By Miriam Raftery

June 21, 2016 (San Diego’s East County) – Cal Fire has issued an update at 11:32 a.m. advising the Border Fire is holding at 7500 acres, but still only 5% contained. Evacuation orders remain in place for Forest Gate, Star Ranch, Cowboy Ranch, Dog Patch and Canyon City.  The Red Cross has an evacuation shelter set up at Los Coches Creek Middle School at 9669 Dunbar Lane in El Cajon.

June 20, 2016 (Campo)--Campo's  Postmaster has posted the following message on Facebook for those whose mail service was disrupted there today: 

Mail Delivery: Campo/Lake Morena area had partial mail delivery today. Your carriers were pulled back due to the current hazards and for employee safety. There is a possibility the same situation will occur tomorrow. If you have any concerns or questions, please contact me at 619-478-5466 or message me. All mail is being held at the Campo Post Office. If anyone has meds they are expecting to be delivered please call so we can help get them to you. Thank you. Stay safe. Please share this. I am also a Campo resident, so I am watching this fire as well. ---Postmaster Cindy

East County News Service

June 20, 2016 (Ramona) --Supervisor Dianne Jacob  posted blisteringr remarks on her Facebook Page today, with the Border Fire raging out of control and forcing evacuations in multiple rural commnities: 

"The following is my statement in response to reports yesterday that United States Forest Service (USFS) air tankers were not utilizing the Ramona Air Attack Base, and instead were flying to San Bernardino in between drops on the Border Fire. The same Next Generation Air Tankers used by CAL FIRE were safely refilling at the Ramona Air Attack Base yesterday.

“The USFS and federal leaders are failing our region and unnecessarily putting lives and property at risk. The Board of Supervisors last summer called on the USFS and the federal government to land their Next Generation Air Tankers at the Ramona Air Attack Base in order to increase the frequency of drops on a wildfire. CAL FIRE has demonstrated that these types of planes can safely use the Ramona airport. Now we need the USFS to demonstrate that public safety is a higher priority than bureaucratic stubbornness. These planes can carry up to 3,000 gallons of retardant and increasing the frequency of drops gives us a better chance of knocking down dangerous wildfires,” Jacob concluded.

East County News Service

Photo:  American Diabetes Association’s Father of the Year honorees (left to right):  Tum Vongsawad, Jeffrey Martin, Tracy Sundlun.

June 20, 2016 (Santee) – Santee resident Tracy Sundlun, senior VP of global events, Competitor Group, was recently honored by the American Diabetes Association’s (ADA) San Diego office with a 2016 Father of the Year award.

By Miriam Raftery

Photo courtesy of Cal Fire via Twitter

June 20, 2016 (Potrero) -- The Border Fire has charred 1,900 acres and is now 5% contained as of 9 a.m. according to Cal Fire.  The community of Potrero remains under evacuation order. Highway 94 remains closed through the area.

Scanner traffic indicates a second fire has been reported in Mexico close to the Border Fire; we are awaiting confirmation and details.

Mt. Empire School District has announced all schools districtwide will be closed today due to the fire. Three people have been injured including a firefighter. Several outbuildings have burned, per Cal Fire. Hundreds of firefighters from across Southern California are battling the blaze in steep, rugged terrain that has burned in many years and is dry from years of drought during triple-digit heat.

The emergency shelter for today is at Campo Elementary School, 1654 Buckman Springs Road.

Update 10 p.m. The fire is 5% contained and a firefighter has been injured, CalFire reports. An emergency overnight shelter is open at Campo Elementary School, 1654 Buckman Springs Rd.in Campo.

By Miriam Raftery

Photo, left: air tanker battles the Border Fire, by Leon Thompson

June 19, 2016 (Potrero) --As of 7:20 tonight, the fast-growing Border Fire has charred 1,500 acres and led to mandatory evacuation orders for the entire town of Potrero, per Cal Fire.  Structures are threatened. 

Residents fleeing the Border Fire can now go to these evacuation centers:  Campo Community Center ( Cool Zone )  at 300 Sheridan Rd, Campo Elementary School ( Red Cross Shelter ) at 1654 Buckman Springs Rd, or the Dulzura Community Center at 1136 Community Building Road off State Route 94 (note corrected address). This information has been verified through Red Cross and Campo Community Center employees.  The Sheriff reports a third evacuation center opened at Campo Elementary School, 1654 Buckman Springs Road, Campo.

If you need emergency assistance in evacuation, call 9-1-1. If you need additional information, check the San Diego County Emergency website at www.sdcountyemergency.com or call the San Diego Sheriff's Department non-emergency line at 858-565-5200.  For help with large animal evacuations due to , call the San Diego County Animal Services at (619) 236-2341.  Follow additoinal updates on Twitter at #BorderFire.

Road closures in effect on Highway 94 are changing rapidly as the fire moves.  Get the latest traffic and road closure information at https://cad.chp.ca.gov/Traffic.aspx.  Here are closures as of now:

East County News Service

June 18, 2016 (El Cajon) -- During Tuesday’s City Council meeting, El Cajon Police Chief Jeff Davis addressed the City Council to make them aware of the police department’s new partnership with other East County agencies for a homeless outreach program. The actions come after the County Grand Jury issued a report recommending East County cities take actions to improve help for the homeless, as ECM reported earlier this week.

By Miriam Raftery

June 17, 2016 (San Diego's East County) -- A reader e-mailed us to point out that many of the Cool Zones listed on the County's map are not open Sundays. So we did some research to find a few more options on some cool places to go, such as shopping malls, bowling alleys, ice rinks, movie theatres, casinos, aquatic centers, libraries and more. 

We also have some tips on how to beat the heat at home and keep your cool. Plan ahead, since SDG&E says Flex Alerts (temporary power outages) are possible during the extreme heat starting Sunday. 

Check out our list below of cool places  that are open Sunday and beyond:

East County News Service

June 16, 2016 (Dulzura) – A 36-year-old woman from Dulzura died at the scene of a rollover accident yesterday on State Route 94 East of Otay Lakes Road in Jamul. She was not wearing a seatbelt.

By Yvette Urrea Moe, County of San Diego Communications Office

June 15, 2016 (San Diego’s East County) -- San Diego County Fire can now dispatch up to four new quick-attack vehicles to assist CAL FIRE operations when a brush fire breaks out in a hard-to-reach part of the backcountry.

East County News Service

June 14, 2016 (San Diego's East County) -- Very hot and potentially dangerous conditions are forecast for Sunday through the early part of next week as a strong ridge of high pressure develops over the Southwest. Monday is expected to be the hottest day, the National Weather Service in San Diego predicts.

Highs near the coast will be in the upper 80s to low 90s, in the 90s in the mountains, around 100 to 110 in the valleys and high desert, and over 115 in the low deserts.

We're hosting an emergency benefit "Bohemian Bash" this Saturday, June 18 from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. at our editor's home on Mt. Helix.  Come celebrate our communities' creative roots and savor summer solstice revelry at the hottest party of the season!

Last week, vandals and thieves knocked our radio show and KNSJ's station off the air, doing thousands of dollars of damage at the transmitter site on Mt. Laguna. Come help us rebuild and assure that our communities' voices will be back on the air!

Festivities at this free-spirited gathering with artists, authors, musicians, and thinkers will support nonprofit media in the public interest, local news reporting, and coverage of arts, music and culture. Hear live musical entertainment, savor delicious food and libations, enjoy comedy with Second Chances for Grace, hear poetry readings, watch San Diego Asian Artists Ensemble performers, and win fabulous prizes!   Share your ideas, mingle with our Bohemian crowd, and meet the media. 

Proceeds benefit KNSJ "people powered radio" and East County Magazine, both nonprofit organizations.

RSVP today for early bird rates! ($19, or 2 for $34 in advance, $22 at the door.)   Call 619-698-7617 or email editor@eastcountymagazine.org to RSVP. You can prepay online at http://www.eastcountymagazine.org/donate, check"East County Magazine" off our publisher's list of options and write"Bohemian Bash" on the designation line to secure your reservation.

Click "read more" for more delicious details:

East County News Service

June 12, 2016 (La Mesa) - You're invited to celebrate the grand opening of The Lookout at Legacy Park in La Mesa on June 29th at 6:00 p.m. in honor of La Mesa's centennial.

East County News Service

View the video: https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=10201644595153046&id=1724097629

June 12, 2016 (Lakeside) - Billy Ortiz has created a beautiful and moving video of El Monte Valley in Lakeside, which is threatened by a proposed sand mining project.