As 2020 comes to an end, we want to take a look back at what happened in San Diego County in a year that was, truly, unlike any other. The year was rocked by the coronavirus pandemic, wildfires, protests, a historic election and much more.
Here's a look back at some memorable moments that occurred this year in San Diego, in photos.
27 photos
1/27
Mark Mehlinger, NBC 7
Los Angeles Lakers great Kobe Bryant, 41, and his 13-year-old daughter were among nine people killed when a helicopter crashed in foggy conditions on January 26. The San Diego County Administration Building lit up in purple and gold in his honor.
2/27
Paul Walton
In the most beautiful tribute to the NFL's 100 years, San Diego vet Sidney Walton -- who is also 100 years old!! -- participated in the big game's coin toss at the superbowl on Feb. 2, 2020.
3/27
Oceanfront Paul
Signs line the famous Mission Beach boardwalk in San Diego on March 27, 2020. The beach and boardwalk are closed during the coronavirus pandemic as a mandatory statewide stay-at-home order was issued on March 19, 2020.
4/27
Rory Devine
Students in the Carlsbad Unified School District wrapped up their first week of distancing learning on April 3, 2020.
5/27
@SanDiegoCounty/Twitter
The San Diego County Administration Building along downtown’s waterfront lit up in patriotic colors on April 22, 2020. It was a tribute to COVID-19 first responders. “Thank you for all you do!” a tweet from the county read.
6/27
Paul Nestor
San Diego resident Paul Nestor captured this photo from his apartment at Six Avenue and Kalmia Street in Bankers Hill. The “Thank You Nurses” message lighting up the façade of a building was perfect for National Nurses Day on May 7, 2020.
7/27
Getty Images
A Marine Color Guard presents colors during a Memorial Day ceremony at Fort Rosecrans National Cemetery on May 25, 2020, in San Diego, California. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, activities were streamed on the internet for Memorial Day. (Photo by Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images)
8/27
NBC 7
As the day turned to night on May 30, 2020, tensions escalated between officers and demonstrators at a protest centered around the La Mesa Police Department -- and people began setting fire to vehicles and looting stores. The protest, part of the nationwide demonstrations, followed the in-custody death of George Floyd in Minneapolis and the controversial arrest of a black man by a white officer near a trolley stop in La Mesa.
9/27
NBC 7
A woman holds a Black Lives Matter at a protest in La Mesa on May 30.
10/27
Getty Images
An employee cleans and disinfects shopping carts outside an Albertsons Cos. Vons grocery store in San Diego, California, U.S. on Monday, June 22, 2020. Photographer: Bing Guan/Bloomberg via Getty Images
11/27
Lindsay Hood, NBC 7
Thousands of people marched from San Diego Police headquarters to North Park on June 4, 2020 to honor the black lives lost due to police brutality, and to advocate for police reform.
12/27
Yonie Hermogenes
High school seniors Jacob Rubic (Rancho Bernardo High School) and his best friend, Cyruz Tam (Westview High School), take some cap-and-gown photos together in June 2020 to commemorate their upcoming 2020 graduations. The face masks are just part of the times we live in.
13/27
ANDY HUFFAKER/AFP via Getty Images
Beachgoers are seen along the shore in the Pacific Beach area of San Diego, California on July 4, 2020, amid the coronavirus pandemic. – Many beaches have been shut down for the Fourth of July weekend across California due to a resurgence of COVID-19. San Diego area beaches however have remained open. (Photo by Sandy Huffaker / AFP) (Photo by SANDY HUFFAKER/AFP via Getty Images)
14/27
San Diego Zoo Global
Edward, a southern white rhino, turned one-year-old on July 28, 2020, and a birthday celebration was held in his honor at the San Diego Zoo Safari Park’s Nikita Kahn Rhino Rescue Center. Edward’s birth marked a significant event for San Diego Zoo Global—he was the conservation organization’s first rhino born following hormone-induced ovulation and artificial insemination.
15/27
NBC 7
Salon owners and employees protest for more financial support as they wait for the state to guide them toward reopening on August 18, 2020.
16/27
Photo by Denis Poroy/Getty Images
Jake Cronenworth #9 of the San Diego Padres, right, is congratulated by teammates after hitting a grand slam during the second inning of a baseball game against Houston Astros at Petco Park on August 22, 2020 in San Diego, California.
17/27
San Diego County Sheriff Twitter
The fast-moving Valley Fire scorched at least 17,565 acres in San Diego County’s Japatul Valley area near Alpine over Labor Day weekend, September 7, prompting some evacuations and leaving thousands of residents without power.
18/27
Steven Luke
Thank you signs for Cal Fire amid the Valley Fire on September 9, 2020
19/27
After 14 long years, the San Diego Padres were back in the playoffs. The San Diego Padres react with teammates after defeating the Seattle Mariners 7-4 to clinch a spot in the playoffs at PETCO Park on September 20, 2020, in San Diego, California. The game was moved to San Diego due to air quality concerns in Seattle from the wildfires.
20/27
Monica Garske/NBC 7
Voting for the 2020 Presidential Election in California took place from Oct. 5, 2020 to Election Day on Nov. 3, 2020. Every California voter received a vote-by-mail ballot this year.
21/27
Lori Saldana
The San Diego COVID-19 memorial group has set-up several altars honoring neighbors who have passed away from the coronavirus.
22/27
NBC 7
Voters heading over to the Registrar of Voters’ check-in tent in San Diego County on November 4, 2020, to vote in the general election.
23/27
NBC 7
San Diego County voters show up at their assigned polling place, ready to exercise their civil right on November 4, 2020.
24/27
Democrat Todd Gloria -- "the son of a hotel maid and a gardener" -- made history on Dec. 10 as he was sworn in as the 37th mayor of the City of San Diego. Gloria became the first-ever person of color and member of the LGBTQ community to be elected to the city's highest leadership position.
25/27
An AcuTemp AX56L mobile refrigerator/freezer unit containing doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech Covid-19 vaccine at Naval Medical Center San Diego in San Diego, California, U.S., on Tuesday, Dec. 15, 2020. The first Covid-19 vaccine shots were administered by U.S. hospitals Monday, the initial step in a historic drive to immunize millions of people as deaths surpassed the 300,000 mark. Photographer: Bing Guan/Bloomberg via Getty Images
26/27
Getty Images
Vials of the Pfizer-BioNTech Covid-19 vaccine, top left, sodium chloride, syringes and alcohol wipes at Naval Medical Center San Diego in San Diego, California, U.S., on Tuesday, Dec. 15, 2020. The first Covid-19 vaccine shots were administered by U.S. hospitals Monday, the initial step in a historic drive to immunize millions of people as deaths surpassed the 300,000 mark. Photographer: Bing Guan/Bloomberg via Getty Images
27/27
NBC 7
Brittanee Randle, 27, an emergency room nurse at Rady Children’s Hospital, was the first person in San Diego County, non-military, to receive Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine on Dec. 15, 2020.
