Flooding, evacuations and mass power outages hit California amid atmospheric river storm
LA TIMES, HAYLEY SMITH, RUBEN VIVES, TERRY CASTLEMAN, SUSANNE RUST: "California’s 11th atmospheric river storm of the season barreled through a beleaguered state Tuesday, dropping more rain and snow, sending thousands once again scrambling for higher ground and leaving more than 300,000 without power.
More than a dozen locations along major rivers were overflowing as the high-impact storm moved south through the state, including areas along the Salinas, Sacramento and Merced rivers. The Pajaro River, which suffered a levee breach from a similar storm last week, continued to spill water onto neighboring farmlands and communities.
At least 90 flood watches, warnings and advisories were in effect statewide, as were avalanche warnings in portions of Mono and Inyo counties and the Lake Tahoe area, according to the National Weather Service, which said the storm would “create considerable to locally catastrophic flooding impacts below 5,000 feet elevation.”"
Warmer, drier weather is returning to the Bay Area. Here’s what’s in store
THE CHRONICLE, GERRY DIAZ: "The first half of the week was riddled with powerful winds, heavy rain and flooding across Northern California, brought on by a strong storm that tapped into an atmospheric river. That river will quickly run dry this morning, leaving warm air and more pleasant weather in its wake.
Temperatures will steadily rise today, as sunshine prevails and light northeast winds spill into the valleys and basins of the Bay Area. This means that the second half of the week is expected to be warmer, drier and much quieter.
Southwest winds, like the ones that howled across San Francisco on Tuesday, often reel in inclement weather to the California coast. That’s because moisture from the Pacific will latch onto those winds and fall as rain and snow once it spills into the Bay Area and Sierra Nevada."
Bay Area weather: Winds hit 97 mph, but calm and dry days are coming
BANG*MERCURY NEWS: "The latest atmospheric river storm blitzed through the Bay Area on Tuesday, bringing ferocious winds, lots of power outages, scores of downed trees, more rain and sloppy road conditions.
But something unusual is about to arrive in the soaked region: clear skies.
Wednesday and Thursday will be dry and warmer, forecasters said Tuesday, with no rain and temperatures in the high 50s to mid-60s around the bay, followed by chances of a few sprinkles Saturday and Sunday."
California storm watch: These are all the active weather warnings right now
THE CHRONICLE, STAFF: "Yet another atmospheric river is landing in California on Tuesday, fueling heavy rains and winds that are expected to bring flooding and damage to the Bay Area, Central Coast and Central Valley.
The table below shows all active weather watches, warnings or advisories in effect for California. The data comes from the National Weather Service and will be updated hourly throughout the storm event to reflect the latest notices."
Residents left in flooded California farm town feel ‘abandoned’ as levees fail
LA TIMES, RUBEN VIVES, SUSANNE RUST, HAYLEY SMITH: "Dora Alvarez stood on the balcony of her two-story apartment building Tuesday, holding a garden hose next to a rain gutter and steering the water toward recycling bins below for her family to use after boiling it.
“As long as they don’t shut the gas off, we’ll be OK,” she said.
Alvarez, 54, and her family were among the residents who chose not to evacuate Pajaro, the small migrant town that flooded when a levee on the Pajaro River failed late Friday, forcing hundreds of people to flee their homes."
Pajaro levee's weaknesses were well-known. How years of inaction caused a major catastrophe
THE CHRONICLE, NORA MISHANEC: "The Pajaro levee breach that sent more than 2,000 rural residents fleeing the floodwaters coursing through their community was hardly a surprise.
Not to federal officials who decades ago flagged the Pajaro River earthen levee as needing repair. And not to local authorities who repeatedly sought funding over the years to protect homes and farmland.
The aged levee’s construction was faulty from the start, Santa Cruz County flood control officials noted in a report last year. But as with many public safety infrastructure needs across California and the U.S., funding was hard to come by, and construction delays further dragged out repair projects."
Bay Area weather: Thousands in Monterey, Santa Cruz county evacuated — possibly for days
THE CHRONICLE, STAFF: "Yet another atmospheric river has arrived in Northern California, bringing even more rain to hard-hit areas. Most of the Bay Area is under a high wind warning, while a flood advisory is in effect in San Francisco. Though this storm may bring less rainfall than last week’s storm and and is forecast to be shorter, this system’s strong winds may leave behind more damage.
Over 274,000 PG&E customers across the Bay Area were without power as of the afternoon, with the majority of those outages happening in the East Bay and South Bay. Strong winds also forced San Francisco International Airport to briefly ground flights.
These winds are expected to gradually ramp down this afternoon as the storm begins to leave Northern California."
Battered Merced residents confront twin threats: Pounding storms and persistent thieves
LA TIMES, TERRY CASTLEMAN: "In recent weeks, Merced neighbors Mariya Nelson and Beth Lee took on more than just rebuilding their storm-battered homes.
After a series of break-ins, they’re now the de facto neighborhood watch for a well-to-do strip of homes that runs along a road abutting Bear Creek, which has flooded multiple times in recent weeks during California’s series of storms.
They were forced from their homes in early January when more than 3 feet of water displaced them."
‘I hate it’: Historic Tahoe snowfall is just too much for some locals
THE CHRONICLE, ST. JOHN BARNED-SMITH: "TRUCKEE, Placer County — Two storms dumped more than a foot of snow on this town over the past week and another was forecast to hit early next week. In the ski mecca of Truckee, that means powder hounds again will head for the lifts at some of America’s most famous ski mountains.
During the past few months, dozens of feet of snow and rain have fallen on the Sierra. For much of mountain California, that’s meant refreshed snowpack, the promise of a longer ski season, and a spring and summer melt that will help keep drought at bay. But for some locals around Lake Tahoe, the weather is losing some of its luster.
Each week seems to bring another foot of snow — or many more — all adding up to a snowpack that’s 175% of normal for Northern California. Each new dump of flakes means more shoveling."
THE CHRONICLE, JULIE JOHNSON: "The regional agency best known for its pollution-fighting Spare the Air Days is poised to vote Wednesday on whether to adopt a rule that will have a major impact on just about every home in the nine counties that touch San Francisco Bay.
In a bid to lower pollution from smog-forming nitrogen oxides (NOx), regional air quality staff proposed a de facto ban on the sale of natural gas-powered water heaters and furnaces, starting as soon as four to six years from now.
The implications of this rule, perhaps the most aggressive in the nation, are huge: Not only would newly built homes have to use electric heat pumps and electric water heaters, but homeowners in existing houses would be gradually forced to replace gas appliances with electric ones when their existing heaters reach the end of their lives."
Former L.A. County Supervisor Gloria Molina says she has terminal cancer
LA TIMES, REBECCA ELLIS: "Gloria Molina, a trailblazing politician who made history as the first Latina elected to the state Assembly, the Los Angeles City Council and the county Board of Supervisors, said Tuesday she is suffering from terminal cancer.
In a Facebook post, Molina, 74, wrote that the cancer, which she said she has been living with for three years, is “very aggressive.” She said she is being treated at City of Hope, a cancer center, and said she feels fortunate to have lived a “long, fulfilling and beautiful life.”
“I’m really grateful for everyone in my life and proud of my family, career, mi gente, and the work we did on behalf of our community,” Molina wrote in the post, adding that she has a daughter and one grandchild, with another one on the way. “I have an amazing and caring family, wonderful friends, and worked with committed colleagues and a loyal team.”"
THE CHRONICLE, JD MORRIS: "San Francisco is poised to exempt construction contracts from a city-sanctioned boycott of 30 states that passed conservative laws over concern that the restrictions were driving up costs and accomplishing little more than adding red tape to projects.
A recent city report found San Francisco’s legislation didn’t do anything to roll back laws in other states that limit LGBTQ rights, abortion access and voting rights, but it did create extra bureaucracy.
And city supervisors are likely to go even further in the coming weeks, with a majority signaling Tuesday that they are open to approving a full repeal of the law that prohibits city employees from traveling to or doing business with companies based in the states in question."
Here’s how San Jose’s mayor wants to spend next year’s budget
BANG*MERCURY NEWS, GABRIEL GRESCHLER: "Two and a half months after becoming mayor of America’s 10th-largest city, Matt Mahan unveiled a detailed look into how he intends to spend this coming year’s budget, heavily focusing on public safety, blight and homelessness.
The mayor’s proposals, however, face a slew of potential fiscal obstacles: the possibility of a recession combined with a tech sector that has recently taken a beating with Silicon Valley Bank’s swift closure, the winding down of federal stimulus money from the pandemic and a tax base that has traditionally been smaller than comparable cities. Compared to the 2022-23 $5.3 billion budget, San Jose is expected to see a nearly $30 million surplus in the next fiscal year, though the excess dollars could dramatically slow down in the not-so-distant future, according to an analysis by the city manager’s office.
Mahan must also overcome these hurdles amid a difficult political environment as he sits on a council with few allies and a narrow set of avenues to get his policy proposals passed. For the mayor, the answer is what he calls a “back-to-basics” approach to the budget, which means spending money on what he views as essential city priorities, including the ability to get businesses and homes quickly built."
THE CHRONICLE, JD MORRIS: "San Francisco legislators have shown broad support for a draft plan to provide reparations to the city’s Black community, but they have not yet decided the fate of the most ambitious recommendation: $5 million lump-sum payments to an unknown number of eligible recipients.
After a lengthy hearing Tuesday, the Board of Supervisors unanimously accepted the wide-ranging draft reparations plan crafted by a committee tasked with proposing steps the city can take to remedy harms that Black residents endured over generations because of systemic racism and the legacy of slavery.
Yet supervisors did not not decide whether or when to act on any of the individual actions recommended in the plan. The board won’t decide on any specific reparations proposals, including potential cash payments, until after the committee submits its final report in June. Another hearing is planned for Sept. 19."
THE CHRONICLE, MALLORY MOENCH: "Supervisor Dean Preston has unveiled a proposal to pump $10 million into non-police interventions for drug dealing and public safety in the Tenderloin, a pushback against Mayor London Breed’s campaign for police overtime spending.
Preston confirmed Tuesday that he will not vote for Breed’s budget supplemental next week. Seven supervisors have said they will support it, but some have been critical of the $27.6 million she wants for police, saying the department needs to rein in spending and become more efficient. Three supervisors have not decided or disclosed their vote yet. The spending needs eight votes to pass.
Preston instead on Tuesday is introducing a $10 million emergency budget supplemental for more community ambassadors, small business grants for security, and a street level intervention team to deter and offer alternatives to drug dealing in the Tenderloin, which he represents as part of District Five."
Is a common industrial chemical fueling the spread of Parkinson’s disease?
LA TIMES, TONY BRISCOE: "A cancer-causing chemical that is widely used to degrease aviation components and heavy machinery could also be linked to Parkinson’s disease, according to a new research paper that recommends increased scrutiny of areas long contaminated by the compound.
Trichloroethylene, or TCE, is a colorless liquid that has been used to remove gunk from jet engines, strip paint and remove stains from shirts dropped off at the dry cleaners. Decades of widespread use in the U.S. have left thousands of sites contaminated by the TCE.
In a paper published Tuesday in the Journal of Parkinson’s Disease, authors hypothesize that this pollution may be contributing to the global spread of Parkinson’s, a neurological disorder characterized by uncontrollable tremors and slow movement. Although authors were unable to prove a direct connection, they cited a number of other studies that suggest TCE may play a role in the degenerative brain disorder, and urged further research on the matter."
Expansion of college financial aid in California may be at risk
EDSOURCE, MICHAEL BURKE: "Amajor expansion of financial aid for California’s college and university students, set to go into effect next year, could now be in jeopardy. That uncertainty is causing alarm on campuses around the state that hoped the changes would help more students as it also streamlines the current complicated grant system.
As part of last year’s budget agreement, lawmakers and Gov. Gavin Newsom agreed to overhaul the state’s main financial aid program, the Cal Grant beginning in 2024. The changes would simplify the program and expand eligibility, especially to community college students, by eliminating high school grade requirements and guaranteeing awards to all low-income students eligible for federal Pell Grants.
But those changes are set to take effect only if there is enough revenue available in 2024 to support the reforms. That is estimated to cost an additional $365 million annually on top of the current $3.4 billion budget for the California Student Aid Commission, which administers the Cal Grant program. And with the state now facing potential deficits in future years, that additional funding and the linked changes are threatened, according to the Legislative Analyst’s Office, a nonpartisan office of the Legislature that provides fiscal and policy advice. “Cal Grant reform is very unlikely to be triggered” in 2024, the LAO told lawmakers in a memo prepared for an Assembly hearing Tuesday."
Political strife is harming California teens’ high school experience, study says
LA TIMES, CHRISTIAN MARTINEZ: "California is often cited as a bastion of left-leaning politics, with an electorate that voted for Joe Biden over Donald Trump by a nearly 2-1 ratio in 2020.
But a study of the state’s high schools shows that California campuses are just as likely to experience political strife as those in other, more polarized states.
“The surprise here is not that California is different, it is that our public schools are experiencing similar levels of political attacks and conflict with what we have seen across the nation,” said John Rogers, a study co-author and director of the UCLA Institute for Democracy, Education and Access."
UC Berkeley history department adapts to nationwide decline in higher education jobs
DAILY CALIFORNIAN, MAXINE ESCHGER: "Amid a nationwide decline in jobs in the history education field, UC Berkeley’s Department of History has managed to partly defy the trend.
According to department chair and professor Cathryn Carson, the campus history program prepares its students for jobs in diverse fields and provides broad-based course teachings. She added that the campus data did not reflect as dramatic a decrease in jobs as compared to the national data.
“One of the things that really struck us when we looked at [the data] is there’s not a lot of change,” Carson said. “What we found is that our graduates end up with jobs, dominantly in college and university teaching.”"
L.A. schools would close if union workers go on massive three-day strike, Supt. Carvalho says
LA TIMES, HOWARD BLUME: "Los Angeles public schools would probably shut down in the event of a planned three-day, simultaneous strike by unions representing 65,000 workers, including teachers and support staff, as the walkout would be too much to overcome and student safety could not be ensured in the nation’s second-largest school district, Supt. Alberto Carvalho announced Monday night.
“If this strike does occur, despite our best efforts to avoid it, due to the anticipated lack of both teachers and school staff, it is likely we would have to close schools — without virtual education — until the strike ends,” Carvalho said in an email to families. “We would simply have no way of ensuring a safe and secure environment where teaching can take place. We will give you as much advance notice as possible, but we encourage you to begin discussions with your employer, child care providers and others now.”
In a separate email to employees he conveyed much the same message, adding that preparations for out-of-school support and learning would be made."
Peninsula educators sue TikTok, Snap and YouTube for allegedly delivering harmful content to kids
BANG*MERCURY NEWS, JASON GREEN: "Peninsula educators are suing Snap, TikTok and YouTube over allegations they intentionally designed their platforms to be addictive and to deliver harmful content to children.
The 107-page lawsuit was filed Monday by Cotchett, Pitre and McCarthy LLP on behalf of the San Mateo County Board of Education and the superintendent of schools.
“For the youth targeted by social media companies and for the adults charged with their care, the results have been disastrous,” Karin Swope, an attorney for the firm, said in a statement. “Excessive use of the YouTube, TikTok, and Snap companies’ platforms by children has become ubiquitous. And now, there are more children struggling with mental health issues than ever before. Suicide is now the second leading cause of death for youths.”"
Silicon Valley Bank made itself perfect for wineries. Then their accounts froze.
THE CHRONICLE, ESTHER MOBLEY: "Like many Bay Area vintners, Emmanuel Kemiji woke up on Friday morning to discover he was locked out of his account at Silicon Valley Bank. First, he was confused. Then he looked at the news. “We realized the gravity of the situation,” he said.
Kemiji is the owner of Miura Vineyards in Napa, a boutique winery whose bottles sell for $35-$80, as well as a winery in Spain, Clos Pisarra. For the last 20 years, he’s kept his business’ funds with Silicon Valley Bank, which had become the institution of choice for West Coast wine companies, especially small ones. But over the weekend, Kemiji and many of his peers suddenly found themselves caught at the center of the largest bank failure in 15 years."
Companies are diversifying their corporate boards. But Latinos are left behind
LA TIMES, MARGOT ROOSEVELT: "Cisco Systems, the multinational tech giant based in San Jose, has no Latino on its board of directors.
Ditto for Intel, the world’s largest semiconductor manufacturer, headquartered in Santa Clara, Calif.
Ditto for Tesla — which moved offices to Austin, Texas, from Palo Alto last year — and for a host of other Fortune 100 companies with millions of Latino customers, employees and suppliers. Among them: Amazon, FedEx, Albertsons, Kroger, Walgreens Boots Alliance, Exxon Mobil, Citigroup, JPMorgan Chase, United Parcel Service and Berkshire Hathaway."
Meta laying off 10,000 more workers in second massive downsizing
THE CHRONICLE, ROLAND LI, CHASE DIFELICIANTONIO: "Meta is cutting an additional 10,000 employees, an unprecedented second round of massive layoffs in the wake of an advertising downturn and a costly bet on the metaverse that has cost the social media company billions of dollars.
CEO Mark Zuckerberg said 5,000 open roles also wouldn’t be filled in a staff memo posted publicly on Tuesday. The parent company of Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp previously laid off around 11,000 workers in November.
With 21,000 total layoffs, Menlo Park-based Meta has made the deepest cuts of any tech company during the pandemic, now exceeding Amazon’s roughly 18,000 cuts."
Biden consoles Monterey Park over mass shooting, signs order to curb gun violence
LA TIMES, SEEMA MEHTA, COURTNEY SUBRAMANIAN: "President Biden on Tuesday signed an executive order to curb gun violence and enhance background checks on firearms buyers, spending part of the afternoon consoling a Monterey Park community devastated by a mass shooting on the eve of Lunar New Year in January.
“I’m here on behalf of the American people to mourn with you, to pray with you, to let you know you are loved and not alone,” Biden told about 200 people in the gymnasium of a Boys & Girls Club. “I know what it’s like to get that call.... I know what it’s like to lose a loved one so suddenly. It’s like losing a piece of your soul.”
Biden’s visit took place less than half a mile from a dance studio where 11 people were killed and nine wounded on the night of Jan. 21. The gunman moved on to another dance hall in Alhambra, where he was disarmed by Brandon Tsay."
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