Daily Dose: Military Affairs

Events

• 5 p.m. EL CAJON - The San Diego County Water Authority will hold a public forum on the future of the Colorado River, which supplies a portion of the region's water.

Naval Hospital Ship

The San Diego-based Navy hospital ship USNS Mercy is scheduled to deploy Tuesday for a four-month humanitarian mission to four Asian nations.

The vessel will visit Cambodia, Indonesia, the Philippines and Vietnam in the seventh year of a program called Pacific Partnership, according to the Navy. The goal of the program is to build relationships that will help in the event of a natural disaster.

"A lot of planning and coordination among host and partner nation governments and military, civilian organizations and agencies has gone into getting us to this point," said Capt. James Morgan, the mission commander. "We're ready to deploy and conduct the mission on a theme of 'preparing in calm to respond in crisis."'

Crew members on the Mercy will provide medical, dental and veterinary care in the host nations, and help with civil engineering projects.

Pacific Partnership also includes personnel from the Army, Air Force and Marine Corps; U.S. State and Justice departments, Agency for International Development and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association.

Pendleton Death

The Pentagon released the name of a 38-year-old Camp Pendleton-based Marine killed in combat last week in Afghanistan.

Master Sgt. Scott E. Pruitt of Gautier, Miss., died in Helmand Province on Saturday, according to the Department of Defense.

Pruitt was a member of I Marine Expeditionary Force Headquarters Group, I Marine Expeditionary Force.

Gas Price

The average price of a gallon of self-serve regular gasoline in San Diego County decreased Monday for the 31st time in 33 days, falling a half-cent to $4.175, its lowest amount since Feb. 22.

The average price is 2.7cents less than one week ago, 15.5 cents lower than one month ago and 6.2 cents below what it was one year ago, according to figures from the AAA and Oil Price Information Service.

The average price decreased for 19 consecutive days, rose one-tenth of a cent on April 17, dropped each of the next six days and rose one-tenth of a cent on Tuesday. It has fallen 16.7 cents over the past 33 days, including three-tenths of a cent on Sunday.

Courts

• A status conference is scheduled for Joseph Todd Hall, who is accused in the fatal shooting of his brother at the victim's Santee home.

• Sentencing is set this afternoon for a Lakeside man who pleaded guilty
to a series of brazen daytime home burglaries. 25-year-old Shane
Greisofe broke into homes over a three-month span last year, all in the
unincorporated East Los Coches area of East County.

-City News Service contributed these posts

Yesterday's stories of note