Category: San Diego

For The Union-Tribune How to prevent your first stroke (which might also be your last) More than 600,000 Americans suffer their first stroke each year, but up to 80 percent may be preventable through measures like treating hypertension, elevated cholesterol, high blood sugar and obesity. The American Stroke Association just added three new recommendations for prevention: 1. Consider taking a GLP-1 drug (Ozempic, Wegovy and others) to lower weight and reduce cardiovascular risk. 2. Recognize and address social determinants that boost stroke risk, such as structural racism, lower access to health care and less availability of healthy food or walkable neighborhoods. 3. Focus on sex- and gender-specific factors that raise risk, such as oral contraceptives, high blood pressure during pregnancy, premature birth, endometriosis, premature ovarian failure, early onset menopause and taking estrogens for gender affirmation in transgender women and gender-diverse people. (Adobe Stock) Body of knowledge Some animals, including dogs and cats, have specialized taste buds and can taste water. Humans cannot; what we taste are chemicals and impurities in the water. (Adobe Stock) Get me that. Stat! By 2070, it’s projected that overlap between

By LAURAN NEERGAARD, Associated Press Medical Writer NEW YORK (AP) — An Alabama woman is recovering well after a pig kidney transplant last month that freed her from eight years of dialysis, the latest effort to save human lives with animal organs. Towana Looney is the fifth American given a gene-edited pig organ — and notably, she isn’t as sick as prior recipients who died within two months of receiving a pig kidney or heart. “It’s like a new beginning,” Looney, 53, told The Associated Press. Right away, “the energy I had was amazing. To have a working kidney — and to feel it — is unbelievable.” Looney’s surgery marks an important step as scientists get ready for formal studies of xenotransplantation expected to begin next year, said Dr. Robert Montgomery of NYU Langone Health, who led the highly experimental procedure. Looney is recuperating well after her transplant, which was announced Tuesday. She was discharged from the hospital just 11 days after surgery to continue recovery in a nearby apartment although temporarily readmitted this week while her medications are adjusted. Doctors expect her to return

Nearly 2,000 miles of aging asbestos concrete pipes are carrying drinking water in the City of San Diego. Experts are divided on the health risks they may pose. SAN DIEGO, Calif. — Every month, Deacon Perry Owens Sr. estimates he spends at least $100 on bottled water. He doesn’t drink the tap water from his Emerald Hills home. “It has a smell to it, a stench to it and we have tried every home remedy, and we can’t get rid of it,” he told Team 10. The smell from the taps is no longer the San Diego resident’s only concern with the water. Beneath the streets of America’s Finest City, are nearly 2,000 miles of asbestos concrete pipes carrying drinking water to thousands of homes. “That is shocking and that blows my mind,” said Owens. Amol Brown Deacon Perry Owens Sr. estimates he spends at least $100 on bottled water. He doesn’t drink the tap water from his San Diego home. The pipes, composed of concrete and asbestos, once known as a “miracle mineral” for its durability, were installed after World War II until the

ALPINE, Calif. (FOX 5/KUSI) — On Nov. 21, the Alpine Station with the San Diego Sheriff’s Office learned two 10-year-old girls wrote a list threatening to kill 14 students and two staff members, prompting parents to speak out at the Alpine Union School District Board of Trustees meeting. A room full of parents, unified at the meeting on Monday night, felt the collective fear for their children’s safety. “Two weeks ago there was a note left on a bathroom wall that said ‘I want to kill you’ with my daughter’s name on it,” Joe Colston said. That’s something he says makes him scared to send his daughter to school. “She was scared, and she still is to this day,” Colston said. Superintendent Rich Newman addressed that incident plus another at Shadow Hills Elementary School. On Nov. 21, a teacher found a shared journal where two girls wrote a ‘kill list,’ including 14 students and two staff members. “Given the tragic news of the school shooting in Wisconsin today we’re reminded that safety is a shared responsibility,” said Rich Newman, the superintendent of Alpine Union School

CHULA VISTA, Calif. (FOX 5/KUSI) — Harborside Park in Chula Vista reopened Monday after closure that lasted more than two years. “I’m so proud I could cry about this. Just to see this reality came true,” said Bertha Lopez, Chair of Save Harborside Park. Everyone could feel the joy and excitement all around as the community came together to celebrate the grand reopening. “We stepped up to make sure this park was going to be redone and better for the Harborside community,” said Mayor John McCann. Harborside Park closed in summer of 2022 due to safety concerns. The city evicted dozens of unhoused residents who had taken shelter there and the future of the park was in jeopardy. Some city leaders wanted to close the park permanently and replace it with affordable housing. The park became the center of ongoing debate as residents pushed to preserve the open space and in the end, they succeeded. “It is possible as a community to be able to save something for our children, for future,” said Delfina Gonzalez. Extensive renovations were unveiled Monday, including improved lighting, fencing, cameras

SAN DIEGO (FOX 5/KUSI) — Authorities are asking for the public’s help in locating a missing at-risk 61-year-old woman. Elaine Stewart, standing 5 foot 3 inches and weighing 120 pounds, is described as having brown hair and brown eyes, according to the San Diego Police Department. She was last seen around 7 a.m. walking in the 6500 block of Caminito Northland Street wearing a gray fleece sweatshirt and light green sweatpants. Man mauled to death by own dogs identified The State of California defines a person as at-risk if they are the victim of a crime or foul play, in need of medical attention, have no pattern of running away or disappearing, the victim of parent/family abduction, or mentally impaired, including cognitively impaired or developmentally disabled. Anyone who has information related to Stewart’s whereabouts is asked to call 911 and reference Case #24-502273.

SAN DIEGO (FOX 5/KUSI) — A man who was mauled to death by his own dogs in Mira Mesa last week has been identified. Pedro Luis Ortega, 26, of San Diego, died Friday from the attack after he and his son were walking the family’s three dogs at Mesa Viking Neighborhood Park, according to the San Diego County Medical Examiner’s Office. San Diego police say for unknown reasons the dogs, XL bullies, began to attack Ortega, prompting witnesses to call 911. Good Samaritans tried to intervene by hitting the dogs with shovels and possibly a golf club, which was found at the scene, police said. An officer then used a Taser to break up the attack, resulting in the dogs to run off. One dead in helicopter crash near border in San Diego County Ortega was taken to a hospital where he died from his injuries. Police were able to capture all three XL bullies, a dog breed known for their size and strength. A second victim also sustained serious bite injuries while trying to help the owner of the dogs as he was being

Escondido has finished moving more than 50 people out of a large creek encampment one day after the city manager declared an environmental emergency in the waterway. The City Council on Monday unanimously signed off on that decision and a police official said 36 individuals had agreed to accept some form of help from the dozen or so service organizations that showed up this week as officers and clean-up crews sealed off part of Escondido Creek. Leaders also budgeted $4 million to install a fence around the area and potentially remove thick foliage that has helped hide tents. Mayor Dane White praised the sweep as a success while cautioning that growing homelessness in the region nonetheless showed the failure of many other systems. “It’s a failure of the mental health system in the state, the criminal justice system, and in some aspects, our own failures to provide adequate shelter to those who need it,” he said from the dais. White again promised to expand the number of available shelter beds in the city, particularly for those needing addiction treatment. City Manager Sean McGlynn said after

Families of people who have died in San Diego jails gathered this weekend in Escondido to meet the woman overseeing a new effort to curb in-custody deaths in California jails. Allison Ganter was appointed in October to lead the In-Custody Death Review Division for the Board of State and Community Corrections, an independent authority created in 2012 to monitor California’s jails and juvenile detention facilities, among other tasks. Sen. Toni Atkins (D-San Diego) authored the legislation that created Ganter’s position. Atkins said in an interview last year that she was motivated by The San Diego Union-Tribune’s multiyear examination of the high death rate in local jails and by a scathing 2022 state audit that urged legislators to act to address deaths in custody. “The impetus is because of San Diego, but this is a statewide issue,” Atkins told the Union-Tribune in April 2023. “There were 18 deaths in Riverside jails last year and seven in Los Angeles so far this year. This is not just a San Diego problem. We have been the tip of the spear.” Atkins’ bill was signed into law by Gov.

Parents couldn’t resist yelling “goal” as their kids scored during a game of mini-pitch soccer. Some children jumped as high as they could on a nearby bouncy house. Others too young to play with the older kids waddled around the lush grass lawns. It was a buzzy Monday afternoon at the reopening of Chula Vista’s Harborside Park, a cherished community greenspace city officials shuttered more than two years ago after it was overrun with illegal camps set up by homeless people. “Welcome back to Harborside,” Martin Calvo, the city’s Parks and Recreation Commission chair, said during an unveiling of the park’s renovations. “A community park is more than just a place to gather. It is the heart of the community. It’s a space where families come together, children play and friendships are formed. The journey to this moment has not been easy.” Located between Broadway and San Diego Bay, the 5-acre park was carved out nearly two decades ago with the help of residents like Rosa Vazquez, who advocated for the creation of more parks in the underserved west side community. Over the years, the

The San Diego-based USS Savannah on Monday became the first American warship in eight years to visit Cambodia as part of a U.S. effort to beef up military partnerships in the Indo-Pacific to help keep China in check. The lightly armed Savannah docked at Ream Naval Base in Sihanoukville, a coastal city on the Gulf of Thailand. The littoral combat ship will spend four days there, during which time members of the U.S. and Cambodian navies will participate in a sports competition. “Cambodia is a key partner for us in the region, and this port visit provides us an important opportunity to meet with local leaders,” Dan Sledz, the Savannah’s commanding officer, said in a prepared statement. Cambodia has a 4,000-member navy whose fleet is mostly composed of small patrol boats.

SAN DIEGO (FOX 5/KUSI) — Military servicemembers stationed in San Diego County will see an increase to their monthly housing allowances next year, the U.S. Department of Defense announced in a statement Friday. The Basic Allowance for Housing rates will increase an average of 5.4% next year, the department said. Helicopter crashes near U.S.-Mexico border in San Diego County The amounts vary by grade and dependency status, as well as the median market rents and average utilities for each military housing area. Military officers ranked O6 and above with dependents will get the highest increase in their housing allowances at $183 per month, according to the BAH rate lookup tool. Those officers currently receive a monthly allowance of at least $5,289 and can expect to see it go up to $5,472 next year. Meanwhile, military servicemembers ranked E1 to E4 without dependents will see the lowest increase at $64 per month, the tool showed. “While average BAH rates increased, different rental markets experienced different market trends, and the 2025 BAH rates reflect those geographic market condition differences,” the statement by the DoD said. According to

Hannah Kobayashi, whose disappearance led to a statewide search and international headlines, returned to the United States on Sunday, bringing an end to the high-profile missing persons case. On Monday, the Los Angeles Police Department confirmed that the case is now closed. Kobayashi, who disappeared in Los Angeles after arriving at LAX on a flight from Maui, Hawaii on Nov. 8, was later revealed to have willingly traveled over the U.S./Mexico border days after she arrived. On the morning of Nov. 12, 2024, she traveled by bus from Union Station to San Ysidro, LAPD officials said. Video surveillance showed she crossed the border into Mexico shortly after arriving in San Ysidro and apparently remained in Mexico since. Family members were reportedly told that she had no intentions of returning to the U.S. Intrigue about her seeming disappearance stemmed from still images captured of the 30-year-old Hawaii resident in various locations across the city. Family members and loved ones traveled to L.A. to aid in the search, with some concerned she may have been abducted and held against her will. Hannah Kobayashi seen at LAX on

One person was killed Monday morning when a helicopter crashed in a field in the East County community of Potrero, north of state Route 94, officials said. Cal Fire officials were notified of the crash just before 11:20 a.m. The helicopter went down near Round Potrero Road in a rural area near farmland, said Cal Fire Capt. Mike Cornette. One person was killed. No one else was on the helicopter when it crashed, he said. The crash did not spark a fire. No other information was immediately available. Cornette said officials were trying to determine who owned the chopper.

By JENNIFER PELTZ NEW YORK (AP) — Former talk show host Carlos Watson was sentenced Monday to nearly 10 years in prison in a federal financial conspiracy case that cast his once-buzzy Ozy Media as an extreme of fake-it-’til-you-make-it startup culture. Related Articles National News | US to require passenger vehicles to sound alarms if rear passengers don’t fasten their seat belts National News | TikTok asks the Supreme Court for an emergency order to block a US ban unless it’s sold National News | Survivors seek a reckoning as FBI investigates child sex abuse in little-known Christian sect National News | Trump migrant deportations could threaten states’ agricultural economies National News | Federal Reserve is likely to slow its rate cuts with inflation pressures still elevated So extreme that another Ozy executive impersonated a YouTube executive to hype Ozy to investment bankers — while Watson coached him, prosecutors said. Watson, 55, and the now-defunct company were found guilty last summer of charges including wire fraud conspiracy. He has denied the allegations. Watson, who has been free on $3 million bond, faced a mandatory minimum

DETROIT (AP) — Starting in September of 2027, all new passenger vehicles in the U.S. will have to sound a warning if rear-seat passengers don’t buckle up. Related Articles National News | Former TV host Carlos Watson gets nearly 10 years in prison in case about failed startup Ozy Media National News | TikTok asks the Supreme Court for an emergency order to block a US ban unless it’s sold National News | Survivors seek a reckoning as FBI investigates child sex abuse in little-known Christian sect National News | Trump migrant deportations could threaten states’ agricultural economies National News | Federal Reserve is likely to slow its rate cuts with inflation pressures still elevated The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said Monday that it finalized the rule, which also requires enhanced warnings when front seat belts aren’t fastened. The agency estimates that the new rule will save 50 lives per year and prevent 500 injuries when fully in effect, according to a statement. The new rule will apply to passenger cars, trucks, buses except for school buses, and multipurpose vehicles weighing up to 10,000

(NEXSTAR) – New data suggests Bud Light is no longer tops in America’s taprooms — at least when it comes to the most popular draft beers offered at bars across the U.S. Draftline Technologies, a company that provides software for beverage distributors, found in a recent report that Michelob Ultra — which, like Bud Light, is owned by Anheuser-Busch InBev — recently overtook Bud Light in terms of the “number of tap handles” operating at U.S venues with beer systems. American, Australian tourists hospitalized after drinking cocktail at 5-star resort Jennifer Hauke, the founder of Draftline Technologies, said Michelob Ultra has been poised to reach the top spot for years. “The rise of Michelob Ultra as the leader by number of tap handles on draft reflects shifting consumer preference,” Hauke said in an emailed statement to Nexstar. “Michelob Ultra has been on a path to surpass Bud Light as the #1 brand on draft (by total taps) for a number of years. The news is Michelob Ultra did it—we have a new #1.” News of Michelob Ultra overtaking Bud Light (in terms of beer taps)

(KTXL) — A couple from California were shot and killed by gunmen on Wednesday night in the western Mexican state of Michoacán, according to officials. The attack happened in the city of Angamacutiro, about 230 miles west of Mexico City, according to officials in the Michoacán state attorney general’s office, The New York Times reports. City officials identified the couple as Rafael Cardona Aguilera and Gloria Ambriz, residents of Northern California who were on vacation, according to state officials. The former’s sister is the wife of Angamacutiro’s current mayor, Hermes Pacheco, the Times reported, citing the town council. 3 dead, including suspect, in Wisconsin school shooting Mexican authorities told the Times that officers found the couple inside a bullet-ridden vehicle on a street in Angamacutiro, although it was still unclear if they were targeted as of Monday. A U.S. State Department spokesperson confirmed the deaths of two U.S. citizens in Michoacán to Nexstar’s KTXL, adding that it is “closely monitoring local authorities’ investigation into the reported killings.” Local officials did not immediately return KTXL’s requests for comment. The state of Michoacán is one of several in

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden on Monday established a national monument honoring the late FDR-era Labor Secretary Frances Perkins, the first woman to serve in a presidential Cabinet and a driving force behind Franklin D. Roosevelt’s New Deal programs after the Great Depression. Perkins is “one of America’s greatest labor leaders, and that’s not hyperbole,” Biden said. Perkins “cemented the idea” that “if you’re working a full-time job, you shouldn’t have to live in poverty,” Biden said. The outgoing Democratic president signed the proclamation establishing the monument in Newcastle, Maine, after a speech at the Department of Labor as he seeks to burnish his legacy as a champion of women’s and labor rights with just over five weeks left in his term. The department’s building is named after Perkins, who helped President Roosevelt formulate policies behind the 1930s New Deal agenda and create safeguards in the national economy following the Great Depression that began in 1929. Perkins was the longest-serving labor secretary in U.S. history and is credited with helping establish the Social Security Act, the Fair Labor Standards Act and the National Labor

Disneyland has agreed to settle a class-action lawsuit for $233 million. The suit alleged that park employees, known as cast members, didn’t benefit from an Anaheim minimum wage law. As first reported by the L.A. Times, Walt Disney Co. approved the preliminary settlement Friday. The settlement covers over 50,000 current and former Disney employees and accounts for back pay with interest. Orange County Superior Court Judge William Claster is set to review the settlement on Jan. 17. Once approved, a notice will be sent to workers outlining how much money they will receive. For Michi Cordell, a Fairy Godmother’s Apprentice at Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique in Disneyland, the money is “life-changing.” “This money is life-changing for a lot of Disney cast members and will make a tremendous difference for me and my family,” Cordell said in a statement. “I have two small children, and getting potentially thousands of dollars in back wages I’m rightfully owed gives me peace of mind that I have money in case of an emergency or savings for their future. We’ve shown throughout these five years, and especially this last year in

By WAFAA SHURAFA and SAMY MAGDY, Associated Press DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip (AP) — More than 45,000 Palestinians have now been killed in the war in Gaza between Israel and Hamas militants, Palestinian health officials said Monday, as often-stalled ceasefire negotiations appeared to be gaining ground again. More than 50 dead were brought to hospitals across the bombed-out territory over the past 24 hours, Gaza’s Health Ministry said. Qatar, Egypt and the United States have renewed efforts to broker a ceasefire deal in recent days, and mediators have said there appears to be more willingness from both sides after 14 months of war. Hamas has been designated as a terrorist organization by the United States, Canada and the European Union. The health ministry said 45,028 people have been killed and 106,962 others have been wounded since the war began, and warned that the real toll is higher because thousands of bodies are buried under rubble or in areas that medics cannot access. Palestinians pray next to the bodies of their relatives killed in the Israeli bombardment of the Gaza Strip, at a hospital in Deir