San Diego, CA

Volunteers clean out The San Diego River, following January's storm

Published

2 years ago

February 24, 2024

Volunteers clean out The San Diego River, following January's storm

SAN DIEGO (KGTV) — On Saturday in Fashion Valley, volunteers cleaned up the mounds of trash that washed into the San Diego River from the Jan. 22 storm.

Volunteers helped The San Diego River Park Foundation clean up approximately 35,000 pounds of trash and debris from the storm in and along the river.

Teams set out on two separate shifts to pick up as much trash as possible between State Route 163 and Fashion Valley Road.

Sarah Hutmacher, Chief Operating Officer at The San Diego River Foundation, said storm debris often doesn’t always mean big chunks of trash.

“So little small stuff that floats,” Hutmacher said. “Bottles, cans, Styrofoam. We also see a lot of dumping, like large bulky items and furniture.”

Hutmacher and her team equipped volunteers with gloves, pickers, and trash bags, then headed into the greenery. Some volunteers were expected to show up for the afternoon shift with water gear, like kayaks, to go after trash in the middle of the river.

Hutmacher also said there was a sense of urgency to get to as much storm debris as possible before decomposing.

“All these pieces of plastic are hazards for wildlife and animals,” Hutmacher said. “They are bleached chemicals that are bad for the environment. The longer we wait, even a couple more days in the sunshine or couple more weeks in the sunshine, these plastics becomes so brittle and start to fall apart that they’re almost impossible to remove.”

Among the volunteers was Gabriel Adona, who said he heard about this cleanup effort on ABC 10News.

Adona said that while there are many ways to ‘donate,’ volunteering his time means more to him.

“I don’t have a lot of money, but I will make time because I feel like people want your time more than anything else. Being out here is a good example to model that behavior,” Adona said.

The San Diego River Park Foundation has been doing this type of river cleanup since 2001, and Hutmacher says each time, it heals the land more in the short term and the long term.

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San Diego, CA

Collision in Linda Vista causes 64-year-old motorcyclist to be hospitalized

Published

3 hours ago

July 18, 2026

Press Room

Collision in Linda Vista causes 64-year-old motorcyclist to be hospitalized

A motorcyclist was hospitalized Saturday after crashing into another vehicle in Linda Vista.

Officers from the San Diego Police Department responded to a report of a vehicle-versus-motorcycle crash around 11:20 a.m. Saturday in the 1400 block of Ulric Street.

According to officers, the crash occurred when a 24-year-old woman driving a Volvo S-60 sedan southbound on Ulric Street pulled onto the right shoulder and attempted to make a U-turn.

At the same time, a 64-year-old man was riding a Kawasaki southbound in the No 2 lane of Ulric. The Volvo allegedly entered the path of the motorcycle while making the U-turn, causing the motorcycle crash into the rear of the car.

The rider was subsequently rushed to a hospital by ambulance, where he was found to have sustained a fractured vertebra, shattered right ankle and lacerated tongue. The injuries were determined to be non-life-threatening.

Alcohol and drugs were not found to be a factor in the crash, according to the police department.

Anyone with additional information was encouraged to contact crime stoppers at 888-580-8477.

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San Diego, CA

More than 800 birds rescued from Valley Center property

Published

15 hours ago

July 18, 2026

Press Room

More than 800 birds rescued from Valley Center property

More than 800 birds and two dogs have been removed from a Valley Center property following reports of neglect, San Diego County’s Animal Services announced Friday.

The 820 birds — including 400 ducks — were removed from the property Thursday. County animal services officers were tipped off by their counterparts in Riverside County after the property owner moved to Valley Center.

After obtaining a search warrant for the property in the 11200 block of Lilac Vista Drive, officers spent about 12 hours removing the animals and transporting them to the county’s Bonita and Carlsbad animal shelters for treatment.

All the animals have been removed, a county statement reads.

“Responding to an operation of this size takes dedication and teamwork,” said Dr. Brie Sarvis, director of county animal services and chief veterinarian. “When we arrived, our officers found birds living in overcrowded and unsanitary conditions. Our staff and partners worked tirelessly to ensure these animals were safe, and we’re now focused on giving each one the care they need to recover.”

Pasadena Humane, Chula Vista Animal Services, County Code Compliance, the San Diego County Sheriff’s Office and Riverside County Animal Control all provided support for the removal of the animals.

Among the birds rescued were ducks, geese, roosters, peacocks, pigeons, parrots and “possibly additional species,” the county statement read.

Each animal is being evaluated by veterinary staff. San Diego Humane Society will also be providing veterinary support over the next few days to help manage ongoing care needs.

According to the county, the ongoing care of the large number of birds will be supported by the Animal Services Spirit Medical Fund, which supports animals arriving at county shelters with serious medical needs or complicated circumstances.

The public can help by donating to the fund at https://www.sddac.com/content/sdc/das/donate-volunteer/donate.html. Every dollar donated to the Spirit Fund goes directly to animal care — none is used for administrative costs, the county says.

Animal Services will continue to investigate, and next steps in the enforcement process are yet to be determined.

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San Diego, CA

San Diego’s 6-month streak of a falling jobless rate comes to an end

Published

1 day ago

July 17, 2026

Press Room

SAN DIEGO — San Diego County saw its six-month streak of a falling unemployment rate come to an end in June, as teachers went on summer recess, but the region still managed to eke out a small net gain in job growth last month. The latest figures from the state Employment Development Department show a jobless rate of 4.4%, up from 3.9% in May, but still lower than the county’s year-ago rate of …

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