East County News Service

January 30, 2019 (Spring Valley) - The Saps at Sea, the San Diego chapter of the Sons of the Desert, the official Laurel and Hardy fan club, will meet on Saturday, February 23 at 6:30 p.m. at Williams Hall at Trinity Church in Spring Valley.

January 17, 2019 (Jamul) – EnviroMine, the developer of a proposed sand mine at the Cottonwood Golf Course site in Rancho San Diego, is slated to make a presentation to the Jamul-Dulzura Community Plannning Group. The meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, February 12^th at 7:30 p.m. at Jamul Primary School's Auditorium at 14567 Lyons Valley Road (at the corner of Lyons Valley Road and Skyline Truck Trail).

Note: This location has changed from the usual venue to accommodate a large anticipated crowd.

By Gig Conaughton, County of San Diego Communications Office

January 10, 2019 (San Diego) - Weather forecasts are predicting more rain this weekend and next week, which means this may be a good time to pick up some free sandbags from the County and CAL FIRE to protect your home and property if you need them.

By Miriam Raftery

Photos: File photos of prior flooding at Highway 94 near Jamul Estates, where ECM has documented flooding complaints since at least 2011.

January 5, 2019 (Jamul) — A deluge on December 6th caused a creek along State Route 94  to overflow between the Jamul Casino and the entrance to Jamul Estates, causing flooding that resulted in cars trapped in rushing water and long delays for other motorists.

East County News Service

January 4, 2019 (San Diego's East County) -- A new storm is heading to our region.  The National Weather Service predicts rain and snow down to 5,000 feet elevation late Saturday and Sunday.

By Miriam Raftery

Photo: Mt. Laguna, courtesy SDG&E camera via HP Wren

January 1, 2019 (San Diego’s East County) – Two and a half inches of snow have fallen in Julian on New Year’s Eve, with an inch reported atop Mt. Laguna and Mt. Palomar.  A light dusting of snow fell at lower elevations including Cuyamaca in East County’s mountains.

East County News Service

Photo: Cottonwood Golf, site of proposed sand mine

December 21, 2018 (Rancho San Diego) - In a significant show of early community strength, the Stop Cottonwood Sand Mine Committee this week submitted over 2,100 petition signatures to the County of San Diego from area residents opposed to the plan for a 10-12 year sand mining operation on the current site of the Cottonwood Golf Course in Rancho San Diego. 

East County News Service

December 19, 2018 (Spring Valley) – A man was shot in the head last night around 10:30 p.m. but fortunately is expected to survive.  Shots were fired from a white four-door vehicle near Jamacha Blvd. and Grand Avenue in the La Presa area of Spring Valley.

Fortunately, the victim is expected to survive, Patch.com reports, citing Lt. Karla Menzies.

East County News Service

December 18, 2018 (Spring Valley) – A clerk at the Arco convenience store in the 9000 block of Campo Road assaulted a deputy who responded to a call reporting that the clerk was threatening customers with a knife. The caller reported that the clerk appeared to be under the influence of a drug and chased a customer with a knife.

County denies request for health impacts of turbines, even as more are proposed

By Miriam Raftery

Photo: New proposed turbines would be much taller and produce more energy than these older Kumeyaay Wind turbines, also broadening the areas that could be impacted by noise, vibrations, and electromagnetic interefence with devices such as cell phones

December 6, 2018 (Campo) –Tonight, the Bureau of Indian Affairs will hold a scoping meeting on a notice to prepare n environmental impact statement for a proposal to build 60 wind turbines up to 586 feet tall (taller than the highest skyscraper in San Diego) on the Campo Indian reservation. The meeting will be held at 6 p.m. at the Campo Tribal Hall, 36190 Church Road (BIA 10) at highway 94 in Campo.  Written comments can also be submitted by December 21^st. Find details at www.CampoWind.com.

The new Campo Wind project is proposed for most Campo reservation ridgelines from north of I-8 to the U.S./Mexico border, each 4 megawatts.  Neighbors and the Boulevard Planning Group have raised concerns over the large turbines including noise, sleep disruption, health impacts and lost property values.   View flyer.

Minutes of the Boulevard Planning Group meeting from November 1, 2018 reveal numerous residents’ complaints about problems reportedly associated with similarly large-scale wind turbines recently installed at the Tule Wind project in McCain  Valley as well as turbines at the Kumeyaay Wind facility in Campo. Those complaints range from noise and vibrations to interference with cell phone service, a vital concern in an area prone to wildfires where communication is critical.

By Ana Nita

December 4, 2018 (Blossom Valley) -- “When I came down to feed in the morning, I heard this horse, Gretchen, banging on the door and she never does that,” said Marilyn Gramse of El Cajon. She found Gretchen, one of three horses she is boarding at her ranch, tied up inside her stall. “I walked over there and went, oh, my God, she had this rope tied around her right rear leg pulling up and the rope coming around her neck and coming back around by her foot and her tail was up, tied, and attached to one of the bars.”