May 24, 2012 (Julian) – The “Banner Fire” which started at 2:14 p.m.  has burned four to five acres thus far east of Julian near the Banner Grade. 

“The fire is located in an area known as Cigarette Canyon close to the location of last year’s `Great Fire,’” Battalion Chief Nick Schuler say, adding that the blaze is spreading at a “moderate rate.”

Webcam image from Volcan Mountain:  http://hpwren.ucsd.edu/cameras/L/sy-av8185-1_3.jpg

Update:  Mr. McKenzie has been found safely, ECM has been informed by family.

May 22, 2012 (La Mesa) -- La Mesa Police seek public help to find A.McKenzie, last seen in a silver 2011 Honda Insight (license CA 6SCK316) heading west on I-8 at 2 a.m. on May 21 near Pine Valley.  His daughter found what appeared to be a suicide note at 12:30 a.m. yesterday.

May 21, 2012 (Julian) – Julie Faith Fortier, 39, of Irvine, lost her life in a motorcycle accident that occurred May 19 on State Route 78 at the Banner Grade near Julian.

According to the Medical Examiner’s office, Fortier was a passenger on a motorcycle driven by her husband when he lost control on a curve at a high rate of speed. 

May 21, 2012 (San Diego) – Five San Diego County transmission projects are among 30 identified transmission projects needed to maintain grid reliability that were approved by the California Independent System Operator Corporation Board of Governors in the 2011/2012 Transmission Plan. The local projects are:

 May 21, 2012 (Boulevard) – A medical helicopter is en route to an accident on I-8 east near State Route 94 in the Boulevard/McCain Valley area.  Three victims are trapped with extrication in process, Incident Page Network Reports.  A Sig Alert has been ordered, according to the CHP website.

A podcast tape is now available to listen, if you missed the show:  http://www.windwiseradio.org/2012/05/fighting-for-feathered-friends-sun-52012-7pm-et/ 

Staff recommends denial of Tule Wind turbines on County lands

By Miriam Raftery

May 21, 2012 (San Diego) – A decision on two controversial wind issues have been postponed by San Diego County’s Planning Commission. 

A proposed wind ordinance as well as changes to the Boulevard community plan have been delayed until July 20.  In addition, planners heard public comments on the Tule Wind project proposed for McCain Valley, but postponed a decision until June 8, due to the absence of two planners.

Without changes to the wind ordinance, any approval of industrial-scale turbines would violate county height requirements in rural areas. Thus approval of Tule Wind turbines on County lands June 9 appears unlikely.

By Miriam Raftery

May 19, 2012 (San Diego’s East County) – A federal judge has ruled that section 1021 of the National Defense Authorization Act of 2012 is unconstitutional, violating the First Amendment of the Constitution by having a chilling effect on free speech.

The clause allowed the U.S. military to arrest and indefinitely detain anyone—even U.S. citizens—for providing substantial support to terrorist groups.  Civil libertarians opposed the clause and journalists filed suit, arguing that the definition was so vague that reporters and political activists feared they could be indefinitely detained.

What's on the horizon this weekend? Find out in Gary Kelley's video report:

Update May 18, 2012 (8 a.m.) -- The fire is now 60% contained at 150 acres on the U.S. side, with full contained expected by tonight and full control by tomorrow night, according to Cal-Fire's Roxanne Provaznik. 

Currently there are 20 engines, 8 fire crews, 4 water tenders, 1 air tanker, and 4 helicopters assigned to fight the fire.

“The radiation caused by the failure of the spent fuel pools in the event of another earthquake could reach the West Coast within days. That absolutely makes the safe containment and protection of this spent fuel a security issue for the United States.”—Senator Ron Wyden

May 17, 2012 (San Diego)—U.S. Senator Ron Wyden recently visited Japan and issued a warning that the U.S. faces a national security risk from spent fuel pools at Fukushima’s Unit 4. View an MSNBC interview with Wyden.

If another quake strikes the already exposed spent fuel--an event seismic experts say is likely to occur this year--experts including a Nobel Prize winner and a former U.N. ambassador now say that a cataclysmic disaster could occur threatening  lives across the globe.

May 14, 2012 (La Jolla) -- A coalition of environmentalists, tribes, and residents opposed to the Ocotillo Express industrial wind facility will hold a news conference Tuesday, May 15 at 2 p.m.