E. Coli in the Cheese Aisle, a Fugitive Predator, and a Brush Fire Still Smoldering
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The San Diego County Health Department has issued a formal warning over recalled Sierra Nevada Graziers raw-milk cheese tied to an active E. coli outbreak. Two county children, both under age five, are among three California patients identified in a multistate case count that has reached 13 confirmed infections across 10 states; the reported average patient age is five years old. The recall covers four products — medium cheddar, sharp cheddar, jalapeño jack, and Monterey jack — in both retail sizes (eight-ounce and 16-ounce) and five-pound wholesale loaves used in food-service settings. County Public Health Officer Sayone Thihalolipavan's guidance is unambiguous: do not eat the cheese, throw it out immediately. Shiga toxin-producing E. coli can cause stomach cramps, diarrhea, and vomiting, and in severe cases progresses to hemolytic uremic syndrome, a form of kidney failure. Young children, elderly people, pregnant people, and immunocompromised individuals face the highest risk.
Simultaneously, San Diego County Sheriff's deputies are actively searching for Merle Wakefield, 69, a sexually violent predator enrolled in California's conditional release program. His GPS monitoring device entered what authorities describe as 'Tamper Mode' at approximately 3:30 a.m. Friday in Rancho Bernardo; when Liberty Health Care personnel followed up, the device had been removed. Wakefield is described as five feet ten inches tall, roughly 230 pounds, with brown eyes. The Sheriff's Office is explicit: do not approach him, do not attempt to contact him — call 911 immediately upon sighting. Two days have passed since the GPS alert, a significant window that prompted rapid escalation by the department.
A third public-safety event unfolded Saturday when the Forester Fire burned near La Cresta Road and Old Bend Road in the La Cresta area of El Cajon. Authorities contained the blaze at nearly one acre and designated Granite Hills High School at 1719 East Madison Avenue as an evacuation point. The immediate danger appears managed, but officials caution that 'nearly one acre contained' is not the same as extinguished. Residents in the La Cresta corridor are advised to keep AlertSanDiego active through at least the next 48 hours; warm, dry conditions with the potential for wind shifts — the exact pattern that has transformed small fires in previous years — remain in place through the end of September.
Adding to the week's law-enforcement picture, San Diego Police conducted their annual College Area enforcement operation, yielding 40 felony arrests according to a September 25 city update. The operation is a recurring targeted sweep in neighborhoods around San Diego State University; the city's public release did not include a charge breakdown.