Valley Solutions

Massive Tracy warehouse burns

SF Chronicle. Massive Tracy warehouse fire could take four days to put out, chief says. 
Synopsis: After the sprinklers failed in the Medline warehouse packed to the rafters with medical supplies, a fire raced through the million-square-foot building destroying it within minutes. Sparks off the building soon ignited grass, brush and the nearby Fed Ex warehouse. Acrid smoke blew mostly south during the day Thursday but shifted east at night. Tracy Fire Chief Randall Bradley called it “a unique fire” and said it took only 20 minutes for the entire building to become engulfed with explosions keeping firefighters back. Hydrants in the area lacked sufficient pressure, so firefighters had to rely on pumper engines. “We don’t know why those fire hydrants weren’t pressurized,” said the chief. More than 120 firefighters responded. Residents of San Joaquin and Stanislaus counties were cautioned to remain indoors and shut their windows. Embers blew all the way to the Tracy airport causing spot fires. As employees fled the building, workers at fast-food locations provided water and access to AC.

KCRA. Massive fire destroys 1 million-square-foot Tracy distribution facility; firefight continues. 
Synopsis: Firefighters remained on the scene of the massive Tracy warehouse fire on Promontory Parkway Friday morning. Due to lack of pressure in city hydrants, firefighters needed to run 1,600 feet of hose to reach the fire. The building was consumed within 40 minutes. Comments on the coverage showed many people worried about receiving their medical supplies and pharmaceuticals, but Medline says the fire will not cause undue disruptions in the delivery of medical supplies. The company distributes 335,000 products to hospitals and healthcare facilities throughout the West including Sutter Health, Stanford Medicine, UC Davis and the US Dept of Veterans Affairs. It has other distribution centers in Manteca, Lathrop and Southern California.

Why didn’t the sprinklers work?

ABC10. Warehouse sprinkler system passed inspection but didn’t activate during Tracy fire, say officials.
Synopsis: As a million-square-foot facility went up in flames, firefighters got no help from the sprinkler system inside or the hydrants outside where the pressure was insufficient to bring water to bear on the fire. Tracy Fire Chief Brian Bagley said the fire system had been tested prior to occupancy by a commercial company, and he could not say why it didn’t activate.
Shorts:

StanCOG execs ‘soaked’ the public

Modesto Focus. Report: Public soaked $595,000 in secret StanCOG cashouts to 3 top employees.
Synopsis: Garth Stapley delves into the Stanislaus Grand Jury report that uncovered vacation payouts of $595,000 to three top staffers over four-plus years. “Vacation policy used as a cash machine instead of its intended benefit,” wrote the Grand Jury. This report is in addition to financial improprieties already divulged. Former StanCOG CEO Rosa de Leon Park booked stays in luxury hotels, first-class airline tickets and luxury-car rentals for local use in addition to her car allowance. The district attorney’s office said its investigation into Park is “moving along good, going very well.” The other StanCOG execs identified as cashing out vacation days were Cindy Malekos and Elizabeth Hahn.

A little more election news

Stocktonia. ‘Record time’ counting in SJ shows all 3 city council incumbents going to runoffs. 
Synopsis: Stockton city council incumbents Michelle Padilla and Michael Blower remained just below the necessary threshold to avoid having to run in the November general election as the San Joaquin registrar released the latest vote count. The county says just over 1,300 ballots remain to be reviewed. Padilla has 49.18% of the votes in District 1 meaning she’ll face Tamica Small in November. In D3, Blower had 48.3% followed by Jessica Toccoli’s 36.1%. In D5, incumbent Brando Villapudua has 33.9% followed by Desiree Lynch at 30.6%. Registrar of voters Olivia Hale said the county needed only 6 days to count the votes, applauding workers for diligence and speed.

Merced Focus. Richard Lopez, Ana Boyenga to compete in November for Superintendent.
Synopsis: Merced County registrar of voters Mel Levee updated new numbers Thursday, showing Richard Lopez and Ana Boyenga will proceed to November’s general election for Merced County superintendent of schools. Lopez has 31.2% of votes in the four-way race while Boyenga got 29.5%, or about 800 more than Paula Heupel. Only 417 unprocessed ballots remain. There were 46,342 ballots cast in Merced, or around 34% of 136,490 eligible voters.

Modesto Bee. Latest on election: Many more Stanislaus voters came out for this primary.
Synopsis: With only a few ballots remaining to be counted, the County Registrar reported that 34% of all eligible voters participated in the June 2 primary. That’s up from the 23% in the 2022 primary. Linder said she expects no changes in outcomes. More Republicans came out in Stanislaus than other parts of the state, with Steve Hilton winning the gubernatorial race (34%) followed by Xavier Becerra (25%). “Locally and districtwide, voters in the US House 13^th District strongly supported Merced-based Adam Gray over former Stockton Mayor Kevin Lincoln.” Jaron Brandon, a Tuolumne Supervisor, got 44% of the vote for State Senate District 4 compared to 37% for Hughson’s Alexandra Duarte. Heath Flora got 44% of the vote for Assembly D-9, with Matt Adams coming in a distant second (21%). They will be in the November runoff.

Bets on desal will pay off

Washington Post.  San Diego’s big bet on salt water.
Synopsis: The Post editorial writers point out the value of desalination, noting that San Diego is now purifying more ocean-water than it uses on many days. Some of its 50 million gallons per day is now sold to districts in Arizona and Nevada, which is relieving pressure on the Colorado River. The editorial admonishes those who have criticized desalination for being too costly or using too much electricity and being environmentally destructive. The desal plant is a net positive and is proving to be a viable solution for the coming water crisis.
MAD Take: A central point to arguments against desal, as noted by the Post, is the cost of electricity needed to remove salt from water. It’s huge. What the editorial left out is the cost of electricity needed to bring water to the South state from the north. Water is heavy, and the cost of lifting it (via electric pumps) over the Tehachapis creates the largest single electricity bill in the state of California -- roughly $40 million to $50 million a year. Taxpayers and water-user fees cover the cost of around $570 per acre foot. Coincidentally, the annual electricity bill for the Carlsbad desal plant runs from $40 million to $50 million a year. Build more desal.

‘Smart’ mosquitos prefer humans

Turlock Journal. Aggressive mosquitos making their way through Turlock. 
Synopsis: Aedes aegypti mosquitoes are becoming a problem, breeding quickly in the tiniest amount of water. The invasive species is “clever,” says David Heft of the Turlock Mosquito Abatement District. They prefer humans to other warm-blooded animals and “they won’t just land on your forearm like an ordinary dumb mosquito. These mosquitos will land on the back side of your arms, your elbow, your ankles. By the time you feel them, they’re already flown off.” While aedes aegypti do not carry West Nile, they can carry dengue, Zika and other diseases. Get rid of standing water and bring the DEET.

Who’s to blame for screwworm?

Morning Ag Clips. Political blame game follows as screwworm parasite threatens cattle in Texas. 
Synopsis: Ag Sec Brooke Rollins insisted Donald Trump is not responsible for the return of the New World Screwworm though it wasn’t found in the U.S. until two weeks ago. “Screwworms are on their way to becoming a billion-dollar international problem,” says the story. Seven cases have been confirmed in Texas and New Mexico, where inspections of cattle involved in cross-border transactions has been discontinued by the USDA. While Rollins blamed Joe Biden, Democrats countered by pointing out the loss of hundreds of USDA employees who had been dedicated to tracking screwworm and other parasites. They noted that the entire USAID department dedicated to eradicating pests before they reach the United States was eliminated by Elon Musk’s DOGE cuts. “The lifecycle of a screwworm is about 14 to 54 days,” said Rep. Ted Lieu of CA. “This is on the Trump administration. They need to own up to it and they need to apologize.”

Following the Valley’s lead?

SF Chronicle. Oakland’s two largest community colleges are merging and not everyone is happy.
Synopsis: Laney and Merritt colleges, the two largest in the Peralta Community College District, will merge next year to become Oakland City College. The transformation is aimed at lowering the dropout rate. PCCD has four colleges serving 16,000 students, including Berkeley City College and the College of Alameda. Combining Laney and Merritt will save on administration, though the district has not released figures. A petition signed against the merger has been signed by 200 instructors and administrators.
MAD Note: Peralta CCD has 16,000 students spread across four separate colleges on four campuses. Not mentioned in the story, but Laney and Merritt are only about 6 miles apart. For comparison, Modesto JC has 18,300 students across two campuses that are 4 miles apart. Merced College has 18,600 students, also on two campuses 40 miles apart. Delta College has 20,960 also on two campuses, one in Stockton and one in Mountain House. Sounds like the Peralta board might be learning something from the Valley.

State gives up on mussels

Cal Matters. CA scales back golden mussel safeguards at vital reservoir, alarming experts. 
Synopsis: The Dept of Water Resources will not require inspections of boats arriving at Lake Oroville, signaling an end to efforts to protect the state’s second-largest reservoir from a golden mussel infestation. The decision follows a risk assessment that determined infestations are inevitable. It is believed mussel larvae are already being pumped throughout the Valley’s water system with infestations already found from San Joaquin to Kern counties. The cost of an inspection program at the lake was estimated to be $7.5 million while the cost of installing UV treatment to prevent clogging in pipes was $1 million. That will leave the docks, boats and shoreline infrastructure at risk of clogging.

New BBQ joint folds fast

Fresno Bee. Famous chef came home to open BBQ joint; his restaurant closed within months.
Synopsis: When Horn Barbecue opened in January in Granite Park it had no shortage of accolades and applause. Chef Matt Horn had earned a James Beard nomination and the Michelin Bib Gourmand award. But troubles at his Bay Area restaurants appear to have followed him home to Fresno. There have been claims of unpaid wages and now the city of Oakland is investigating the fire that destroyed one of his restaurants as possible arson. The local eatery will close on June 17.

You can make Merced safer

Merced Focus. Merced has a voice for safer streets; it is called BPAC. 
Synopsis: RoseMarie Campagna of Strong Towns writes about street safety in Merced. “In a healthy, connected city, walking, biking, rolling and using mobility aids should be safe, practical and ordinary.” But in Merced, most streets are built for one purpose above all else: “moving cars fast.” She feels the Bicycle & Pedestrian Advisory Commission has not provided adequate guidance to the city council and wants the commission put on the agenda so that its recommendations are given more weight and consideration.

Feeding hungry kids

ABC30. Madera Unified hands out thousands of free meal boxes to Valley families. 
Synopsis: Madera Unified School District will ensure that thousands of its students will not go hungry over the summer. The district started handing out grab-and-go boxes filled with food in the Madera Community College parking lot. “We are just out here feeding the kids,” said the district’s director nutrition services, Brian Chiarito. Any family with children from 2 to 18 are eligible. Meals provided by the USDA include cereal, benefit bars, muffins, tamales, chicken nuggets, burritos and pizza pockets. But the district adds blueberries, nectarines, peaches, veggies and lettuce to the mix. “Kids don’t stop being hungry,” said Chiarito. “It’s a good feeling, being able to take care of the kids.”