The Weekly Newspaper of El Segundo
Herald Publications - El Segundo, Hawthorne, Lawndale & Inglewood Community Newspapers Since 1911 - (310) 322-1830 - Vol. 109, No. 1 - January 2, 2020
Inside
This Issue
Calendar of Events.............2
Certified & Licensed
Professionals.......................7
Classifieds............................4
Crossword/Sudoku.............4
Film Review..........................2
Legals....................................7
Police Reports.....................2
Real Estate....................5-6,8
Sports....................................3
Weekend
Forecast
Friday
Partly
Cloudy
68˚/52˚
Saturday
Sunny
67˚/51˚
Sunday
Sunny
66˚/51˚
El Segundo Woman’s Club
Share the Holiday Spirit
Bebe Buchen and Kevin McCormick display a few of the toys ready for Santa. The El Segundo Woman’s Club is an 80-year-old plus El Segundo philanthropic organization housed in El Segundo’s first
one-room schoolhouse on Standard St. The month of December has been especially busy for them. They hosted the ESHS Chorus at their monthly luncheon, collected toys for Marian House in Long Beach,
filled toiletry bags for a local woman’s shelter and held their first Holiday Boutique to benefit the High School scholarship program. Photo provided by Carol Cervantes
No Worries: LAX Passengers Can
See What They’ve Been Missing
By Rob McCarthy
The people who reunite passengers and
their property at Los Angeles International
Airport have a soft spot for teddy bears that
miss their flights. LAX rolled out a new
system on Dec. 13 that makes it easier to
reunite plush buddies with their kids. Starting
on National Lost and Found Day, the
airport began posting online images of the
5,000 to 7,000 personal items that get left
behind every month. That’s enough cuddly
bears, luggage, coats and electronics to fill
a huge warehouse.
Running LAX’s lost and found is a huge
job, so the people responsible looked at the
reunification process and decided there was
room for improvement. That responsibility
falls on the airport’s police force, which now
photographs the new arrivals into lost and
found department. The eclectic inventory
includes big and small bears, a chainsaw
and surfboards.
The new system doesn’t just give property
away to anyone, however. It asks for some
proof, especially for expensive electronic
devices, like a password that authorities
can use to verify ownership. A little technology
is going a long way at the airport,
where 230 items per day are left at TSA
checkpoints, at restaurants, restrooms or
passenger-waiting areas.
The browsing feature streamlines the process
of filing a claim for a beloved stuffed
animal or a computer, according to Barbara
Yamamoto, who is Director of Guest Experience
and Innovation, Los Angeles World
Airports. There’s a large Mickey Mouse on
the warehouse shelves. Nearby are backpacks,
duffle bags and a small fleet of strollers.
The new claims system at FlyLAX.com
lets anyone search through found items from
the airport. Owners may file a claim immediately,
however, airport officials request as
much information as possible about where
an item was misplaced, the date, time and
a description. It helps to be able to provide
unique characteristics to the property officers.
Once claims processors verify the claim
and confirm a match, they will notify the
owners who can pick up their property at
LAX or arrange to have it shipped to them.
The most common items that wind up in
the LAX Lost and Found are laptops and
tablets, belts, wallets and clothing. Someone
left a big-screen television, which is at the
warehouse. Another person left one shoe.
A large teddy bear is patiently waiting, too.
Airport police will be on the lookout for
eyeglasses, keys and identification cards that
go missing. Watches and jewelry, shoes,
clothing items and bicycles also make the
list. It takes between three and four days for
items to post to the LAX Lost and Found
site. It also includes links to the airlines
and rental car agencies, too. The Lost and
Found Department collects and processes
items found anywhere on airport property,
with a few exceptions.
Minnie Mouse didn’t make it home for Christmas.
See LAX, page 4