City News Service

Dozens of city workers began receiving advanced termination notices Thursday for failure to comply with the city's COVID-19 vaccine mandate for employees.

San Diego County residents were being urged Thursday to avoid emergency rooms for COVID-19 testing, amid increases in both hospitalizations and staffing shortages exacerbated by a surge in coronavirus infections.

Work began this week on Phase II of the San Dieguito Lagoon Wetland Restoration project intended to create a new trail connection, expand river habitat and convert former agricultural fields to tidal wetlands, it was announced Wednesday.

The state-imposed the mandate on Dec. 15, and it had been scheduled to expire on Jan. 15.

The company says it believes this is the first Southern California case of "flurona," meaning a person who tested positive for both coronavirus and the flu.

The number of influenza cases in San Diego County is below average this season.

The latest in-custody death comes on the heels of news that a sheriff’s deputy was arrested for allegedly having illegal drugs on county jail property.

Officials with the U.S. Department of Transportation issued a statement in response to Southwest's cancellations, noting that the department will be looking into the situation.

The National Weather Service has issued an excessive-heat warning, effective from 10 a.m. Tuesday to 8 p.m. next Monday.