May 5, 2011 (Harbison Canyon) – “A kitten that looks very much like the pic I have attached (our 8 week old kitten) was picked up by a hawk and dropped in the road on Harbison Canyon right down the street from Shadow Hills Elementary,” Kelly Vitek said in a post on the Blossom Valley Network community forum. According to her report, the incident was witnessed by three people, including Vitek’s husband.

“He said the kitten was freaked out but was alive and moving,” she added.

May 4, 2011 (Campo) – The driver of a Harley Davidson motorcycle who died in a crash on Highway 94 in Campo on May 1, 2011 at 5:58 p.m. has been identified as Pauline Elaine Walker, 57. She was temporarily living and working in Boulevard, though her permanent residence was in Davenport, Washington.

May 3, 2011 (San Diego) - A SIG Alert is in effect on I-15 north of Carroll Canyon Road, where a multi-vehicle accident involving a semi-truck and at least three cars occurred this morning.  The truck, which was carrying a load of water, lost its rear axles.  Lanes are closed while awaiting heavy equipment to remove the semi-truck, according to CHP and San Diego SIG Alerts.

May 2, 2011 (East County) -- During the week of April 23, 2011, all personnel from Heartland Fire and Rescue serving the cities of El Cajon, La Mesa, and Lemon Grove attended vehicle extrication training. C&D Towing made the training possible by providing twenty vehicles to practice the vehicle extrication and rescue techniques. The training was especially valuable because newer cars continue to change.

May 1, 2011 (San Diego's East County)
Updated 11 p.m.  -- Osama bin Laden was killed today in a special operation led by U.S. forces, President Barack Obama revealed tonight in a broadcast to the nation.  

"Today at my direction," President Obama said, "A small team of Americans carried out this operation...After a firefight they killed Obama bin Laden and took custody of his body."  The leader of Al Qaeda and mastermind behind the 911 attacks was hiding  in a compound deep within Pakistan, U.S. intelligence learned last August.  After months of confirming intelligence and planning the operation, the strike today went smoothly with no U.S. casualties, he confirmed.

Owners of El Cajon facility may apply to reopen if costly equipment changes are made to eliminate smoke, odors

By Miriam Raftery

April 28, 2011 (San Diego) – By a unanimous 4-0 vote, San Diego County’s Air Pollution Control District Board ordered an immediate shut down of  a Neptune Society crematorium  on Lake Jennings Road in El Cajon  to abate a public nuisance. 

“This was clearly a violation of public policy and a public health hazard,” Michael Drake, public affairs officer for the County’s land use and environmental group, told East County Magazine after the hearing.  He praised the Board for “doing the right thing” and expressed hope that the owners will upgrade or replace antiquated equipment so that they can “comply and come back into business.”

April 28, 2011 (Buckman Springs) – A driver is trapped in a vehicle following a rollover accident on I-8 east at Buckman Springs near the Border Patrol checkpoint as of 12:48 p.m. , CHP and IPN report. The roadway is closed due to debris and am ambulance is en route, along with Border Patrol.

Neighbor hospitalized with chest pains

By Miriam Raftery

Photos by Ron Logan

April 27, 2011 (Poway) – A fire in the 13600 block of Sycamore Tree Lane this afternoon forced evacuation of 16 homes and has displaced a family with two children.
 

“The fire gutted the home and the fire department needed to cut a hole in the roof to control the fire,” photographer Ron Logan, who was at the scene, informed East County Magazine.

 
April 27, 2011 (Lakeside) – A five-year-old girl who slipped and fell into the pool at Barona Resort in Lakeside this afternoon has been transported to Children’s Hospital, East County Magazine has learned.

“A guest jumped in, pulled her out and gave her CPR,” a source at Barona who asked not to be named confirmed. “Our EMTs showed up and she was fine, breathing on her own.”

Nuclear Regulatory Hearing April 28 on San Onofre safety

By Helen Villines
Editor Miriam Raftery also contributed to this report

“What if you had just 15 minutes to evacuate, looking around your apartment or house, trying to quickly decide what you will take, how overwhelmed would you be – knowing you couldn’t return for ten thousand years?” he asks.

April 25, 2011 (San Diego’s East County) – A fatality accident in La Mesa involving a pedestrian struck by a car has shut down Broadmoor Street between Jericho and Kathy, La Mesa Police has informed East County Magazine. In addition, Calavo Drive at Challenge Blvd. in Spring Valley is shut down due to a tree fallen across the road, the CHP website reports.

Also use caution on Highway 67, where a signal light has been reported out at Willows Road.

In addition, readers who may have spotted smoke late this morning needn't be concerned. A fire in trees and brush in National City put up a large header of smoke, Incident Page Network reports. However Heartland Fire dispatch assures us that the blaze was swiftly doused. While structures were briefly threatened, only some fencing was damaged.

April 23, 2011 (Santee) – Sheriff’s Bomb and Arson squad responded to a call of a possible pipe squad in a gutter in the 9500 block of Cuyamaca Street in Santee Thursday evening. The device, a foot-long, three-inch-wide PVC pipe, was capped at both ends which appeared to be glued shut. No wires were visible.

While the TEA Party calls for tax cuts and slashing services, a new taxpayers' movement is outraged by some of America's biggest corporations paying zero taxes while reaping huge profits.  Now a national movement calling for corporations to pay a "fair share" has reached the streets in San Diego.

April 21, 2011 (El Cajon) – Michael Hendricks , 26, died Tuesday from a severe allergic reaction to a bee sting. He had been hospitalized and was in a coma after being stung a week earlier in Alpine. A pastor at East Valley Christian Fellowship, Hendricks is remembered by parishioners for his leadership in teen and youth programs.