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  • Lithium Ion Batteries Blamed in 'Conception' Dive Boat Fire Off Santa Cruz Island

    Stan Greene, Observer Staff Writer|Updated Sep 5, 2019

    A catastrophic fire aboard the California dive boat Conception killing 34 may have been caused by Li-ion batteries or their charger says the boats designer, Roy Hauser. "This had to have been, in my estimation, one of those lithium battery chargers," Mr. Hauser told The Los Angeles Times and "there were electrical outlets in the bunk room" added Hauser. A dive instructor notes some boats no longer allow passengers to charge devices in bunk rooms due to the fire risk. The 34...

  • Santa Monica Residents Charles McIlvain, 44, and Marybeth Guiney, 51, Among Diving Boat Fire Deaths.

    Observer Staff|Updated Sep 5, 2019

    The Torrance Daily Breeze website reports that two Santa Monica residents are among the dead in the Labor Day fire on the diving boat off Santa Cruz Island. Colleagues and friends told the Torrance newspaper that Marybeth Guiney and Charles McIlvain, both of whom were diving enthusiasts and lived in the same Santa Monica condominium building. Guiney, a sales director and ocean enthusiast, left a Facebook page imploring people to protect dolphins and other sea life. Friends...

  • Video: Hurricane Dorian Sitting North of the Bahamas, May Miss Florida Entirely

    Observer Staff|Updated Sep 5, 2019

    "In many ways #Dorian is an even worse hurricane today than yesterday. Forward motion 24 hours ago was 7 mph, now essentially zero. A stationary major hurricane over low-lying populations is the worst. Also it's a bit larger now and high waves extend much farther from center." Tweeted Dr. Rick Knabb, a hurricane expert at The Weather Channel on September 2nd at 2 pm EST. Meanwhile, 2 deaths of children have been reported from the Bahamas, a 6 year old boy and his 4 year old...

  • Tyler Skaggs Cause of Death: Fentanyl, Oxycodone, Booze, and Choking on his own Vomit

    Stan Greene, Observer Staff Writer|Updated Sep 3, 2019
    1

    The Toxicology Report from Tyler Skaggs autopsy has been released. Sadly, everything I wrote in the days immediately following his death turn out to have been true. A number of other newspapers called the Santa Monica Observer "Fake News". But remember, you heard it here first. Now a few observations are in order: 1. Drug use is rampant at Santa Monica High School, and other Westside High Schools in Los Angeles County. I don't know when Tyler picked up his addiction or where,...

  • Spanish Singer Joana Sainz Garcia Killed on Stage by Fireworks

    Observer Staff|Updated Sep 3, 2019

    A Spanish pop performer was killed on stage on Sept. 2, 2019. Joana Sainz Garcia was dancing at one end of the stage, when fireworks went off as usual, but somehow struck her in the stomach. She was pronounced dead at a local hospital at 2 am, about 2 hours after the concert ending experience. About a thousand people witnessed the event. "Nobody can explain it," said group promoter Isidoro López. "We have been doing the same [act] for five years." López said the fireworks g...

  • Video: Runway at Grand Bahama International Airport is Under Six Feet of Churning Sea Water

    Stan Greene, Observer Staff Writer|Updated Sep 3, 2019

    A member of parliament in the Bahamas has released a video from the passenger airport at Grand Bahama International Airport. It shows the runway under six or so feet of churning sea water, as Hurricane Dorian is parked above the islands. A video shot by a member of Bahamian Parliament, Iram Lewis, of the Freeport International Airport on Grand Bahama Island, shows the Freeport airport under water. Grand Bahama International Airport is a privately owned international airport...

  • Brother Kills Younger Brother in the 900 Block of Lincoln Over Family Dispute

    Stan Greene, Observer Staff Writer|Updated Aug 28, 2019

    Chris Mondev graduated from Santa Monica High School in 2017. His friends regarded him as a troublemaker, a risk taker, but never imagined that he would take his younger brother Charlie's life. That happened Sunday afternoon, about 2 blocks from his home. Mondev, 21 was in custody today on suspicion of killing his brother in Santa Monica. Charles Mondev, 19, of Santa Monica was shot and killed at 6:35 p.m. Sunday in the 900 block of Lincoln Blvd, the Santa Monica Police Dept...

  • 4th Suicide in a Year from Parking Garages in Downtown Santa Monica

    Observer Staff|Updated Aug 28, 2019

    We're not really sure what it is about Santa Monica parking garages, but like the Golden Gate Bridge, they have become magnets for suicidal people recently. Maybe it's the fact that you can see the Pacific Ocean from the top floor, and watch the sunrise. And in a handful of cases, become overwhelmed by suicidal ideation. Police were called to investigate a dead body found behind Parking Structure 2 on Saturday morning. A woman discovered the body of a man and called police....

  • Ocean Avenue Remains Closed to Traffic For Two Weeks North of California Incline

    Observer Staff|Updated Aug 24, 2019

    One of America's most famous and beautiful streets, Ocean Avenue remains closed to traffic this week as workmen excavated a water main on an emergency basis to repair an underground water pipe. According to a warning from the City of Santa Monica, Ocean Avenue will be closed to traffic in both directions until Friday 8/16. Northbound lanes will be closed from Monday 8/19 to 9/13/19, said the auto notification,. At noon Saturday August 10, the City of Santa Monica announced...

  • End of Summer Comes Early, as SMMUSD Returns to School on Thursday August 22nd

    Observer Staff|Updated Aug 24, 2019

    All 16 public schools in the Santa Monica Malibu Unified School District begin classes on Thursday, August 22nd. Parents and kids will need to figure out where they are going to be dropped off. The SMPD says this will cause increased traffic, and urged local drivers to leave early and be patient. LAUSD ended summer and began its school year on Tuesday August 20th. SMMUSD has about 12,000 students. It has ten elementary schools, two middle schools, three high schools, an adult...

  • Ambassadors of Reed Park Vow to Clean Up the Park and the Restrooms

    David Ganezer, Observer Staff Writer|Updated Aug 24, 2019

    Santa Monica Downtown Ambassadors vow that they will clean up Santa Monica's parks, one by one. They are already present by the bathrooms in Reed Park and Tongva Park. We spoke to George Caragea, the General Manager of the Ambassadors in Reed Park Thursday morning. He says they arrive at 7 am and are sometimes there as late as 9 pm. The Ambassador program is ten years old, but their familiar umbrellas and kiosks have been parked near the bathrooms at Reed Park since August 1....

  • SMPD Vice Squad Send Underage Looking Officers to Buy Liquor from Local Stores

    Observer Staff|Updated Aug 24, 2019

    As if it weren't difficult enough running a retail establishment in Santa Monica, the Santa Monica Vice Squad send underage people younger than 20, in to local businesses to see if they could buy booze. The press release from Santa Monica PIO Lt. Candice Cobarrubias, follows: On August 8, 2019, officers from the Santa Monica Police Department's Vice Unit conducted a minor decoy operation with assistance from members of the Department of Alcohol Beverage Control targeting...

  • Satirical Video Focuses on LA's Skid Row While Imploring Tourists to Visit Los Angeles

    Observer Staff|Updated Aug 23, 2019

    A video newly posted on Youtube rolls video or homeless people living in tents on LA's infamous Skid Row, as a voice implores people to visit Los Angeles and engage in all the activities LA has to offer. Republicans from President Donald J. Trump on down have pilloried Democratic run big cities like Seattle, Portland, Los Angeles and San Francisco, for the large numbers of homeless people living on its streets and sidewalks. The conservative view is that these people are...

  • Protest at Santa Monica Pier Against Thirty Meter Telescope Planned for Mauna Kea

    David Ganezer, Observer staff writer|Updated Aug 17, 2019

    What participants described as a spontaneous protest against the University of Hawaii's Thirty Meter Telescope atop the worlds highest mountain, Mauna Kea, reached the Santa Monica Pier Sunday morning. "Why are people rallying against TMT?" Reads a flyer passed out by the protesters "University of Hawaii's decades of poor management of Hawaii's natural resources and prioritizing economic interests ahead of community interests, has resulted in a large opposition to TMT." The...

  • Artist Timothy Uriah Steele creates "an apology to the spirit" of Bombay Beach

    Sterling Roberts, Observer Staff Writer|Updated Aug 17, 2019

    Having grown up in both a cult and suburban Americana, artist Timothy Uriah Steele provides a unique and provocative journey with his work to showcase transcendence. When asked for his personal definition of transcendence, he described it as a "means to pass beyond the confines of an everyday...reality into something that's beckoning you into something other or... a broader perspective of life and what it means to exist." Instead of the results of before and after or known...

  • Festival of the Chariots Brings South Asian Color to Main Street in SM/Venice

    Stan Greene, Observer Staff Writer|Updated Aug 14, 2019

    International Society for Krishna Consciousness sponsored the 43rd Annual Festival of Chariots, in Santa Monica and Venice last Sunday, August 4th. "The Festival of the Chariots is based on an ancient annual festival in the holy town of Jagannatha Puri. Every year in India the festival attracts over one million pilgrims. It is second only to Kumbha Mela, the largest gathering of humanity on Earth. The crowds participate by hand pulling the chariots with maximum thickness jute...

  • Possession of Child Porn Leads to Charges Against Cedars Sinai Director of AI

    Observer Staff|Updated Aug 4, 2019

    A 59-year-old Santa Monica man has been charged with distributing and possessing child pornography, the Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office announced today. Guido Germano, 59 was charged with one felony count each of distribution of obscene matter and possession of child or youth pornography. Germano, who is the director of artificial intelligence medicine at Cedars-Sinai hospital, is accused of distributing child pornography videos using peer-to-peer software and...

  • Electrical Power Outage Friday Night In a Wide Swath of West Los Angeles. August 2, 2019

    Sarah Storkin, Observer Staff Writer|Updated Aug 4, 2019

    From Pico and Sawtelle to Bundy and Wilshire, the lights were out across a wide section of West Los Angeles Friday night. The blackout began around 7:39 pm PST. The power outage reportedly affected an area of around 4 square miles, ranging from pricey homes, to extremely pricey homes. Traffic officers directed traffic through dark intersections such as Sepulveda and Olympic during the power outage. At Bundy and Olympic, the Bed Bath and Beyond was illuminated, apparently by...

  • Charges filed Against Rape Robbery Suspect on 17th Street and 18th Street Assaults

    Observer Staff|Updated Aug 1, 2019

    Authorities announced that they have filed charges on Fernando Venancio Jr., a 43-year-old male from Lynwood CA., for his involvement in a series of robberies and sexual assaults that occurred in Santa Monica. Police arrested Venancio for two assaults on 18th and 19th Street, neighborhoods not typically frequented by violent crimes. The press release from SMPD reads: "On July 22, 2019 at about 4:16 p.m., officers from the Santa Monica Police Department (SMPD) responded to a ra...

  • Lenny's Deli on Westwood Blvd Closes Due to a Combination of Bugs, Rent and Delivery Apps

    Stan Greene|Updated Aug 1, 2019
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    Even a fifty year old restaurant is not safe in the era of food delivery apps. Or maybe it was the cockroaches that did Lenny's in. Lenny's Deli has announced that they will not be opening their double doors again. This is sad news for those of us of a certain age, who remember going to Junior's Delicatessen as kids, with our parents and grandparents. The West LA eatery, formerly known as Junior's Deli, had been closed by the LA County Health Dept due to a cockroach...

  • Lightning strike on Marina Del Ray Beach causes closure of west side beaches

    Observer Staff|Updated Jul 23, 2019

    A lightning strike on a beach in Marina Del Rey closed local beaches for about an hour Tuesday morning. This according to alerts from the City of Santa Monica. SM Alert Lightning Advisory - An electrical storm with lightning has been reported in Santa Monica. Please evacuate all ocean and beach/sand areas. If on the beach or on the Santa Monica Pier, seek shelter indoors until the storm has ended.” 10:53 update “LA County Lifeguards have reopened all beaches. Please res...

  • As State Legislature Considers Ban on Rat Poison, LA City Council Struggles with Rats, Typhus.

    Observer Staff|Updated Jul 22, 2019

    While California's biggest city deploys rat poison, the California State Legislature simultaneously considers a ban on rat poison. As former US Vice President Dan Quayle said, irony is pretty ironic sometimes. The recent release of a study saying that the Los Angeles county rat population has doubled in a year, has touched off a controversy. Some blame the homeless, others blame restrictions on rat poison said to kill mountain lions and other wildlife. Carl Demaio of Reform...

  • Santa Monica's $39.5 billion in Assessed Real Estate Values Places in Third Among LA County Cities

    David Ganezer, Observer Staff Writer|Updated Jul 20, 2019

    According to the assessment roll from the LA County Assessor, Santa Monica's 25,000 or so assessor's parcels are collectively worth $39.5 billion. This places Santa Monica 3rd in the County of Los Angeles for property values, which is totally impressive when you consider the relative populations of the top 3 cities. Los Angeles, which has a population of 4 million, has $652.9 billion in real estate. Long Beach, with a population of 600,000, has $60.2 billion in assessed real...

  • SMPD Shoots Musician After he Rushes them in Alley Off Lincoln Blvd Sunday Morning

    Observer Staff|Updated Jul 20, 2019

    Early Sunday morning, Santa Monica Police were attacked by Wolfgang Mountford, 29, in an alley off Lincoln Blvd, near Grant Avenue. Police say the man rushed them, an officer pulled his sidearm and fired one shot which struck the man. Fire department paramedics treated the man, who was taken to a hospital. Later he was treated and released. Police say they had encountered the same suspect earlier in the day. The press release from the SMPD is below. Santa Monica, CA: On July 1...

  • Work Begins on City Yard Modernization, Some Wonder about Recycling Center Closure

    Alyssa Erdley, News with Attitude|Updated Jul 20, 2019

    After three years of preparation, construction began this month on the modernization of the 14.7-acre Santa Monica City Yards located adjacent to Bergamot Station on Michigan Avenue. The City Yards hosts the city's maintenance and industrial services, such as water operations, street maintenance, and fire training. Until last month, the Yards also hosted a recycling center. The recycling center, operated by private contractor Allan Company, was closed by the city in June in a...

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