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How does an engineered material arresting system impact aviation safety?

 September 9, 2026 at 5:00 AM PDT

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Headline: How does an engineered material arresting system impact aviation safety?

Description: First, following another fatal plane crash over the weekend, we check in how things might have gone differently at San Diego International. Then, the extreme heat warning continues across the county. Also, student homelessness is on the rise across California. And, some local agencies are gathering to defend the Head Start program.

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Good Morning, I’m Lawrence K. Jackson, it’s WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 9TH>>>>  [ WHAT IS AN ENGINEERED MATERIAL ARRESTING SYSTEM AND HOW DOES IT IMPACT AVIATION SAFETY ? ]More on that next. But first... let’s do the headlines….########

YESTERDAY MORNING, UNMARKED ICE VEHICLES STOPPED A VEHICLE NEAR SAN DIEGO CITY COLLEGE

A SAN DIEGO CITY COLLEGE SPOKESPERSON SAYS ICE AGENTS THEN ARRESTED THE DRIVER WHILE THE PASSENGER; A CITY COLLEGE STUDENT FLED THE SCENE

THE SPOKESPERSON SAYS ICE AGENTS BEGAN TO PURSUE THE STUDENT ONTO CAMPUS … 

BUT STOPPED AND RETURNED TO THEIR VEHICLES AFTER NOTICING THEY WERE ENTERING A COLLEGE CAMPUS

THE CITY COLLEGE SPOKESPERSON CONFIRMED TO KPBS THAT ICE DIDN’T ENGAGE WITH ANYONE WHILE ON CAMPUS

COLLEGE STAFF BELIEVE THE ARRESTED DRIVER TO ALSO BE A CITY COLLEGE STUDENT

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PUBLIC ADVOCATE SHANE HARRIS ALONGSIDE LOCAL RESIDENTS

GATHERED TO UNVEIL THE SAFE STREETS WITHOUT BORDERS INITIATIVE

THE INITIATIVE URGES THE CITIES OF SAN DIEGO AND NATIONAL CITY TO DO SOMETHING ABOUT SPEEDING AND TRAFFIC ACCIDENTS HAPPENING ALONG THEIR SHARED BOUNDARY 

THE PROPOSAL CALLS FOR TRAFFIC STUDIES TO BE DONE ON THE AREA, AS WELL AS HIGH-VISIBILITY CROSSWALKS AND TRAFFIC-CALMING INFRASTRUCTURE TO BE PUT IN

THE INITIATIVE TASKS BOTH CITIES WITH CONDUCTING A JOINT ASSESSMENT WITHIN 30 Days, A TRAFFIC ANALYSIS WITHIN 60 DAYS AND AN IMPLEMENTATION PLAN WITHIN 90 DAYS

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THE SAN DIEGO HUMANE SOCIETY IS SPONSORING THREE REFORM BILLS AIMED AT PROTECTING ANIMALS 

THE TRIO OF BILLS PASSED THE CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE AND NOW SIT ON GOVERNOR GAVIN NEWSOM’S DESK 

ASSEMBLY BILL 19-99 MODERNIZES THE WAY VET CARE CAN BE DELIVERED 

WHILE SENATE BILL 12-88 LOOKS TO ENSURE THAT CHARITABLE GIFTS  REACH THE COMMUNITIES DONORS INTENDED THEM TO

I SPOKE WITH DR GARY WEITZMAN, THE PRESIDENT AND CEO OF THE SAN DIEGO HUMANE SOCIETY ABOUT ASSEMBLY BILL 2010 … ALSO DUBBED THE SNIP ACT

the SNP Act allows us to not be under the constraints of a, veterinary surgical suite that we would normally have to use, and it doesn't compromise care or quality in any way, shape or form, it just allows us to do the spay neuters that we so desperately need to offer to the public.

WEITZMAN SAID HE HOPES TO SEE THE BILLS SIGNED INTO LAW 

From KPBS, you’re listening to San Diego News Now.Stay with me for more of the local news you need

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FIVE PEOPLE WERE KILLED ON SUNDAY, WHEN AN AMAZON PRIME BOEING 767 CARGO PLANE OVERSHOT THE RUNWAY AT MIAMI INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT.  REPORTER JOHN CARROLL EXPLAINS WHY THE OUTCOME WOULD LIKELY BE DIFFERENT IF THE SAME THING WERE TO HAPPEN AT SAN DIEGO INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT.

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AIRPORT 1                      :                            SOQ

((NATS RUNWAY))

THE WEST END OF SAN DIEGO INTERNATIONAL’S 94-HUNDRED FOOT RUNWAY IS A BUSY, NOISY PLACE… PLANES CONSTANTLY LEAVING THE GATE FOR TAKEOFF… AND LANDINGS HAPPENING EVERY FEW MINUTES. BUT, WHAT IF WHAT HAPPENED IN MIAMI HAPPENED HERE. THE OUTCOME WOULD LIKELY BE DIFFERENT BECAUSE HERE, THERE IS AN “EMAS” AT THE RUNWAY’S END…

THAT STANDS FOR ENGINEERED MATERIAL ARRESTING SYSTEM.

IT’S A BIG SQUARE… MORE THAN 300-FEET IN DIAMETER.

“Think of it as, uh you’re driving through a mountain pass and you see those for trucks where their brakes fail. It’s like a sand or a pit that catches a truck. This is the same idea where it’s designed to catch an airplane.”

THAT WAS MARK TAYLOR, THE AIRPORT’S SENIOR AIRSIDE OPERATIONS DUTY MANAGER.

HE SAYS SAN DIEGO’S EMAS HAS NEVER BEEN USED. BUT IF IT IS SOME DAY… HE SAYS THE AIRPORT HAS REPLACEMENT PANELS READY TO GO SO THE RUNWAY CAN REOPEN AS SOON AS POSSIBLE. JC, KPBS NEWS.

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THE RECORD-HOT LABOR DAY WEATHER IS NOT OVER YET. SAN DIEGO COUNTY IS UNDER AN EXTREME HEAT WARNING FOR A FEW DAYS. AS ENVIRONMENT REPORTER TAMMY MURGA SAYS, A TROPICAL STORM FAR OFF IN THE PACIFIC OCEAN IS TO BLAME.

HUMIDHEAT 1 TRT 00:00

Rain and cloud cover from Tropical Storm Marie kept areas north of San Diego County cool over the holiday weekend.

But San Diego County got the opposite. Casey Oswant is with the National Weather Service.

HUMIDHEAT 1a 00:

“There's kind of like an evaporative cooling effect from the rain that was occurring. And unfortunately it just passed right over San Diego. So we didn't get any of that. So we just got that humidity, and the like warm overnight lows.”

She says the county is under an extreme heat warning through Wednesday and a heat advisory through Thursday.

*Nat* of splash pad

The brutal temperatures are dictating how and where people cool off.

Julia Vasquez lives in Imperial Beach, where the beach is closed because of sewage contamination.

HUMIDHEAT 1b 00:

“We have to travel out of our place so we can go to other places to get, you know, clean air and clean water.”

Forecasters say cooler temperatures are expected this weekend. Tammy Murga, KPBS News

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STUDENT HOMELESSNESS IS ON THE RISE ACROSS CALIFORNIA. MANY OF THE DISTRICTS WITH THE HIGHEST COUNTS OF STUDENTS EXPERIENCING HOMELESSNESS ARE IN SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA.

AND SAN DIEGO IS NO EXCEPTION. 

A U-C-L-A STUDY FOUND SAN DIEGO COUNTY RANKS FOURTH AND SAN DIEGO UNIFIED RANKS SECOND FOR THE HIGHEST COUNTS OF HOMELESS STUDENTS IN THE STATE. THAT’S IN LINE WITH STATEWIDE POPULATION NUMBERS. 

KRISTY DRAKE IS THE HOMELESS… FOSTER LIAISON FOR SAN DIEGO UNIFIED.

UCLASTUDY 2A TRT 0:17

“Making sure that kids are getting to school consistently is our number one issue… if you're living for example outdoors or in a car or in substandard housing, you know, you're sick more often, so you're missing more school. So chronic absenteeism and homelessness go hand-in-hand.”

DRAKE SAYS THAT SAN DIEGO UNIFIED TYPICALLY HAS ABOUT 8,000 STUDENTS EXPERIENCING HOMELESSNESS.

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 LOCAL AGENCIES ARE DEFENDING HEAD START. THAT'S THE 60-YEAR-OLD FEDERAL PROGRAM FOR LOW-INCOME CHILDREN. THE TRUMP ADMINISTRATION SAYS IT WANTS TO EXPAND ACCESS TO HEAD START BY ELIMINATING MORE THAN A THOUSAND REGULATIONS. 

K-P-B-S PENNER FELLOW EMMY BURRUS LOOKED INTO HOW THE PROPOSED CHANGES COULD DISPROPORTIONATELY AFFECT CHILDREN EXPERIENCING HOMELESSNESS. 

HEADSTART (eb) TRT 3:28 SOQ

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In San Diego County, Head Start provides more than 5,000 children and their families with education, healthcare, and social services at over 200 locations.

Rita Palet with the San Diego County Office of Education says Head Start can help families who are struggling with homelessness work their way towards housing.

But she says for struggling families with young children, removing the current regulations may lead to them staying homeless for longer.

“What would happen in San Diego alone is, I’m concerned there’d be more homeless. There’d be less services. There’d be less supports for our youngest learners. And we don’t have a system in place to pick up those pieces.”

The Trump Administration says its proposal would eliminate regulations to save on administrative costs, which will increase the number of kids in the program nationwide.

But Barbara Duffield says even if it creates more spots, children experiencing homelessness won’t be able to access them. Duffield is the Executive Director of SchoolHouse Connections, a nationwide homeless advocacy group for children.

“For families who are homeless, it's actually taking away flexibility to meet their needs. And families who are homeless are not going to benefit from any new slots that are created because they're not going to be able to get into the program at all.”

That’s because some of the regulations being removed recruit homeless families and reserve spots for them.

Melanee Cottrill is the Executive Director of Head Start California. She says the new plan would also require families to provide documents proving they are homeless.

“We know for a family living in a shelter that they could do that. But that's really hard for a family who, say, just lost their house in a fire and has nothing. Or a family who's living in an RV and again has nothing but that RV, right? How do you prove a negative?”

In an email to K-P-B-S, the U-S Administration for Children and Families said eliminating a family’s ability to self declare would quote “uphold program integrity and accountability for taxpayers.”

It also said children experiencing homelessness would still be able to receive services before their status is verified, as long as it’s within a “reasonable time.”

At least one local provider is not all that concerned about the proposal. Yolanda Perez is the Executive Director of All Kids Academy in East San Diego County.

“The preamble made to these regulations that came out said that the intent is not to make Headstart go away. It's to make Headstart expand. And the way that they're doing that is by preserving federal dollars by lowering the standards. So, that's all they're saying.”

Perez says the proposal would give more flexibility and decision making to the states. And she thinks California will prioritize high standards for early education.

But her one concern is that the new guidelines would remove additional training for teachers.

“That's a problem for me because my teachers need ongoing professional development training on how to identify special needs, on how to work with families from children experiencing homelessness.”

The public comment period for the proposed reform ends on October 6.

The County’s Office of Education says it and other local agencies are preparing their comments, including research to support some of the current regulations.

Most of the people we spoke with said they are worried that removing so many of those regulations would lower the overall quality of Head Start.

Emmy Burrus, KPBS News

<<<SHOW CLOSE>>>

That’s it for the podcast today. This podcast is edited by Brooke Ruth. And hosted and produced by me, Lawrence K. Jackson. As always you can find more San Diego news online at KPBS dot org. Thanks for listening and have a great day.

First, following another fatal plane crash over the weekend, we check in how things might have gone differently at San Diego International. Then, the extreme heat warning continues across the county. Also, student homelessness is on the rise across California. And, some local agencies are gathering to defend the Head Start program.