Investigators sifting through the rubble of an explosion that leveled a Southern California home Wednesday, killing one person and leaving two others critically injured, determined the blast was related to illegal drug activity.

Investigators said they discovered butane and marijuana on the property. The explosion, reported in a small home behind a larger one in the 3300 block of Gray Street in Muscoy, was so large that it caused a portion of newly paved road to buckle, according to the San Bernardino County Fire Department.

"It was like a big boom and the whole house just shook," said one neighbor. "It was really crazy."

Three people were pulled form the rubble. One of them died and two others were hospitalized.

A neighbor who lives a few homes away said he ran to help after feeling the blast and found one man who had escaped and was able to walk. He said a woman was hurt and another man did not survive.

"Everything was destroyed," he said.

Natural gas has been ruled out as the cause of the blast, according to investigators with the fire department and the Southern California Gas Company. Authorities said the explosion was likely because of an illegal drug manufacturing operation in the home that involved honey oil extraction.

The highly-potent drug is made using THC from marijuana. Manufacturing honey oil is considered high value and low risk until butane vapors are ignited and explode.

Muscoy is a community of nearly 11,000 north of Rialto in San Bernardino County.

A plea to find those responsible for a rash of sea lion shootings in San Diego has drawn national support.

The Humane Society of the United States along with the Humane Society Wildlife Land Trust are offering a $5,000 reward for information leading to the arrest of the person or people responsible for shooting eight sea lions over the past year.

San Diego Animal Advocates (SDAA) has already put up a $2,000 reward, so the full reward for an arrest is now $7,000.

In the past year, wildlife workers have discovered eight sea lions with gunshot wounds on San Diego County Beaches. All eight had to be euthanized, according to SDAA.

Six of those cases occurred within the last two months, SDAA has said.

In the meantime, three other sea lions have been found impaled with fishing gaffs, poles used to spear fish and flip them back into a fishing boat. On Oct. 26, SeaWorld rescued a sea lion at La Jolla Cove who had a fishing gaff hook lodged in his shoulder.

“These intelligent, social creatures experienced immense suffering from such senseless shootings,” Scott Beckstead, the Humane Society of the United States’s western regional director, said in a news release. “We are grateful for NOAA (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration)’s work to investigate these heinous crimes.”

Harming a sea lion is a violation of the Marine Mammal Protection Act and is punishable by up to a $100,000 fine and one year of incarceration.

Anyone with information about the shootings should call NOAA Special Agent Michelle Zetwo at 619-557-5494 or the NOAA hotline at 1-800-853-1964. Tips may be anonymous.

The fatal shooting of man by his brother, an off-duty San Diego police officer, has been determined to be justified, police said Wednesday.

A Chula Vista police lieutenant said the only victim in the case is Officer Bryan Castillo and the only suspect, Wesley Castillo, 34, is dead.

Wesley Castillo is accused of instigating the violent fight last Friday, which started as an argument with his parents.

Castillo suffers from mental health issues, police say, so when he started to get physical with his mother, his brother and SDPD officer Bryan Castillo intervened.

Arming himself with knives, Castillo stabbed Bryan four times. Investigators say Bryan, in self-defense, shot his brother.

Bryan, a 6-year veteran of the SDPD, was found bleeding in the complex's parking lot and was taken to the hospital. He was released this week.

Former employees of General Atomics in La Jolla will now be entitled to compensation and benefits if they became sick as a result of working in the nuclear weapons industry.

The U.S. Labor Department made the announcement Wednesday extending what’s called Energy Employees Occupational Illness Compensation Program Act (EEOICPA) benefits to people who worked at the La Jolla facility from 1960 through 1969.

Workers may have been exposed to radioactive and toxic substances and incurred illnesses as a result.

Survivors of qualified workers may be entitled to benefits as well.

Former workers diagnosed of 22 specific cancers may receive presumption of causation under the program, officials said.

So far, more the $18 million in compensation and medical benefits has been paid to 159 General Atomics workers.

More than $10.9 billion has been paid nationwide.

For additional information about the new General Atomics SEC or to schedule an appointment for claim-filing assistance, contact the department’s California Resource Center at 866-606-6302.
 

A man wanted on a felony warrant tried to escape from police Wednesday, leading them on a chase through El Cajon.

Undercover officers and the Fugitive Task Force were searching for Hector Miranda, 34, who was wanted on a felony parole violation warrant. He is also the lead suspect of a stabbing assault, El Cajon Police say.

At about 12:15 p.m, Miranda was spotted leaving a library on E. Douglas, but officers were not able to stop him before he got into a vehicle.

When a patrol car tried to pull him over, police say Miranda took off. Driving onto the freeway and into unincorporated areas, officers pursued Miranda and watched him sideswipe one car and hit another parked vehicle.

Officers followed him as he started to enter Highway 52 from Magnolia Avenue, and officials decided it was too dangerous to let him get on the freeway again.

They used “legal intervention” to force Miranda’s vehicle to the side of the onramp, though El Cajon Police did not specify what that intervention entailed.

Officers found a female passenger inside with Miranda, and both she and the suspect complained of minor pains after they were pulled over.  

Officers took them to the hospital for examination. They then arrested Miranda but let the woman go, saying she was a victim of circumstance.

Miranda was booked into jail for violation of parole and evading an officer causing injury.

A loggerhead sea turtle has arrived in San Diego all the way from the East Coast.

After a cross-country flight, the 97-pound turtle, dubbed “Jersey,” landed in San Diego on Wednesday night. It is the first of its kind for the Birch Aquarium at Scripps.

The turtle should be available for viewing by the middle of January. It's currently undergoing routine health and husbandry assessments in preparation for its move to its new habitat in the Hall of Fishes.

It hopefully concludes a harrowing journey for the turtle, which came from the South Carolina Aquarium Sea Turtle Rescue Program.

“This turtle has already been through so much in its short life,” said Jenn Nero Moffatt, director of husbandry at Birch Aquarium. “We look forward to giving it a comfortable and happy home and sharing the story of not only this turtle, but all sea turtles, with San Diego’s residents and visitors.”

Last September, Jersey was found caught up at a nuclear generating station’s cooling canal in Forked River, New Jersey – her namesake.

Plant employees found the confused animal not moving her rear flippers, and she had an old wound on her shell, right above the right rear flipper.

The South Carolina program stepped in to care for Jersey, and its veterinarians soon determined the turtle had scoliosis and flipper paralysis, which paralyzed her rear flippers.

They started her rehab, which included cold laser therapy to reduce the inflammation on her spine, physical therapy and a healthy diet.

However, caretakers found it would be impossible to release her back into the wild. Thus began a search for a permanent home, and the ocean’s loss became San Diego’s gain.

A director of the Birch Aquarium at Scripps reached out to the turtle rescue, explaining they had a 50,000-gallon exhibit to house Jersey for the rest of her long life.

Through a fundraising campaign, the aquarium raised more than $50,000 to support the housing and rehabilitative care of the turtle over the next year. Obtaining federal permits to allow turtles in their collection, Birch staff flew to Charleston to meet Jersey and learn the ins and outs of her daily care.

According to the Birch Aquarium, loggerheads are the largest of all hard-shelled turtle, distinctive for their massive heads, strong jaws and reddish brown shells.

Adult males in the species can grow to about three feet in length and weigh roughly 250 pounds. The turtles’ average lifespan is more than 50 years in the wild.

“All sea turtles are protected by the Endangered Species Act due to significant threats such as entanglement in fishing gear, accidental ingestion of plastic and other marine debris, boat strikes, and loss of essential nesting habitat,” said Debbie Zmarzly, interim director of Birch Aquarium at Scripps. “This turtle is an important ambassador for ocean conservation.”

A San Diego Fire-Rescue crew got some police backup after a transient attacked a paramedic Wednesday night, San Diego Police say. 

Officers responded to 5th Avenue and Washington Street at about 10:11 p.m. when the crew called for help.

It's unclear what led to the confrontation, but the transient was soon taken into custody on battery charges. 

The paramedic did not need to be transported from the scene.

The FBI has launched an investigation into allegations of corruption within the police department of Calexico, a small border town east of San Diego.

On Wednesday, the newly-appointed police chief publicly accused his predecessor, some members of his own department and city officials of illegally trying to undermine a criminal investigation, comparing their actions to those of the New York mafia.

“The councilmembers in conjunction with the police officers association and members of that association have used city funds and city resources to run what I would call an extortion racket,” Calexico Police Chief Mike Bostic said.

“I’ve literally had it,” Bostic said. Then, when he talked about calling in the FBI just two weeks into his term, he was moved to tears.

Bostic was brought in last month to replace former Police Chief Pompeyo Tabarez who was fired Oct. 13 “in the interests of the citizens.”

He claims some of the elected officials and POA members were using thousands of dollars in surveillance equipment recently purchased with department funds to follow other members of the city government.

“Exactly like the Mafioso in New York. That’s exactly how they are operating,” the chief said.

After he was on the job for three or four days, Bostic discovered the investigations unit was not working any active cases. The same was true with the narcotics and internal affairs units.

He was unable to find any reports on an alleged kidnapping and assault of a juvenile that took place in October.

“The former chief and his investigative unit were so busy trying to save his career and his job rather than focus on that investigation, they completely botched it,” Bostic alleged.

Several members of the department were placed on paid leave. Other employees were demoted.

He said detectives were using professional tools often used to break into cars. No officer should be carrying them, Bostic said.

“There’s a thing called search warrants in the state of California,” he said. “These were clearly tools for violating people’s rights and we’re trying to get to the bottom of that.”

This was just the most recent development in an ongoing scandal that has been compared to a Telenovela with new shocking details uncovered at weekly city council meetings.

A man accused of stabbing the boss during a job interview made his first court appearance Wednesday.

Jose Franklin Lopez, 24, pleaded not guilty to assault with a deadly weapon other than a firearm. Judge Daniel Goldstein set bail at $100,000.

According to El Cajon police, Lopez showed up drunk to a job interview at 207 Sunshine Avenue on Monday. When the interviewer smelled alcohol on Lopez’s breath and confronted him about it, the situation turned physical.

Police said the boss put Lopez in a headlock. The suspect then stabbed him in the arm and fled. However, he left his job application behind, which led investigators right to him.

The victim was treated Sharp Memorial Hospital for a minor stab wound.

If convicted, Lopez faces five years in prison, four years for the assault charge and an additional year for a probation violation.

A readiness conference is scheduled for Dec. 1, and a preliminary hearing is set for Dec. 4.

Two married San Diego Police officers have pleaded guilty to all drug charges against them, including burglarizing homes while on duty and running a hydrocodone distribution network in the county.

Bryce Charpentier, 32, and Jennifer Charpentier, 41, admitted Wednesday to selling and furnishing a narcotic substance, possession of a firearm by an addict, conspiracy to commit a burglary and conspiracy to commit a crime: possession and sale of a controlled substance.

As a result, the two resigned from the SDPD, effective Wednesday.

"Both of these individuals will have to face the consequences of their actions, which have diminished the great work our officers do every day to serve our City," said SDPD Chief Shelley Zimmerman in a statement.

They are scheduled to be sentenced on Jan. 30, and they each face up to seven years and eight months in prison.

In addition to pleading guilty, they have waived their 4th Amendment search and seizure rights, which means law enforcement can search them at any time.

The officers' change of plea comes two days after new charges were filed against the couple, accusing them of stealing prescription medication from their parent, burglarizing a home while on the clock as officers and leading a distribution chain.

Bryce, a six-year veteran of the SDPD, and Jennifer, an 18-year veteran, were arrested in June during a San Diego County Sheriff’s Department narcotics investigation.

Suspected of being addicted to opiates, both officers were initially charged with selling and furnishing a controlled narcotic substance and possession of a firearm by an addict.

Search warrants say Jennifer got seven different drugs in 71 prescriptions from seven separate doctors and then traveled to 17 pharmacies to fill them. Bryce is accused of going as far as Oakhurst near Yosemite to fill 79 prescriptions from six different doctors.

Then this week, a new complaint shed more light on the accusations against them.

In it, investigators quote text conversations between the married couple that outline their search for drugs they refer to as “V.”

One alleged victim was Jennifer’s mother. During her visit to their home, Bryce texted his wife he was coming back and pulling into the driveway. At that point, Jennifer texted she was taking her mother into the backyard, presumably to distract her while Bryce took prescription medication from her.

The final text from the conversation is from Bryce, telling Jennifer that he placed “V” for her in a candle, the complaint says.

Less than a month later, Bryce texted his wife that he got “a decent amount” during a visit to his mother-in-law’s, according to investigators.

A separate incident described in the complaint involves a victim identified as “M.B.”

According to the complaint, M.B. locked himself in his own bedroom on Jessica’s request, while Bryce and another officer came into his home to use the restroom. The given excuse was that the officer did not want M.B. to see him in his undercover clothes, the complaint says.

M.B. later found out that his legally prescribed medication was stolen.

The complaint says in January 2014, Bryce and Jennifer had offered to take over an existing hydrocodone distribution network in the county. They are accused of making deliveries while their child was with them.

According to prosecutors, the couple was found with a substantial amount of hydrocodone in their possession and was seen completing at least two transactions within a matter of hours.

Police on the Peninsula are asking for the public’s help identifying a pair of burglars caught on security video breaking into a home while a couple of cats looked on.

The Palo Alto resident’s surveillance video captured the break-in Tuesday evening and recorded images of the suspects until of them noticed the camera and disabled it, Palo Alto police said.

No one was at home at the time of the burglary. Police say the two men seen in the video stole a laptop computer and some jewelry from the home.

Shortly after the burglar left the home, the cats also exited, but they were soon reunited with their owner, police said.

According to police, both suspects appear to be in their 30s, about 5’10”, with medium builds. Both appear to have mustaches and goatees, and were wearing eyeglasses and light-colored hats.

Anyone with information is asked to contact the Palo Alto Police Department.

So far in 2014, there have been 107 residential burglaries in Palo Alto, police said.
 

Graco has recalled about 4.7 million strollers in the United States due to a fingertip amputation risk, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission announced Thursday.

Graco has received 11 reports of finger injuries, including fingertip and partial-fingertip amputations. The recalled also affects over 212,000 strollers in Canada and Mexico.

Eleven models of Graco and Century-branded strollers are being recalled. The models named in the recall are: Aspen, Breeze, Capri, Cirrus, Glider, Kite, LiteRider, Sierra, Solara, Sterling and TravelMate.

The affected models were sold at Target, Toys 'R' Us, Walmart and other retailers nationwide from August 2000 through November 2014 for about $40 to $70 for the stroller and about $140 to $170 for the travel system. The strollers were also sold online at Amazon.com, Walmart.com and other online retailers during that time period.

All of the models are single-occupant strollers with an external sliding fold-lock hinge on each side and a one-hand fold release on the handle.

Model numbers and the date of manufacture are printed on a white label on the bottom of the stroller's rear leg.

Click here to see a list of affected model numbers.

If you have one of the recalled strollers, contact Graco at 800-345-4109 Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. until 5 p.m. to receive a free repair kit.

A man’s body found near railroad tracks in Lemon Grove was a homicide, the San Diego County Sheriff’s Department confirmed Wednesday.

The victim has been identified as 55-year-old Dale Robert Wheeler of Lemon Grove.

Wheeler’s body was discovered Sunday morning near the tracks at Lemon Grove Avenue and Palm Street. Officials said there were visible signs of trauma to his body.

The sheriff’s department has not identified a suspect.

Anyone with information can call homicide investigators at 858-974-2321 or Crime Stoppers at 888-580-8477 to remain anonymous.
 

The Buffalo area in Western New York was bracing for 3 more feet of snow after being pounded by a severe weather system for a third day that may leave some areas with nearly 8 feet on the ground when it's all done.

The storm has been blamed for at least ten deaths, NBC News reported.

Gov. Andrew Cuomo said Thursday morning that no more motorists were stranded on streets, but described a "massive problem" of hundreds of abandoned cars still on the roads.

The Buffalo Bills were scheduled to host an NFL game Sunday against the New York Jets, however 4 feet of snow fell on the team's stadium in Orchard Park. A league spokesman said Thursday that the match will be moved, though the NFL has yet to determine where the game will be played.

Cuomo had said it would be "impractical" to hold the game at the Bills' stadium.

More dramatic photos from the snowstorm have emerged:

A Falls Church, Virginia, man is accused of sexually abusing female patients at D.C.-area hospitals while providing care for them as a nurse.

According to court documents obtained by News4, 37-year-old Jared Nathan Kline, a traveling nurse, is facing three sexual abuse charges stemming from incidents at D.C. hospitals, and is also accused of similar behavior at a Prince George’s County, Maryland, hospital.

All four victims reported they were disoriented from severe pain or semi-conscious when the abuse allegedly occurred.

A woman receiving treatment for asthma at United Medical Center in late August 2014 reported her nurse, later identified as Kline, intentionally rubbed her hands against his erect penis while he checked her vitals.

She says that later that day, the same nurse began massaging her underneath her hospital gown. She told police she was scared and pretended to be asleep during the incident. She told police the nurse went on to kiss her and touch her face until someone else entered the room.

When she was discharged from the hospital, she got a text message from the nurse saying she had left behind a makeup bag. She met the nurse outside the hospital for the bag, and he later texted her, "Anytime [sic] love, get better."

She told police she hadn't given her phone number to Kline, and was "upset" he had contacted her in the first place.

After the woman came forward, police realized Kline was a suspect in two other D.C. sex assaults -- one in May 2013, and another in December 2013.

In the May 2013 incident, a woman reported she was sexually assaulted by an emergency room nurse named Jared at the George Washington University Hospital when she was treated for a migraine headache. While receiving treatment, the woman said her nurse gave her a blanket, then "proceeded to pat and grope [her] buttocks."

She said he returned to her room several times later that evening, and rubbed the back of her hand against his erect penis as he was checking her IV.

When interviewed by police, he said her hand touched him "in places that it should not have," that he’s a "pretty lucky white guy," and that because he’s "well-endowed, it is possible her hand could have touched his penis and may have mistakenly believed he was aroused."

The woman texted her boyfriend about the incident, saying she wanted to leave the exam room, calling her nurse's behavior "creepy."

Seven months later, another woman accused Kline of rubbing his penis against her hand at least three times while she was receiving treatment for intoxication at MedStar Washington Hospital Center.

In addition to the three incidents at D.C. hospitals, Kline is also accused conducting an inappropriate chest examination of a 22-year-old patient at Bowie Health Center in Maryland last January. 

D.C. police said Kline likely had more victims.

"We do believe that it's possible he had sexually abused other patients," George Kucik with D.C. police said. "They may not have been aware of it or understood what was going on."

Kline was released on bond Wednesday, and is required to stay away from his alleged victims. His lawyer hasn't released a statement, but told News4 several times he has no comment.

Kline's neighbor Karen Parelhoff told News4, "I'm a nurse myself. It's a huge breach of the trust that people place in your hands when you take care of them."

GW Hospital officials said they're committed to the well-being of their patients.

"In matters such as this, our practice is to act swiftly and responsibly in collaboration with law enforcement and regulatory agencies," Lyndsay Meyer with GW Hospital said Wednesday.

MedStar Washington Hospital Center officials said they're aware of Kline's arrest but unable to comment at this time, though they said they're fully cooperating with local police.

Two San Diego marijuana dispensaries on El Cajon Boulevard have been given 24 hours to shutter their operations.

City Attorney Jan Goldsmith says Green Urban Association and the Bakery Collective are operating illegally in zones where a city ordinance forbids medical marijuana cooperatives.

Located behind the SD Smoke Shop and with no exterior signage, Green Urban Association has been operating in North Park since at least Aug. 2013, the city alleges.

Green Urban Association, which sits at 3140 El Cajon Boulevard in North Park, is about two blocks from the Children’s Creative and Performing Arts School and is across the street from the Father Joe’s Villages Boulevard Apartments.

According to Goldsmith, the operators face another violation for operating a marijuana dispensary within 600 feet of a school.

He said the property owners are already under permanent injunction not to maintain a dispensary there or anywhere else in the city.

“They're making money off of this by renting to these dispensaries, and I will tell them, it's going to cost them more when I get done with them. So I would suggest they rent to a legal use,” said Goldsmith.

The dispensary has posted the court order on its front door.

Property owners of the Bakery Collective, located at 6559 El Cajon Boulevard in the College Area, have already settled with city, agreeing to pay investigative costs and civil penalties.

However, people were still seen coming and going from the business Wednesday while security guard stood outside.

More than 200 unpermitted marijuana dispensaries have been closed down through the city attorney in the last four years. Just last week, a dispensary in Mission Valley was ordered to shut down.

Despite raid and court orders, the City Attorney’s Office is continually chasing dispensaries that simply pop up in another location.

“They're basically sticking their nose out to council and the neighborhood and saying we're gonna do whatever we want...have to enforce our laws,” Goldsmith said.

A maximum of 36 dispensaries are allowed within San Diego limits, given certain restrictions, but those shops need permits to be legal.

In 2011, the city ramped up its efforts to file lawsuits against property owners and dispensary operators violating the city’s zoning regulations.

“When we see an effort to play whack ‘em all, we give that special effort,” said Goldsmith. “They're special problems, and we will hold them to a higher standard as far as our remedies.”

Police said the gunman who opened fire inside a library at Florida State University early Thursday was in a "state of crisis" at the time of the shooting.

The gunman who was shot dead by police was identified by law enforcement officials as Myron May, a lawyer who graduated from the school.

Police said May injured three students before being shot dead at the Strozier Library. Two of the wounded students were admitted to Tallahassee Memorial HealthCare hospital and the third was treated and released at the scene, police and a hospital spokeswoman confirmed.

At a news conference Thursday afternoon, police said May was struggling psychologically and emotionally. May feared government targeting and expressed these concerns in his journal, police said. Yet, police said it was unknown why May attacked or why he targeted Strozier library.

May, who was born in Dayton, Ohio, moved to Florida as a teenager, police said. He graduated from FSU in 2005 and later from Texas Tech Law School in 2009, police said. After practicing law in Texas and New Mexico, May moved back to Florida just three weeks ago, police said.

Police said May had two previous encounters with law enforcement. In 2002, he was suspected of using marijuana, and in 2003 he was the victim of a vehicle burglary, police said.

At a news conference Thursday morning, police called the shooting an "isolated incident" and said May had acted alone.

Florida Gov. Rick Scott said he hoped to visit the victims at the hospital later Thursday and said authorities were still investigating the shooting.

"We still have a lot of questions that are unanswered," Scott told reporters at a news conference.

Amid the chaos, students immediately took to social media with messages of concern and prayers.

“Please say a prayer for us. We’re stuck in a library with a shooter in the building,” tweeted a person whose profile says he’s a student at FSU.

Another tweet came from the father of a FSU student who took a screen shot of her text message to him, stating, “There’s a man with a gun in the library. I love you.”

Jason Derfuss, a 21-year-old humanities student at FSU told NBC News  his backpack full of books stopped a bullet from hitting him during the rampage. Derfuss only realized hours later the gunman had tried to shoot him after he discovered a bullet lodged in "The Oxford Context of Wyclif’s Thought."

"There is no way I should be alive," Derfuss told NBC News. "Literally, those books saved my life."

The campus scare began when police at Florida State University responded to a "dangerous situation" at the library around 12:30 a.m. ET Thursday, as a witness reported gunshots. A campus telephone alert urged people to take shelter in a nearby building and stay away from "doors and windows."

When officers arrived, they commanded May to drop his weapon, Tallahassee Police Department spokesman David Northway said. Police said May was using a .380 semi-automatic handgun and had additional ammunition in his pockets. May fired a round at police, who responded with shots, killing the suspect, police said.

Officers searched the area and found three victims suffering from gunshot wounds, police said.

According to officials, May never made it past library security and only shot from the library lobby. One victim was shot in the library lobby and the two others were shot outside the lobby area, police said.

All three victims were immediately given treatment, police said. Two victims were taken to Tallahassee Memorial HealthCare hospital. One was in critical condition and the other was in stable condition, officials said.

One of the victims was identified as Nathan Scott, according to a statement released by the hospital. Scott was shot in the leg and is recovering with the support of his family who has asked for privacy at this time, the hospital said.

Police said the library was packed with between 300 and 400 students at the time of the shooting.

Steven Dawson, 19, a freshman biology major said he was studying on the library's third floor at the time of the incident. Dawson told NBC News that shortly after 12:30 a.m. ET someone started shouting about a gunmen in the building. "Everyone just dropped everything and started running," Dawson said.

The university announced on Twitter early Thursday that the lockdown had been lifted and the area was secured. 

FSU President John Thrasher said there will be increased security measures and a greater law enforcement presence on campus Thursday.

"The Florida State University community is extremely saddened by the shootings that took place early this morning at Strozier Library, in the very heart of campus, and our thoughts and prayers are with the families and loved ones of all those who have been affected," Thrasher said in a statement.

Classes were canceled for Thursday but the campus will be open, the university announced. Strozier Library will be closed until further notice. Meanwhile, students were gathering for prayer vigils on campus throughout the day.

Thrasher said counseling would be provided for students, faculty and staff.

"The three students who have been injured are our highest priority followed by the needs of our greater university community," Thrasher said. "We will do everything possible to assist with their recovery."

A suspect was arrested after a fight with police led to a high-speed pursuit on Interstate 5 just before midnight on Wednesday.

The lengthy chase reached speeds in excess of 90 miles per hour, ending near Interstate 15 when the suspect was apprehended.

It led to closures of both the 5 and the 15 as police investigated the incident.

The razor-thin race for a Chula Vista City Council seat has ended in a tie, two weeks after Election Day, San Diego County officials say.

John McCann and Steve Padilla each won 18,450 votes for the District 1 seat, according to Wednesday's last tally from the San Diego County Registrar of Voters. The registrar reports there aren't any other provisional ballots left to be counted that could break that tie.

Ultimately, it will be up to the city of Chula Vista to determine who takes the seat.

Padilla said his campaign is pleased with the results from the provisional ballots.

“We’re just focused on making sure every vote is counted,” Padilla said.

However, McCann told NBC 7 on Wednesday he believes what he called "dirty politics" played a role.

“We had over 900-point lead and every day it seems to continuously vanish. Obviously it raises some questions,” McCann told NBC 7.

The registrar's office will begin making sure all the votes are accurately counted ahead of the Dec. 2 deadline for certifying results.

While Chula Vista is be the second-largest city in San Diego County, the city council race came down to the narrowest of margins as the final 1,000 county-wide provisional ballots were counted Wednesday.

Check back for updates on this developing story.

Beach goers and surfers should be aware of a high surf advisory in effect Thursday at a number of San Diego County beaches.

The warning for Seal Beach, Oceanside Beach, La Jolla Shores and Imperial Beach is in effect until 5 p.m.

The advisory calls for waves and surf estimated at 4 to 7 feet tall with 8-foot local sets, according to the National Weather Service.

Forecasters are encouraging swimmers and surfers to take precautions, as the high surf will include strong rip currents that will create hazardous conditions.

The high surf will gradually dissipate by the afternoon.