Reproductive Centers (ARC), a fertility/in-vitro fertilization clinic at 1199 N. Indian Canyon Drive. A little before 11 a.m., that vehicle—with Bartkus in it or nearby—exploded, essentially destroying the ARC building, and damaging multiple buildings within several blocks of the blast. Four people were injured—but thankfully, Bartkus was the only person killed.
We now know, based on various things he posted online, that Bartkus was someone who was “anti-life” or “pro-mortalist”—someone who was angry that he existed, and did not like that he was brought into this world without his consent.
So … there was no helicopter crash into a hospital, thank god. There was no gas explosion. An abortion clinic was not targeted. And being “anti-life” is not part of any Democratic, Republican, liberal or conservative platform I’ve ever seen.
This is just the latest example of how misinformation spreads like crazy whenever a big news story breaks. Please: Whenever something big happens, assume whatever you see on social media is an unverified rumor, until reliable, trusted sources start to chime in. And please, don’t spread unfounded rumors on social media yourself. Misinformation is real, and it sucks.
The ARC building was essentially destroyed, and other nearby buildings were badly damaged. The May 17 bombing is considered an act of terrorism—and most insurance policies don’t cover damage due to terrorism.
This is why Palm Springs-area business leaders including Bob Smiland (Desert Hand Car Wash), Liz Ostoich (Farm, Tac/Quila, Clandestino), Willie Rhine (Eight4Nine Restaurant and Lounge, Willie’s), Bill Sanderson (Townie Bagels) and Gregory Goodman (My Little Flower Shop) teamed up with the Desert Business Association (DBA) and Greater Palm Springs Pride to create Rebuild Palm Springs, an effort to raise funds to help businesses and residents whose buildings were damaged. The DBA will disperse the funds, with Greater Palm Springs Pride acting as the fiscal sponsor, using guidelines based on the city of Palm Springs Facade Improvement Program.
If you’re able, please go to bit.ly/RebuildPS to contribute.
Note: This is the editor’s note that appeared in the June 2025 print edition. Portions of this were originally published online in the May 19 Indy Digest.
