San Diego, CA
Newsom wanted encampments off state land. Fires by San Diego highways show there’s a long way to go.
The woman woke up feeling hot. That’s how she discovered her hair was on fire.
The 47-year-old slapped at her head and scrambled from her tent, which sat beneath a bridge in southern San Diego, she recalled Wednesday during an interview at the site. Her Yorkshire terrier made it out, too. But the insulin she uses for her diabetes was lost.
“It went up fast,” said the woman, who spoke on the condition that only her middle name, La, be published. “I’m now scared to sleep.”
Fire department records show that the blaze at La’s tent began before sunrise on March 21. Two days later, a tree ignited near a different San Diego campsite. Both locations appear to be on land overseen by the California Department of Transportation, and the fires highlight the difficulties of keeping Caltrans property free of encampments when there are few places for homeless people to go.
Last summer, Gov. Gavin Newsom issued an executive order demanding that agencies quickly clear tent camps on state land. “It’s time to move with urgency,” Newsom said in a video. “There are no longer any excuses.” Yet in some cases there now seem to be more tents near San Diego’s highway on- and off-ramps, which are generally managed by Caltrans. Advocates for homeless people have pointed out that this shift happened after local governments passed camping bans that boosted penalties for sleeping on city sidewalks.
Rachel Laing, a spokesperson for Mayor Todd Gloria, estimated that since the start of last year more than 60 local fires had begun by encampments next to roadways. That total went up dramatically if you looked at all blazes within 100 feet of streets monitored by Caltrans, Laing wrote in an email, citing information from the fire marshal. (Fire department data previously shared with The San Diego Union-Tribune do note a number of incidents near highways, although records available to the public do not always specify the exact origin point.)
San Diego is negotiating with the state about potentially giving city crews more authority to clear encampments on California property. A sticking point may be who pays for what as collecting debris can be expensive. The city of San Diego needed a helicopter on Thursday to remove several tons of material from one abandoned encampment in La Jolla.
The state has given the region millions of dollars to aid homeless people and public data show that Caltrans has boosted sweeps in recent years. In 2024, the agency removed 943 encampments and about 4,600 cubic yards of debris from around San Diego, according to spokesperson Aaron Hunter.
But homelessness countywide continues to grow and there are nowhere near enough beds for everybody asking, despite ongoing efforts to launch additional shelters. And in a tough budget year — California faces a large deficit — it’s not clear whether Caltrans will get significantly more resources to monitor state land.
“Caltrans is responsible for protecting and maintaining the state’s highway network and regularly assesses potential safety and infrastructure threats on all of its state right of way properties, including fires,” the agency said in an emailed statement from Hunter. Caltrans didn’t yet have a record of blazes at the two San Diego sites that burned in March, although Hunter wrote that those locations had been “addressed nine times since 2022 and are scheduled to be cleaned again.”
The March 23 fire began around 3:30 a.m. on a steep hill overlooking Interstate 5, according to a fire department incident report obtained through a records request. Firefighters were able to put out the blaze in about 20 minutes before any houses were damaged.
Part of the hillside was still black when a reporter visited the area Wednesday. A pile of burned wood sat at the base of a pepper tree, its bark charred and ashy, and nobody was inside a nearby structure made out of tarp. Caltrans’ online map shows most of that land falling under the agency’s jurisdiction.
The same goes for the blackened plot where La’s tent burned earlier in the month. Several people appeared to still be sleeping at the site, including La, who wore a wrap around her head. She and a friend believe the fire may have been intentionally started by another person living outside, although suspicions were hard to prove.
La said outreach workers and police did come by, yet shelter was scarce. “Most of the time they don’t have a bed — not on the female side.” La added that she was on a list for housing.
Her friend, Thadius Wright, 64, said he does have a unit downtown, but was in the area to check on people he’d gotten to know during the years he slept at the site. Even though cleaning crews periodically moved the group out, the overpass offered too much protection from rain to fully abandon, Wright noted. “There’s nothing like being out here in the wintertime and being wet.”
Wright was convinced that most people would happily trade their tents for housing — if it was affordable. “They think we want to stay out here,” he said about frustrated neighbors. “Not true.”
Originally Published:
On Thursday, the average price of a gallon of self-serve regular gasoline in San Diego County recorded its largest increase since Sept. 28, 2023, rising 8.7 cents to $4.894, its highest amount since Nov. 13.
The average price has increased 15 consecutive days, rising 28.7 cents, including 7 cents on Wednesday, according to figures from the AAA and Oil Price Information Service. It is 22.4 cents more than one week ago, 38.6 cents higher than one month ago and 14.5 cents greater than one year ago.
The average price has dropped $1.541 since rising to a record $6.435 on Oct. 5, 2022.
“Gas prices are rising primarily due to a recent surge in crude oil following strikes on Iran by the U.S. and Israel,” Kandace Redd, the Automobile Club of Southern California’s senior public affairs specialist, told City News Service. “Any conflict with Iran can send oil prices higher, as Iran is a major oil producer and about a fifth of the oil consumed globally travels through the Strait of Hormuz between Iran and Oman.
“Gas prices are increasing because of seasonal factors too. Refineries are beginning the switch to more expensive summer-blend fuel, and demand is picking up as we head into the spring break season with more people on the road.”
The national average price rose 5.3 cents to $3.251, its highest amount since Sept. 11, 2024. It has risen five consecutive days, increasing 26.9 cents, including 8.9 cents on Wednesday.
The national average price is 26.8 cents more than one week ago, 36 cents higher than one month ago and 14.4 cents greater than one year ago. It has dropped $1.765 since rising to a record $5.016 on June 14, 2022.
UNLV Rebels (16-14, 11-8 MWC) at San Diego State Aztecs (19-10, 13-6 MWC)
San Diego; Friday, 10 p.m. EST
BOTTOM LINE: UNLV faces San Diego State after Kimani Hamilton scored 24 points in UNLV’s 92-65 victory over the Utah State Aggies.
The Aztecs have gone 13-2 in home games. San Diego State is eighth in the MWC with 9.0 offensive rebounds per game led by Miles Heide averaging 2.0.
The Rebels have gone 11-8 against MWC opponents. UNLV ranks eighth in the MWC shooting 34.4% from 3-point range.
San Diego State averages 79.1 points per game, 0.6 more points than the 78.5 UNLV gives up. UNLV averages 7.2 made 3-pointers per game this season, 1.9 fewer made shots on average than the 9.1 per game San Diego State allows.
The teams play for the second time in conference play this season. San Diego State won the last meeting 82-71 on Jan. 24. Miles Byrd scored 23 points points to help lead the Aztecs to the win.
TOP PERFORMERS: Reese Dixon-Waters is shooting 35.9% from beyond the arc with 1.6 made 3-pointers per game for the Aztecs, while averaging 13 points. Byrd is averaging 10.2 points and 5.1 rebounds over the past 10 games.
Dra Gibbs-Lawhorn is shooting 50.9% and averaging 20.6 points for the Rebels. Hamilton is averaging 1.4 made 3-pointers over the last 10 games.
LAST 10 GAMES: Aztecs: 5-5, averaging 74.9 points, 28.9 rebounds, 13.7 assists, 6.9 steals and 4.2 blocks per game while shooting 46.4% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 69.0 points per game.
Rebels: 6-4, averaging 84.1 points, 32.3 rebounds, 14.7 assists, 6.4 steals and 4.8 blocks per game while shooting 50.0% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 80.8 points.
___
The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.
SAN DIEGO (CNS) – Military bases in San Diego County and nationwide have increased security measures due to last weekend’s U.S.-Israeli attacks on Iran, prompting traffic delays near base entrances, enhanced ID checks and access restrictions.
The Naval Air Station North Island on Coronado ports three aircraft carriers, including the San Diego-based USS Abraham Lincoln, which led some of the first-wave attacks on Saturday.
Naval Base Coronado warned motorists of possible traffic delays at all base entry points due to the increased security measures.
Targets included Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps command and control facilities, Iranian air defense capabilities, missile and drone launch sites and military airfields.
The U.S. operation, dubbed “Epic Fury,” and Israeli operation, “Raging Lion,” began striking targets at 1:15 a.m. Eastern Time Saturday.
As of Tuesday, at least six U.S. service members had been killed in action.
The strikes also killed Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Hosseini Khamenei, who had been Iran’s supreme leader since 1989, making him the longest-serving head of state in the Middle East.
Iran’s offensive forces claimed to have struck USS Abraham Lincoln with ballistic missiles, but according to an X post from U.S central Command, “The Lincoln was not hit. The missiles launched didn’t even come close. The Lincoln continues to launch aircraft in support of CENTCOM’s relentless campaign to defend the American people by eliminating threats from the Iranian regime.”
Those with concerns regarding the heightened security can contact San Diego County’s Office of Emergency Services at 858-565-3490 or oes@sdcounty.ca.gov.
Copyright 2026, City News Service, Inc.
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