🌱 Heartworm Disease In HB + 3 OC Restaurants Make Yelp's Top 100

Happy Friday, people of Huntington Beach, and happy Squirrel Appreciation Day! Let's get you all caught up on what's happening locally to start today off on an informed note.

Mosquitoes have tested positive for heartworm disease in three OC cities. Also, Yelp released its list of the Top 100 restaurants. Finally, a flag thief was arrested.

First, today's weather:

Partly sunny. High: 68 Low: 56.

Here are the top five stories in Huntington Beach today:

1. Dog guardians, listen up! We learned Wednesday that mosquitoes screening positive for dog heartworm have been detected. Right now, they are in HB, Seal Beach, and Fullerton. “The detection of positive dog heartworm mosquitoes indicates that heartworm disease is active in Orange County,” said Vector Control’s representative. Because the mosquitos typically breed in April, this is only the beginning. The good news is that your veterinarian can prescribe monthly heartworm prevention medication for your dogs! (The OCR)
2. Did your favorite restaurant make the Yelp Top 100? Four CA restaurants made it. Three are in Orange County, and one is in L.A. County. They are the Fermentation Farm (Costa Mesa) in third place, The Vox Kitchen (Fountain Valley) in 11th, the Lido Bottle Works (Newport Beach) in 58th place, and Moonshadow (Malibu) in 86th. (KTLA)
3. On Thursday, a man experiencing homelessness stole two flags off the Orange City Hall flag pole. One was an American flag and the other a POW-MIA flag. A witness called the PD, who retrieved the stolen flags and arrested the suspect. (New Santa Ana)
4. Santa Ana winds returned to Newport Beach and other areas of the OC. Forecasters alerted residents to expect high winds “between 15 and 50 mph.” If you haven’t done so already, it might be a good idea to secure your outdoor furniture. (Patch)
5. Orange County Supervisor Andrew Do plans on celebrating the annual Tet Festival on February 4. It will be held at Mile Square Park, where attendees will usher in the Vietnamese Lunar New Year. “Families can stop by Mile Square Park the first weekend in February to enjoy traditional Vietnamese food, music, and performances,” he said. (OC Breeze)

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Today in Huntington Beach:

• Live Music at the Biergarten (7 PM)
• The Circle OC presents Dustycloud (9 PM)
• Good Times Ahead at the Time Nightclub (9:30 PM)
• Keith Reza performs at The Rec Room by Off The Wall (10 PM)
• Legacy Nightclub hosts 18+ Hip-Hop/EDM (10 PM)

From my notebook:

• A kind Yorktown neighbor found an abandoned cat and wants to find it a home. If interested, please text or call these numbers. Text 714-884-8610 Call 714-960-0848" (Nextdoor)
• A Goldenwest Park neighbor has seen a large coyote in the hedge on the northwest corner of the field at Glenview Park and near BrightStar day care. Neighbors chased him off and it returned shortly after. (Nextdoor)
• Our Springdale Shores neighbor is looking for a reliable, trustworthy transmission shop. It's for work on an older "50s" vehicle. (Nextdoor)
• A Huntington Harbor West neighbor is requesting help for the SAFE Rescue Team, which has taken on quite a few rescue pups and medical seniors. They are in need of potty pads or disposable adult incontinence bed pads (to use as potty pads). (Nextdoor)

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Now you're in the loop and ready to head out the door on this Friday! See you all tomorrow morning for another update.

— Sylvia Cochran

About me: Sylvia Cochran works out of sunny Southern California and has been freelance writing full-time since 2005. She loves dogs, cats, books, plays Best Fiends (don't judge), embraces social justice, and tries to live out Micah 6:8.