October 12, 2024 (Santee) -- Looking for a totally tubular time? The Santee Brews & Bites Festival Fundraiser will be far out dude! Fast Times, the ultimate 80’s experience band, will be headlining this year’s Brews & Bites on Saturday, Oct. 19 from 5:30 to 9:30 p.m. at Town Center Community Park East (550 Park Center Dr., Santee). You may want to embrace the gnarly tunes with a totally bodacious outfit* as you sip and snack the night away with foods and brews from an array of local vendors.

*Rad attire not required.

October 10, 2024 (Lemon Grove) – East County Magazine will host two candidate forums tonight on Zoom.  The Lemon Grove mayoral  candidates’ forum will begin at 6 p.m., followed by the Lemon Grove City Council candidates’ forum  at 7 p.m.

You can watch live on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/EastCountyMagazine/.  The forum will also be posted later on our homepage at https://www.eastcountymagazine.org.

All candidates have agreed to participate.

Update Oct. 8, 2024 9:15 p.m. -- All evacuation orders and road closures have been lifted.

Update 10 p.m.: The following roads are closed:  Old Highway 80 from Kitchen Creek Road to Crestwood Road, and  tate Route 94 from La Posta Road to Old Highway 80. Families can drop off large animals at the San Diego County Animal Shelter located at 5821 Sweetwater Road in Bonita. For more information, call County Animal Services at 619-236-2341.

By Miriam Raftery

Photo by Casey Shoemaker

October 7, 2024 (Campo) -- Evacuation orders and warnings are in effect in the Campo area due to the #Posta3Fire, which has burned 350 acres. The fire began this afternoon in the 3100 block of La Posta Rd.at Old Highway 80 in Campo. View the evacuation map at Genasys Protect:

https://protect.genasys.com/hazards/1899163d-428a-4120-98f3-f147f8098a86?z=14&latlon=32.724867%2C-116.426334

This fire has a rapid rate of spread.  A temporary evacuation center is at Golden Acorn Casino.

View forum:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I7V44cS5UCY

A version of this forum, edited slightly for length,also aired on the East County Radio Show on KNSJ.  Hear audio.

By Miriam Raftery

October 7, 2024 (La Mesa) – All four candidates vying for two open seats on the La Mesa City Council spoke out on their goals and priorities if elected during an Oct. 3 forum on Zoom moderated by ECM editor Miriam Raftery. They addressed issues including housing and homelessness, restoring remote public comments, policing and public safety, district elections and campaign finance reform, and infrastructure to protect against extreme storms such as January’s floods.

Candidates opened with introductions, experience and top goals if elected.

By Mimi Pollack

October 6, 2024 (Lakeside) -- Lionel’s Legacy, a non-profit in Lakeside that rescues senior pets, and its founder, Laura Oliver, were recognized by the Red Cross at the Real Heroes Award ceremony held on the Midway on September 27. Oliver was honored for all the work her organization does to help senior dogs in need. She was given the Animal Welfare Hero Award for Lionel’s Legacy. Furthermore, the Red Cross acknowledged her for co-founding the San Diego Rescue Coalition, a collaboration of animal welfare agencies working together to improve animal rescue efforts in San Diego.

 Lionel’s Legacy, an organization that rescues and finds homes for senior dogs, was founded in 2012 by Laura Oliver, and her family. Lionel was a 15-year-old pit bull that the Olivers adopted. He inspired them to start an organization that specializes in fostering and finding good homes for senior pets.

School bond also on ballot for Santee voters

By Mike Allen

Photo:  Monique Silver, left, and Tracie Silver, right

October 5, 2024 (Santee) --The Santee School District has two seats on its governing board up for election next month. Dianne El-Hajj is running unopposed for Seat No. 2, while Seat No. 4 has two candidates, retired teacher Monique Silver and teacher's aide Tracie Thill.

The candidates shared their views on issues ranging from closing the post-COVID learning gap to parental rights vs.censorship and inclusivity.

By Miriam Raftery

October 2, 2024 (Spring Valley) – Audience members offered up in-depth questions for candidates in the 79^th Assembly District forum moderated by the League of Women Voters Monday night at the New Seasons Church in Spring Valley.

Educator LaShea Sharp-Collins,PhD and La Mesa Councilmember Colin Parent, both Democrats, agreed on some issues, such as protecting reproductive choice, but diverged on others, such as criminal justice reforms. Each touted their expertise in certain areas (Sharp-Collins on educations and equity issues, Parent on housing and transportation), their experiences preparing them for higher office, and their priorities if elected.

By Miriam Raftery

October 1, 2024 (San Diego’s East County) -- There are some outrageous October outings in East County this year, including Oktoberfests in La Mesa and El Cajon, an autumn jubilee in Wynola Hauntfest on Main and a Haunted Circus in El Cajon,  a Haunted Forest at Banner Ranch near Julian, Rolling Pumpkins at Parkway Plaza, Julian Wonderfest, and Pumpkin Express train rides in Campo.

Here are the haunting details.

Reserve space now at early bird rates—seating is limited!

You’re invited to a Spanish paella feast and fundraiser on Sunday evening, October 20 catered by Paella Valenciana at a private Mt. Helix home to benefit East County Magazine and our East County Wildfire & Emergency Alerts!

 RSVP by Oct. 5 for early bird rates for this fun and festive event, which also features live Spanish guitar music by the Malamaña duet, a raffle with prizes galore, Spanish tapas, and three varieites of paella, plus and a historical reenactment by Early California Speaks. 

Below are the delicious details:

Don't get burned! Safety tips to prepare for wildfires

By Miriam Raftery

Hear full interview

September 30, 2024 (San Diego’s East County) – Cal Fire Captain and Public Information Officer Mike Cornette, in an interview aired on the East County Magazine Radio Show on KNSJ, offered an outlook on peak wildfire season, information on new Zone Zero defensible space requirements around homes, as well as tips to prepare for wildfires and keep your household safe.

On the fall outlook for wildfires,  he notes that fire season is now year-round. “We’ve seen large fires anywhere from January to December in every different part of the state, every different part of the county.” Now that peak fire season approaches, there is heavy grass from last winter’s heavy rains, “so we’re still expecting potential for large wildland fires through December.”

Recent major fires in Los Angeles, Riverside, Orange and San Bernadino Counties should be a "wakeup call" for residents across California to be prepared for wildfires by creating defensible space around homes and being ready to evacuated if needed.

Captain Cornette urges people to maintain defensible space from 0 to 100 feet around your home—thinning fuels in the morning, with high humidity and lower temperatures,  “to make it more survivable.”

September 29, 2024 (San Diego's East County) -- Our Health and Science Highlights provide cutting edge news that could impact your health and our future

HEALTH

• New COVID variant XEC now in half the states. Here’s what to know. (CBS)
• Utilities must comply with limits on PFAS chemicals by 2029 (NPR)
• A dramatic rise in pregnant women dying in Texas after abortion ban (NBC)
• FDA has new mammography rules regarding breast-tissue density   (NPR)

SCIENCE AND TECH

• It's A good time to revisit what Project 2025 would mean for hurricane forecasts (Huffington Post)
• Death toll from Hurricane Helene mounts as aftermath assessment begins (NPR)
• 'What a perfect world': First private spacewalk a success (BBC)
• Doritos dye makes mice transparent, Invisible humans next? (MSN)

For excerpts and links to full stories, click “read more” and scroll down.