SMALL BRUSH FIRE CONTAINED IN SAN MARCOS
Printer-friendly version (Capt. Nick Schuler, Cal-Fire) April 19, 2009 (San Marcos)—A small brush fire was contained shortly after it broke out around 1 p.m. near the 3000 block of North Twin Oaks Valley Road, CAL FIRE reports. “Due to the quick response of firefighters, no structures were damaged of destroyed,” said CAL-FIRE Captain Nick Schuler. “The fire was burning in light flashy fuels and was stopped at 1.5 acres.” Crews remained on scene for several hours ensuring all hot spots were out. “This is an important reminder for people to evaluate defensible space around their homes,” Schuler added. “This was a cooperative effort between CAL FIRE, San Marcos Fire Department, and the San Diego County Sheriff’s Department.” East County Magazine did not activate our regional wildfire alert because the fire was contained immediately with no threats to structures or lives. Printer-friendly version
CONGRESSMAN FILNER JOINS LOCAL OFFICIALS TO OPPOSE RELEASE OF CONVICTED SEX OFFENDER TO OTAY MESA
Printer-friendly version ( Manuel Paul, San Ysidro School District Superintendent; Clarissa Falcon, District Director for State Senator Denise Ducheny; Rachel Solorzano, Congressman Bob Filner, Representative from Assembly Member Mary Salas’ Office; Yolanda Hernandez, San Ysidro School Board Member; Hector Espinoza, San Ysidro High School Principal; Jesus Gandara, Sweetwater School District Superintendent; Ralph Dimarucut from Assembly Member Mary Salas’ Office; Anastasia Farbur from Senator Denise Ducheny’s Office; Raquel Marquez, San Ysidro School Board Member; and Jason Wells, San Ysidro Chamber of Commerce. ) April 16, 2009 (Otay Mesa)–Congressman Bob Filner joined with local school and public officials at the San Ysidro Child Development Center today to publicly oppose the release of convicted sex offender, Matthew Hedge, in Otay Mesa. A judge recently approved a plan to release Hedge in Otay Mesa within the next month, and many are concerned that this is too close to schools and neighborhoods with small children. Printer-friendly version
HOT TOPIC: VIEJAS HOSTS WILDFIRE FIGHTING DRILLS FOR 60 FIRE PROTECTION AGENCIES
Printer-friendly versionBy Miriam Raftery April 23, 2009 (Viejas Indian Reservation)—Preparing for fire season, fire engine crews from more than 60 fire protection agencies donned full safety gear and participated in structure protection drills, wildland hose lays, pumping evolutions and other exercises. Aerial resources, including helicopters, practiced coordinated fire attacks with ground crews under simulated fire conditions. The eighth annual event was hosted this year at the Viejas Indian Reservation east of Alpine on April 18, 21, 22 and 23. San Diego County is home to 17 Native American tribes and 18 reservations cover over 124,000 acres—more than any other County in the U.S. “ These lands are primarily in the back country, where the wildfire threat is greatest,” Don Butz, Chief of the Viejas Tribal Fire Department, told East County Magazine. “That’s why it is so important to include the county’s tribes, especially the tribal fire departments, in the planning and training stages of fire prevention and management. And that is why Viejas is proud to host this year’s countywide fire preparedness drills.” Few San Diegans realize that firefighting is a long-standing tradition among our region’s Indian tribal members. “Before tribal gaming, that’s how many tribal members supported themselves,” Butz recalled. “On this reservation, one half to one-third of the people have family members who are or were tribal firefighters.” Nine of the 17 tribal agencies in our county have firefighters—and they’ve fought fires as far away as Mendocino and Yosemite. Cities rely on tax revenues to fund firefighting, but recent budget cuts have hampered public safety efforts. So local tribes are stepping up to the plate and pinch hitting. Several local tribes have pooled enterprise revenues from Indian gaming, helping to buy helicopters, firefighting apparatus and engine companies for neighboring communities including El Cajon and the San Miguel Fire District, which protects unincorporated areas of the County and more. Tribes have even helped to build fire stations and wells to protect surrounding towns. “We’re talking millions of dollars,” Butz observed, adding that tribal firefighters can provide protection from more than wildfires in today’s era of terrorist threats. “Tribes are stepping out of being just wildland firefighters.” More than half of the calls that Viejas Fire Department responds to are off the reservation. The tribe provides ambulance services as well as fire protection through mutual aid agreements with neighboring Alpine. In addition, Viejas has an automatic aid agreement with 11 other Heartland agencies including coastal cities of Coronado, Imperial Beach and National City, the San Miguel Fire Department (which covers unincorporated areas of the County), Lemon Grove, La Mesa, El Cajon, and the Barona Reservation. Viejas Fire Department has wildland and all risk divisions including a truck company, engine company, two brush engines, two ambulances, and 25 fire suppression personnel—all funded by tribal governments. Tribal enterprise funds include not only Indian gaming revenues, but also money from other business ventures owned by local tribes—including resorts, hotels, a golf course, and the Viejas Outlet Center shopping mall. “By federal law, gaming revenues can only be used for five purposes,” Robert Scheid, public relations director for the Viejas Band of Kumeyaay Indians, noted. “Four of those reasons are for the health and well-being of tribal members, such as education and infrastructure. “ The fifth allowable use is The fifth is contributions to charitable and civic organizations outside reservations to benefit local communities and offset any potential negative impacts from tribal gaming. Tribal efforts to provide fire protection to neighboring areas have proven to be “a fantastic community resource,” Scheid concluded. Battalion Chief Brad Rushing from the Alpine Fire Department addressed more than 250 participants at Wednesday’s wildland fire training event. “We’re holding a `bump and run drill’ this year,” he said. “It’s very fast and everyone’s going to be timed…Strike leaders, keep your engines rolling!” Firefighters were reminded to stay hydrated, watch for snakes, and keep radios tuned to designated frequencies assigned to each incident. “Homeowners in Alpine have been generous enough to let us use their homes,” Rushing added. “So be careful not to damage driveways or landscaping.” Anabele Cornejo, assistant public affairs officer for Cleveland National Forest, praised Viejas for hosting the wildland fire drill. “Viejas allowing us to stage here is huge, she said, adding that the multi-agency training helps firefighters refresh their skills and assures that all departments and agencies work together. La Mesa sent an engine company and a division chief to participate. “It’s fantastic,” Sonny Sughera of La Mesa’s Fire Department said. “The City engines go out on fires just as much as Cal-Fire, so this is a good refresher.” A helicopter scooped water and dropped it on a rugged hillside, where a crew trekked uphill to practice laying hoses. Asked what’s most important for crews to learn in the hose lay exercise Cal-Fire Captain Alex Davenport replied, “To put in a good wet line. You don’t want fire to come in and J-hook ‘em.” The inter-agency fire drills aren’t all that’s new on the Viejas reservation. “We recently started a program for young adults, ages 14 to 21, providing opportunities to explore the career of a firefighter,” Chief Butz told East County Magazine. Students learn firefighting skills as well as administration, fire prevention, and investigation. “We just had an academy. Youths went through six days of training, 50 to 60 hours. When they are done, they will have 100 hours and this will be a real asset to the community.” Students will ride on fire trucks, though their scope will be limited. In addition, they will participate in responsibilities including parades, traffic details, and planting fire-safe demonstration gardens in communities. “We’ll be doing another recruitment, and it’s open to all community members,” Butz said. Participants can get professional certifications and work experience. Although program participants are volunteers, participants can receive professional certifications and work experience. “If they stick with it, 80% of kids will wind up working for a fire department in some capacity,” Butz predicted. With fire season fast approaching, tribal efforts to
HELIX WATER DISTRICT PROPOSES HEFTY WATER RATE INCREASE
Printer-friendly versionNew rates start metering May 1, Public Hearing May 27 By Kristin Hobbs Kjaero and Rachel Ford Hutman The Proposal (Rachel Ford Hutman) April 21, 2009 (La Mesa) – If you are one of the 260,000 residents in the Helix Water District, you may soon be paying a minimum increase of 20% more for your water—and for some heavy users, several times higher than those with low water usage. On March 4 the district’s Board of Directors voted 3-2 to issue a notice of a public hearing May 27, for rate increases which would increase the base rate by 20% for the first 10 units of water, plus an additional sliding scale based on usage. For example, a user of 75 units will have an increase of 49%. At the same time, the Board will also “consider a resolution authorizing staff to pass through future, unanticipated increases to rates and charges imposed by Metropolitan Water District of Southern California [MWD] and the San Diego County Water Authority (SDCWA) for wholesale water sold to Helix Water District over the next five years, 2009-2014.” Public Hearing May 27, 2:00 p.m. in the Board Room Helix Water District 7811 University Ave La Mesa CA 91941 VOICE YOUR OPINION Letters must be sent via US Postal Service to the Clerk of the Board at the address above, and received before the hearing. Letters must be signed and contain the address of your property. Another 20% rate increase is expected by MWD in 2011. Thursday April 23 SDCWA voted to raise the water shortage condition to Level II, in which case each water district will have mandatory cuts. Board Member Kathleen Coates Hedberg said they the district has received 63 letters to date, and that “as we represent the customers, letters are important feedback for us in making our decisions. It also let’s us know people are aware of what’s been proposed and what may be coming.” Although the hearing is scheduled for May 27, “effective July 1” refers to billing date which means the increase would start being metered retroactively from May 1, i.e. twenty-six days before the public hearing for those who are billed in July under Helix’s staggered billing system. Helix Water District includes La Mesa, El Cajon, Lemon Grove, Spring Valley and adjoining unincorporated areas. Why a sliding scale? Helix General Manager Mark Weston explained, “We wanted a rate structure that will encourage conservation – that’s the underlying motive for all this. We are changing our rate structure to put pressure on people now… because if we wait until next year it may be too late in terms of getting people to reduce their water usage.” ““Those who conserve may be paying less than the cost, while heavy users may pay more, subsidizing the lower users,” Weston said. After Helix sent letters to 100 customers using more than 100 units per billing cycle, however, questions of fairness, higher commodity rates than other districts, and Helix’s status as an irrigation district have begun to arise as a result of the proposed sliding scale. Letter recipients Rob and Toni Petruzzo live in El Cajon on six acres with children, fruit trees and horses, in a house Toni’s parents built when she was a child. Rob Petruzzo objected to the subjective way the proposal distributes rates among Helix’s customers. “Someone in a condo that isn’t using 33 units may think they can splurge a bit more, while people who have a large family or acreage or livestock are being punished, even if they cut back severely.” “We all realize that we need to conserve water, but if they want people to cut 30%, we should all have to cut 30%,” Petruzzo stated, “If we can’t afford to keep the property, it makes as much sense for us to divide our lot and sell it as multiple smaller parcels as to sell it to a developer who will – the irony is that then it would be acceptable to use more water than we do now under Helix’s plan.” Since receiving his letter from Helix Water District, Dave Carter sent out an e-mail he hopes people will pass on to others. Carter noted that Helix’s rates are higher than other districts, a fact confirmed by Weston. “We’re probably on the high sides of districts for the commodity rate. We’re 75%, others are 65-70%, and the state goal is 70%.” Like the Petruzzos, Dave Carter is angry at the imbalance in the sliding scale, and argues that instead of encouraging the very people who most need to cut back, it puts them in an impossible situation. Carter has a family of four, an acre of land, and more than 20 fruit trees. He said that although he’s already put in low flow fixtures, even if his family cut their usage by 50% they will still be over the “average” base and their rate would increase by 67%. "I absolutely understand that we need to save water, but the way that they’re setting this up…. we’re being penalized before we even start." He feels it is wrong to use an “average” customer’s rate as the base line, and that it’s more important to look at prior usage as well as household and lot size. “Don’t lump us in with single people living in a one bedroom apartment and say that right down the middle of that is average use. It doesn’t work that way, and Helix is the only district that is doing this.” In both examples above, it is worth noting that Helix is different from other Water Districts in the area in that it was created in 1913 as an Irrigation District, and legally remains so today. Like many families in the area, they cherish their semi-rural situation, while Helix’s General Manager Mark Weston refers to the district as “urban.” How the Board balances this difference in views will be key to their situation. When asked about families living in more
BUNGLED BURGLARY: THREE ARRESTED IN LA MESA
Printer-friendly versionApril 23, 2009 (La Mesa)– La Mesa Police received a 911 call at 1:32 p.m. on April 22 from a witness who told dispatchers that a man and two women were breaking into a home in the 7900 block of Pasadena Ave. Officers arrived and detained two female suspects in the driveway of the victim’s residence. The witness told dispatchers the male suspect was fleeing out the back of the victim’s house. A perimeter was established and officers began a search of the area. The male suspect was located in the 7700 block of Normal Avenue a short time later. A stolen Chevrolet pick up truck used by the three suspects was recovered in the driveway of the victim’s residence. Officers conducted a curbside showing of the three suspects and they were all positively identified by a witness who saw them breaking into the home. The three suspects were booked into County Jail on the following charges: • Alejandro GONZALEZ, 32 years old from San Diego, CA, 459 PC – Residential Burglary and 182(a)(1)PC – Conspiracy (to Commit Burglary) • Tristana FISZLEWICZ, 21 years old from Chula Vista, CA, 459 PC – Residential Burglary, 10851(a)CVC – Auto Theft and 182(a)(1)PC – Conspiracy (to Commit Burglary) • Maria GOMEZ, 34 years old from San Diego, CA, 459 PC – Residential Burglary and 182(a)(1)PC – Conspiracy (to Commit Burglary) No one was home at the time of the burglary. The investigation is still continuing. Printer-friendly version