SAN DIEGO (NEWS 8) — As 2018 comes to a close, News 8 is taking a look back at the San Diego news stories that resonated most with viewers. The following stories were among the most-watched on our TV broadcasts.
These pieces include heart-warming moments that show the kindness and character of our community, jaw-dropping incidents that were caught on camera and stories that were submitted by our own News 8 viewers.
In no particular order, presented below are the top San Diego news stories of 2018.
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On October 2, Keane Webre Hayes was expected to make a full recovery after being bit by a shark in Encinitas. The 13-year-old was diving for lobsters prior to the attack. Medical staff at Rady Children's Hospital spoke at a news conference along with the boy's family who was understandably emotional. Watch more of his story below.
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On February 8, after an internal review the City Public Utilities Department stated it found "misread water meters" resulted in more than 300 customers being incorrectly overcharged for their water usage during the November-December billing period. Their admission about the misread meters came after weeks of News 8 Your Stories Investigation reports on skyrocketing bills. News 8 viewers had a big part in bringing this story to light, sending emails and making phone calls to alert us to the issue.
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Friends and family came together on April 17 during a funeral procession to honor a Miramar-based Marine, Gunnery Sergeant Derik R. Holley who was killed in a helicopter crash near El Centro two weeks before. San Diegans answered a call to show their support during the procession. Much of the procession was captured by Chopper 8 and a portion can be seen below.
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Skateboards can be a dream come true for a child, but for one 14-year-old amputee, those wheels are a way to get around town. In the Zevely Zone on May 7, Jeff went to local skateboard company Sector 9 in Sorrento Valley with a special birthday follow up for Josiah after reporting on the teen's unique way of getting around the month before.
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Hundreds of Helix High School students staged a walkout on January 22 to protest police brutality after video emerged on social media showing a La Mesa police officer on campus allegedly slamming a teenage girl to the ground. That night students and parents confronted the school board and demanded they take action. Video of the incident can be seen in the report below.
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A female suspect was taken into custody after an "active shooter" was reported by San Diego police along the route for the San Diego Rock 'n' Roll Marathon on June 3. While police tried to move in on the suspect one officer accidentally discharged his weapon shooting himself in the leg. Officers also fired two shots at the suspect, but both missed. Other officers later approached the woman as she threw the weapon she had been brandishing off the building. It landed in the street and was later confirmed to be an airsoft handgun.
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A man with at least one prior DUI conviction was behind bars on January 3 on suspicion of murder, vehicular manslaughter, drunken driving and hit-and-run in the aftermath of a fiery freeway pileup in Scripps Ranch that killed two people and injured two others, including a police officer. Jeffrey Brian Levi allegedly was traveling at speeds in excess of 100 mph and swerving between vehicles on northbound Interstate 15 when his Ford Mustang rear-ended a Toyota Corolla on January 2, according to the California Highway Patrol. A woman was rescued from the wreckage but her brother and boyfriend were trapped and killed. Video in the piece below shows the devastating aftermath of the crash.
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After being denied entrance to an Ice Cube concert at the Del Mar Fairgrounds on Sept. 2, Daniel Elizarraras fired a gun into the air, according to the Sheriff's Department. One witness told News 8: "He put his gun in the air, shot three times. He was kind of walking in a circle." Deputies tased Elizarraras and then opened fire when that did not work. He was taken to the hospital and survived.
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Police were seeking the public’s help on March 1 in tracking down the man responsible for attacking a woman at a Redbox kiosk in North Park. Disturbing video showed a man come up behind a woman and pushing her down at a Redbox machine outside a North Park 7-Eleven.The assault, which occurred on February 15, can be seen in the video below.
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La Jolla Country Day School students had their graduation on June 1, but it wasn’t your typical graduating class. The seniors at the high school selected 88-year old Holocaust survivor, Rose Schindler, to walk with them and to receive her diploma. She called it the best day of her life.
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Two San Diego police officers were shot and wounded in a standoff in the College Area on June 23, but were recovering and in stable condition just two days later. The shootout led to a SWAT team response where officers confronted the barricaded suspect in a two-hour standoff. The suspect was found dead inside the apartment. Raw cell phone video from the shooting can be seen below, but please note it may be disturbing to some viewers and it includes adult language.
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On August 1, News 8 shared a positive update on a story we first reported on the week before. A woman moved across the country to Pacific Beach months prior, but her furniture and personal items never showed up. Some of her items later arrived but in the meantime, Jerome's Furniture stepped in to help.
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The Campbell Creek Ranch in Alpine was destroyed by the West Fire on July 6. The historic 48-acre ranch estate was tucked into a secluded valley in Alpine, and the Viejas Creek ran through it. This ranch offered a unique and versatile setting to conduct a variety of events and the property dated back to the 1880s. In the video below, News 8's Jeff Zevely reports from the site of the ranch as helicopters were making water drops in the area. News 8 did a follow-up story and spoke with the ranch's owners the next week.
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The first members of a caravan of migrants from Central America arrived in Tijuana, Mexico in mid-November. President Trump had recently signed a proclamation to block migrants from crossing into the U.S. for 90 days. The group that arrived at the U.S.-Mexico border around November 12 appeared to include about 80 people which reportedly comprised of members of the LGBTQ community.
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A light plane occupied by a flight instructor and a student pilot made a safe emergency landing Friday amid late-morning traffic on Interstate 8 in El Cajon on October 19. Cellphone video seen in the piece below was recorded by an occupant of a car traveling along the freeway and shows the aircraft smoothly landing between several westbound vehicles.
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A Los Angeles musician was heartbroken after his prized possession was stolen from a San Diego hotel room on August 8. John Walz told News 8 he left his room at the Town and Country to go to dinner and when he came back, his $100,000 dollar cello was gone. Thankfully, the instrument was found by a fellow musician later that week!
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Nature got a little too close for comfort for one Bonita family's dog in mid-December. After checking their doorbell cam video, they could not believe what happened in their front yard. See below for the surprising video.
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It was determined on September 4 that Republican U.S. Rep. Duncan Hunter of California would go to trial on corruption charges after the November 6 midterm elections, with all sides agreeing to allow more time to review the prosecution's evidence. The tweet below shows reporters asking Duncan Hunter questions outside court but he didn't respond to anyone.
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Now that you've seen what viewers were watching in 2018, take a trip into the News 8 archives with these year-end videos from 1985 and 1992 by photojournalist Joe Wiedemann.