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December 16
1902 - Hi Jolly (Hadji Ali), Gen. E.F. Beale's Syrian camel driver, dies at Quartzsite, Ariz. [story]
Hi Jolly's Tomb


The Los Angeles County Department of Public Health confirmed Tuesday seven additional deaths and 541 new cases of COVID-19 countywide, with 16 new cases in the Santa Clarita Valley.

This new data brings Los Angeles County death totals to 31,626, county case totals to 2,831,655 and Santa Clarita Valley case totals to 72,239 since March of 2020.

The Los Angeles County Department of Public Health (Public Health) today released the latest data on COVID-19. The number of cases and deaths are likely to reflect reporting delays over the holiday weekend.

— 321 people currently hospitalized with COVID-19

— More than 11,675,000 individuals tested; 22% of people tested positive to date

Data is by date reported by DPH, but does not necessarily represent the date of testing, hospitalization, or death.

* Number reflects an undercount due to a lag from weekend or holiday reporting.

**Monday’s reported death count is a cumulative report of Sunday and Monday and reflects an undercount due to a lag from weekend or holiday reporting.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration on Tuesday, March 28 authorized a second booster dose of either the Pfizer-BioNTech or the Moderna COVID-19 vaccines for individuals 50 years of age and older at least four months after they received their first booster dose. Public Health sites will be prepared to administer second booster doses to those eligible starting Wednesday, March 30.

Sites administering second booster doses for those 50 years of age and older starting tomorrow include Obregon Park in East Los Angeles, Ted Watkins Park in South Los Angeles, Balboa Sports Complex in Encino, Commerce Senior Citizens Center in Commerce, Market Street Center in Santa Clarita, Palmdale Oasis Recreation Center in Palmdale and the Norwalk Arts and Sports Complex in Norwalk. Visit L.A. County Vaccinations for more information.

Eligible residents can also check with other vaccination sites about the availability of the second booster dose.

A wide range of data and dashboards on COVID-19 from the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health are available on the Public Health website at http://www.publichealth.lacounty.gov.

To keep workplaces and schools open, residents and workers are asked to:

– Get tested to help reduce the spread, especially if you traveled for the holidays, have had a possible exposure, or have symptoms, or are gathering with people not in your household

– Adhere to masking requirements when indoors or at crowded outdoor spaces, regardless of vaccination status

– Residents are legally required to be isolated if they have a positive COVID test result and vaccinated close contacts with symptoms and unvaccinated close contacts need to be quarantined.

For information on where you can get tested, please visit www.covid19.lacounty.gov/testing/.

For updated isolation and quarantine guidance, please visit www.publichealth.lacounty.gov.

COVID-19 vaccines are safe and effective and are recommended for everyone 5 years old and older to help protect against COVID-19. Vaccinations are always free and open to eligible residents and workers regardless of immigration status. Appointments are not needed at all Public Health vaccination sites and many community sites where first, second, and third doses are available.

To find a vaccination site near you, or to make an appointment, please visit:

www.VaccinateLACounty.com (English) or

www.VacunateLosAngeles.com (Spanish).

William S. Hart Union High School District COVID-19 Dashboard

The William S. Hart Union High School District provides ongoing information to our community regarding COVID-19 cases while maintaining confidentiality for our students and staff. The COVID-19 case data below is updated regularly to indicate any currently confirmed COVID-19 positive case in staff members or students by school site. The data below is specific to individuals who have been physically present on a District campus within 14 days of receiving a positive COVID-19 test. The District, in conjunction with the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health, conducts contact tracing and directly notifies and provides resources for parents of students identified as close contacts (6 feet or less for 15 cumulative minutes or more).

Note: To see the communication process in the event of a positive COVID-19 case, visit https://www.hartdistrict.org/apps/pages/covid-19dashboard.

Student Dashboard

Staff Dashboard

Henry Mayo Newhall Hospital

Henry Mayo Newhall Hospital currently has zero tests pending, one patient in the hospital, a total of 2,222 patients who have been treated and discharged since the pandemic began, with no additional deaths, spokesman Michael Crawford confirmed. Henry Mayo has reported 229 deaths to date.

Privacy laws prohibit the hospital from releasing the community of residence for patients who die there; that info is reported by the L.A. County Public Health COVID-19 dashboard, which generally lags 48 hours behind.

Santa Clarita Valley Tuesday Update
As of 4:30 p.m. Tuesday, the L.A. County Public Health dashboard no additional deaths leaving the total of number of deaths from COVID-19 at 456 since the onset of the pandemic.

The following is the community breakdown per L.A. County’s dashboard:

Santa Clarita: 373

Castaic: 28

Acton: 17

Stevenson Ranch: 14

Unincorporated Canyon Country: 9 (revised from 10)

Agua Dulce: 5

Val Verde: 3 (revised from 4)

Valencia: 2

Unincorporated Bouquet Canyon: 2

Elizabeth Lake: 1

Newhall: 1

unincorporated Saugus/Canyon Country: 1

Lake Hughes: 0 (**revised from 1)

 

SCV Cases

Of the 72,239 cases reported to Public Health for the SCV to date, the community breakdown is as follows:

Santa Clarita: 53,679

Castaic: 7,094

Stevenson Ranch: 4,011

Canyon Country (unincorporated portion): 2,582

Acton: 1,513

Val Verde: 831

Agua Dulce: 779

Valencia (unincorporated portion west of I-5): 670

Saugus (unincorporated portion): 310

Elizabeth Lake: 204

Bouquet Canyon: 149

Lake Hughes: 146

Saugus/Canyon Country: 89

Newhall (Unincorporated portion): 87

Sand Canyon: 48

San Francisquito/Bouquet Canyon: 34

Placerita Canyon: 15

*Note: The county is unable to break out separate numbers for Castaic and PDC/NCCF because the county uses geotagging software that cannot be changed at this time, according to officials. Click here for the LASD COVID-19 dashboard.

California Tuesday

Statewide COVID-19 Data

Cases, hospitalizations and deaths are largely occurring among unvaccinated populations. See the data for unvaccinated and vaccinated cases, hospitalizations and deaths.

Vaccinations

– 72,627,423 total vaccines administered.

– 83.8% of the eligible population (5+) has been vaccinated with at least one dose.

– 19,989 people a day are receiving COVID-19 vaccination (average daily dose count over seven days).

Cases

– California has 8,484,309 confirmed cases to date.

– Today’s average case count is 1,985 (average daily case count over seven days).

– Unvaccinated people are 4.4 times more likely to get COVID-19 than boosted individuals (Feb. 28, 2022 – March 6, 2022).

Testing

– The testing positivity rate is 1.3% (average rate over seven days).

Hospitalizations

– There are 1,414 hospitalizations statewide.

– There are 264 ICU patients statewide.

– Unvaccinated people are 8.5 times more likely to be hospitalized than boosted individuals (Feb. 28, 2022 – March 6, 2022).

Deaths

– There have been 87,956 COVID-19 deaths since the start of the pandemic.

– COVID-19 claims the lives of 53 Californians each day (average daily death count over seven days).

– Unvaccinated people are 13.8 times more likely to die than boosted individuals (Feb. 21, 2022 – Feb. 27, 2022).

Health Care Workers

Note: As of March 24, local health departments have reported 153,387 confirmed positive cases in health care workers and 576 deaths statewide.

Testing Turnaround Time

The testing turnaround time dashboard reports how long California patients are waiting for COVID-19 test results. During the week of March 13 to March 19, the average time patients waited for test results was 0.8 days. During this same time period, 91% of patients received test results in one day and 97% received them within two days.

Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome in Children (MIS-C)

As of March 28, there have been 910 cases of Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome in Children (MIS-C) reported statewide. MIS-C is a rare inflammatory condition associated with COVID-19 that can damage multiple organ systems. MIS-C can require hospitalization and be life threatening.

Additional Updates

Mask Guidance: Under California’s mask guidance, universal masking is required only in specified higher risk settings like hospitals, public transit and congregate living facilities. Unvaccinated persons are required to mask in all indoor public settings. Fully vaccinated individuals are recommended to continue indoor masking when the risk may be high. Workplaces will continue to follow the COVID-19 prevention standards set by CalOSHA. Local health jurisdictions may implement requirements that are stricter than state guidance.

Slow the Spread: Get Vaccinated and Boosted for COVID-19

The risk for COVID-19 exposure and infection continues as a number of Californians remain unvaccinated and unboosted.

Real-world evidence continues to show that the vaccine is preventing severe illness, hospitalization, and death. Public health officials urge Californians to get vaccinated and boosted as soon as possible.

It is recommended that every vaccinated person 12 years or older should get a booster as long as they received their second dose of the Pfizer or Moderna vaccine at least five months ago or they received their Johnson & Johnson vaccine at least two months ago.

Vaccination appointments can be made by visiting myturn.ca.gov or calling 1-833-422-4255. The consent of a parent or legal guardian may be needed for those under age 18 to receive a vaccination. Visit Vaccinate All 58 to learn more about the safe and effective vaccines available for all Californians 5+.

Your Actions Save Lives

Protect yourself, family, friends and your community by following these prevention measures:

Keep California Healthy
Protect yourself, family, friends and your community by following these prevention measures:

– Get vaccinated when it’s your turn. Californians age 16+ are eligible to make an appointment.

– If you are experiencing symptoms of COVID-19 (fever, cough, shortness of breath, fatigue, muscle or body aches), call your health care provider.

– If you believe you have been exposed, get tested. Free, confidential testing is available statewide.

– Keep gatherings small and outdoors and follow state and local public health guidance.

– Wear a mask and get the most out of masking – an effective mask has both good fit and good filtration.

– Wash hands with soap and water for at least 20 seconds.

– Delay non-essential travel outside of California until you are fully vaccinated. Follow California’s travel advisory.

– Avoid close contact with people who are sick and stay home from work and school if you feel ill.

– Add your phone to the fight by signing up for COVID-19 exposure notifications from CA Notify.

– Answer the call or text if a contact tracer from the CA COVID Team or your local health department tries to connect.

Additional data and udpates:

Tracking COVID-19 in California

State Dashboard – Daily COVID-19 data

County Map – Local data, including tier status and ICU capacity

Data and Tools – Models and dashboards for researchers, scientists, and the public

Blueprint for a Safer Economy– Data for establishing tier status

COVID-19 Race & Ethnicity Data – Weekly updated Race & Ethnicity data

Cases and Deaths by Age Group – Weekly updated Deaths by Age Group data

Health Equity Dashboard – See how COVID-19 highlights existing inequities in health

Tracking Variants – Data on the variants California is currently monitoring

Safe Schools for All Hub – Information about safe in-person instruction

School Districts Reopening Map – data on public schools and reported outbreaks

Always check with trusted sources for the latest accurate information about novel coronavirus:

Los Angeles County Department of Public Health

California Department of Public Health

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

Spanish

World Health Organization

L.A. County residents can also call 2-1-1.

What to Do if You Think You’re Sick
Call ahead: If you are experiencing symptoms of COVID-19 (fever, cough or shortness of breath), call your health care provider before seeking medical care so that appropriate precautions can be taken. More than 85 community testing sites also offer free, confidential testing: Find a COVID-19 Testing Site.

For more information about what Californians can do to prevent the spread of COVID-19, visit Coronavirus (COVID-19) in California.

California continues to issue guidance on preparing and protecting California from COVID-19. Consolidated guidance is available on the California Department of Public Health’s Guidance webpage.

Comment On This Story
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SCV NewsBreak
LOCAL NEWS HEADLINES
Tuesday, Dec 16, 2025
Chamber Opens Nominations for SCV Business Choice Awards
The Santa Clarita Valley Chamber of Commerce Awards + Installation 2026 will be hosted this year at California Institute of the Arts on Friday, Feb. 13.
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The Master's University swimming teams turned in a strong all-around performance Saturday, Dec. 13, sweeping both the men's and women's dual meets against Bethel University of Indiana.
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1902 - Hi Jolly (Hadji Ali), Gen. E.F. Beale's Syrian camel driver, dies at Quartzsite, Ariz. [story]
Hi Jolly's Tomb
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LASD Response to Australian Terrorist Attack on Hanukkah
Caltrans has announced overnight lane reductions along Interstate 405 (I-405) through the Sepulveda Pass for median barrier work. The work will start after 9 p.m. Monday, Dec. 15 and will end by 6 a.m. each morning to Friday, Dec. 19.
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Allie Miller scored a career-high 23 points and Bella Forker added a career-high 20 as The Master's University women's basketball team defeated the Life Pacific Warriors 72-42 Saturday, Dec. 13 in The MacArthur Center.
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1987 - Incorporation: Santa Clarita officially becomes a city [story]
first City Council
1931 - Season's first major storm deposits 9 inches of snow in Newhall, 10 in Saugus [story]
1931 snowfall
1900 - Automobile Club of Southern California founded; first car in SCV appeared 1902 [story]
Auto Club Topper
Boys & Girls Club of Santa Clarita Valley recently hosted its annual Board Holiday Luncheon, a special gathering to celebrate and honor those who continue to uplift the club and the young people it serves.
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SCVNews.com