Snow began falling on Thursday morning in Mount Laguna during the first winter storm this month.
Residents living in elevations between 4,000-6,000 feet could see snow tonight, according to the National Weather Service.
Click here to see where to play in the snow
Snow will fall mostly in the evening and is expected in Cuyamaca, Julian and Mount Laguna.
NWS said accumulation will be between 2 and 6 inches.
The winter weather advisory will last until 4 a.m. Friday.
A large boulder rolled into a Poway house Thursday morning, crashing into the home's garage and crushing multiple pipes along the way, fire authorities said.
Authorities were called to the home in the 13700 block of Vian Road after a six-by-six-foot rock rolled down a hill, ripping through a tree before coming to a stop inside the home's garage.
PHOTOS: Boulder Smashes into Poway Home
Resident JeNielle Rose-Gendelman has lived in the home for 54 years and was in the room next to the garage when she heard the loud crash.
"I went into the garage and I saw the washing machine on the floor and then I looked over and saw the rock and couldn’t believe it," she said.
Crews said the boulder missed the propane tank outside the home by about 12 feet. However, the rock broke propane lines and other pipes in its path.
Rose-Gendelman was not injured by the boulder, but was still shocked when she spoke to NBC 7 about the rock. She said her dog typically sleeps in the garage, but was fortunately inside the house with her at the time.
"It’s a big mess, and a big boulder, and I don’t know how it’s going to get out," she said through tears. "I mean, how incredible! I haven’t even had time to call my friends and ask them to pray for me."
Coincidentally, this is the second boulder that has rolled near Rose-Gendelman's house. The first one was smaller and didn't damage any structures, unlike this one.
Gendelman said she has insurance and hopes to get her house repaired. Though she said she doesn't want to move away from the home her father built himself 54 years ago.
Kevin Hitchcock, Poway Fire Department division chief, said he did not know where the boulder came from. Up the hill, though, a trail of crushed debris led to another boulder.
"All of a sudden this boulder started coming down, but no cause, I have no idea why that rock would have come down today."
Fire crews became concerned about a strong odor coming from the home shortly after they arrived. They said it was a mix of gasoline, pesticides and propane, possibly mixed by the many broken pipes in the rock's path.
The common pesticide malathion was spilled in the garage near where the boulder was resting. A Hazmat crew was putting bleach on the substance to neutralize it.
A city inspector and fire crews are investigating the home. The inspector told NBC 7 that the water main is also broken.
The area was heavily impacted by Thursday's rain storm, which soaked the area and left the ground muddy.
The city inspector said the home is stable and safe enough for Rose-Gendelman to be inside.
This isn't the first time San Diegans have seen the dangerous scenario. In January 2010, a boulder crashed into a Vista home.
Also, in February 2000, a huge boulder smashed into a Rancho San Diego house during heavy rains. The 140-ton boulder did so much damage it took days for crews to remove it by drilling holes in the granite and breaking it up into smaller pieces.
A man on trial in an alleged prison assault slashed his attorney with a razor Wednesday.
The attack took place at 10:20 p.m. in Dept. 25 in San Diego Superior Court downtown while a prosecution rebuttal witness was on the stand.
Eduardo Macias, one of three defendants on trial in an alleged prison assault, allegedly slashed his defense attorney, Bill Burgener across the cheek according to the court spokesperson.
The attack took place in front of the jury as well as members of the public including visiting students from Grossmont High School who were at court to observe the legal process from the gallery.
Judge Peter C. Deddeh has recessed the trial until Friday when all parties will return to decide whether the trial will continue.
No update was given on Burgener's condition. He is a practicing criminal defense attorney with 30 years of experience in San Diego.
The sheriff's department said it requires all inmates to be searched and passed through a metal detector before leaving the facility for court. Deputies also check inmates when they arrive at court.
Check back for updates on this story.
A California State Park Ranger was involved in a shooting at the Torrey Pines Reserve Thursday afternoon, officials said.
Medics were called to the reserve off of North Torrey Pines Road at about 2:30 p.m., according to the San Diego Police Department. Lifeguards also joined officials at the scene.
Park rangers were in the park following a report of a male subject being naked running through the park, said Cpt. Terry McManus with SDPD. Later in the afternoon, a park ranger was conducting a routine checkup of the foot trails when he came across a homeless encampment, including a tent.
The ranger went inside the tent and found a man living in it, said McManus. The ranger talked to the man for 10 minutes and asked for identification. A second park ranger went to the scene, so the man and first ranger exited the tent to talk outside.
The subject then went back into the tent and emerged holding a knife and possibly a machete, said McManus. He then advanced toward the officers in a threatening manner, prompting one of the rangers to fire his gun. The man was shot in the torso and fell to the ground.
Rangers then called medics to the scene, and the suspect was arrested and transported to a local hospital.
The suspect is undergoing surgery and has non-life threatening injuries, said McManus.
It is unclear if the suspect is the same man who was seen naked earlier in the day.
The reserve is located near the Torrey Pines Golf Course. Aerial images show the shooting took place near one of the reserve's trails.
More than a dozen law-enforcement vehicles lined up near the trail while police investigated.
Police are looking for witnesses and the investigation is ongoing.
Check back for updates on this story.
An unknown man attempted to carjack three different victims in the same shopping center parking lot in Oceanside Thursday, officials said.
According to police, the carjacking attempts happened around 2:50 p.m. in the parking lot of a Target store located at 2255 El Camino Real.
In the first attempt, the suspect allegedly approached a woman as she was exiting her car. He showed her what she believed was a knife and ordered her back into the vehicle. She got inside and drove away, leaving the suspect behind, police said.
The man then immediately approached another woman exiting her car in the lot. Police said he brandished a handgun and told her to get back inside her car.
The victim ignored the suspect and ran into the Target store to report the attempted carjacking.
Police said the man then approached a third woman in the same parking lot who was getting out of her car. He attempted to steal her vehicle at gunpoint, ordering her to remove the club device from her steering wheel and leave her keys in the car.
The victim complied, removed the club and left the keys in the car. Before walking away, she activated some sort of kill-switch that disabled the ignition.
The man tried to start the car, but instead became locked inside the vehicle.
He smashed through a window to get out and fled the scene, police said.
All three victims were not injured.
Police searched the area for the suspect, but were unable to immediately locate him. He remains outstanding.
Officers describe the suspect as a white male in his 40s to 60s with a thin build and “leathery” skin. He was carrying a black backpack and was described by witnesses as transient in his appearance. He wore a blue denim jacket, pink shirt and blue jeans.
The investigation is ongoing and anyone with information on this case is urged to contact Oceanside police.
Beginning Monday, the 5th Avenue trolley station in downtown San Diego will be closed for three months, a spokesperson from MTS confirmed.
The busy trolley stop is the last station in the downtown section to be renovated under the $720 million Trolley Renewal Project.
Work being done to the 5th Avenue station includes raising the platform to accommodate new, low-floor trolley cars. New passenger shelters and electronic signs will also be installed in the area.
MTS says the station's platform length will be expanded as well, providing ample room for pedestrians crossing C Street, 5th Avenue and 6th Avenue.
In the meantime, passengers can use the Civic Center trolley station located two blocks west of the 5th Avenue stop, or the City College trolley station located five blocks east.
The Trolley Renewal Project is slated for completion by the end of 2014, with all stations on the Blue Line, Green Line and Orange Line being renovated.
The improvements are designed to foster faster trips, better on-time performance and enhanced amenities for San Diego’s trolley service.
For additional details on this project, click here.
Wednesday’s 12/12/12 date was certainly a memorable one – particularly for 116 newlywed couples in San Diego County.
According to final stats released Thursday from the San Diego County Assessor/Recorder/Clerk’s office, a total of 124 marriage licenses were issued locally on 12/12/12, and a total of 116 civil ceremonies were performed at the County Administration Center in Chula Vista, El Cajon and San Marcos offices.
Assessor/Recorder/Commissioner of Civil Marriages, Ernest J. Dronenburg, Jr., said all couples who wanted to obtain a marriage license or get married on 12/12/12 were successfully served.
“12/12/12 wedding ceremony reservations were nearly completely booked,” said Dronenburg in a media statement. “We accommodated all couples who wanted to be married by assigning additional staff, and at our Downtown location, we offered walk-in service for couples without appointments.”
In comparison to other unique dates that have passed in recent years -- including 7/7/07, 8/8/08 and 9/9/09 – this year's special day held its own.
According to San Diego County clerk records, 107 marriage licenses and civil ceremonies were issued on 7/7/07, while 195 marriage licenses and 192 civil ceremonies were requested on 8/8/08.
On 9/9/09, 120 marriage licenses were issued in San Diego, and 73 civil ceremonies were performed.
Wednesday’s 12/12/12 date was the last of the repeating dates until January 1, 2101 -- making it that much more special.
A 17-year-old student at Chula Vista High School has been diagnosed with pertussis, the County Health and Human Services Agency (HHSA) announced Thursday.
According to the HHSA, the student was up-to-date with the pertussis vaccine. The Agency is now working with Chula Vista High School officials to notify students, parents and school staff who may have been exposed to whooping cough.
A typical case of pertussis includes a cough and runny nose for one to two weeks, followed by weeks or months of rapid coughing that, at times, ends with a whooping sound. The disease can be treated with antibiotics.
To date, 138 whooping cough cases have been reported in San Diego County. That number has decreased significantly from last year, when 400 pertussis cases were reported locally.
Health officials say vaccination is the best protection against whooping cough.
For information about pertussis and ongoing vaccination clinics, call the HHSA Immunization Branch at (866) 358-2966 or visit this website.
An unknown man attempted to carjack three different victims in the same shopping center parking lot in southern California on Thursday, officials said.
According to police, the carjacking attempts happened around 2:50 p.m. in the parking lot of a Target store in Oceanside, Calif.
In the first attempt, the suspect allegedly approached a woman as she was exiting her car. He showed her what she believed was a knife and ordered her back into the vehicle. She got inside and drove away, leaving the suspect behind, police said.
The man then immediately approached another woman exiting her car in the lot. Police said he brandished a handgun and told her to get back inside her car.
The victim ignored the suspect and ran into the Target store to report the attempted carjacking.
Police said the man then approached a third woman in the same parking lot who was getting out of her car. He attempted to steal her vehicle at gunpoint, ordering her to remove the club device from her steering wheel and leave her keys in the car.
The victim complied, removed the club and left the keys in the car. Before walking away, she activated some sort of kill-switch that disabled the ignition.
The man tried to start the car but instead became locked inside the vehicle.
He smashed through a window to get out and fled the scene, police said.
None of the three victims was injured.
Police searched the area for the suspect but were unable to immediately locate him. He remains outstanding.
Officers describe the suspect as a white male in his 40s to 60s with a thin build and "leathery" skin. He was carrying a black backpack and was described by witnesses as transient in his appearance. He wore a blue denim jacket, pink shirt and blue jeans.
The investigation is ongoing.
A sailor from San Diego has died after falling on a Navy ship, the U.S. Navy told WAVY in Norfolk.
Darian A. Drouin, 19, was assigned to USS Carter Hall off the coast of North Carolina when he fell in the ship's well deck during a training exercise, the NBC affiliate reported.
The sailor was evacuated via Navy helicopter to the hospital. Despite life-saving efforts from crews on board, he was pronounced dead.
An investigation into the incident is ongoing.
USS Carter Hall is part of USS Bataan Amphibious Ready Group Training.
Appearing calm and healthy, anti-software software founder John McAfee gave an interview to CNBC Friday morning from Miami, saying he had nothing to do with the murder of his neighbor in Belize.
But he also added that if he is formally charged with the November killing of Gregory Viant Faull, who lived a couple of houses down from McAfee's compound on Ambergris Caye, off Belize's Caribbean coast, that he would "certainly" return to Belize to answer those charges. "But there will be no charges," he emphatically told CNBC.
The interview continued with McAfee describing a Belizean conspiracy against him, saying that the authorities in his homeland of four years has charged him with several crimes, including running a meth lab, none of which he is guilty of. "This is their 11th attempt to charge with with something."
As to why he went into hiding, and flew to Guatemala recently to avoid Belizean police, McAfee said that he has been hiding from those officers long before the Faull incident. He said the government there had been after him since late April and he has been trying to avoid them since then.
The 67-year-old McAfee has been in Miami since late Wednesday night after being deported to the United States from Guatemala. He had snuck there illegally from Belize, where police have wanted to question him in connection with Faull's death.
McAfee has told several news agencies that Belizean authorities over time have made up several allegations against him, but he didn't explain why.
It remains unclear whether U.S. authorities have any interest in talking to McAfee. An FBI spokesman in Miami said the agency wasn't involved with McAfee's return to the U.S.
Other U.S. agencies haven’t said whether McAfee would be questioned or detained in the country. Officials said there was no active arrest warrant for McAfee that would justify taking him into custody.
McAfee is a global figure who has lived all over the place, including his birthplace of England, then New York when he was a programmer for NASA's Institute for Space Studies and also in Santa Clara, where he used to work for Lockheed in the 1980s and later founded McAfee Associates, which today, remains one of the largest anti-virus companies in the world.
The Associated Press and NBC Miami's Ari Odzer and Juan Ortega contributed to this report.
Friday's horrific elementary school shooting in Newtown, Conn., in which NBC News reported 20 children and 7 adults were killed, was among the deadliest school shootings in U.S. history, second only to the 2007 Virginia Tech massacre that took 32 lives. It comes on the heels of a tragic string of massacres in recent years:
April 2:
Former student One Goh, 43, allegedly went to small Christian school Oikos University in Oakland, Calif., took a receptionist hostage, and shot people in classrooms, apparently at random, according to students. He allegedly killed seven people, then went to a nearby grocery store, where he was apprehended by police.
April 16, 2007:
Virginia Tech student Seung-Hui Cho, a mentally troubled English major, shot dead 32 people and wounded another 17 on his school's campus, in the deadliest shooting by a single gunman in U.S. history. He afterward killed himself.
Oct. 2, 2006:
Charles Roberts entered an Amish school in Pennsylvania armed with a handgun, sent away male students, barricaded himself and the girls in the school, chained the girls together at the blackboard and shot them, killing five and wounding five others. Roberts, who was not himself Amish, had left suicide notes for his family.
March 21, 2005:
Jeffrey Weise, 16, killed his grandfather, a police sergeant, and his grandfather's girlfriend on an Indian reservation in Red Lake, Minn., before killing another seven people at his high school and himself.
April 20, 1999:
Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold, seniors at Columbine High School in Littleton, Colo., committed a massacre at their school that they planned for a year. After trying to detonate propane bombs in the school cafeteria, the armed pair opened fire on classmates and faculty throughout the school building, killing 12 students and a teacher, before killing themselves.
March 24, 1998:
Mitchell Johnson, 13, and Andrew Golden, 11, armed with guns stolen from Golden's grandfather, drove Johnson's mother's minivan to Westside Middle School in Jonesboro, Ark. They pulled the fire alarm to lure students and teachers out of the school, and in an ambush from the woods, they killed four students and a teacher and wounded another nine students and a teacher.
While backers of new laws that legalized marijuana in Washington and Colorado were cautiously optimistic after President Barack Obama said Uncle Sam wouldn't pursue pot users in those states, one local advocate said the atmosphere in San Diego was still one of fear.
Following the November votes in Washington and Colorado the Justice Department reiterated that marijuana remains illegal under federal law, but had been vague about what its specific response would be.
In a Barbara Walters interview airing Friday on ABC, President Barack Obama said: "It does not make sense from a prioritization point of view" to focus on drug use in states where it is now legal.
“Although the comments of the president are encouraging, on the ground, in actual reality, we have not seen those comments translate into reality,” said Eugene Davidovich of San Diego Americans for Safe Access (ASA), an organization that supports the use of cannabis for medicinal reasons.
“Patients fear walking into a dispensary and being raided by the local Narcotics Task Force for simply getting medicine,” Davidovich said.
San Diego-area medicinal marijuana advocates report a “ramping up” of local authorities targeting collective delivery services in San Diego County recently.
Davidovich claimed one cannabis delivery service was targeted Thursday by members of the Narcotics Task Force.
Marijuana activists were relieved at Obama's comments, but still had questions about how regulation will work.
They said even if individual users aren't charged with crimes, marijuana producers and sellers could be subject to prosecution, civil forfeiture and other legal roadblocks.
In San Diego County, federal agents worked with local authorities to shut down dispensaries of medicinal marijuana earlier this year.
In fact, in February, four dispensaries were shuttered in just one week under a landlord law. At the time, Special Agent Amy Roderick with the U.S. Attorney’s Office told NBC 7 San Diego "We will eventually close every single one down in San Diego County."
In the ABC interview, President Obama didn't specifically address how the federal government would respond to state officials in Washington and Colorado, who under the new laws are now tasked with coming up with regulations for commercial pot sales.
Obama simply told Walters that going after "recreational users" would not be a "top priority."
