Update July 28, 2018:  The fire is now 365 acres and 40% contained, Cal Fire reports. 

Update 9 p.m.:  All evacuation warnings have been lifted for the area affected by the Pasqual Fire. All remaining evacuation orders are still in effect. Evacuees needing Red Cross assistance, call 858-309-1200, County Emergency Services reports.

Update 8 p.m.:  Forward spread of the fire has been stopped.  Repopulation plans for evacuees are now being discussed, per Cal Fire.

By Miriam Raftery

July 27, 2018 (San Pasqual) – The #SanPasqualFire has burned 240 aces in San Pasqual Valley and western Ramona and is currently 5% contained, according to Cal Fire’s incident page: http://www.fire.ca.gov/current_incidents/incidentdetails/Index/2177 /.  The fire is burning in a southeast direction, prompting evacuations. Evacuees are advised to go to Ramona High School.

The blaze which started this afternoon along San Pasqual Valley Road has shut down highway 78 from Bandy Canyon to Haverford. Evacuations are ordered on Rangeland Rd, Oak Grove Rd, Highland Hills Dr, Horizon View, Rio Maggiore Dr, Cinque Terre Dr, Corniglia Dr, Via Cuesta, and Via Vista Grande.

By Miraim Raftery

July 27, 2018 (Jamul) – California Highway Patrol seeks public help to find the driver of a red or burgundy small SUV who reportedly backed up and killed a woman in her 30s who had gotten out of the vehicle. She was walking west on the shoulder of highway 94 near Steel Canyon Road in Spring Valley early Friday morning when the driver struck and seriously injured her. He reportedly remained at the scene for several minutes, and then fled.

The driver is described as an African-American man in his mid-30s, 5 ft. 7 to 5 ft. 8 inches tall, weighing 275-300 pounds with short hair and no visible tattoos. He was wearing light-colored clothes and a sweatband around his head.

By Miriam Raftery

Photos:  Brush fire sparked by exploding wind turbine in Campo  in 2013.  Proposed new turbines would dwarf these older, smaller models.

July 26, 2018 (Boulevard) – The Boulevard Community Planning Group has sent a 26-page letter to the County opposing Terra-Gen’s proposed Torrey Wind project.  If approved, the project would erect 30 wind turbines each 586 feet tall—that’s 90 feet higher than the tallest skyscraper in downtown San Diego—on 2,,000 acres of absentee-owned ranchland formerly known as Big Country Ranch property at the north end of Ribbonwood Road.

The proposed major use permit for Torrey Wind (formerly known as San Diego Wind) will be on the Boulevard Planning Group’s agenda at its August 2^nd meeting at 7 p.m.  (View agenda)

East County News Service

July 26, 2018 (Ramona) - Ramona Ranch Vineyard and Winery will host a free water-wise landscaping workshop August 25th from 5 to 7 p.m. The winery is located at 23578 Highway 67 in Ramona, CA 920650.

Learn how to create a less thirsty and environmentally friendly landscape! Join Solana Center for this presentation where you will learn the basics of water wise gardening. Using trial-tested advice and interactive demonstrations, our expert educator will teach you all you need to know to get started with a garden that fits San Diego's semi-arid climate.

By Miriam Raftery

Photo: San Bernadino National Forest Service

July 26, 2018 (San Bernadino) – Brandon McGlover of Temecula has been arrested and charged with intentionally setting multiple fires in Riverside County including the raging #CranstonFire, Cal Fire reports. The wildland forest fire burning in San Bernadino National Forest has scorched over7,500 acres and is 5% contained, according to Cal Fire’s incident page.

Thousands have been forced to flee, with over 2,000 homes threatened and mandatory evacuations ordered for the entire towns of Idyllwild, Pine Cove, Fern Valley, Apple Canyon Garner Valley and other communities.

July 26, 2018 (San Diego's East County) -- East County Roundup highlights top stories of interest to East County and San Diego’s inland regions, published in other media. This week’s top “Roundup” headlines include:

LOCAL

• San Diego median home price hits its highest ever: $575K (San Diego Union-Tribune)
• Lemon Grove nixes tax measures, faces growing shortfall (San Diego Union-Tribune)
• Cohn restaurants is building a restaurant and brewery in La Mesa (San Diego Union-Tribune)
• County failed repeatedly to stop sexual abuse of foster children, lawsuit alleges (San Diego Union-Tribune)
• How will San Diego fend off Coastal Commission, legal challenges to Airbnb rules?  (San Diego Union-Tribune)
• DA Drops Felony Charges Against Lawyer Who Defended Marijuana Businessman  (Voice of San Diego)
• Sacramento Report: We Know What Gonzalez’s Next Big Move Might Be  (Voice of San Diego)
• Community Energy Programs Are Accountable in Ways Investor-Owned Utilities Are Not  (Voice of San Diego)

STATE

• Yosemite National Park visitors flee as Ferguson fire grows ‘quickly’ (San Francisco Chronicle)
• California funds new dams to protect against future drought (Cal Matters)
• Traces of the Fukushima Meltdown Can Be Found in California Wines (Popular Mechanics)

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

By Greg Dunne

Recipes:  mango and papaya salsa with optional shrimp,  and tropical fruit salad with honey-line toss (photo, left)

July 26, 2018 (Alpine) -- The mango and papaya are tropical delights! The fragrant sweet juiciness when slicing into and eating a mango is like no other fruit! The “King of Fruits” is rightfully given that name. Fresh mangos sliced and chilled in the refrigerator are like a sugar rush when eating them – at least it’s not a refined sugar, but a natural sugar from the mango.

By Miriam Raftery

Photo of crash site, courtesy ECM news patner 10 news

July 25, 2018 (Julian) – Three people who died in a May 10^th crash of a flight school-owned plane at Volcan Mountain in Julian which sparked a brush fire have been identified by the County Medical Examiner’s office.

 The victims were Rongwei Zhang, 23, Qinyang Zuo, 28, and Zehe Zhang, 24.  All died of blunt force injuries and multiple thermal injuries; all deaths were ruled accidental and toxicology reports found no contributing factors.

July 25, 2018 (San Diego's East County) -- Our Health and Science Highlights provide cutting edge news that could impact your health and our future.

HEALTH

• Reports Suggest Children Throughout China Likely Injected With Faulty Vaccines (NPR)
• Chinese Company's Flawed Vaccines Draw Anger And A Criminal Inquiry  (NPR)
• Marines Who Fired Rocket Launchers Now Worry About Their Brains (NPR)
• Pepperidge Farm recalls Goldfish crackers amid salmonella scare (NPR)
• Ticks And Lyme Disease: 3 Factors Determine Risk Of Infection  (NPR)
• Friends with Benefits: The latest research (Jewish World Review)
• Doctors Worry as Cancer Study Reveals Dark Side of Complementary Medicine (Inverse)

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

• Adobe is using machine learning to make it easier to spot Photoshopped images (The Verge)
• Physicists Go Small: Let's Put A Particle Accelerator On A Chip (NPR)
• Migrating Arctic Geese Are Confused, Exhausted By Rising Temperatures (NPR)

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

East County News Service

Update 7:20 p.m. -- Power is restored at the Smart and Final, but SDG&E's website indicates power is still out to over 1,200 customers.

July 24, 2018 (Santee) -- A power outage has occurred in the  Santee/Carlton Oaks area, affecting 2,359 customers. SDG&E is assesesing the cause but estimates restoration at 9:30 p.m.

ECM reporter Rebecca Jefferis-Williamson was shopping at the Santee Smart and Final when the lights went out.  "The big lottery Mega-millions is tonight and I can't buy my ticket," she quipped.

She was also unable to  buy groceries for dinner, since the store is accepting only cash during the blackout fur customers already inside the store.  Customers outside are being turned away.

East County News Service

July 24, 2018 (San Diego) -- Congresswoman Susan Davis (D-CA-53) and Congressman Brett Guthrie (R-KY-02), ranking member and chairman, respectively, of the House Education and the Workforce Committee’s Higher Education and Workforce Development Subcommittee and co-chairs of the Congressional Apprenticeship Caucus, today introduced the Accessing Professional Partnerships and Resources to Enable Necessary Training and Improve Career Education (APPRENTICE) Act.

By Gig Conaughton, County of San Diego Communications Office

July 23, 2018 (Santee) -West Nile virus made its first appearance of the summer in San Diego County this week when a batch of mosquitoes caught in routine trapping in Santee tested positive for the virus.

County officials reminded people they should follow the County’s “Prevent, Protect, Report” guidelines to protect themselves from all mosquitoes and the various diseases they can transmit, from West Nile virus to tropical diseases such as chikungunya, dengue and Zika.

By Briana Ghaffery

July 18, 2018 (El Cajon)— Sheriff’s Captain Marco Garmo became the victim of a hate crime at a young age, along with his father, who was savagely beaten over a mistaken ethnic identity during a robbery at the Garmo family’s convenience store in El Cajon.

At a hate crimes forum in El Cajon on July 17th, sponsored by the San Diego Regional Hate Crimes Coalition and El Cajon Police Department, Captain Garmo told East County Magazine that he hopes to encourage the public to report hate crimes.

“The reason why we’re having this out here in the city of El Cajon is that it has the largest influx of refugees and immigrants from the Middle East, and we feel like they need to be educated as to hate crimes,” he said, adding that law enforcement believes hate crimes are under-reported by those who are victimized.

By Miriam Raftery

July 23, 2018 (La Mesa) – A family of four and the driver who struck their vehicle Sunday were all transported to hospitals, Patch.com. reports.

By Ricken Patel, Avaaz

July 21, 2018 (San Diego) - It’s now shockingly clear that Donald Trump is Putin’s poodle.

But we need the world to understand why, before it’s too late…

Trump's businesses went bankrupt so many times in the 1990s that many legitimate banks wouldn’t lend to him anymore. He turned to Russian oligarchs -- Putin’s ruling clique -- to bankroll his projects, and launder their dirty money for them. This was, and continues to be, a huge part of his business. He’s a Russian money launderer.