Migrants being dropped off on San Diego streets
Good Morning, I’m Debbie Cruz….it’s Monday, February 26th.
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The county’s Migrant Welcome Center shut its doors, leaving many of those migrants on the street.
More on that next. But first... let’s do the headlines….
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San Diegans who were affected by the storm last month can now apply for FEMA disaster assistance.
Residents and businesses who experienced damage to their homes, cars and businesses can apply online through the FEMA web portal at Disaster-Assistance-dot-gov… or through the FEMA mobile app.
FEMA is also working with the city of San Diego and the county to create a
Disaster Recovery Center in the affected neighborhoods.
Once that is opened, residents will be able to receive information and support in person.
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You may want to pack an umbrella before leaving the house today!
The National Weather Service says light rain is expected throughout the day, but mostly at night.
It won’t last long though… forecasters say the rain will move out by tomorrow morning.
Today’s temperatures in the inland and coastal areas are expected to be in the low to mid 60s.
In the mountains, temps will be in the low 50s, and in the deserts, it’ll be warmer… in the mid 70s.
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Tomorrow marks one week until the March 5th primary election… and there are now more options to cast your ballot.
39 vote centers opened across the county over the weekend.
They are open daily from 8 to 5 if you want to vote in person.
You can also return your ballot by mail, dropping it off at one of the Registrar’s official ballot drop boxes, or by visiting the Registrar’s office on weekdays.
To find the closest place to vote, and for more information on the races, visit our newsroom’s Voter Hub, at kpbs-dot-org-slash-voter-hub.
179 more vote centers will be opening this Saturday.
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From KPBS, you’re listening to San Diego News Now. Stay with me for more of the local news you need.
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The county shut down its Migrant Welcome Center last week.
Reporter Gustavo Solis says that means border officials will now continue to drop migrants off on San Diego streets.
About 300 migrants were left at the Iris Transit Station in San Ysidro. It doesn’t have the infrastructure to welcome migrants. No shelter or public restrooms. No benches or wifi. Pedro Rios is an activist with American Friends Service Committee. He was the lone volunteer trying to welcome migrants as CBP buses dropped them off. Perdo Rios, American Friends Service Committee “I’m not sure I was able to capture everyone and hey come this way if you go on that bus you might get lost you might not know where you’re at.” And that’s a main concern. That this vulnerable population wanders the streets of San Diego without any help. Rios says most of these migrants don’t plan to stay in San Diego. “They want to know how to connect with their family members. Some of them have been separated.” Under normal circumstances, people would have been taken to a Migrant Welcome Center funded by $6 million from San Diego County. That center, which was known as Central, welcomed more than 81,000 migrants from October to February. But it just closed due to lack of funding. Gustavo Solis, KPBS News.
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California State University student assistants have overwhelmingly voted yes to unionize.
Results of a week-long election were announced late last week, and now, more than 20-thousand student assistants on campuses across the state will become members of the C-S-U employees local 25-79.
Cal State Fullerton student assistant Cameron Macedonio says the students were fighting for a guaranteed minimum number of work hours, salaries above minimum wage and paid sick leave.
“We were tired of being treated like we’re some sort of ‘other’...when we’re not. We’re human beings and all we’re trying to do is get an education and live…that on its own is hard enough.”
The union victory was celebrated across the 23 campuses of the C-S-U, including student assistants at Cal State San Marcos and SD-SU … of which K-P-B-S is a broadcast service.
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A recent study of the nation’s air quality finds climate change may be erasing years of progress in the fight for clean air.
Environment reporter Erik Anderson says regulators may need to adjust their pollution control strategies.
The “Atrocious Air” report finds that climate change related events could be clawing back the progress made to clean up pollution since the 1950’s. The First Street Foundation’s Jeremy Porter says the sources of particle pollution smaller than two-point-five microns –PM 2-point-five -- are changing with the climate. “When you look at the really big PM 2.5 spikes. They come from wildfires. They’re not coming from those anthropogenic sources. So we can put in all the regulatory restrictions we want but we are not going to control the spikes from PM 2.5 from wildfires.” Spikes in ozone pollution happen during heat events and spikes in particulate pollution happen when there are wildfires increasing the frequency of poor air quality in the West. Erik Anderson KPBS News.
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Have scientists at the Salk Institute discovered a birth control pill for men?
Sci-tech reporter Thomas Fudge tells us about molecular treatment of mice that stopped their sperm production.
Sperm production relies on a network of genes and proteins that line up and interact in a certain way. But what if you blocked or inhibited one of the elements on that assembly line? That’s what scientists at Salk have done, using an HDAC inhibitor that stops a crucial genetic coupling. They say doing this prevents sperm production, has no effect on libido and if the mice go off the pill for a couple of months, fertility returns. Salk professor Ronald Evans, director of their Gene Expression Lab, says they had to fully understand the genetic network that produces sperm. ”So just because we hit this pathway just at the right spot with a very simple molecule that is safe. I think that’s one of the most important parts is uncovering the nature of the network and finding that the network is open to therapeutic intervention.” The Salk research could lead to a male birth control pill. Evans says experiments will move from mice to larger mammals, and ultimately to clinical trials for humans. SOQ.
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We’ve been informing you about all the local races on your ballot to prepare you to vote in the March 5th primary.
Today, we learn about the one local ballot measure voters in the city of San Diego have to consider.
Metro reporter Andrew Bowen explains how Measure A would impact the office of the city auditor.
AB: Measure A would authorize the city auditor and audit committee to hire independent legal counsel. The auditor investigates waste, fraud and abuse, and the overall performance of city operations. And sometimes that means looking into the City Attorney's Office. But that office also acts as the auditor's legal counsel. City Council President Sean Elo-Rivera supports Measure A. SER: The question is if we're having the auditor take a look at an issue that includes work that the city attorney did, should we bring in someone who is not from the city attorney's office to analyze that work. AB: Opponents to Measure A argue the city attorney is already a neutral party, and that the auditor is just seeking more favorable legal advice. Andrew Bowen, KPBS news.
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On the north edge of the Salton Sea, there’s a movement to create a new national monument.
Imperial valley reporter Kori Suzuki says for supporters, the land is especially important to communities of color.
It’s a crisp morning at a small airstrip in Thermal, California – on the edge of Riverside and Imperial County. A coalition of environmental groups and tribes is here. Taking community members up in the sky in a tiny Cessna plane. Their goal is to give people a new perspective on a large swath of high desert, just to the east. The area that we tour, that we're hoping to tour is give or take. We're looking to protect 600,000 acres. Sendy Hernández Orellana Barrows is the conservation program manager for Consejo de Federaciones Mexicanas, or COFEM. This is what would be the Chuckwalla National Monument, starting from the eastern portion in the Mecca hills and going all the way east to give or take about 10 miles from the Colorado river. The coalition is urging the federal government to set aside those large sections of land as a new national monument. Supporters say a monument, which is similar to a national park, would protect fragile desert ecosystems and historic cultural resources. And would also protect opportunities to spend time in nature. Especially for the region’s communities of color. A lot of the environmental challenges are going to be impacting these communities at a higher level than other wealthier communities. Frank Ruiz, director of Audubon California’s Salton Sea Program. This is one of the reasons we want their voices to be [...] at the center stage of the conservation movement.The proposal is still under federal consideration. Kori Suzuki, KPBS News.
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Students at Bancroft Elementary in Spring Valley are being welcomed back to their school this morning (Monday).
Education reporter M.G. Perez says their return comes after a month of displacement, following last month’s devastating floods.
Bancroft Elementary sits at the bottom of a hill in the La Mesa Spring Valley School District. January 22nd…record rains turned into raging flood water as storm drains around the campus clogged with mud and debris. More than four hundred students and 53 staff …were evacuated and sent to nearby Spring Valley Academy for classes…while extensive repairs could be done. They’re now finished. Nicole Wilson is one of the Bancroft teachers who will welcome her students back first thing Monday morning. “I did get a chance to switch up some things..and just start new..but we’re also going to be getting back to our routine because continuity is the best thing for these kids right now.” Wilson says the first day back will be a celebration of students who she says not only survived a crisis but continue to thrive. MGP KPBS News.
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That’s it for the podcast today. As always you can find more San Diego news online at KPBS dot org. Join us again tomorrow for the day’s top stories. I’m Debbie Cruz. Thanks for listening and have a great Monday.
