STORIES FROM THE PAST
50 years ago
An El Centro man is in critical condition in El Centro Community Hospital this morning after being stabbed during the night by a Brawley woman friend.
Douglas Peterson, 31, who lives in a trailer in El Centro, was stabbed through the left chest by an 8-inch butcher knife allegedly wielded by Norma Jane De Sander, a cocktail waitress of Brawley.
The 33-year-old Mrs. De Sander is being held in county jail on a charge of attempted murder.
The hospital says that Peterson is “very sick.” Peterson shared the trailer with Faustino Tom Azevedo, 47. The sheriff’s office, which is handling the case, did not yet know how Peterson or Azevedo are employed. The trailer is owned by Richard Laustead, owner of the City Limits Liquor store in El Centro.
This morning Laustead angrily refused to discuss the case. However, neighbors said that Peterson and Azevedo had occupied the trailer for some months, and that people were “coming in and out of the place all the time.”
This morning Azevedo told sheriff’s deputies that he went home last night at 10. He said that Peterson was not there then.
40 years ago
The installation of El Centro’s first “major” solar energy power system is expected to be working shortly.
Quality Energy Systems of Lemon Grove is currently in the final stages of installing nine solar energy panels which will provide heat to 45 units at Cottonwood Arms Apartments, 2085 S. Cottonwood Circle, El Centro.
Along with Dr. Travis Calvin’s new geodesic domeshaped office at Imperial and Ross avenues, the Cottonwood Arms panels will be the first major solar heating installation in El Centro.
Each of the nine installations will supplement existing 100-gallon electric hot water heaters by adding a 120-gallon solar water heating storage tank.
According to Pharr, the Valley is in an area that receives more sunlight than any place else in the United States.
He said, “We have the best of all possible worlds in the Valley with all of the sunlight and the high electricity costs.”
The new system will only heat the apartment units, since it is more difficult to solar air condition a house. It costs about $2,000 to solar air condition a house.
30 years ago
El Centro police arrested seven store clerks Thursday night after a 19-year-old police cadet was able to buy alcohol from them during a police “sting” operation.
Det. Ron Merideth said the seven clerks were arrested on suspicion of selling alcohol to a minor, a misdemeanor offense, but were released after being cited. Merideth said when the decoy attempted to pay for the alcohol, or did pay for it, an undercover officer already in the store made the arrest.
“We hit about every retail outlet in El Centro,” Merideth said. “Most (except for the seven) were found to comply with (Alcoholic Beverage Control) regulations.”
20 years ago
In a continuing effort to keep the public well-informed of progress being made toward the day when the Imperial Irrigation District transfers conserved water to the San Diego County Water Authority, a fourth workshop dealing with on-farm conservation measures was staged Monday.
The various methods included baseline allocation, gate allocation, tailwater reduction, dead level, dream delivery system, interceptor installation and consumptive use, among others.
A consensus seemed to be that fallowing would not be allowed under any circumstances.
“We all have one thing in common, that is to conserve water,” said John Veysey, chairman of the IID’s water conservation advisory board, adding that everyone who sits on the advisory board is against fallowing.