UPDATE: New questions regarding whether the truck was authorized to carry gasoline

Residents were allowed back in their homes Monday after a fiery crash involving a tanker truck.

The tanker truck, filled to the brim with gasoline, erupted in flames after overturning on a busy Camden County, New Jersey roadway Monday morning.

The TK Transport truck was carrying approximately 8,000 gallons of fuel when it ignited on the Route 90 eastbound on-ramp to US 130 north in Pennsauken, just east of the Betsy Ross Bridge, police said.

Pennsauken Police Captain Michael Probasco told NBC10 the truck overturned around 11 a.m. while its driver, 43-year-old Brian Ervin, navigated the ramp. For some reason, he lost control sending the truck into a guardrail before landing on Delaware River Port Authority land. The impact ruptured the tractor-trailer's tank and the gasoline began to burn.

Ervin was rescued from the burning vehicle by police arriving on scene. He was taken to Cooper Hospital where he was treated for minor injuries. No one else was hurt.

Flaming fuel poured out of the truck, running across the graded ramp, down an embankment and perilously close to the backyards of homes. A second fire started in a small wooded area behind homes.

"I was in my kitchen with my dog and I hear, 'Boom, boom, boom,'" recalled resident Marisa Clements, who lives across the street from the ramp. At first, she thought someone was banging on her front door.

"It looked like the sky was falling. I just went out I knocked on my neighbor’s door and I said 'C’mon get out, get out, something’s blowing up,'" she said. "I was scared to death."

Greg Wicker, who lives across the street from Clements, heard six explosions before seeing a ball of flames.

"I didn’t know what to make of it, so I got out of bed and saw this inferno in the backyard and the house across the street," he said.

Strong northwest winds kept the thick smoke from rising, forcing it to stay close to the street. Still, the plume could be seen from miles away in Cherry Hill and across the river in Center City Philadelphia.

"It’s just jet black smoke. I’ve never seen so much smoke," resident Florence Panto said, panting while describing the scene. The woman suffering from emphysema was concerned about being able to smell the acrid chemical through her closed doors and windows.

"It scratches your throat and like I said I’m about six houses down, she said. "So I mean I believe we’re in a good spot, but I’m sure the people right up the street, they have to be evacuated."

Health officials warn that breathing in fumes or smoke from fuel fires is extremely dangerous. Smoke irritates eyes, nose and throat, which can make breathing much more difficult. It can also lead to chronic health issues.

Thirty homes near the crash were evacuated as a safety precaution. The residents were allowed back inside after the area was deemed safe around 5:30 p.m.

A staff member at Crescent Hill Academy — less than half a mile from the scene, but the closest school — said while they were not in danger, a few parents had come to pick up their kids.

Concerned the burning gasoline could be washed into storm drains, firefighters waited for a hazmat crew to arrive with special flame-retardant foam to smother the fire.

By 12:20 p.m., the fire was knocked back. All that remained was a shell of charred steel and rubber.

Route 90 east is closed to Route 73. The Route 90 east ramp to 130 north and south is also closed. The local access exit to 130 north is open however. Drivers in the area are advised to follow the Hilton Road(130N) detour.

Two hundred gallons of gasoline remained after the fire. The gasoline was transferred to another tanker and removed after the site cooled. Hazmat teams contained the spill and officials are currently cleaning up the site. Air quality monitors are also in place and working in the community. The U.S. Coast Guard is also monitoring the incident while the Camden County Health Department and Pennsauken Fire Department set up a command center.

The Delaware River Port Authority is also investigating the crash.

Contact Vince Lattanzio at 610.668.5532, vince.lattanzio@nbcuni.com or follow @VinceLattanzio on Twitter and Facebook.

San Diego's mayor met with Chargers Chairman Dean Spanos Sunday and announced that a mayor's advisory committee will speed up its work on a stadium plan designed to keep the team from moving.

The committee will deliver its plan to the team within three months, which could avoid a move that would bring the Chargers to the Los Angeles area. The advisory panel's initial timeline would have brought a plan to the Chargers by the end of the year in an effort to place the proposal on the November 2016 ballot.

The plan would likely need a two-thirds majority vote approval if the proposal ends up before voters.

Spanos' one-hour morning meeting with Mayor Kevin Faulconer at the San Diego Padres' Petco Park came after a surprise announcement last week that the Chargers and Oakland Raiders are planning a joint stadium in Carson outside Los Angeles if they fail to get stadium deals in their hometowns. Both sides said the plan to spur on the work of the city advisory committee is a step forward toward reaching a deal.

Faulconer said he is committed to keeping the team but equally devoted to the city's financial standing.

"Like thousands of San Diegans, I want the Chargers to stay in our city for generations to come," the mayor said in a statement. "I explained to Mr. Spanos that we are going to work to keep the team here, but I will never support a deal that San Diego can't afford."

A Chargers statement on the meeting said that the team also remains "committed to finding a publicly acceptable stadium solution here in San Diego," but it emphasized that the team "must create other options for itself in the event that an agreement is not reached."

The Chargers have sought to replace the nearly 50-year-old Qualcomm Stadium that now stands among the NFL's oldest as other West Coast teams like the Seattle Seahawks and San Francisco 49ers see sparkling new facilities. They have struggled with a City Hall that has been reluctant to part with public money for a new home.

Last week, Chargers' special counsel Mark Fabiani told the advisory group the team is "keeping a close eye" on developments in Los Angeles, which has not had an NFL team since the Rams and the Oakland Raiders abandoned Southern California after the 1994 season.

The NFL has expressed an interest in a Los Angeles franchise, but the league has no plans for expansion, meaning an existing team would need to move to Southern California. The NFL has ruled out any team move for the 2015 season, but leaves open the possibility in 2016.

Earlier this month, Inglewood's plan to build an NFL stadium at the Hollywood Park site took a step forward with the verification of petition signatures needed to place the project before voters. The 80,000-seat stadium is part of Hollywood Park Land Co.'s proposal, called City of Champions Revitatlization Project, for a development at the site of the old horse racing track.

The city clerk will forward the resolution to the council at its next scheduled meeting, set for Tuesday, but Mayor James Butts said the Inglewood council will likely hold over action on the project until its March 3 meeting. Rams owner Stan Kroenke announced plans to build the stadium on the site, which would include the stadium as part of a sprawling complex that includes homes, offices and entertainment venues.

Los Angeles city officials also have extended an option with the owners of Staples Center to build an 80,000-seat stadium to be known as Farmers Field downtown, next to the 10 and 110 freeway junction, provided a team commits to moving there.

The Rose Bowl and Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum also could host a team, at least temporarily.
 

A homeless man who threw his skateboard into the windshield of an Uber driver who sped toward him in a darkened alley has been acquitted of all charges.

In a statement, San Francisco Public Defender Jeff Adachi said jurors on Friday found Martin Knaak, 49, not guilty of vandalism and resisting arrest after a three day trial. Knaak faced up to a year in jail if convicted, said his attorney, Deputy Public Defender Eric Guttschuss.

Knaak’s initial arrest began shortly after 1 a.m. on Dec. 6, 2014, while walking along Moulton Street in the Marina District. A passing Uber driver in a Prius, apparently angry that Knaak had been jaywalking on a nearby street, motioned for him to walk in the crosswalk , then extended his middle finger, according to Adachi’s office.

Moments later, when Knaak crossed in front of the Prius at an intersection, the driver smiled and revved his motor. In response, Knaak spilled his soda onto the car. The Uber driver then chased Knaak, the public defender’s office said, at times traveling down the wrong side of a street and forcing him between two parked cars before following him on foot while videotaping him.

Knaak retreated down a narrow alley, which is when the Uber driver began speeding toward him, according to the public defender’s office. It was then that Knaak threw his skateboard into the oncoming car, smashing the Prius’ windshield, Guttschuss said.

Knaak called 911. The Uber driver told police when they arrived that he suffered an unprovoked attack, and officers arrested Knaak.

“Police made assumptions without ever hearing Mr. Knaak’s side of the story,” Guttschuss said in a statement. “He was the victim of a crime. He needed help.”

The Uber driver also testified, claiming he did not pursue Knaak. However, the driver’s cell phone video contradicted his claims, according to the public defender.

Adachi said the case highlights the need to be unbiased when investigating crimes.

“As a crime victim, Mr. Knaak deserved every bit of the police response and protection that would have been afforded to a wealthy San Franciscan,” Adachi said. “What happened to him is a betrayal of justice. Fortunately, his public defender was able to end his nightmare.”
 

Two Oceanside teenagers are in jail after assaulting a man and chasing him down in their car in Carlsbad early Saturday morning.

Carlsbad police said an 18-year-old man pulled a bandana over his face before threatening the driver of a nearby vehicle with a knife on Tamarack Avenue near Jefferson Street just after 4 a.m.. A few seconds later, a second 18-year-old man approached the passenger side of the car and hit it with a baseball bat.

The victim used a taser to combat the suspects, hitting one of the teens in the chest, police said.

The driver then took off down Tamarack Avenue and the two suspects got in their vehicle and chased him. Police said the chase continued from Tamarack Avenue to Carlsbad Avenue and onto Interstate 5, reaching speeds of up to 100mph.

The suspects apparently tried to force the victim off the road several times during the chase.

Officers finally located the vehicles on I-5 and were able to stop and search the suspect vehicle. Inside they found a juvenile passenger, who was found to have not committed a crime and was released to family, the sheath to a knife and a crowbar, according to police.

The baseball bat was recovered at the originally scene and knife was not found.

Carlsbad police said Jim Gonzalez and Hector Zamora of Oceanside were booked into Vista Detention Facility for assault with a deadly weapon, child endangerment, conspiracy and gang enhancements for the attack.

Anyone with information about the attack is asked to contact the City of Carlsbad Police Department at (760) 931-2100.

A pedestrian was struck and killed early Monday morning on the 5 Freeway east of downtown Los Angeles.

The victim was struck on the northbound 5 Freeway transition road to the 5 Freeway. It was not immediately clear why the victim was running across the freeway.

Lanes on the transition road were closed until about 7 a.m. as authorities conducted the crash investigation, which began after a caller told the California Highway Patrol at about 4 a.m. that a big rig was stopped on the shoulder of the road. Authorities discovered a body on the freeway near Soto Street, and later confirmed that the 21-year-old man was struck by the truck.

The driver remained at the scene and was not arrested.

A significant backup was reported from the freeway transition south to Norwalk.

Editor's Note: Initial reports indicated the victim was a woman.

The public library in Berkeley, California, a city known for its obsession with recycling, composting and all things green, has found a way to reuse its misprinted buttons: by shipping them 2,385 miles away to a library in Michigan.

The California city's name was misspelled on the buttons, which read "I have a library card, Berkley Public Library," dropping an "e" from "Berkeley." The Berkeley Public Library received the shipment of misprinted buttons 10 years ago, and put them in storage after discovering the error.

But even a decade ago, Berkeley was committed to making sure nothing goes to waste. So instead of throwing the buttons away, off they went to Berkley Public Library in Michigan, where they could be put to better use.

And that was the end of that, until recently, when an employee from the Berkeley, California, library found 125 more of the misprinted buttons in storage and contacted the Berkley, Michigan, library once again.

Matt Church, library director for the Berkley Public Library in Michigan, explained: “We had just run out of the buttons from that 10-year-old supply a few months ago, and we were trying to decide if we should get more. We give them to kids when they get their first library card."

And then, as luck would have it, "Berkeley called and said, ‘Hey, we found more!’”

Speaking by phone on Monday, Church said libraries are all about sharing ideas and materials with each other, even when there are thousands of miles between them.

“This reach across the country is so thoughtful," Church said, "and we’d be happy to return the favor if we ever find any extra E’s in our materials.”

The manager of a New Britain bank was found with a fake bomb strapped to his body and his mother was tied to a bed at their Bristol home following an alleged robbery attempt Monday morning, according to law enforcement sources.

No one is in custody, but New Britain Mayor Erin Stewart said Monday night that no one is in danger. Authorities are not currently searching for suspects, but "that could change," according to the mayor.

Law enforcement sources said they received information that two suspects wearing masks and gloves forced their way into the manager's home on Lufkin Lane in Bristol overnight.

They allegedly outfitted him with an explosive device and demanded he drive them to the Achieve Financial Credit Union at 450 West Main Street and empty its vault, sources said.

New Britain Police Chief James Wardwell said authorities found a man sitting alone in a car outside the bank, wearing the device. Law enforcement sources identified him as the bank manager and later said the explosive device turned out to be fake.

The man was handcuffed and taken to the hospital for an evaluation, and the device was turned over to the FBI, according to New Britain police. The man is being questioned and is cooperating with investigators.

When asked whether he is a victim or suspect, Wardwell said it's "under investigation" and that law enforcement officials are still interviewing him.

"Certainly, we're considering all possibilities, whether or not he was coerced, doing something against his will, or a suspect. This is an active investigation," Wardwell said.

Law enforcement sources said the bank manager's mother was found tied to a bed at 133 Lufkin Lane. A second apparent explosive device placed under the bed also turned out to be false.

Although police alluded to a search for suspects at an earlier press conference, a city government official with knowledge of the investigation said Monday night that authorities are not looking for anyone. No one was hurt and the public is not in danger. No charges have been filed.

Police shut down several city blocks in New Britain for hours on Monday, evacuating residents and blocking off nearby roads, including a busy four-mile stretch of Route 72. Precautionary lockdowns were issued at schools in Farmington, Bristol and Plainville.

Federal and local law enforcement officials – including the FBI, SWAT team and a bomb squad – swarmed the bank. Wardwell said shortly after noon that the situation at the Achieve Federal Credit Union was under control.

"In my opinion, the threat is over and now it's a matter for us to all work together... to apprehend those responsible," Wardwell said during the news conference Monday afternoon.

He described the investigation as "fluid" and "very active" and said New Britain and Bristol police are collaborating to investigate.

Anyone with information is urged to call local law enforcement.

The rise in gas prices in America doesn't appear to be running out of steam, especially in Southern California, according to new numbers released by an industry analysts.

After months under $3, prices at the gas pump rose 15 cents from last week in California, leading the country, according to GasBuddy.com, which tracks fuel prices across the country. An explosion at a Torrance oil refinery contributed to the bump at the pump.

Gas in Los Angeles County now averages $3.07, beating out Orange County by 1 cent and the Inland Empire by 6 cents, according to AAA.

Following a seasonal trend, the rest of the country is seeing higher gas prices, too, GasBuddy said. Prices are 27 cents higher in the U.S. than they were a month ago, though they're still over $1 less than a year ago.

And it's not expected to let up soon, Gasbuddy said. Prices are expected to rise at least 15-25 cents more over the next two weeks.

With ports on the West Coast revving back to life Monday, politicians were eager to address the key labor deal that let union workers load and unload ships after over a week of

The ports had been shut or slowed for more than week until a tentative agreement was reached Friday night between longshoremen and port employers, earning responses from President Barack Obama and two important Southern California mayors.

About 30 container ships were parked outside the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach, the largest in the U.S., this weekend, according to some estimates.

The agreement will "make a big difference for the country's economy as a whole," Obama said Monday morning.

And at a press conference near the Port of Los Angeles, LA Mayor Eric Garcetti and Long Beach Mayor Robert Garcia thanked the two parties for resolving their dispute.

Union disputes at a port may feel remote from a person's day-to-day life, but the huge volume of goods that move through the ports -- about 43 percent of America's imports -- bring in many products people buy in stores and more than $30 billion in taxes, officials said.

Among the industries hurt by the port slowdown was California's agriculture industry, whose products were rotting in port without ships to take them to hungry people in foreign shores.

And despite the agreement, some of the ships have been waiting for days to be unloaded, and easing the back up could take some time.

The Los Angeles Lakers left the floor smiling, hopping and jumping with joy on Sunday evening after beating their rival Boston Celtics in overtime.

About 12 hours later, the Lakers met for practice in El Segundo, but the team could not muster up 12 healthy bodies. Nick Young's left knee grew to a big enough size that the team announced that the 29-year-old would see a doctor later in the afternoon.

Starting center Robert Sacre attempted to practice, but his sore left foot forced him off the court. Sacre will also visit the medicine man on Monday afternoon, and both players' statuses for Wednesday's game in Utah is to be determined.

The Lakers had 12 healthy bodies for the past couple games, which was an anomaly this season. With the healthy bodies, Lakers coach Byron Scott actually sat two players out of Friday's loss to the Brooklyn Nets. On Sunday, Scott found time for all 12 guys, but rookie Tarik Black only played four minutes.

If Sacre cannot go, Black may jump from potentially sitting out Wednesday's game to starting. If Young is unable to go, the Lakers would likely rely on Wesley Johnson to play heavy minutes. Johnson had his best game of the season against the Celtics, finishing with a season high 22 points.

However, Young would be a huge loss, as the Lakers' backup small forward finished with 19 points on Sunday, which was his highest total in over a month.

With the Lakers short on wing positions, Ryan Kelly will likely stay in the starting lineup and may even get more time on the court if Young misses Wednesday's game.

"I think most people understand that the four is more of my natural position," Kelly said after Monday's practice. "But, like I said from the beginning, the opportunity to play at the three position and also in the future to play some minutes there--the more you can do on the floor, the more valuable you are."

"I think it's more of a roster makeup," Kelly explained why he is playing out of position. "I don't think it's me having a lack of something for [the power forward] position. I think we just have a lot of bigs and we don't have a lot of wings, so we need somebody. And I'm somebody who has a little bit of ball friendliness and can play facing the basket."

The Lakers intend to practice on Tuesday before flying up to Utah.

A University of Illinois Chicago student faces charges after he was accused of sexually assaulting a 19-year-old female student during what he said was a “50 Shades of Grey” re-enactment.

A judge set 19-year-old Mohammad Hossain’s bail at $500,000 Monday after he was charged with aggravated criminal sexual assault stemming from an incident over the weekend.

Prosecutors say that around 5:30 p.m. Saturday Hossain went to his dorm room in the 900 block of West Harrison Street with a woman. Once inside, he allegedly asked her to remove her clothing, which she did, keeping on her bra and underwear before Hossain bound her hands and feet with belts and stuffed a necktie in her mouth. Prosecutors also say he put a knit hat on her head, covering her eyes before he removed the rest of her clothing and started striking her with a belt.

The Cook County State’s Attorney’s office said the victim told Hossain he was hurting her and asked him to stop. She eventually got one arm free but officials allege he held it behind her back as he sexually assaulted her.

Prosecutors said the victim requested he stop multiple times before Hossain’s roommate came home. Prosecutors say Hossain held the door shut to prevent him from entering until the victim left. The woman told someone what happened and police were notified, officials said.

Prosecutors say Hossain told detectives after he was arrested that he was re-enacting scenes from the popular movie “50 Shades of Grey.”

Hossain's lawyer, assistant Cook County public defender Sandra Bennewitz, told a judge Monday that Hossain was in several UIC leadership programs, was a student ambassador to the alumni association and was on the triathlon team, the Chicago Tribune reports. She also reportedly argued that Hossain claims the act was consensual.

Students at Wesleyan University are reeling after MDMA, or "Molly," overdoses sent nearly a dozen of their peers to the hospital Sunday night, some with serious injuries, and school officials are urging the campus community to stay away from potentially life-threatening drugs.

Four students remain at Hartford Hospital, two in critical condition. University officials said one will be discharged Monday night. A fifth students remains inpatient at Middlesex Hospital.

"I have not heard of any bad drugs like this before," said student Emily Pfoutz. "Students go out and party, and there's substance abuse on any college campus, but I haven't heard of something like this happening before."

It's not clear exactly how many people overdosed Sunday. Police said 11 Wesleyan students were hospitalized, while university officials have reported that 10 students and two visitors received medical treatment.

Two of the young people were airlifted to the hospital for treatment.

Medical personnel responded to two campus dormitories and a home on High Street in Middletown known as the "Eclectic Society House." A student who lives there would only describe those affected as "sweet people."

Doctors are warning of the dangers of MDMA, which stands for methylenedioxy-methamphetamine, because it's impossible to determine exactly what the refined form of Ecstacy contains – and every batch can be different.

"When you’re buying a drug in a little baggie, you have no idea what’s inside that baggie, regardless of whether it’s called a nice name like Molly or something else, you really don’t know what you’re getting," said Dr. Mark Naevyn, of the Hartford Hospital Toxicology Department.

There's also no way to predict how each individual will react to the drug, which can lead to increased heart rates, hallucinations and other serious side effects. Two of the students at Hartford Hospital remain in critical condition.

University officials sent emails to the student body Monday imploring them to avoid MDMA and other risky drugs that can pose real health hazards.

"We've gotten another two emails today, one from the dean of students for my year and the other from the president telling students to stay away from MDMA and other illegal substances," said Wesleyan student Noam Radcliff.

The letters also urged students with information on the overdoses to call in confidential tips to 860-685-2345.

The top item on Matthew Parker’s wish list for Christmas last year was a new kidney. He's about to be granted his wish.

The 6-year-old’s first grade teacher, Lindsey Painter, of the Hoffmann Lane Elementary in the Comal Independent School District in New Braunfels, Texas, agreed to step-in to save her student's life, San Antonio-based NBC affiliate News 4 reported.

Painter, who has a 10-year-old and 6-year-old of her own, said she couldn't "imagine having a child who is going through what Matt has gone through.”

Matthew’s mother Lisa, told News 4 that she was "shocked"  by the gesture.

Days after being born as the smallest triplet, Matthew’s kidneys began to fail him, News 4 reported. He was placed in dialysis to filter the toxins in his blood, according to a page set up on the hospital’s website. Two and a half years after his first kidney transplant, Matthew’s body failed to respond to the treatment, putting him back on the waiting list.

Matthew reportedly goes to school part-time in order to accommodate the four-hour long dialysis appointments that have been keeping him alive. He will undergo his second transplant next month.

"Once he found out that he's getting a transplant, he's been so giddy every day,” the boy's mother told News 4. “He's been so excited. It will be a story to tell when he gets older.”

The man accused of robbing cookie-selling Girl Scouts of their profits told NBC Bay Area in an exclusive jailhouse interview Monday that he ripped off the 10-year-old girls to feed his heroin habit.

"I definitely feel bad about it," Cody Phillip Gintz, 23, said from behind bars at a San Jose jail. "I would definitely tell them I'm sorry." He said he's got a little sister who was once a Girl Scout.

Gintz expressed a great deal of remorse during the interview, after his Sunday arrest on two counts of robbery charges after police say he yanked a lunchbox with hundreds of dollars of Girl Scout money from Troop 601-60.  At the time, the girls were selling Thin Mints and Samoas in front of the Safeway on Branham Lane in San Jose. The Girl Scout troop leader initially said she believed there was $600 in the box, though police said that when all the money was returned to the girls, there was only $300 in there.

Speaking shakily from behind a glass window, Gintz , a Leigh High School graduate who works in construction, said his withdrawal from heroin was "pretty intense" Sunday afternoon. His addiction took over him, he said, including his "rational thought process." He said needed a fix and he had no money to pay for it. He's been using, Gintz said, for about three to four years.

"Normally, I would never try this," he said. "But I was desperate, so I tried."

Gintz told NBC Bay Area that he knew "right away" what he did was wrong when he heard 10-year-old Sohpia Contos yelling at him. He said his parents and girlfriend are not happy with him, but he said they do support him.

Sophia was completely taken aback and quite emotional when she spoke to NBC Bay Area on Sunday.

“I didn’t know a guy would do that,” she said, before hearing about Gintz's rationale “I didn’t know people would do such a thing.” 

Gintz is scheduled to be arraigned Wednesday and he told NBC Bay Area that he'd likely enter a guilty plea. He's being held on $50,000 bail. On Monday morning, Gintz was not being represented by an attorney.

San Jose police were eventually able to recover the box – a camouflage lunch box with a silver star in the middle used to hold their sales money that Gintz allegedly threw in a creek.

The Girl Scouts were visibly upset after the robbery. But the girls made even more money after the robbery.

Police officers bought the troops' $240 worth of remaining cookies, and threw in an extra $60. The girls had planned to use the money for a water conservation project, as NBC Bay Area first reported in a story that's getting national attention.

Gintz had inititally ran off but returned to the grocery store parking lot ten minutes later, police said. Gintz was caught after Sophia’s mother, Michelle Contos, spotted him getting into his car.

“I just kept reading the license plate over and over again,” Contos said on Sunday.

Her excellent Girl Scout mothering skills helped police quickly track him down. Police said they found $300 on him, and a K-9 officer helped find the box of cash in a nearby creek.

As for Gintz, he said this was a wakeup call to get help for his drug addiction. "It think it's going to be difficult," he said. "I'm definitely going to try."

NBC Bay Area's Vince Cestone, Ingrid Almaz and Shawn Murphy contributed to this report.

A woman trapped in a burning mobile home apparently tried to escape the flames by crawling into her bathtub, Oceanside firefighters said Monday.

The woman, identified by family as Dianna Hollis, was found dead Sunday evening in a back bathroom of the home on North River Road. The water in the tub was running, officials said.

Officials responding to the call of a fire inside the Lamplighter Mobile Home Park arrived at approximately 6:30 p.m. and found Dianna's injured husband Andy outside the home.

Andy suffered serious burns to his face and upper body and was airlifted to the UCSD Burn Center. He told firefighters there were two others — his wife and stepson — still inside the home, and he begged crews to rescue them.

Tane Te'i, a 16-year-old neighbor, shot video of the fiery scene.

"The community was like working together to get [the fire] down," Te'i said. "Everyone grabbed a garden hose and making sure to get everyone out of the house."

Neighbors helped pull Andy to safety, but it was too late for Dianna.

The stepson, who was considered unaccounted for hours after the fire, has "voluntarily spoken with the investigating detectives" and is not considered a suspect or person of interest in the fire, Oceanside police said.

Her family, who were visibly upset as they arrived at the scene, describes the victim as a woman with a big heart, even in the midst of trying times.

"Dianna was a very kind and loving grandmother," said her grandson Marshall Giles.

Emotions overflowed Monday as her daughter Vera came to grips with Dianna's death. The family says Dianna lived in the same mobile park with her husband for more than 30 years.

Dianna, born in the Philippines, was a deeply religious woman who worshipped at Mission San Luis Rey. She did what she could to help both strangers and family.

"Even through the tough times, even though I didn't ask for it, she'd pay me to clean the backyard," said her neighbor Tumanako Te'i.

Neighbors told NBC 7 Dianna was in a car accident a few months ago that left her using a walker to get around. So when the fire ripped through her home, she could not escape.

Two dogs were also burned in the fire. They were rescued and are recovering with the help of local humane society staff.

The carport of a nearby home also burned. Investigators say clutter inside the mobile home made it hard to extinguish the flames.

Giles told NBC 7 he wishes he would have stopped by Sunday to help clean up.

"I was going to come and do the same thing yesterday. I missed that opportunity," he said. "That's the worst thing to me." 

The fire was under control in approximately 40 minutes, Oceanside Fire Department officials said.

The cause of the fire was under investigation.
 

An East Hollywood woman says she’s heartbroken after her application to adopt a dog she’d fallen in love with was denied because rescue organization deemed her neighborhood unsuitable, a practice the group’s founder says is completely within its rights.

Criss Keeler was searching for a companion for her 10 year old dog, Finnegan, when she came across the website for Saving K9 Lives Plus, a rescue organization based in the San Fernando Valley. She arranged to meet the Yorkshire terrier, Eloise, at the home of her foster mom.

"As soon as we met Eloise … we just absolutely fell in love, she is a total sweetheart," Keeler said.

She filled out the adoption papers online, sent photos of her home and of Finnegan, and was initially approved to adopt. The one remaining step was a home inspection to be conducted the day Saving K9 Lives Plus delivered the dog to her "forever home."

According to Keeler, the trouble started the moment the group’s founder, Jasmin Gabay, stepped out of her car in front of the apartment building.

"She said ‘I’m just not comfortable in this neighborhood.’ That was kind of the first words out of her mouth. Not even ‘hi’ or anything," Keeler recalled. "She then went on to say that if she had known this wasn’t West Hollywood, she wouldn’t have gone this far in the adoption process."

Gabay left, taking the terrier with her. An hour or so later, Keeler says a new post about Eloise appeared on Saving K9 Lives Plus website, saying the dog was still in need of a home. Keeler emailed Gabay immediately.

"[She wrote back, saying] ‘I think you’d be good adopters, but I won’t adopt to the neighborhood.’"

"It was literally just that the area that we live in is not good enough for her," Keeler continued. She said she absolutely feels discriminated against.

Gabay confirmed that she felt Keeler’s neighborhood wasn’t safe for Eloise. The rescue group founder also issued a written statement defending her group's adoption standards.

"Our adoption process follows the standard of most rescues. There is an application requesting information, reference check, a phone interview, followed by a home visit. Home visits are an important part of the process," the statement said.

"If an adopter has never had a five pound dog, they won't know that the space between their fence and front gate is wide enough for that dog to escape. It's our responsibility to look for any possible dangers before an adoption takes place and to work with an adopter to remedy those dangers. Of course we also endeavor to match our dogs to an adopter based on activity levels, long term medical needs, training experience and personalities. We have to consider whether a dog will do well in a home with small children and/or if they are compatible with the other animals in the home or if the dog can handle the new adopter's work schedule."

Unlike city-run shelters, privately funded rescue groups like Saving K9 Lives Plus are free to set their own standards for pet adoptions. The president of the Los Angeles branch of the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA) says the income level of a neighborhood shouldn’t be a factor in choosing where a dog should be placed.

"We try to focus on whether the person is going to be a good parent companion for the pet," said SPCA-LA President Madeline Bernstein. "If the adopter is willing to provide a loving home and care for a pet, it doesn’t really matter if they live in East Hollywood or East Beverly Hills."

Bernstein also said her office has investigated animal abuse cases in some of the poorest, and some of the most affluent, neighborhoods in greater Los Angeles.

Keeler said it’s the first time she’s ever felt she was being treated differently, not because of who she is, or what she’s done, but because of where she’s chosen to live.

"It’s not a mansion up in the hills, and we don’t have an enormous fenced yard, but I know that we could take good care of a small, apartment-dwelling dog."

If you have a tip on this story — or anything else — the I-Team wants to hear from you. Give us a call at 818-520-TIPS or email nbc4iteam@nbcuni.com.

A woman who bailed from a pickup truck in a high-speed pursuit was released from police custody Monday night and back home with her child.

The woman, who police did not identify, was in the truck as police gave chase from San Fernando Valley to Palmdale.

She got out of the moving pickup after it pulled into a gated community in Quartz Hill. She ran inside a home, where police said she met with her young son. The driver sped off.

The woman was detained by police for questioning, but was later released. Police said the woman was not facing charges.

The pursuit began just after 4 p.m. in the west San Fernando Valley, where police attempted to stop the driver for alleged reckless driving.

The driver did not stop and led police on a chase. The truck was reported to be on the westbound 118 Freeway around 5:15 p.m. in the Porter Ranch area, and led police on a chase toward Simi Valley before returning toward Porter Ranch.

The pickup truck was traveling at a high speed on the 14 Freeway northbound at 5:50 p.m., with CHP officers in pursuit.

The driver of the truck was traveling at a high rate of speed along the shoulder of the freeway.

About 5:30 p.m. he exited the freeway and continued on surface streets, running red lights at several intersections.

The driver led officers to Palmdale. At one point, the driver slowed down and a passenger fled the truck. The driver continued until colliding with another vehicle at an intersection. After a brief standoff, he surrendered around 7 p.m.

It was initially reported that the driver was wanted in a hit-and-run crash.

An American Airlines plane taxiing to Terminal C at Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport slid off the taxiway and got stuck in the grass Monday night.

Lynn Lunsford, with the Federal Aviation Administration, confirmed to NBC 5 the front nose gear slipped off the taxiway as the airplane turned a corner and became stuck in the grass.

Airline officials said there were 63 passengers and a crew of five onboard Flight 296 from San Antonio. All of the passengers were deplaned safely and taken by bus to the terminal.  The plane, an MD-80, as to then be dislodged and towed.

No injuries have been reported.

"As soon as we hit the ground, we slid to the left," said passenger Danelle Canales, of Dallas.

Canales said she was reading a book and didn't at first realize what had happened. Then the pilot came on over the public address speaker, explained the situation and said, "We tested the brakes and they were fine, but when we landed, we had no control over the brakes."

Canales said another passengers told her they could see the front wheel turned to the side.

Airline officials have not confirmed what caused the plane to slip off the taxiway, however up to an inch of sleet fell on North Texas overnight Monday covering much of the Metroplex in ice.  Since that time, DFW Airport's Airfield Operations crew has been working to keep runways open and taxiways clear of ice.

The airline canceled more than 1,000 flights Monday due to weather.

A man who said his friend was a passsnger on the flight tweeted a photo of passengers exiting the aircraft through the emergency exit at the back of the plane.

We will update this story with more information as soon as it's available. As this story is developing, elements may change.