East County News Service

December 23, 2020 (San Diego) -- The ALS Association Greater San Diego Chapter has announced a year-end, matching donation challenge that’s part of a $25,000 donation from Rick Greenberg, a retired San Diego sports medicine physician.

By Miriam Raftery

December 22, 2020 (San Diego’s East County) – SDG&E has notified around 30,000 customers that their power could be shut off due to high fire danger.  The National Weather Service has issued a Red Flag Warning for parts of Southern California due to possible strong winds from 8 a.m. Wednesday through 12 p.m. Thursday, Christmas Eve. The communities at risk range from El Cajon east to Campo, north to Escondido and mountain areas such as Julian, and as far south as Potrero near the border.

The threat of losing electricity in mid-winter during Christmas week is disheartening for backcountry residents, many of whom have stocked up refrigerators and freezers for holiday feasts. ECM has received complaints from residents who report SDG&E refused to reimburse them for food spoiled during other recent outages. Coming at a time when many are without jobs or have businesses with little income due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the prospect of financial losses due to power outages or worse, a wildfire are particularly troubling.

By Miriam Raftery

December 22, 2020 (Sacramento) – Governor Gavin Newsom has appointed Secretary of State Alex Padilla to fill California’s U.S. Senate seat being vacated by Vice President-Elect Kamala Harris.

Padilla, who previously served as a Los Angeles City Councilman and State Senator, is a national leader in the fight to expand voting rights, will become the first Latino to represent California in the United States Senate and the first Southern Californian in nearly three decades.

“The son of Mexican immigrants —  a cook and house cleaner — Alex Padilla worked his way from humble beginnings to the halls of MIT, the Los Angeles City Council and the State Senate, and has become a national defender of voting rights as California’s Secretary of State.” said Governor Newsom. “Through his tenacity, integrity, smarts and grit, California is gaining a tested fighter in their corner who will be a fierce ally in D.C., lifting up our state’s values and making sure we secure the critical resources to emerge stronger from this pandemic. He will be a Senator for all Californians.”

The action also gave Newsom the ability to fill the Secretary of State seat via appointment. Late today, he announced that Assemblymember Shirley Weber (D-San Diego), whose district includes much of East County, will be the new Secretary of State, the first black woman to hold the post.  Newsom bypassed San Diego Assemblywoman Lorena Gonzalez, who earlier had announced plans to run for the position in 2022.  Newsom will also be making an appointment to replace Attorney General Xavier Becerra, who was named by President-Elect Joe Biden to head up the federal Health and Human Services department, if the cabinet appointment is approved by the Senate.

By Chris Jennewein, Times of San Diego, a member of the San Diego Online News Association 

Photo:  Gov. Gavin Newsom. Courtesy of the governor’s office

December 22, 2020 (San Diego) - With ICU capacity essentially zero in Southern California, Gov. Gavin Newsom said Monday the regional stay-at-home order will almost certainly be extended beyond the current Dec. 28 end date.

Source:  goaztecs.com

Photo courtesy goaztecs.com

December 21, 2020 (San Diego) - The Aztec women’s basketball team (2-6, 0-2) lost to Cal Poly (4-2) 73-63 in their non-conference finale Monday afternoon inside Viejas Arena. The Aztecs rallied from a 12-point deficit to pull within two points with 2:28 remaining, but saw the Mustangs finish the game on a 9-1 run.

By Miriam Raftery

Image via KPBS, republished under Fair Use Doctrine

December 21, 2020  (San Diego) – It took a lawsuit under the California Public Records Act filed by KPBS, Voice of San Diego and the San Diego Union-Tribune to obtain data previously kept secret on the exact location of COVID-19 outbreaks, including names of businesses affected.

The data reveals many outbreaks at venues such as Walmart, Costco, Target, casinos and manufacturers/businesses. The most outbreaks, however, have been at senior living facilities/nursing homes(214 outbreaks) followed by restaurants and bars with 208 outbreaks from March through November.

The number of outbreaks doesn’t tell the whole story, however.

East County News Service

December 20, 2020 (Alpine) – Alpine real estate broker Jeff Campbell of San Diego Estates is celebrating his 22nd annual Gift Bag Drive, a holiday collection drive benefiting several local charities.

More than 25 businesses in Alpine, including banks, retail stores, insurance offices and coffee shops, have hosted collection bins where residents have donated nonperishable canned food items, personal hygiene items and unwrapped children’s toys beginning in mid-November, said Campbell. New this year has been a donation of several hundred jackets, shirts and hoodies from an El Centro-based embroidery company that closed its doors.

Campbell said the deadline for donations is Tuesday, Dec. 22.

By Miriam Raftery

December 20, 2020 (San Diego) – On Monday for about an hour after sundown, people around the world will get a rare glimpse of the “great conjunction” – the largest planets, Jupiter and Saturn, so close that the appear to be touching as one bright celestial body.  Many astronomers believe this is the same celestial phenomenon described in the Bible as the Star of Bethlehem that reportedly guided wise men to the manger where Jesus was born. The last time it appeared this brightly was more than 800 years ago, when it was viewed via telescope by Galileo.

The conjunction will peak on Monday, Dec. 21, the winter solstice, and will be best viewed for about 45 minutes to an hour after sunset. In the U.S., look to the southwest sky to see this rare occurrence with the naked eye or enhanced with binoculars or a telescope, ideally from an unobstructed area. 

For those who miss the sight on Monday night, NASA says the solar system’s two largest planets will appear nearly as close on the Dec. 20 and 22.

December 20, 2020 (San Diego) -- East County Roundup highlights top stories of interest to East County and San Diego's inland regions, published in other media.  This week's round-up stories include: 

LOCAL

• Ambulances turned away as emergency rooms overwhelmed (San Diego Union-Tribune)
• California wildlife officials reject proposal to put housing on San Diego ecological reserve (San Diego Union-Tribune)
• Tribal casinos tighten protocols, cancel some events, but remain open amid COVID-19 surge (MSN)
• Worsening pandemic is driving more San Diego County students back to online learning  (San Diego Union-Tribune)
• Surging COVID cases placing strain on area hospitals, staff (EC Californian)
• California National Guard sent troops to San Diego nursing homes (10 News)
• Supervisors OK Permit For Planned Charter High School In East County (Times of San Diego)
• Alpine driver wins NASCAR truck series championship (10 News)

STATE

• Some ICUs at California hospitals are completely full: ‘It is the worst we have seen’ (Los Angeles Times)
• Drivers over the age of 70 no longer have to set foot in the DMV(NBC San Diego)
• Facing a ‘a grim set of weeks,’ California opens COVID field hospitals across the state (Los Angeles Times)
• California economy still staggering from COVID-19 shutdowns. And things could worsen (Sacramento Bee)

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

By Miriam Raftery

December 19, 2020 (San Diego) – The  Fourth Annual Shane Harris Community Christmas Day Breakfast for foster youths will be held on Christmas Day, December 25, 2020 between 8:00 a.m. and 11 a.m.at the Jacobs Center 404 Euclid Ave. San Diego. The event is at capacity, with 800 families registered to attend.

Volunteers are needed, as well as donations to provide each family with toys and gifts for children of all ages and a gift-card to a local restaurant for a holiday breakfast.  

By Miriam Raftery

Photo, left:  Terra American Bistro, a farm to table eatery in San Diego just west of La Mesa, had moved outdoors but is now back to offering take-out taco Tuesdays and to-go Christmas dinners, among other offerings, as a result of the latest shutdown order.

December 19, 2020 (San Diego) – Beleaguered restaurant owners are once again ordered to shut down, after three justices on the Fourth District Court of Appeals on Friday issued a stay blocking an order issued Wednesday by Superior Court Judge Wohlfiel.  The Appeals Court, responding to an appeal filed by California’s Attorney General, found that Wohlfiel acted too broadly in expanding an order in a case filed by strip clubs to also include restaurants, which were not parties in the case.

The state argued that Wohlfiel’s order jeopardized the health of county residents by undermining public health orders aimed at curtailing spread of the disease at a time when the Southern California intensitve care units are full, with zero percent capacity.

Wohfiel has issued a temporary injunction prohibiting the state and county from enforcing COVID-19 shutdown orders at restaurants and strip clubs.  Many local restaurants swiftly responded by reopening for outdoor and in some cases, indoor dining.  But the reprieve proved short-lived; the Appeals Court action means that restaurants are once again ordered to shut down except for take-out and delivery services.

December 18, 2020  (San Diego’s East County) - East County Magazine's World Watch helps you be an informed citizen on important issues globally and nationally. As part of our commitment to reflect all voices and views, we include links to a variety of news sources representing a broad spectrum of political, religious, and social views. Top world and U.S. headlines include:

U.S.

• All 538 electors have voted, formalizing Biden's 306-232 win. Here's how the Electoral College works. (CBS)
• FDA authorizes first coronavirus vaccine in U.S., a rare moment of hope in pandemic  (Washington Post)
• ‘We want them infected’: Trump appointee demanded ‘herd immunity’ strategy, emails reveal (Politico)
• With 300,000 COVID-19 Deaths And Counting, The U.S. Faces Unfathomable Loss (NPR) 
• Santa takes a back seat to COVID vaccine, UPS, FedEx officials say (Reuters)
• Stealing to survive: More Americans are shoplifting food as aid runs out during the pandemic (Washington Post)
• Trump administration officials passed when Pfizer offered in late summer to sell the U.S. more vaccine doses. (New York Times)
• Report: White House security chief has leg amputated due to COVID (Atlanta Journal Constitution)
• Court Rejects Trump's Arctic Drilling Proposal in 'Huge Victory for Polar Bears and Our Climate' (EcoWatch)
• Supreme Court denies Trump allies’ bid to overturn Pennsylvania election results (Washington Post)

WORLD

• Coronavirus: China to vaccinate 50 million people for Lunar New Year (China Morning Post)
• Morocco joins other Arab nations agreeing to normalize Israel ties (Reuters)
• UK's Johnson says 'strong possibility' of no-deal split in EU trading ties  (Reuters)
• Iran executes dissident journalist Ruhollah Zam - Nour news (Reuters)
• Germany to enter hard lockdown as infections swell (Bloomberg)

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