The head of the Federal Aviation Administration said Friday that everything is on target to restore air traffic back to normal conditions at Chicago's airports by Oct. 13.

FAA Administrator Michael Huerta toured the Chicago Air Route Traffic Control Center in Aurora that was sabotaged by fire a week ago, shutting down Chicago's two international airports.

Huerta also met with Illinois' congressional delegation, including Sen. Dick Durbin, Sen. Mark Kirk and Rep. Bill Foster.

"We are in a good place. We have all of the equipment in the building now, and all of it is powered up, and we're focusing on cabling and restoration of services, and are feeling very good about the target we've established for Oct. 13," Huerta said.

Some lawmakers have called for an investigation into how a former contract employee entered the building with a suitcase a week ago without causing suspicion.

Durbin said Thursday that he thought the facility would been in "much better shape" by now, but after meeting with Huerta, he said he was satisfied that there is "a total team commitment and team effort" to get the facility back up to speed.

Durbin said the onus is on lawmakers to make sure the funds are there to improve the system.

"What we need to have is not only the safety of airlines in the air when this occurs, but a quick restoration of services," Durbin said. "The second part has not been executed, or planned or funded for future challenges."

Kirk maintains that facilities like these should have full-time backup facilities similar to practices employed by the Department of Defense.

"I would say right not that Congress should be interested in funding warm backups for the FAA. When you look around this facility, it doesn't look like it's that expensive," Kirk said.

Federal prosecutors allege 36-year-old Brian Howard of Naperville started a fire in the basement telecommunications room before attempting to commit suicide. Howard's alleged actions forced the cancellation of thousands of flights and cost an estimated hundreds of millions of dollars in lost productivity. If convicted, he could be sentenced to up to 20 years in prison.

Officials said Friday that Howard used 4 gallons of gasoline to set fire to the facility, which now are bring rewired with miles of new cable.

The FAA said it hopes to return the facility to full service by Oct. 13.

Several businesses were evacuated after a dump truck got stuck in a sinkhole in a New Jersey strip mall parking lot where construction is being done, authorities said.

Police said the dump truck was backing up to the construction site around 12:30 p.m. Friday when the weight of the vehicle created a hole in the pavement.

Businesses in a strip mall at 321 Broadway in Hillsdale were evacuated. 

"There was big, loud bang," said Adam Duraku, an employee at Ray's Traditional Pizza, part of the strip mall. "I walked out and the truck was literally hanging down, right through the garage. It was crazy."

Hillsdale Police Chief Bob Francaviglia said the dump truck driver was trying to get to a spot where the blacktop was supposed to be poured in, and the truck fell through in the attempt. 

No injuries were reported, but some debris damaged at least one car in the underground lot, police said. Metal poles and wooden beams were added in the underground garage for extra strength and support. 

Authorities were working to extricate the vehicle. 

Follow Danielle Elias on Twitter @Danielle4NY

The San Diego County Sheriff’s Fugitive Task Force is asking the public to look for a suspect wanted on four, no-bail arrest warrants.

Tyler Brett Love, 22, is accused of burglary, theft and buying or receiving a stolen vehicle, according to San Diego County Crime Stoppers.

He is described as a white man with blond hair and green eyes, standing 5-foot-11-inches and weighing 156 pounds.

Officials say Love is often seen around Oceanside and Vista.

If you know where the suspect may be, call the Crime Stoppers anonymous tip line at 888-580-8477. Anonymous emails and texts can be sent through the Crime Stoppers website.

The family of the Bay Area girl declared brain dead last year after surgery wants a judge to declare her "not dead,” but a PR strategist who used to work for the hospital says the family lawyer’s effort is a publicity stunt to boost a statewide proposition on next month’s ballot to let medical malpractice plaintiffs collect bigger payouts.

Chris Dolan, the lawyer for the family of Jahi McMath, who was declared brain dead after tonsil surgery last year at the age of 13, has given $25,000 to the campaign for Prop. 46, a ballot measure that would boost the cap on verdicts from medical malpractice lawsuits from $250,000 to over $1 million.

But Sam Singer, the publicist who used to work as a spokesman for the hospital that treated Jahi and is now speaking out against Dolan, also has a stake in that campaign. Singer is paid as a publicist to work for the "No on 46" campaign, aiming to keep malpractice caps at their current level.

Describing the effort as the "cruelest publicity stunt of all-time," Singer theorized Dolan is seeking a judge’s order to declare the 13-year-old girl “not dead” at a court hearing on Oct. 9 to bring awareness to “things that can go wrong at a hospital.”

Singer noted the timing of Dolan’s legal request – about a month before the November elections. Secretary of State campaign finance records show the Dolan Law Firm gave $25,000 to the “Yes on Prop. 46, Your Neighbors for Patient Safety, a Coalition of Consumer Attorney’s and Patient Safety Advocates” in January.

If Prop. 46 passes, the cap on medical negligence lawsuits will increase “for inflation” from when it was first passed in 1975. In today’s terms, that would amount to about $1.1 million.

At a news conference on Friday, Dolan answered why he was seeking to declare Jahi “not dead.”

"This is no ruse,” Dolan said. “This is the truth."

Dolan presented what he says are the findings of independent brain research experts who performed brain imaging and other tests on Jahi at Rutgers University Medical School.

Jahi’s mother, Nailah Winkfield, said she finally has proof her daughter isn’t brain dead. She shared photos of the girl, appearing nourished and full of color, and videos that show Jahi apparently responding to commands to move her feet and hands. However, NBC Bay Area was not able to independently verify the videos.

Jahi's family filed a court petition Friday, asking a judge to reverse the girl's death certificate.

Dolan said Jahi has profound brain damage, but there is a difference between being brain damaged and brain dead. “This is unequivocal proof,” he said, pointing to an MRI photo.

Before the conference, Jahi’s uncle, Omari Sealey, told NBC Bay Area that “there are a lot of different reasons we’ve done what we’ve done. Sam can say anything he wants.”

Dolan has not filed a lawsuit against UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospital Oakland, and has previously said that his fight for Jahi is not about money. He did indicate this week, however, to reporters that Jahi could be eligible for state benefits if her death status is changed.

NBC Bay Area Legal Analyst Steven Clark said it would be very "unlikely" that a judge would rule that Jahi is now alive, but acknowledged it would be "fascinating."

If Jahi were "resurrected," Clark said, that would force the state to pay for her care — even, perhaps, back at Children's Hospital in Oakland. "This is a huge economic issue," he said.

This week, on behalf of Jahi’s mother, Latasha “Nailah” Winfield, Dolan filed a petition in Alameda County Superior Court for Judge Evelio Grillo to determine that the girl is “not brain dead,” even though the same judge had declared her dead on Dec. 24, 2013.

Dolan cited that Jahi’s circulatory system and “all her organs continue to function and world class experts in neurology and brain death” will provide evidence that the one-time 8th-grader at E.C. Reems Academy in Oakland “no longer meets the definition of brain death because she has 'neuralgic function.'” 

Dolan wrote in his petition that Jahi has electrical activity in her brain, responds to her mother’s verbal commands, and has started menstruating. All are signs, he wrote, that the teen's brain death was “not irreversible.”

Dolan’s experts have not been vetted by the judge, and it's unclear how Grillo will weigh their testimony.

In his tentative ruling, however, Grillo said there are ways someone can amend a death record. But  he felt that his court was not the right place to do so, suggesting that Dolan was not suing the right people and needed to find the proper agency to change Jahi's death status.

As of Friday, Dolan had not filed a petition to amend Jahi’s death certificate with the California Dept. of Public Health Vital Records. And the Alameda County Coroner had also not been served with any papers.

NBC Bay Area's Jodi Hernandez contributed to this report.

Two apartment fires that started within blocks of one another — and within minutes of each other — led investigators to a person of interest after they discovered the victims are friends.

The first blaze sparked just before 4 a.m. at Seana Evirea's apartment in the 4500 block of Hawley Boulevard, near 33rd Street and El Cajon Boulevard in Normal Heights.

The fire, burning in her living room, forced Evirea to escape through her second-story bedroom window, where fire crews found her dangling when they arrived. She was taken to a hospital for smoke inhalation and minor injuries.

Roughly 20 minutes later — about the time it could take someone to walk the 1.1 miles from the Normal Heights location — a second fire started in the North Park apartment of Evirea's close friend Robin Trues. She lives in the 4600 block of Kansas Street, near Adams Avenue.

The flames burned the bedroom of her downstairs unit and filled it with smoke, though she was not home at the time.

Trues believes the fire was started by a mutual friend of hers and Evirea's, a young man that was best friends with her son.

"It's scary, you know. You think you know somebody, and you think, 'I was so sure," said Trues. "I don't know, just some things he did, I thought he was evil."

She said she did not connect the dots until she called Evirea to tell her she had lost everything. "So did I," Evirea responded.

Caught in the middle is 77-year-old Jon Hughes. He lives below Trues and said the man who started the fire walked into his apartment insisted on going to Hughes' bathroom.

Arson officials said the North Park fire was "suspicious" in nature and were looking into a possible person of interest, but no arrests have been made as of Friday afternoon.

Investigators said the North Park resident's apartment was also robbed a few weeks ago.

San Diego Fire-Rescue Capt. Joseph Amador said both fires are under investigation. Officials said the Normal Heights fire caused approximately $100,000 in damage to the apartment, while the North Park one caused damage between $100,000 and $300,000.

Authorities in San Diego are searching for a medical parolee who escaped from a medical facility in the East County this week, possibly with assistance from an accomplice.

According to the California Department of Corrections & Rehabilitation (CDCR), Ronald Virgil Taylor, 50, was reported missing from the nursing facility where he lived in eastern San Diego County on Wednesday around 6:30 p.m.

Officials said Taylor, who uses a wheelchair, may have had some help escaping the facility. His wheelchair was found in a nearby parking lot.

Law enforcement officers and parole agents are now searching for the parolee, who is described as a 6-foot-tall African American man with brown eyes and black hair. He weighs 230 pounds and can be seen pictured above.

The CDCR has requested a warrant for Taylor’s arrest.

The parolee’s criminal history includes multiple convictions in Los Angeles County for robbery, kidnapping, burglary, assault and bringing a weapon to prison.

Anyone who spots Taylor should call 911 to report his whereabouts.

The CDCR said Taylor was released to medical parole this past June and requires constant medical attention. By law, the CDCR is allowed to parole physically-incapacitated state prison inmates who require 24-hour medical care.

CDCR officials said medical parole “differs from compassionate release as offenders on medical parole remain under CDCR’s supervision.”

Currently, there are 23 medical parolees living in skilled nursing units in California.
 

San Diego police are searching for a suspect who robbed four people in the Ocean Beach area over a period of three days.

Police said the string of robberies happened from Sept. 19 to 21, when the suspect accosted strangers for items or money while armed with a gun.

The first robbery happened at 11:20 p.m. on Sept. 19 when a woman was sitting on a bench in the 2300 block of Famosa Boulevard. The suspect confronted her, demanding her property, police said.

The next morning at about 3, the suspect confronted a man riding a bicycle in the 1300 block of Sunset Cliffs Boulevard. He pushed the victim off his bike while robbing him.

The next day at 1:50 a.m., a man was approached by three men in the park adjacent to 700 block of Sunset Cliffs Boulevard. One of the men pointed a black semi-automatic handgun at the victim while another man punched him, police said.

Then, just 15 minutes later in the 2100 block of Catalina Boulevard, two men were accosted by a man who pointed a gun at them, later taking off in a white Ford escort.

Police believe all these robberies are connected. The main suspect is described as Hispanic, 20 to 25 years old, 5 feet 7 inches to 5 feet 9 inches, 160 to 170 pounds, with brown hair and brown eyes.

Investigators are offering a reward up to $1,000 for the main suspect’s arrest. Anyone with information should call San Diego police’s western division at 619-692-4800 or the Crime Stoppers anonymous tip line at 888-580-8477.

A trove of loot — from dozens of designer suits and antique china to framed prints of Pope John Paul II — was found in the home of two of the people accused in last weekend's high-end watch heist at a Rush Street jewelry store, Chicago police say.

Police say they did not find the stolen watches in the North Rutherford home, but they did stumble across many more items they believe were stolen. Now, they are trying to find those goods' owners.

Among those goods were 29 framed paintings, 18 candle holders, five complete sets of antique china, nearly 60 men's designer suits, a large box of bootleg DVDs, musical instruments, flatscreen televisions and several framed prints of Pope John Paul II. 

Four people were arrested and charged this week after police say they stole more than $400,000 worth of merchandise from a display cabinet at B. Young & Company before fleeing in a minivan. Exclusive video obtained by NBC 5 shows a man prying open the case and another man grabbing seven watches.
   
Police say the items they found in the suspects' home were stolen from both businesses and residential homes. Some retailers, including Armani and Neiman Marcus on the Magnificent Mile, have already identified items stolen from their stores.

Chicago police are encouraging victims of burglaries in the Near North Side 18th district to visit the station at 1160 N. Larrabee this week to claim any stolen items. You must bring proof of purchase. 

The items will be on display Friday from 4-7 p.m. and Saturday and Sunday from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Anna Straus, 35, of the 3400 block of North Rutherford; Glowacka Xagniezska, 36, of the 3400 block of North Rutherford; Damian Duitlow, 41, of the 4200 block of West Wrightwood; and Ian Kowolski, 50, of an unknown home address, were identified as suspects in Saturday's burglary at B. Young & Company. The group was charged with one felony count each of burglary and theft of items valued between $100,000 and $500,000.

The suspects' defense attorney says his clients, some of whom have been deported multiple times, identify themselves as Roma, an ethnic group whose members are concentrated in eastern Europe.

The group was nabbed with help from a special Illinois State Police unit investigating Roma-associated crimes called the Ruse Burglary Task Force. Police say the group is part of an Eastern European burglary ring.

"It appears that this crew was active here in Chicago and across the Midwest, and may have also been invovled in other major thefts and burglaries across the country," police Cmdr. Eugene Roy said.

Investigators are examining a vehicle of interest in a deadly hit-and-run crash that dragged the victim about 100 yards in Bay Terraces.

San Diego Police detectives say they are doing evidence testing on a semi-truck with a white trailer that may have been involved in the Tuesday night death. The side of the plum-colored cab reads Pedrin's Trucking, and there are not citations or criminal charges connected with the truck, according to the Sacramento DMV.

The trucking company declined to comment on the situation.

Police say a resident tipped them off about the vehicle.

A man was found dead in the middle of the Appian Drive and Woodman Street intersection after the crash Tuesday. Officials say based on evidence found at the scene and on the body, it appears the man was hit and then dragged by a vehicle.

One witness said he saw half a badly damaged body on the ground, speculating that it could not have been a regular car that caused it.

Wednesday evening, investigators asked the public for information about a red and silver tractor trailer that was seen in the area before the incident.

Police say no arrest has been made and they are not looking for the truck's driver.

The victim in the crash still has not been identified.

Crews are responding to a brush fire Friday evening in Mira Mesa.

The fire is a half-acre grass fire reported just before 5:30 p.m. in the 7700 block of Norcanyon Way, fire officials said.

No structures are believed to be threatened.

The fire is surrounded by light to medium fuel.

This is a breaking news story. Check back here for updates.

A Windsor middle school guidance counselor has been placed on administrative leave for allegedly producing erotic horror movies, one day after a Granby middle school principal accused of working alongside him was suspended.

Dr. Mark Foley, the principal of Granby Memorial Middle School, and Aaron Vnuk, a counselor at Sage Park Middle School in Windsor, are both accused of using aliases to make independent horror movies featuring violence and nudity through their company Moongoyle Entertainment.

Granby Supt. Alan Addley said on Thursday that Foley had been placed on administrative leave while the school system investigates his conduct.

“The administration and BOE are concerned about the judgment used to be engaged in such activities while serving as an educational leader. Accordingly, we are looking into this matter to obtain all the facts,” Addley said in a statement Thursday.

Tim Cunningham has been appointed to serve as interim principal. Addley said middle school staff planned to "briefly address the matter with students in a developmentally appropriate matter."

Windsor Supt. Dr. Craig Cooke posted a statement on the Sage Park Middle School Web site Friday announcing Vnuk's suspension.

"Yesterday morning we learned of the alleged involvement of one of our Sage Park teachers in a movie production firm. The movies produced by this firm contain, in my opinion, inappropriate content and is certainly not something Windsor Public Schools would condone. We are investigating this matter thoroughly and will continue to do so until we have information needed to make a decision," the statement says.

Cooke said the school system is conducting an investigation and that, at this point, he has no reason to believe Windsor students were "at risk."

Local residents are questioning the educators' motives.

“If he found doing those movies perfectly acceptable, why where they made under a pseudonym?” Granby resident Leonda Markee wondered.

"I do think there needs to be a discussion of what is appropriate and what isn't," said Markee.

Neither Foley nor Vnuk have returned responded to requests for comment. Their current involvement with the film company is unclear.

A balloon won’t solve the crisis in Iraq, but it will bring a smile to the face of a child refugee fleeing the terror of ISIS.

A San Diego woman knows this first hand after traveling to northeastern Iraq in late September, just as the conflict heated up with U.S. warplanes bombing terrorist strongholds below.

“Anytime I told someone I was going, they got really kind of anxious and said ‘That’s the worst idea ever. Don’t go’ and this and that,” said Deborah Eriksson, executive director of Restore International, a Point Loma-based nonprofit.

Restore International already has influence in far off places like India, Uganda and Somalia, so Iraq was a natural fit when the organization’s founder Bob Goff, a former attorney, saw the need.

“We have 70 students. They’re learning English and art; they’re taking computer lessons. It’s crazy,” said Goff in an Instagram message to followers back home.

The small team is starting an after-school program geared toward orphans and kids in refugee camps.

They hope to eventually grow it to 600 students.

“My view of it changed” said Eriksson referring to the country. “I’d been hearing on the news all this violence, all this fear people had been talking about it, and there is a lot of that going on for sure, but when I was actually in this town in Northern Iraq and working with the kids at the refugee camp, there was a lot of hope and a lot of joy.”

Eriksson hopes to inspire others to conquer fear and replace it with hope.

The nonprofit is looking for partners to sponsor a kid for $25 a month or donate toward winterizing the refugee camp.

“Even though we don’t have all the answers by any means, we felt like there is something we can do here. We can be helpful and just meet some basic needs,” said Eriksson.

Eriksson will be returning to Iraq soon.

Good Samaritans rushed to help two people trapped after their car flew off eastbound Interstate 8 in La Mesa.

The vehicle rolled off the embankment into a drainage ditch near the Fletcher Parkway offramp just after 9:30 p.m., according to the California Highway Patrol.

Drivers passing by got out to help and found two victims who could not get out.

Heartland Fire crews soon arrived to rescue the people inside. Both were taken to the hospital, one in serious condition.

NASA images released this week show the severity of drought-stricken California's declining water storage over the past decade.

The images from the space agency's Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment satellites (GRACE) show the state's accumulated water loss from June 2002 to June 2008 and June 2014. The progression of colors from green to red indicate declining water storage in a state that faces a fourth-consecutive dry year.

The GRACE satellite images depict changes in mass related to changes in water amount on or below the Earth's surface. Those changes are represented by different colors in satellite imagery.

The most severe storage losses -- depicted by the most severe color changes in the images -- between 2002 and 2014 occurred in the Sacramento and San Joaquin River basins, including the Central Valley, because of increased groundwater pumping to support agricultural production, according to NASA. The images show a large swath of the central part of the state changing from green to orange to a blistering red, representing a severe reduction in mass due to declining water storage.

The river basins lost a combined 4 trillion gallons of water annually between 2011 and 2014, according to NASA. Californians draw about 38 billion gallons per day from ground and surface-water sources, according to a USGS survey.

Earlier this year, Gov. Jerry Brown declared a drought emergency in California, where state and local water agencies are urging resident to conserve and even considering plans to budget water use by creating a daily water allocation for each household.

More than 58 percent of the state is under "exceptional" drought conditions, according to the U.S. Drought Monitor. Three months ago, about 36 percent of the state was in the "exceptional" category, the most severe of the agency's drought levels.

More than 95 percent of California is under severe to exceptional drought.
 

A former San Diego Police Department officer sentenced to jail for misconduct on the job – including assault, battery and illegally detaining several women – will begin serving his time behind bars Friday.

Christopher Hays, 30, turned himself in at the downtown San Diego courthouse, his attorney, Kerry Armstrong, confirmed.

During the surrender, Hays’ wife, Erika Hays, was crying and very upset, Armstrong said.

Hays was sentenced on Sept. 26 to one year in county jail, plus three years of probation. When the judge handed down his fate, Hays teared up and addressed the court and his family.

“I would like to say that I am sorry for anything I have done that has caused anyone pain,” he said, crying. “I have always tried to help people and do good, so now that I have hurt someone, it’s not something that I am very proud of.”

Hays pleaded guilty to felony false imprisonment as well as misdemeanor counts of assault and battery under the color of authority by a peace officer on Aug. 22.

Armstrong said that, with good behavior, Hays could possibly get out of jail in six months and begin a new life with his family. The attorney said his client plans to eventually move out of San Diego and back to his home state of Arkansas with his wife and kids, where he may pursue a new career as a welder.

On Friday Armstrong said he believes Hays will be locked up in solitary confinement at San Diego Central Jail, where he will get two one-hour visitation sessions per week.

Earlier this year, at least four women came forward accusing Hays of allegedly inappropriately touching and groping them during pat-downs while he was on duty.

At his preliminary hearing in April, three alleged victims identified only as Jane Doe One, Two and Three described their interactions with the officer in uniform.

Jane Doe Two said Hays allegedly gave her a pat down that included lingering over every part of her body. Jane Doe Three accused Hays of dropping his hand towards his groin and asking her to touch his body.

Hays, a four-year veteran of the SDPD, was charged with the misconduct crimes in February. Hours after his arraignment, he resigned from the SDPD, saying he was not guilty. He said he felt betrayed by the department.

Hays denied the groping charges, later pleading guilty to the other counts of misconduct on the job, including battery and assault. Because he did not plead guilty to the sexual allegations, he will not have to register as a sex offender.

In May, NBC 7 spoke with Hays’ wife, Erika Hays, who defended his innocence and said she would continue to stand by her husband.

At his sentencing last week, Hays spoke about how much he's hurt his family amid this ordeal, and how much he loves his wife and children.

“I am so sorry for what my family has had to endure. I know I have caused them a great deal of pain and suffering, which is something I never wanted to [do],” he said, crying.

Hays’ case has put the SDPD under fire this year, further marring the department’s image, which has faced a wave of public scrutiny for quite some time.

When news broke of the alleged sexual misconduct crimes, then-Chief William Lansdowne ordered an outside audit of the police department from the U.S. Department of Justice.

Lansdowne’s successor, Chief Shelley Zimmerman, supported the audit.

“We are not going to tolerate this misconduct and betrayal of our badge and our profession,” Zimmerman said in March.

In addition to Hays, former San Diego police officer Anthony Arevalos is currently serving prison time for multiple felony counts of sexual battery, assault and asking for bribes while in uniform as a police officer patrolling the Gaslamp from 2009 to 2011.

On Sept. 25, attorneys and city officials announced that a San Diego woman who was victimized by Arevalos will receive $5.9 million in a legal settlement negotiated between the victim and the City of San Diego.

The woman, known only as “Jane Doe,” filed a claim of police misconduct after an interaction with then-officer Arevalos inside a 7-Eleven store bathroom on March 8, 2011.

According to prosecutors, the corrupt cop conducted a routine traffic stop on Jane Doe and then suggested the two of them go into the nearby convenience store. The two entered the restroom with the agreement that she would give him her panties, and in exchange he would not charge her for a DUI.

Jane Doe's lawsuit was one of 13 filed by victims of Arevalos, who was convicted in November 2011.
 

As high heat and Santa Ana winds whip through the county, a federal agency is already taking action against possible fires.

The Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) has transferred two firefighting helicopters from Northern California to the Viejas Indian Reservation in East County.

Officials want extra resources close at hand in case a major wildfire breaks out anywhere in Southern California.

The helicopters are able to drop buckets of water on fire lines or transport crews. The BIA says they will be staffed ten hours every day by tribal firefighters, coming from reservations across the country.

If a wildfire starts, those crews will be ready to drop in anywhere they are needed.

The helicopters will stay at Viejas until Oct. 10, with a potential extension of up to 15 days if fire conditions continue.

The county is currently under a heat advisory, expected to expire Saturday evening. But the triple digit temperatures coupled with dry winds make the perfect recipe for October fires, as seen in years past.

Both the 2007 and 2003 firestorms – including the state’s largest recorded blaze, the Cedar Fire – took place in October.

To prevent another destructive wildfire, Cal Fire, which partners with the BIA, has also staffed its stations with extra crews and an air tanker also on loan from Northern California. Officials say they will have 24-hour-a-day crews on five water tenders and bulldozers.

After a year absence, the largest military air show in the country is back with many acts to dazzle, including the inimitable Blue Angels.

The Miramar Air Show was canceled last year during the government shutdown, but this year has an array of acts to entertain. It kicked of Friday morning at 8 and runs through until 4 p.m. Sunday.

Along with the world-famous Blue Angels, spectators can see the Patriots jet team and the Canadian Snowbirds.

Col. Jim Traver, Miramar’s operations officer, said it’s the community that makes this show great.

“The teams that are out here are professionals. They do this for a living – a lot of them,” he said. “Some of them, like the Blue Angels, train all winter long just to get ready for the season. So, for the people on the ground, you're going to spend a lot of time looking up today into the clear blue sky, which is great.”

The air show is part of Fleet Week, a celebration of military families and a chance to give San Diego civilians a glimpse of military life.

Parking is free on base. Once  you arrive, an attendant will guide you to the available parking. You will need to show your driver's license, proof of insurance and current registration.

The U.S. Navy identified a San Diego-based Marine Friday presumed dead at sea after an aircraft malfunction in the North Arabian Gulf earlier this week.

Navy officials said 21-year-old Cpl. Jordan L. Spears, of Memphis, Indiana, was lost at sea Wednesday.

Spears was assigned to Marine Tiltrotor Squadron 163, Marine Aircraft Group 16, 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing, I Marine Expeditionary Force, Marine Corps Air Station (MCAS) Miramar in San Diego.

Spears was supporting operations with the 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit as part of the Makin Island Amphibious Ready Group during Wednesday’s deadly incident.

He was among a group of two enlisted personnel and two pilots aboard the MV-22B Osprey when it took off from USS Makin Island.

The aircraft lost power shortly after takeoff and appeared to be heading into the water. The two air crew members – one of them Spears – jumped into the ocean when they thought they were going to crash, the Navy said.

The pilot gained control of the plane and landed safely on the ship. One Marine was pulled from the water, but Spears was never found despite an extensive search.

On Thursday, the Navy announced it had called off the search and rescue operation for Spears after efforts to locate him proved unsuccessful.

The incident is being investigated by the Navy and Marine Corps, officials said.

USS Makin Island, an amphibious assault ship, is based at Naval Base San Diego. The ship is currently deployed to the U.S. Central Command Area of Responsibility where it is supporting operations in Iraq and Syria, and throughout the region, the Navy said.

The U.S. Marine Corps said this was Spears' first deployment. He enlisted in the Marine Corps Oct. 14, 2010, out of Memphis, Indiana.

His personal and service awards include the Marine Corps Good Conduct Medal, National Defense Service Medal, and Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, USMC officials said.

Col. Matthew Trollinger, commanding officer of the 11th MEU, released the following statement Friday on the loss of Spears:

"Cpl. Spears was a cherished member of our MEU family, and he fulfilled a key role in our aviation combat element. His absence will be felt throughout the unit. My heart goes out to his family, and they will remain in our thoughts and prayers," he said.

A memorial for Spears will be held onboard the USS Makin Island in the coming days, USMC officials said.

A New Jersey child who tested positive for a virus causing severe respiratory illness across the country has died, although it's not clear what role the virus played in the child's death, state health officials said Friday.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention told New Jersey health officials that a Mercer County child tested positive for enterovirus 68 and died last week, the state Department of Health said in a news release.

Department spokeswoman Donna Lensner would not provide any other specifics about the child, although she confirmed the death is the first in New Jersey of someone who tested positive for the virus since early August, when health officials around the country noticed a spike in harsh respiratory illnesses in children. They determined enterovirus 68 was to blame.

"Our thoughts remain with the family at this very difficult time," said New Jersey Health Commissioner Mary E. O'Dowd. "While the child has tested positive for EV-D68, the cause of death has not yet been determined and it is unclear if EV-D68 played a direct role or was a contributing factor in his death."

The CDC says at least four people in the U.S. infected with the virus have died, all in September, but the agency also stresses it's not clear if the virus caused the deaths. It has sickened at least 500 people in 42 states and Washington, D.C. -- almost all of them children.

The New Jersey department said the CDC also reported another confirmed case of the virus in a Middlesex County child, bringing the total count in the state to nine people who have been infected with enterovirus 68. Those cases are in Camden, Burlington, Mercer, Middlesex, Morris, Essex, Passaic and Sussex.

The enterovirus germ is not new; most people who catch the virus experience only a runny nose and low-grade fever. It was first identified in 1962 and has caused clusters of illness before.

This year, the virus has gotten more attention because it has been linked to hundreds of severe illnesses. Beginning last month, hospitals in Kansas City, Missouri, and Chicago have received a flood of children with trouble breathing.

To avoid getting the virus, health officials recommend:

• Wash hands with soap and water.
   
• Avoid touching eyes, nose and mouth with unwashed hands.
   
• Avoid kissing, hugging, and sharing cups, plates and utensils with people who are sick.

• Disinfect frequently touched surfaces, such as toys and doorknobs, especially if someone is sick.