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San Diego Humane Society evacuates dogs from LA

 January 10, 2025 at 5:00 AM PST

Good Morning, I’m Debbie Cruz….it’s Friday, January 10th>>>>

Dozens of dogs from the devastating wildfires in L-A have been evacuated to San Diego. More on that next. But first... let’s do the headlines….

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A red flag wildfire warning is still in effect for parts of eastern San Diego County due to strong Santa Ana winds and dry weather. It ends at 6 p.m. tonight (Friday).

In East County, sustained winds 30 to 40 miles per hour are likely, with gusts potentially as high as 75 miles per hour.

Alex Tardy, the warning coordination meteorologist for the National Weather Service says people need to stay vigilant.

“We don't know where there's going to be a spark if there will be so we want to prevent those. That's not predictable but what is predictable is the weather and how dry it is. And if we do get a spark, how erratic and extreme behavior, where the fires may be impossible to stop in some cases or just difficult overall. So everyone needs to be aware that the vegetation in our area, as we're having these thin and wins the vegetation, thinks it's October, even though the calendar says, it's January, it's that dry.”

The Weather Service said there’s a chance of weaker Santa Ana winds early next week.

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Commercial flights are officially coming to Carlsbad’s McClellan-Palomar Airport.

San Diego County Supervisors on Thursday approved a two-year lease agreement that will let American Airlines begin daily flights to Phoenix.

American will operate an Embraer 175 jet with the first departure starting at 6:15 a.m.

The last time commercial flights flew out of Carlsbad was in 2015.

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YeeHaw! The San Diego Rodeo returns to Petco Park today (Friday) through Sunday.

The event brings together some of the top rodeo athletes competing for more than $800,000 in prize money according to the Padres.

In addition to traditional rodeo events, this year’s event will include afterparties and concerts.

Like last year, animal rights groups are opposing the rodeo. The group Last Chance for Animals is planning a protest today outside Petco Park.

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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.

The San Diego Humane Society helped to evacuate dozens of dogs from the devastating wildfires in L-A. North County reporter Alexander Nguyen says they now need your help to relieve their already crowded shelters.

San Diego Humane Society shelters were already overcrowded … but when the Pasadena Humane Society called … they stepped up. Jordan Frey with the San Diego Humane Society says our region is no stranger to wildfires. “We're really grateful to be able to help in an emergency. Just as we know our animal welfare partners in California and beyond would help us as well” More than three dozen dogs were evacuated to help make room for animals lost or displaced by the fires.

Now … the Humane Society is asking for help fostering these dogs to ease the strain at their shelters.“We're going to give you everything you need to foster.” To sign up, visit s-d-humane-dot-org-slash-foster. Alexander Nguyen KPBS News

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President-elect Donald Trump’s promise of mass deportations could send thousands of people to Tijuana.

Reporter Gustavo Solis says city officials there plan to open a shelter for those who end up deported.

Tijuana Mayor Ismael Burgueno says the city is taking a proactive approach. They’re planning a shelter with enough room for 10,000 people … and the ability to increase capacity to 30,000. He says a large shelter will prevent encampments in public spaces. Los espacios públicos en el municipio no serán utilizados para migrantes. Yo creo que los espacios públicos no deben de utilizarse. Burgueno envisions a dignified space – where deportees can have access to social services, health clinics, a job center, and outdoor space. Queremos darles el mejor resultado posible y tratar como merece la gente que son deportados. Tijuana is working with the state and federal governments to fund and operate the space. Officials plan to announce the shelter’s location over the weekend but have not said when it will open.Gustavo Solis, KPBS News

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The new Congress started this week. Congresswoman Sarah Jacobs spoke to public matters reporter Amita Sharma about what to expect in the upcoming months.

So we last spoke before the November election. You were optimistic about vice president Kamala Harris's prospects. Now as president-elect Donald Trump is about to embark on his second term in the White House, what are your thoughts? Look. I think it was a real wake up call that so many Americans feel so dissatisfied with the status quo. And I'll be honest, these are some of the issues I've been talking about for a long time. We know the cost of living is too high and, frankly, we as democrats didn't do enough to address it. And I think that we need to do a lot more on that issue, and that's what I'm gonna focus on in these next 2 years, finding ways to continue to get things done for our community on issues like child care, like building more housing, like addressing the really high cost of living that folks in San Diego and all across the country are facing. So congresswoman Jacobs, is there common ground between congressional Democrats and president-elect Trump? I know 300 groups sent a letter to the new congress this week urging them to protect Medicaid, which Republicans are threatening to underfund. You know, it's really hard to tell at this point which Donald Trump you're gonna get. On on the 1 hand, you know, he's proposing these big tax cuts for the wealthy and big corporations that would necessitate cutting Medicaid and Medicare and Social Security and other things that we know are incredibly important. On the other hand, people like vice president-elect JD Vance spend a lot of time talking about child care and the child tax credit. And so we're going to try and find areas to work across the aisle and actually be able to get done these things while also recognizing that a lot of the incoming Trump administration's agenda will really hurt families in San Diego, in particular around the issues of mass deportation, which will really affect our economy in San Diego, and the trans troop ban that's going to severely hurt our military's ability to recruit and stay ready for whatever the future may hold. Well, let's talk about mass deportations of undocumented people. Polls gaging American support for this plan are mixed. There are between a 150,000 to a 170,000 of those people who fall into that category in San Diego County and about another 150,000 who live in mixed status households. California is a sanctuary state. How do you think this issue will unfold? I think we in San Diego know better than most how important our immigrant community is to our economy and to the fabric of our communities. And so I think what we need to understand when we're talking about this mass deportation plan of the incoming Trump administration is that there is no prioritization. It will be a broad based, broad swath deportation even if folks in mixed status families, even they've said potentially US citizens in order to, quote, unquote, keep families together, and it will severely, severely hurt our economy in San Diego from raising the price of construction and food to hurting our cross border economy that we know is so interlinked with the economy in Mexico. And it will also likely increase border wait times because so many of the resources will be going towards this unprioritized deportation. So what do you view as your role if these deportations do get underway? For me, I'm focusing on the things that we can do. So number 1, that's oversight, oversight, making sure that laws and statutes are actually being followed, that there is, you know, insomuch as there are legal protections that those are staying in place, that we 1are putting pressure to make sure that there are humane processes in place, and then to see where we can find areas with some folks across the aisle. Remember, they will only have a 1 to 3 person majority here in the house where we can push back on some of these really harmful things and, you know, find a a couple of handful of folks on the other side of the aisle who are willing to do this. We were able to change the family separation policy when the American people learned about it. And so a big part of this is really making sure we're doing the oversight to call attention to issues and then seeing if we can find allies, even just a few, across the aisle to push back on these really harmful things. So another group of people in the region looking at a second Trump presidency with some trepidation are scientists. Some have expressed worry that if they oppose the incoming administration's policies dealing with science, they might lose federal grants. Is it fair justified? And if it is, what will you do to ensure that doesn't happen? We know that Republicans, are looking for any way to cut, to cut funding and really needed funding for our communities. And so I think the fear is valid, but we will continue working and find allies across the aisle to push back on some of these really harmful cuts that the incoming Trump administration is talking about. Okay. We're gonna leave it there. Congresswoman Jacobs, thank you so much for speaking with me today. Of course. Thanks for having me.

That was Congresswoman Sara Jacobs speaking with Public Matters reporter Amita Sharma.

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An Escondido sanctuary has been taking on endangered and sick reptiles, but the high costs are stacking up.

North County reporter Tania Thorne says they now face eviction.

Over 400 reptiles call the Escondido EcoVivarium... Home. There you can find snakes, skinks, dragons, and tarantulas. But the EcoVivarium is at risk of extinction. The costs to take care of the animals, rent, electricity, and staff are stacking up. This year has been really tough, you know, for everybody. I mean, let's face it, the economy has been really brutal. 

Susan Nowicke is the nonprofits founder. She says mom and pop businesses have also stopped donating and larger grants have dried up.  The sanctuary is now three months behind on rent and facing eviction. 

we're really asking for the public's support right now.We need it desperately because our animals are unique.  We're one of the largest reptile sanctuaries in the country, and there aren't a lot of options. Nowicke hopes visits and donations will increase to sustain the EcoVivarium and their work- which requires daily care. Tania Thorne KPBS News  

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That’s it for the podcast today. This week’s podcast was produced by Lainie Alfaro and Brenden Tuccinardi. It’s edited by Brooke Ruth. As always you can find more San Diego news online at KPBS dot org. I’m Debbie Cruz. Thanks for listening and have a great weekend.

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More than three dozen dogs were evacuated to help make room for animals lost or displaced by the fires in Los Angeles. Now, the San Diego Humane Society is asking for help fostering the dogs. Then, Tijuana officials plan to open a shelter in response to President-elect Donald Trump’s promise of mass deportations. Plus, we hear from Congresswoman Sarah Jacobs on what she expects as President-elect Trump takes office.