San Joaquin County Resilience Digest

In an April 24 press conference. CalFire unveiled the latest addition to their fleet of firefighting aircraft, a new C-130 Hercules.

On April 18, a groundbreaking ceremony at the Tenmile Slough signaled the beginning of a $2 billion levee project to protect Stockton from future flooding.

A look at City of Manteca resident weed abatement policies and the recent approval of funding for weed abatement at municipal properties.

Six conservancies throughout the state will oversee work largely in Southern California and the Sierra Nevada.

For the first time since the city's 2012 bankruptcy, a new ladder truck is now located at the North Stockton Fire Station Number 7.

After a three day hearing this week, State Farm is one step closer to approval for a rate hike on its California customers.

A new state-of-the-art fire engine has just been delivered to the Ripon Consolidated Fire District, replacing one which has been in service for over a decade.

California’s Public Advocate has been pressing for new utility fire maps since 2023. Utilities are on board — but regulators turned them down.

A fire at a Stockton e-waste recycling plant on April 2 was extinguished by the next morning, leaving a toxic mess behind.

A fire in February damage a component necessary to power the San Joaquin County Fairgrounds. The race is on to restore electricity before the spring and summer fair season begins.

At 90% of the state historical average, the Sierra Nevada snowpack is far better than last year. But it’s nothing like the record-smashing 2023.

Ripon residents are encouraged to apply for an open seat on the Ripon Consolidated Fire District Board of Directors.

Applications are open for $43 million in PG&E grant funding to develop microgrids in vulnerable communities in central and southern California.

CalFire released its fourth and final round of color-coded hazard maps. Different colors come with different rules.

Evacuating the Tahoe basin in summer could take 14 hours, and 99% of properties are at risk — yet new resorts are being built in high-danger fire areas.

To cover a budget gap in Medi-Cal — which provides health insurance for roughly 15 million disabled and low-income Californians — Gov. Gavin Newsom’s administration is borrowing $3.4 billion from the state’s general fund.

California Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara said today he will grant State Farm’s request to raise home insurance premiums by 22% on average if the company agrees to certain conditions — and wins approval at a public rate hearing next month.

California is spending more than it expected on Medi-Cal and Republican lawmakers are pointing to coverage expansions that benefited immigrant households.

Read on for details about the $1.2 million fire engine being considered for the new fire station to be built in southwest Manteca.

The governor’s planned $20 billion tunnel to divert more water south and bypass the Delta would bring years of construction noise, pollution and traffic. Residents worry their rural farm towns will never be the same.

California Assembly Bill 247 would significantly raise the hourly wage of inmate firefighters. Read on to learn more.

Five years ago, as COVID-19 hit the state, legislators cancelled a hearing to discuss a state audit that found the state’s office of emergency services and at least three California counties weren’t prepared to help vulnerable people during natural disasters.

Read on to learn more about a recent workshop help by the Manteca City Council which considered the top priorities for the city fire department. (Rethinking the automatic aid with the Ripon Consolidated Fire District is one of them...)

The governor has proposed spending climate bond money dedicated to wildfire mitigation in various ways. Some lawmakers think a focused strategy would be more effective.

Ricardo Lara said he will look at information provided by State Farm before revisiting his previous decision to reject the company’s emergency rate hike.

Each year, legislation aimed at better wildfire mitigation fails – often due to cost or conflict with environmental regulations.

Read on for details about a joint meeting of the Manteca City Council and the Measure Q Oversight Committee is considered the use of sales tax revenue to increase fire department staffing.

THE RECENT SPREAD of devastating wildfires in Los Angeles has underscored the importance of Watch Duty, the wildfire mapping app that provides early warning of fires and tracks their spread. And it is also casting a spotlight on the work of two volunteers, Danilla Sands of Mendocino County and Sara Paul of Sonoma County, both of whom play critical roles in ensuring the app has the latest fire information.

Over the last year, the Ripon Consolidated Fire District responded to almost 2,400 calls, but 22% has to be serviced by outside agencies from Manteca and Escalon. Read on to learn more.

California has known for years that it must pay extra attention to people with disabilities and limited mobility during natural disasters. Will it put the lessones of the L.A. fires to use for the next emergency?

In the days and weeks following the January Los Angeles County wildfires, Gov. Gavin Newsom and his office moved quickly to manage the response and begin recovery efforts after the blazes were contained. Since then, the governor has been singularly focused on the region, describing his approach as “an extended period of engagement” with L.A. during a press conference in Altadena last week.

In the wake of the Los Angeles fires, State Farm asked for an “emergency” premium increase of 22% on average for California homeowners. Lara today denied the request pending more information.