Early Friday morning, during the weekly homeless encampment clean up of ,the Venice Beach restrooms, a woman was removed from one of the restroom stalls. Angered by this she became hostile, and when social workers tried to offer her assistance, she pulled out a large knife and threatened them and others in the area.

After the standoff with LAPD, she was overheard blaming Daisy the Venice Healer for being removed from the restrooms.

May 10, 2024

Beach Closure and Ocean Water Use Warning for Los Angeles County Beaches

The Los Angeles County Department of Public Health cautions residents who are planning to visit the below Los Angeles County beaches to avoid swimming, surfing, and playing in ocean waters:

BEACH AREAS CLOSED:

The following sites continue to remain closed due to a recent sewage discharge:

· Dockweiler State Beach from Ballona Creek to one mile South

· Venice Beach from Ballona Creek to one mile North

BEACH AREA WARNINGS:

· Escondido Creek at Escondido State Beach

The entire swim area

· Malibu Lagoon at Surfrider Beach

100 yards up and down the coast from the public restrooms.

· Santa Monica Canyon Creek at Will Rogers State Beach. Near Will Rogers Tower 18

100 yards up and down the coast from the creek

· Santa Monica Pier in Santa Monica

100 yards up and down the coast from the pier

· Pico-Kenter storm drain at Santa Monica Beach. Santa Monica South Tower 20

100 yards up and down the coast from the storm drain

· Mothers Beach in Marina Del Rey

The entire swim area

· Redondo Beach Pier in Redondo Beach

100 yards up and down the coast from the pier

· Inner Cabrillo Beach in San Pedro

The entire swim area

These warnings have been issued due to bacterial levels exceeding health standards when last tested.

BEACH AREAS NOW CLEARED:

Warnings have been lifted for the following beach areas where recent sample results identified water quality levels within State standards:

· Latigo Shore Drive in Malibu

· Herondo Street Storm Drain in Hermosa Beach. Near Hermosa Tower TK

Use the map below to obtain the current water quality status of your favorite beach location. Use your mouse wheel to zoom into a particular location. Click on the marker to identify the sampling location. This map is updated as conditions change.

>The second Saturday of each May is designated as “Fire Service Day” in the City of Los Angeles - a citywide open firehouse celebration,

This year, our theme is "Celebrating Community Resilience", with a focus on strengthening the connections that benefit our entire community in times of crisis.

We're eager to have you spend part of your day with us on Saturday, May 11, to learn about our team, tools and training - but more importantly, for us to learn of your needs and concerns regarding emergency response and disaster preparedness.



Fire Station 63 (Venice) will be welcoming your visit between 10 AM and 4 PM on Saturday, May 11, 2024 For more info, Click Here.

Find out about more upcoming local events, Click Here for the Event Calendar.

For the previous news update on this, Click Here

A member of a Mexican drug cartel has made a huge claim about killing of the 3 surfers in Mexico.

The vicious Sinaloa Cartel, headed by brothers René and Aquiles Arzate, told the DailyBeast that "They were low-level robbers acting alone. But we handed them over."

“We learned that the cops were looking for the gringos and also began looking for those who were responsible. We called the authorities to let them know where to find them."

The cartel member said that the criminal organization was afraid of getting “unwanted attention” from Mexican authorities.

Brothers Jesús Gerardo Garcia Cota and Cristian Alejandro García have since been arrested. It is unclear which brother is which in their mugshots (pictured above).



Ari Gisel García Cota, 23, was also arrested. She is reportedly the partner of Jesús Gerardo Garcia Cota. br />
This contradicts the Mexican police account of how the three suspects were arrested, with authorities having claimed they tracked the phone of one of the victims, which was in the possession of a Ari Gisel García Cota.

Ari Gisel has now become a witness for the prosecution. She told investigators her then-romantic partner had arrived at her house on Sunday and told her "I fucked up three gringos".

The court heard she said, "what do you mean?" to which he replied, "I killed them".

The police narrative of what happened appears to be "shady" claims those knowledgeable about the area and local corruption.

May 9, 2024

Public Health has UPDATED an ocean water closure due to the release of approximately 14,400 gallons of untreated sewage:

• Dockweiler State Beach from Ballona Creek to one mile South

• Venice Beach from Ballona Creek to one mile North.

Public Health officials are advising residents or visitors planning to visit Los Angeles County beaches to avoid contact with ocean water and wet sand in the areas noted above. The sewage discharge began on May 8th and was stopped at 12:09 p.m. on May 9th, resulting in an estimated 14,400 gallons of sewage entering Ballona Creek.

The Department of Public Health will conduct water sampling beginning on May 10th, and the closures will remain in effect until Public Health receives two sampling results indicating that bacterial levels meet health standards.

Use the map below to obtain the current water quality status of your favorite beach location. Use your mouse wheel to zoom into a particular location. Click on the marker to identify the sampling location. This map is updated as conditions change.

Happening annually on Memorial Day weekend, Topanga Days is a 3-day music festival with artisans, food, beverages, a fun zone for kids and family games that raises funds for the Topanga Community Center, a 501c3 nonprofit.

This year’s musical lineup features Grammy award winning artist, Fantastic Negrito, on Saturday, May 25th at 5:30 p.m., the catchy, synth pop sounds and dynamic stage presence of 80s Rock icons, Missing Persons, on Sunday, May 26th at 5:30 p.m., and the genre defying psychedelic folk sounds of musical savant, Jonathan Wilson, on Monday, May 27th at 5:45 p.m. In addition to the headliners, the diverse, crowd-pleasing Main Stage outdoor lineup includes, Krooked Kings, Nosotros, Venice, Deb Ryder, The FBR, Will Worden, Kummerspeck, Wynchester, Tristan Lake Leabu, Low Coast, Electric Magic, and The Dirty Lowdown.



For more info, Click Here.

Find out about more upcoming local events, Click Here for the Event Calendar.

A Mexican court has heard chilling details of the events that prosecutors allege followed the deaths of Perth brothers Jake and Callum Robinson and their American friend, as a man faces charges relating to their disappearance.

According to Australian News, Jesús Gerardo, also known as "El Kekas", appeared before a court in the Mexican city of Ensenada this morning, where his last name had been suppressed according to local laws.

The judge read out the state's case, in which Jesús's then-girlfriend, 23-year-old Ari Gisell has turned prosecution witness.

The prosecution alleged Ari, whose last name had also been suppressed, told authorities her then-partner had admitted to killing the three men.

The court heard she told investigators her then-romantic partner had arrived at her house on Sunday and told her "I fucked up three gringos".

The court heard she said, "what do you mean?" to which he replied, "I killed them".

Prosecutors alleged he then gave her a mobile phone and said "look what I got you", before taking her outside to show her the new tyres on her car that had been allegedly stolen from the trio's vehicle.

Charges against Jesús have not yet been upgraded to murder, but that is expected to happen in coming days.

When Ari had turned on the stolen mobile phone, she attracted the attention of Mexican authorities. Ari was arrested in relation to the trio's disappearance, along with Jesús's brother, Cristian Alejandro.

Upon her arrest, the court heard she told investigators she wanted to assist the investigation because she had a four-year-old daughter who she needed to care for.

She alleges Jesús has a history of domestic violence and had been physically and mentally abusing her.

She has been charged with drug possession after being found with methamphetamine.

Jesús is yet to enter a plea and has been remanded in custody until his next court hearing, which is scheduled to take place on November 8.

The Mexican police version of events in the murders of three surfers appears shady to those knowledgeable about the area and local corruption.

Mexican prosecutors said a trio of bandits targeted the victims’ truck so they could take its tires, then reacted with violence when confronted by the surfers, leading to their deaths and the bodies being hidden four miles away

“Basically, the reasoning of them being carjack victims gone wrong makes very little sense. These surfers were well traveled and would most likely know better than to try to fend off a truck jacking,” stated a source who does private security work in Mexico.

“My guess is they were mistakenly identified as a rival criminal organization and murdered. That being exposed would create an ongoing investigation that no cartel wants to deal with and would create a devastating impact on tourism in the area,” which is popular with surfers and visitors from the US, the source explained.

“The case is highly unusual, as presented by Mexican police, who say the supposed robbery was done by small-time criminals who ended up destroying the vehicle they were allegedly trying to steal,” he added.

“Given the deep and widespread corruption in the Mexican police, it’s hard to dismiss the possibility of a cover-up, potentially to shift blame away from a powerful drug cartel. This would certainly align with the Mexican government’s efforts to downplay the severity of cartel violence in Mexico.”

Join us for a day of celebration on Fire Service Day on May 11 at Fire Station 1! The Santa Monica Fire Department is excited to welcome the community into the heart of their firefighting operations.

Saturday, May 11
10 a.m. -1 p.m.
Fire Station 1, 1337 7th St.

For more info, Click Here.