Results tagged “lacounty”

A little dispute is happening in Orange County near the L.A. County border. Residents are starting to get sick of the over-and-over-again mentality of once again widening a freeway (two lanes this year, another two in ten years). The problem is along the 405 Freeway between Irvine and the L.A. County border where 300,000 people commute daily.

James Wagner, a journalist over at the San Gabriel Valley Tribune tweeted this gem of a local fact today: "LA County to appoint Buzz Aldrin as Honorary Consul General to the Moon. No joke. LA County/Moon relations will now be better than ever." Don't believe it? It's on tomorrow's agenda (.pdf)

Limited supplies of the in-demand H1N1 Swine Flu vaccine are forcing the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health to be very strict in deciding who can get the preventative treatment at area clinics, reports the Daily Breeze. Thousands of people hoping to ward off the infectious virus have swarmed clinics and special vaccination events, however now individuals "not deemed at risk for swine flu are being asked to stay away from county-run vaccination clinics until more supplies become available."

For those who plan on getting the H1N1 vaccine and fit into the priority group categories, but don't have insurance, are underinsured or could just use a free dose, rotating free clinics in Los Angeles County open tomorrow. Only a handful are open each day, rotating in different parts of the region.

Although there is a state law that allows parents to legally surrender a newborn baby, there are proper ways to do it and not do it. Last Friday, firefighters in Norwalk returned from an emergency call when "observant crew members" spotted him. "Most abandoned babies are never found alive," noted a news release from the LA County Fire Department.

The first round of clinics for free H1N1 vaccinations will open their doors next week Friday, LA County Public Health officials announced today. "This is so residents all over the county that don't have access to health insurance or providers can get vaccinated," said Dr. Jonathan E. Fielding, LA County's Health Officer, this morning in a telephone press conference.

The first batch of H1N1 (Swine Flu) vaccinations have arrived in Los Angeles County, health officials announced at a noon press conference today. 92,000 doses are here with larger shipments expected in coming weeks. By the end of the month, 1 to 1.5 million doses should be in local clinics and doctors' offices.

Yesterday, Swiss officials refused to grant a bail request for the release of notorious film director Roman Polanski, who has been detained there since late last month following his arrest in Zurich on a thirty-year-old warrant from Los Angeles County. Feeling the flee-friendly and famed French citizen was a flight-risk, the Swiss are not bowing to pressure from members of foreign governments or cinema power-players to let the septuagenarian go.

The first batches of H1N1 flu vaccine are expected to arrive next week to clinics and doctor's offices, the LA County Department of Public Health announced today. By the end of the month, most doctors and healthcare providers will have some doses available. Those who fall within defined "priority groups" should contact their doctor about receiving the FluMist nasal spray of the H1N1 vaccine, officials said. Priority is given to young people (in good health) aged two to 24 years of age, healthcare and emergency service workers and people who live with or care for infants less than six months of age.

A long summer of hot-hot-hot heat means lots of beach days for Southern Californians. Now that the season is wrapped up, Heal the Bay has released their annual Summer Beach Report Card [PDF]. The non-profit group graded nearly 500 beaches statewide based on bacterial pollution levels monitored from Memorial Day to Labor Day this year, according to their release, and the news is generally pretty good.

Los Angeles County Sheriff's patrol large swaths of land from up in the Antelope Valley to the Palos Verdes Peninsula. Charged with all unincorporated areas such as parts of South LA and communities like Castaic and cities that contract their services like West Hollywood and Santa Clarita, yesterday the agency announced a major drop in crime despite the economic downturn. The news comes on the heels of four fatal deputy-involved-shootings that occurred within one week's time.

This weekend's fatal deputy involved shootings brings the total number of such incidents to 13 for 2009. There were five in 2008. Before this weekend, Sheriff Lee Baca called for expedited department investigations into deputy shootings of unarmed suspects after such an incident took place last week in Athens. However, at all three shootings this weekend, guns from the suspects were recovered, according to authorities.

A lot of thank-yous, hugs and gratitude has been given to firefighters this past week in light of the recent wildfires, most notably the Station Fire. With that said, Sunset Strip Music Festival organizers today announced that they are allowing free admittance to Los Angeles City and Los Angeles County Firefighters with proper ID into the festival on Saturday when the street closes. Some 40 bands will take the outdoor and indoor-club stages from 2 p.m. to around 9 p.m. (with shows continuing indoors until around 2 a.m.). Headliners include Ozzy Osbourne, Korn, Pepper, The Donnas, Fishbone, Unwritten Law, Kottonmouth Kings, Shiny Toy Guns, Shwayze and LMFAO (see a full list here). Tickets are selling at $39.50 pre-sale, $50 at the door.

[Update, 4:55 p.m.: All Station Fire mandatory evacuations have been lifted in La Cañada Flintridge and La Crescenta except one area, says Bruce Quintelier of the Forest Service. The area still under an evacuation order is north of Markridge between Pennsylvania and Lowell with a voluntary evacuation from Santa Carlotta to Markridge between Pennsylvania and Lowell. See a map below]

While it's all high fives in Sacramento, it's stress in the city and county halls of across the state. A big part of the state's budget solution is on the backs of local governments, raiding their funds and only sometimes with a plan of paying them back years later. In the LA Times, the budget proposal from Monday night was likened to a “ponzi scheme that passes off responsibility to future governors, legislators and to our taxpayers" by Judy Mitchell, mayor of Rolling Hills Estates and president of the League of California Cities.

It's summer and that means county fairs. While the LA County Fair is set to begin in September, Orange County's begins today and will run a longer one week longer than normal--through August 9th--because of a new schedule that closes the event on Mondays and Tuesdays.

The County of Los Angeles has gone ahead and busted themselves. "This is government at its worst," Supervisor Zev Yaroslavsky was quoted saying in the LA Times. "We have a problem, no question about it. But we are going to move quickly to fix it." The county started auditing themselves after they found over 300 unused lines at the now-closed Martin Luther King Jr.-Harbor Hospital. The $1.5 million number only totals what they've discovered so far and it could double when they finish with 16,000 useless lines. Any savings is good news, especially in this economy, but the County has a long way to go. The $22.8 billion budget has department heads trying to cut as much as 13%.

Get ready to reach a little deeper into your pockets come July 1, as several Southern California communities will be seeing a hike in sales tax. The increases are the result of voter and California Board of Equalization approval, explains abc7, although some local areas will actually see a drop, like Orange County's Laguna Beach, where the "city council discontinued a temporary tax increase." Here's where you'll be paying a half-percentage point more in sales tax starting next month: Los Angeles County (9.75 percent); Avalon (10.25 percent); El Monte (10.25 percent); Inglewood (10.25 percent); Pico Rivera (10.75 percent); South Gate (10.75 percent). What do you think? Are sales tax increases the way to go to help us through the economic hard times? Will this affect your spending habits?

Following suit with the LA Department of Water (LADWP), a city agency, the LA County Board of Supervisors declared a water emergency today for three the county areas. Residents served by the Department of Public Works (LADPW) will have to meet a lower 15% tier usage rate or face higher fees, a similar system to the city of Los Angeles. Also, the Board approved to charge customers for "water service availability" in Kagel Canyon, Malibu, Val Verde, Acton and the Antelope Valley.

A middle-aged woman with health problems died late May after contracting swine flu, otherwise known as Influenza A (H1N1), the LA County Department of Health is reporting this morning. “Every death is regrettable, but given the number of H1N1 cases in Los Angeles, identifying the new H1N1 strain in someone who passed away with severe respiratory disease is not unexpected. This flu strain continues to follow a pattern similar to regular seasonal flu,” said Jonathan E. Fielding, MD, MPH, Director of Public Health and Health Officer in an e-mail.

As predicted by health officials last week, Swine Flu would undoubtedly hit Los Angeles County. That news came Saturday night shortly before the 11 p.m. news hour--it was a total of three then--and today the number was upped to 11 across the county. Five of those cases are in Long Beach.

Folks who reside in the northern portion of Los Angeles County in the Santa Clarita Valley sometimes suffer a similar "Identity Crisis" to those who have trouble determining just what official City of Los Angeles Neighborhood they live in. A recent article in the Signal, the SCV paper, references to the commonality of residents who face "uncertainty about city-county boundaries."

It's official: There are three confirmed reported cases of Swine Flu, aka H1N1, in Los Angeles County. The word comes from the County health department, who made the announcement last night. One case is a female student at Cal State Long Beach, whose status as "Swine Flu Sufferer" has been in question for several days now, and "the other confirmed cases are in residents of central and southeast Los Angeles," according to the Daily Breeze.

The LA County Coroner's office told a group of reporters at 1:30 p.m. that they have "no confirmed swine flu cases at this time." Two recent deaths were reported this morning as possibly related to the disease. After test results, the Coroner's Office said one of the deaths is definitely not swine flu and the other one is inconclusive at this time. However, at a public meeting with the LA County Board of Supervisors, County Health Director Dr. Jonathan Fielding says to expect Swine Flu in LA County. He recommends that you wash your hands often. So far, there have been no deaths in the United States.

He also says "there is no need for alarm." Today's declaration of a state of emergency will quicken government response and aid in limiting Swine Flu's spread as quickly as possible. "[It] sets in motion a series of administrative actions, including ordering all agencies to coordinate with public health officials as needed," the Associated Press explained. Additionally, a local state of emergency was declared today by the LA County Board of Supervisors.

Two deaths in LA County initially listed as caused by pneumonia could actually be swine flu. "Coroner's spokesman Craig Harvey said his office would collect specimens from the deceased and send them to the county public health department, which would determine whether either person died from the swine flu," said the LA Times. If in fact these were related to the disease, the deaths would be the first caused by it in the United States. The deceased are two men, a 33-year-old from Long Beach and a 45-year-old from La Mirada.

Today is Earth Day, but many of us are pledging to continue, or take on endeavors and habits that will make every day more green. If you're curious about solar power, and if it's the right step for you to take for your home or business, the LA County SolarMap and website can help you make your decision.

Remember to dot your "I's" and cross your "T's." A mansion in unincorporated Chatsworth that sustained $3 millions in fire damage early yesterday morning had an outdated phone number attached to its alarm system. Starting last Saturday, two days before the fire, any local calls made within the 818 area code required 1-818 before dialing local numbers because of the new 747 area code overlay. The auto call to alert the local fire department never made it, which may have caused a delay in their arrival. Because the home was inside a gated community and initially there was low water pressure, firefighter's response times attack on the fire was additionally delayed. All four occupants of the house escaped safely and one firefighter broke his ankle.

California's Department of Public Health and the California Conference of Local Health Officers released their annual report on the state of our health late this week, and it looks like "Los Angeles County residents are less likely to die of lung cancer, suicide or car crashes than residents of most other California counties - but more likely to die from heart disease and diabetes, according to the Daily News. In fact, our county "ranked 48 out of 58 in deaths from heart disease and 46 in diabetes."

It's April 1st and that means a few things other than your taxes are due in 15 days. The state's sales tax increases today by 1%, meaning within the city of Los Angeles, we'll be paying 9.25%. That is, until July when Measure R kicks in lopping on another half cent, meaning we'll have a 9.75% sales tax. And wait, there's more: on the May 19th statewide special election ballot, Prop 1a asks us to extend higher taxes by one to two years beyond the 2011 expiration. For some other cities in LA County, their sales tax is getting close to 11%.