East County News Service

Update August 24, 2021:  The Medical Examiner has confirmed that the cause of death was strangulation and the manner of death was homicide.

August 23, 2021 (San Diego) – Last night around 7:10 p.m., deputies found an inmate at San Diego Central Jail unresponsive and suffering from traumatic injuries, says Lt. Thomas Siever.

By Suzanne Potter, California News Service

August 23, 2021 (Sacramento) -- Conservation groups are pushing for passage of a bill in Congress that would revive migratory bird protections dropped during the Trump administration.

East County News Service

August 22, 2021 (Spring Valley) - The Saps at Sea, the San Diego chapter of the Sons of the Desert, the official Laurel & Hardy appreciation society, has resumed their meetings, with their next being September 18 at Williams Hall at Trinity Presbytarian Church, 3902 Kenwood Dr. in Spring Valley.

Fox News hosts falsely touted drug as COVID treatment. FDA says it is not anti-viral, is used mainly to deworm horses, and can be dangerous for humans.

By Miriam Raftery

August 21, 2021 (Washington D.C.) – A Mississippi Poison Control Center reports that 70% of recent calls are from people who ingested Ivermectin purchased at livestock supply stores which they mistakenly believed could treat or prevent COVID-19, a view falsely touted by multiple Fox News hosts. Seeking to protect the public from harm, The U.S. Food and Drug Association (FDA) has issued a statement titled “Why you should not use Ivermectin to treat or prevent COVID-19.”

By Mike Allen

Photo:  David Clarke, owner, Team C Construction

August 21, 2021 (Santee) -- At a June celebration marking the 60^th anniversary of the Padre Dam Municipal Water District, top officials and directors of the agency heaped glowing praise for the new administrative offices, event center and general store at Santee Lakes that was completed in April.

East County’s high school district welcomes new leadership and focuses on building relationships

Source:  GUHSD

August 21, 2021 (El Cajon) - – The Grossmont Union High School District (GUHSD) welcomed students back for five days per week of in-person instruction as the new school year kicked off on August 10. During the COVID-19 pandemic, GUHSD, which serves over 17,000 East County students across its family of 17 schools and programs, safely opened for in-person instruction in September 2020 – earlier than most public high school districts – and offered four days of in-person learning per week by the end of the school year.

East County News Service

August 21, 2021 (San Diego) -- In response to the extreme drought conditions impacting Southern California, the Metropolitan Water District’s Board of Directors on Aug. 17 declared a Water Supply Alert, calling for consumers and businesses to voluntarily reduce their water use and help preserve the region’s storage reserves. The declaration comes a day after the Bureau of Reclamation declared a first-ever shortage on the Colorado River, which typically provides about 25 percent of Southern California’s water needs.

Public presentation to showcase findings from community members, focus groups, library staff and library use data.  Input from public to help inform next stages of Library Master Plan development

East County News Service

August 21, 2021 (San Diego) -- With data from nearly 7,500 San Diegans and over 15 focus groups with people from underrepresented communities, the preliminary findings of the first phase of the Library Master Plan are now ready to be shared with the public. San Diego Public Library Director Misty Jones will host a public presentation on August 24 to showcase these findings. 

East County News Service

August 20, 2021 (Borrego Springs) – Bob Kutscher snapped this photo on August 11, the morning after a storm dumped three quarters of an inch of rain accompanied by thunder and lightning – all preceded by a Haboob, or dust storm that left particles to intensify the sunrise hues.

East County News Service

Photo by Barry Jantz

August 20, 2021 (Jamul) -- The California Governor’s Office of Emergency Services (Cal OES) today announced the approval of $21,652 in reimbursements to help the County of San Diego cover the costs of operating a Local Assistance Center (LAC), as well as the removal and replacement of five road signs following last year's Valley Fire. The fire started in the Japatul area near Alpine and burned 20 residential structures as far south as Jamul. 

 The reimbursements represent the state's 75-percent share of the county's $28,870 in costs related to the work that are eligible under the California Disaster Assistance Act following California Governor Gavin Newsom's State of Emergency Proclamation on September 26, 2020.

August 20, 2021 (La Mesa) --  As part of the Livable La Mesa Age Friendly project, the City of La Mesa Community Relations and Veterans Commission will host a virtual and in-person forum on Wednesday, August 25 at 6:00 p.m.  to share information and discuss hate crimes in California. In partnership with the La Mesa Police Department,

La Mesa Conversations and the San Diego District Attorney Office, the event will cover what is considered a hate crime in California, how hate crimes differ from hate incidents and the current trends in San Diego County. Presenter Leonard Trinh is the Lead Hate Crime Prosecutor and a San Diego Deputy District Attorney. Questions, comments and suggestions are encouraged from residents as the City looks to increase awareness of hate crimes.

The event is being held in person at the La Mesa Adult Enrichment Center, 8450 La Mesa Blvd., La Mesa, CA, 91942 and will be streamed live on Facebook at “City of La Mesa – City Hall.”

East County News Service

Video by Richard Edwords, Alpine resident and owner of Camp’s Propane, who is driving a water tender truck in the Dixie Fire

August 20, 2021 (Sacramento) -- Today more than 12,460 firefighters continue to battle 14 large wildfires across the state, Cal Fire reports. Yesterday firefighters responded to 27 new wildfires, all of which were quickly contained. Since January 1, there have been 6,630 wildfires that have burned more than 1.4 million acres. 

Source: TSA

The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) is extending the face mask requirement for individuals across all transportation networks throughout the United States, including at airports, onboard commercial aircraft, on over-the-road buses, and on commuter bus and rail systems through January 18, 2022.

On January 31, TSA announced the initial face mask requirement with an expiration date of May 11. On April 30, TSA announced an extension to the face mask requirement through September 13, 2021 amid a surge in the Delta variant of COVID-19.

Source: U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA)

August 20, 2021 (San Diego) - Avanti Frozen Foods Pvt. Ltd, is voluntarily expanding a prior recall issued on June 25,2021 to include certain consignments of various sizes of frozen cooked, peeled, deveined, shrimp (with some packaged with cocktail sauce) sold in various unit sizes, because it has the potential to be contaminated with Salmonella. The frozen shrimp products were distributed nationwide from November 2020 to May 2021.