latimes--2020-09-17--Californians who contract COVID-19 at work get additional help under new law

California will relax the burden of proof to receive workers ’ compensation benefits for some employees who contract COVID-19 on the job under a bill Gov .
Gavin Newsom signed Thursday .
Senate Bill 1159 by Sen. Jerry Hill ( D-San Mateo ) makes it easier for police , firefighters and other essential employees who contract COVID-19 while working to be covered under the state ’ s workers ’ compensation program .
In other workplaces — both public and private — the new law presumes employees caught the novel coronavirus on the job if there is an outbreak at their @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to have their medical bills and lost wages covered .
Because lawmakers passed the law as an urgency bill , it will go into effect immediately , bypassing the typical Jan. 1 start date for most laws .
Newsom said during a bill signing ceremony streamed online that the new law makes clear the need to “ prioritize our workforce , our workers , our frontline essential workforce that we pay a lot of lip service to but , often , we don ’ t back up.
” Newsom ’ s signature Thursday @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
The governor said earlier this year that he planned to work “ hand in glove ” with the Legislature to expand COVID-19 workplace protections , including loosening workers ’ compensation claim requirements .
Newsom signed an executive order in May easing workers ’ comp restrictions for all employees required to work outside the home , but those changes expired on July 5 .
SB 1159 is retroactive to July 6 and expires in 2023 .
“ This helps employees who are struggling after becoming a victim of COVID-19 , ” Hill said @ @ @ @ @ @ @ system pays employees who have suffered an injury or illness on the job , regardless of who is at fault .
For most workers , the onus is on them to prove the injury or illness was work related .
However , certain occupational injuries and maladies experienced by law enforcement officers , firefighters and correctional officers , such as heart disease , hernias , pneumonia , cancer and meningitis , are presumed to have occurred during the course of their employment , requiring the workers ’ compensation system to pay for treatment @ @ @ @ @ @ @ benefits .
The state ’ s 100-year-old workers ’ compensation insurance system relies on nearly 700,000 businesses covered by 200 insurance companies to pay for medical care and wage replacement when employees are injured while working .
Some 800,000 workers receive benefits from the program each year , according to a 2020 report from the Workers ’ Compensation Insurance Rating Bureau of California .
There have been more than 40,436 claims filed so far this year by workers who said they contracted COVID-19 on the job , according to statistics from the Department @ @ @ @ @ @ @ workers ’ compensation system .
Of those , 11,186 have been rejected , with most denials attributed to a negative COVID-19 test .
The number of workers ’ compensation claims for the coronavirus jumped from 4,790 in May to 11,271 in June and to 12,889 in July , according to the Department of Industrial Relations .
The workers ’ comp rating bureau estimated that COVID-19 claims will cost employers and insurers around $ 2 billion .
The bureau estimated in May that the average claim paid would be $ 29,000 .
Under the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ presumed to have contracted COVID-19 on the job if there was an outbreak where they worked .
The law defines an outbreak as when five or more employees contract the virus within a 14-day period at a workplace with five to 100 employees or when 5 % of employees contracti the virus in that period at a worksite with more than 100 employees .
In those cases , an employer could still challenge a claim on the grounds that the employee had been exposed elsewhere , but opponents of the bill argued that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ “ I think the threshold is critical , ” Hill said .
“ Really , it ’ s common sense .
You shouldn ’ t be able to have an outbreak of the extent we ’ ve seen in some workplaces and conclude those workers didn ’ t get it from the workplace.
” During the final weeks of the legislative session that concluded Aug. 31 , the bill underwent six amendments in an attempt to reach consensus among labor and business groups .
The Workers ’ Compensation Action Network , a statewide @ @ @ @ @ @ @ those late changes made the law more palatable , even if the group remained opposed to the legislation .
Under the new law , the Commission on Health and Safety and Workers ’ Compensation will be required to conduct a study on the impact of COVID-19 on the workers ’ compensation system by April 30 , 2022 .
“ In the end , employers are satisfied that lawmakers rejected more extreme proposals , which would have imposed broad new liability on struggling California employers to pay for COVID-19 cases that are unrelated to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a statement .
“ Such proposals risked turning the workers ’ compensation system into a broad social safety net for the pandemic , a responsibility that should be reserved for government , not California employers grappling with an economic crisis.
” Newsom also signed Assembly Bill 685 by Assemblywoman Eloise Gomez Reyes ( D-Grand Terrace ) , which will require employers to provide written notice to workers who may have been exposed to the virus and to inform local public health officials .
The legislation also gives state regulators new authority over the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ if workplace violations are discovered .
Julie Su , the secretary of California ’ s Labor and Workforce Development Agency , said the notification law extends beyond those who are directly employed by a business owner to include subcontractors , “ so that workers can choose to stay home , to get tested , to protect themselves and their families and to follow other health guidelines about quarantining .
”

Grocery workers associated with UFCW Local 770 demonstrate on Aug. 5 outside a Food 4 Less store in Los Angeles after reports of 28 workers being infected with COVID-19.
California will relax the burden of proof to receive workers’ compensation benefits for some employees who contract COVID-19 on the job under a bill Gov. Gavin Newsom signed Thursday.
Senate Bill 1159 by Sen. Jerry Hill (D-San Mateo) makes it easier for police, firefighters and other essential employees who contract COVID-19 while working to be covered under the state’s workers’ compensation program. In other workplaces — both public and private — the new law presumes employees caught the novel coronavirus on the job if there is an outbreak at their worksite, ensuring those employees are eligible to have their medical bills and lost wages covered.
Because lawmakers passed the law as an urgency bill, it will go into effect immediately, bypassing the typical Jan. 1 start date for most laws.
Newsom said during a bill signing ceremony streamed online that the new law makes clear the need to “prioritize our workforce, our workers, our frontline essential workforce that we pay a lot of lip service to but, often, we don’t back up.”
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Newsom’s signature Thursday didn’t come as a surprise. The governor said earlier this year that he planned to work “hand in glove” with the Legislature to expand COVID-19 workplace protections, including loosening workers’ compensation claim requirements.
Newsom signed an executive order in May easing workers’ comp restrictions for all employees required to work outside the home, but those changes expired on July 5. SB 1159 is retroactive to July 6 and expires in 2023.
“This helps employees who are struggling after becoming a victim of COVID-19,” Hill said.
California’s workers’ compensation system pays employees who have suffered an injury or illness on the job, regardless of who is at fault. For most workers, the onus is on them to prove the injury or illness was work related. However, certain occupational injuries and maladies experienced by law enforcement officers, firefighters and correctional officers, such as heart disease, hernias, pneumonia, cancer and meningitis, are presumed to have occurred during the course of their employment, requiring the workers’ compensation system to pay for treatment and, in fatal cases, death benefits.
The state’s 100-year-old workers’ compensation insurance system relies on nearly 700,000 businesses covered by 200 insurance companies to pay for medical care and wage replacement when employees are injured while working. Some 800,000 workers receive benefits from the program each year, according to a 2020 report from the Workers’ Compensation Insurance Rating Bureau of California.
There have been more than 40,436 claims filed so far this year by workers who said they contracted COVID-19 on the job, according to statistics from the Department of Industrial Relations, which oversees the workers’ compensation system. Of those, 11,186 have been rejected, with most denials attributed to a negative COVID-19 test. The number of workers’ compensation claims for the coronavirus jumped from 4,790 in May to 11,271 in June and to 12,889 in July, according to the Department of Industrial Relations.
The workers’ comp rating bureau estimated that COVID-19 claims will cost employers and insurers around $2 billion. The bureau estimated in May that the average claim paid would be $29,000.
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Under the law Newsom signed, employees will be presumed to have contracted COVID-19 on the job if there was an outbreak where they worked. The law defines an outbreak as when five or more employees contract the virus within a 14-day period at a workplace with five to 100 employees or when 5% of employees contracti the virus in that period at a worksite with more than 100 employees.
In those cases, an employer could still challenge a claim on the grounds that the employee had been exposed elsewhere, but opponents of the bill argued that is a difficult burden to prove.
“I think the threshold is critical,” Hill said. “Really, it’s common sense. You shouldn’t be able to have an outbreak of the extent we’ve seen in some workplaces and conclude those workers didn’t get it from the workplace.”
During the final weeks of the legislative session that concluded Aug. 31, the bill underwent six amendments in an attempt to reach consensus among labor and business groups. The Workers’ Compensation Action Network, a statewide coalition representing employers and insurers, said those late changes made the law more palatable, even if the group remained opposed to the legislation.
Under the new law, the Commission on Health and Safety and Workers’ Compensation will be required to conduct a study on the impact of COVID-19 on the workers’ compensation system by April 30, 2022.
“In the end, employers are satisfied that lawmakers rejected more extreme proposals, which would have imposed broad new liability on struggling California employers to pay for COVID-19 cases that are unrelated to work,” the group said in a statement. “Such proposals risked turning the workers’ compensation system into a broad social safety net for the pandemic, a responsibility that should be reserved for government, not California employers grappling with an economic crisis.”
Newsom also signed Assembly Bill 685 by Assemblywoman Eloise Gomez Reyes (D-Grand Terrace), which will require employers to provide written notice to workers who may have been exposed to the virus and to inform local public health officials. The legislation also gives state regulators new authority over the next two years to penalize business owners if workplace violations are discovered.
Julie Su, the secretary of California’s Labor and Workforce Development Agency, said the notification law extends beyond those who are directly employed by a business owner to include subcontractors, “so that workers can choose to stay home, to get tested, to protect themselves and their families and to follow other health guidelines about quarantining.”
Times staff writer John Myers contributed to this report


latimes--2020-09-17--COVID-19 cases leap in outbreak at ICE detention center in Adelanto

The Immigration and Customs Enforcement processing facility in Adelanto is in the grips of a COVID-19 outbreak , federal officials say .
The confirmed case count more than doubled within a few days .
The trajectory of the outbreak is laid out in court documents filed Wednesday and Thursday .
From the start of the pandemic until Sunday , 14 people had tested positive for the coronavirus — all of them new detainees who tested positive upon arrival at the facility — Department of Justice lawyer Hans Chen said in an email to lawyers with the American Civil Liberties Union @ @ @ @ @ @ @ routinely tested newly arriving detainees but not those already held at the facility unless they presented severe symptoms , including fever , advocates say .
But on Tuesday , new cases had emerged in two units at the facility .
Staff then decided to place that entire wing of the facility under quarantine status and test all 120 detainees , said Gabriel Valdez , assistant field office director for ICE in Los Angeles .
By Thursday , 39 more people had tested positive .
Staff are conducting contact tracing for all infected detainees @ @ @ @ @ @ @ He said it ’ s too soon to know the possible source of the infection .
Six detainees have been hospitalized for COVID-19 treatment , Valdez wrote .
Adelanto doesn ’ t have access to rapid tests but is trying to obtain them , he said .
Tests will be offered in stages to all detainees and facility staff .
Employees who decline will be asked to quarantine for two weeks at home .
Adelanto is at 36 % capacity , with 748 detainees .
“ In a proactive response to the overall @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , management initiated voluntary testing of all detainees in affected housing units , ” said Alexx Pons , a spokesperson for ICE .
“ Consistent with Centers for Disease Control and Prevention ( CDC ) guidelines , those who may have come in contact with these individuals have also been cohorted and are being monitored for symptoms.
” Reports began circulating among detainees and advocates late last week that multiple units in the facility were under quarantine , with many detainees experiencing COVID-19 symptoms and some staff members hospitalized .
ACLU lawyers , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ conditions inside the facility during the pandemic , had asked lawyers for ICE to respond .
ACLU lawyers requested an emergency court order Wednesday asking ICE to immediately conduct rapid tests for all detainees and provide information about testing and medical response to the outbreak .
On Thursday , lawyers for ICE submitted a status report asking the court not to “ micromanage ” Adelanto ’ s response to the outbreak .
The lawyers wrote that ICE officals ’ “ response to recent developments at Adelanto reflect a rapid but deliberate approach to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the opposite of deliberate indifference or punitive detention.
” Margaret Hellerstein , a lawyer with the Esperanza Immigrant Rights Project , said some of her clients told medical staff at Adelanto that they had symptoms including cough , chills , sore throat , chest pain and fatigue .
“ My clients were told that their illness was the result of poor air quality and that they should gargle with salt .
They were finally tested on Tuesday after suffering for days , ” she said .
One client , 23-year-old Marvin Cua from @ @ @ @ @ @ @ sick that he could barely keep his eyes open and feared that he could infect others in his unit .
On Thursday , those fears were confirmed : He tested positive for the coronavirus .
More than 5,800 people in ICE custody have tested positive for the coronavirus nationwide , according to the agency .
In April , the ACLU and the law firm Latham and Watkins filed a lawsuit against ICE , arguing that conditions at Adelanto made the facility vulnerable to an outbreak and seeking the mass release of those held @ @ @ @ @ @ @ District judge allowed lawyers to start filing bail applications on behalf of detainees for potential release .
Since then , the judge has ordered 56 detainees to be released and denied five bail applications .
Last month , ACLU lawyers discovered that 1,900 COVID-19 test kits had been shipped overnight to the Adelanto facility in May , but officials refused to allow the vast majority of them to be used , according to an email exchange released under the class-action lawsuit .
Facility staff planned to begin offering testing to all staff and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
But Valdez , the ICE officer in charge of Adelanto , said in an email May 23 , “ Until I receive guidance from my chain of command I don ’ t want any detainees tested through this voluntary process.
” Instead , ICE decided to test new arrivals but not people already held at the facility .
A similar situation played out last month at the Mesa Verde facility in Bakersfield , when lawyers obtained emails showing that officials had rejected a suggestion to test all detainees there because it would @ @ @ @ @ @ @ positive .
After half of the detainees at Mesa Verde tested positive , a federal judge in San Francisco ordered ICE to immediately test all detainees and staff , saying , “ there ’ s no question that this outbreak could have been avoided .
”

A guard escorts an immigrant detainee at the Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention facility in Adelanto.
The Immigration and Customs Enforcement processing facility in Adelanto is in the grips of a COVID-19 outbreak, federal officials say. The confirmed case count more than doubled within a few days.
The trajectory of the outbreak is laid out in court documents filed Wednesday and Thursday.
From the start of the pandemic until Sunday, 14 people had tested positive for the coronavirus — all of them new detainees who tested positive upon arrival at the facility — Department of Justice lawyer Hans Chen said in an email to lawyers with the American Civil Liberties Union of Southern California.
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Adelanto staff have routinely tested newly arriving detainees but not those already held at the facility unless they presented severe symptoms, including fever, advocates say.
But on Tuesday, new cases had emerged in two units at the facility. Staff then decided to place that entire wing of the facility under quarantine status and test all 120 detainees, said Gabriel Valdez, assistant field office director for ICE in Los Angeles.
By Thursday, 39 more people had tested positive. Staff are conducting contact tracing for all infected detainees, Valdez wrote in a declaration. He said it’s too soon to know the possible source of the infection.
Six detainees have been hospitalized for COVID-19 treatment, Valdez wrote. Adelanto doesn’t have access to rapid tests but is trying to obtain them, he said. Tests will be offered in stages to all detainees and facility staff. Employees who decline will be asked to quarantine for two weeks at home.
Adelanto is at 36% capacity, with 748 detainees.
“In a proactive response to the overall health, welfare and safety of detainees, management initiated voluntary testing of all detainees in affected housing units,” said Alexx Pons, a spokesperson for ICE. “Consistent with Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) guidelines, those who may have come in contact with these individuals have also been cohorted and are being monitored for symptoms.”
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Reports began circulating among detainees and advocates late last week that multiple units in the facility were under quarantine, with many detainees experiencing COVID-19 symptoms and some staff members hospitalized. ACLU lawyers, who are leading a class-action lawsuit over conditions inside the facility during the pandemic, had asked lawyers for ICE to respond.
ACLU lawyers requested an emergency court order Wednesday asking ICE to immediately conduct rapid tests for all detainees and provide information about testing and medical response to the outbreak.
On Thursday, lawyers for ICE submitted a status report asking the court not to “micromanage” Adelanto’s response to the outbreak.
The lawyers wrote that ICE officals’ “response to recent developments at Adelanto reflect a rapid but deliberate approach to a developing situation that (is) the opposite of deliberate indifference or punitive detention.”
Margaret Hellerstein, a lawyer with the Esperanza Immigrant Rights Project, said some of her clients told medical staff at Adelanto that they had symptoms including cough, chills, sore throat, chest pain and fatigue.
“My clients were told that their illness was the result of poor air quality and that they should gargle with salt. They were finally tested on Tuesday after suffering for days,” she said.
One client, 23-year-old Marvin Cua from Guatemala, told her he felt so sick that he could barely keep his eyes open and feared that he could infect others in his unit. On Thursday, those fears were confirmed: He tested positive for the coronavirus.
California California is turning the corner on the coronavirus. Will it last? California appears to be riding a wave of success beating back the coronavirus. But these signs of progress also bring concerns that it could be erased.
More than 5,800 people in ICE custody have tested positive for the coronavirus nationwide, according to the agency.
Earlier this year, the ACLU and the law firm Latham and Watkins filed a lawsuit against ICE, arguing that conditions at Adelanto made the facility vulnerable to an outbreak and seeking the mass release of those held there. In July, a U.S. District judge in Los Angeles allowed lawyers to start filing bail applications on behalf of detainees for potential release. Since then, Judge Terry Hatter has ordered 56 detainees to be released and denied five bail applications.
On Thursday, Hatter ordered a halt to any additional bail releases, citing his “reluctance to have any potentially COVID-19 positive detainee released into the community.”
Last month, ACLU lawyers discovered that 1,900 COVID-19 test kits had been shipped overnight to the Adelanto facility in May, but officials refused to allow the vast majority of them to be used, according to an email exchange released under the class-action lawsuit.
Facility staff planned to begin offering testing to all staff and detainees the day the test kits arrived.
But Valdez, the ICE officer in charge of Adelanto, said in an email May 23, “Until I receive guidance from my chain of command I don’t want any detainees tested through this voluntary process.”
Instead, ICE decided to test new arrivals but not people already held at the facility.
A similar situation played out last month at the Mesa Verde facility in Bakersfield, when lawyers obtained emails showing that officials had rejected a suggestion to test all detainees there because it would be difficult to quarantine those who tested positive.
After half of the detainees at Mesa Verde tested positive, a federal judge in San Francisco ordered ICE to immediately test all detainees and staff, saying, “there’s no question that this outbreak could have been avoided.”


latimes--2020-09-17--One of two deputies shot in Compton attack released from hospital

One of two deputies shot in an attack Saturday night in Compton has been released from the hospital , officials said .
“ He has a long road ahead for recovery .
But he ’ s not alone , ” Sheriff Alex Villanueva said on Twitter .
“ We , as a community , are in this together.
” Both deputies — a 31-year-old woman and a 24-year-old man who have not been identified by the Sheriff ’ s Department — were shot in the head Saturday evening while sitting in their patrol car near the Compton Metro station .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ were expected to recover .
The deputy was released Wednesday .
The female deputy remains in the intensive care unit and is still undergoing treatment for her injuries , the sheriff said .
Authorities have offered no motive for the attack .
The shooting was captured on surveillance video .
It shows a figure in dark clothes casually walk up a pathway near the Compton Blue Line station , approaching the deputies ’ parked patrol car from behind .
The person draws closer and turns to face the passenger door of the black-and-white @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Inches from the window , he raises a gun , opens fire and runs back the way he came .
Moments later , the passenger door opens and a deputy stumbles out , hand on head .
The driver ’ s door opens soon after .
On the radio , a shaky voice mutters : “ 998 Compton Pax.
” “ Compton Pax , deputies down , ” the voice says , almost unintelligibly .
“ Compton Pax 998.
” The female deputy , mother to a 6-year-old boy , managed to get @ @ @ @ @ @ @ partner hide behind a concrete pillar for safety , not knowing whether the gunman was still in the area .
She then applied a tourniquet to her partner ’ s arm , which was bleeding .

L.A. County sheriff’s deputies stand outside St. Francis Medical Center on Saturday after the shooting of two colleagues in Compton.
One of two deputies shot in an attack Saturday night in Compton has been released from the hospital, officials said.
“He has a long road ahead for recovery. But he’s not alone,” Sheriff Alex Villanueva said on Twitter. “We, as a community, are in this together.”
Both deputies — a 31-year-old woman and a 24-year-old man who have not been identified by the Sheriff’s Department — were shot in the head Saturday evening while sitting in their patrol car near the Compton Metro station. They underwent surgery over the weekend and were expected to recover. The deputy was released Wednesday.
The female deputy remains in the intensive care unit and is still undergoing treatment for her injuries, the sheriff said.
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Authorities have offered no motive for the attack.
The shooting was captured on surveillance video. It shows a figure in dark clothes casually walk up a pathway near the Compton Blue Line station, approaching the deputies’ parked patrol car from behind.
The person draws closer and turns to face the passenger door of the black-and-white patrol SUV, his steps quickening. Inches from the window, he raises a gun, opens fire and runs back the way he came.
Moments later, the passenger door opens and a deputy stumbles out, hand on head. The driver’s door opens soon after. On the radio, a shaky voice mutters: “998 Compton Pax.”
Recognizing the code for a deputy-involved shooting, a dispatcher asks: “Just happened?”
“Compton Pax, deputies down,” the voice says, almost unintelligibly. “Compton Pax 998.”
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The female deputy, mother to a 6-year-old boy, managed to get out of the cruiser and help her partner hide behind a concrete pillar for safety, not knowing whether the gunman was still in the area.
She then applied a tourniquet to her partner’s arm, which was bleeding.


latimes--2020-09-17--Evacuations ordered in parts of Antelope Valley as Bobcat fire moves within 1 mile of Juniper Hills

More than a week after it started burning through the Angeles National Forest , the Bobcat fire opened a new dangerous front as it barreled toward the Antelope Valley , prompting new evacuations and further straining exhausted firefighters .
The fire has menaced the San Gabriel Mountains , including foothill neighborhoods in Monrovia , Arcadia and other cities , and the Mt .
Wilson Observatory , where a team of firefighters is standing guard to protect the historic structures .
Officials said the fire is now less of a threat to foothill communities , and the focus is on the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in parts of the Antelope Valley have been ordered to evacuate as the fire moved toward Juniper Hills and is burning downhill toward Devil ’ s Punchbowl county park , officials said Thursday afternoon .
The order applies to Juniper Hills , Devil ’ s Punchbowl and Paradise Springs , including the area east of Devil ’ s Punchbowl Road , south of Big Pines Highway , north of Big Rock Creek and west of Jackson Lake , the Los Angeles County Sheriff ’ s Department said .
Residents in the surrounding areas @ @ @ @ @ @ @ officials say residents who have been ordered to evacuate should quickly gather family members and pets and head outside the fire evacuation zones .
Los Angeles County Fire Capt .
David Dantic said crews knew the fire was moving in that direction , “ but it had more activity than we thought.
” The Bobcat fire , which started Sept. 6 , remains at 3 % containment and has grown steadily in multiple directions .
Officials say the spread is caused by a combination of bone-dry vegetation and rugged topography that makes it @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Our canyons have a tendency to run north and south , so if a 15- to 20-mph wind reaches that , it ’ s enough — with the driest fuels we ’ ve had in a long time — to really drive the fire , ” Angeles National Forest spokesman Andrew Mitchell said Thursday .
Nearly 1,300 personnel have been assigned to the blaze , up from just over 1,100 Wednesday , and crews have gained some control over its southern end — which was a top priority for days due because of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ “ Right now , we feel like we ’ ve closed the ‘ front door ’ of this fire , ” Mitchell said , referring to the southern perimeter .
Evacuation orders for portions of Arcadia and Sierra Madre were lifted Wednesday , although residents are being urged to stay vigilant and alert should fire conditions change .
Similar evacuation warnings remain in place for Monrovia , Bradbury , Altadena , Duarte and Pasadena .
The top priority for Thursday is the continued protection of the Mt .
Wilson Observatory as well as @ @ @ @ @ @ @ where the blaze jumped Highway 2 in the Angeles National Forest , Mitchell said .
Mt .
Wilson is not only an important but also home to several broadcast towers .
Crews kept the blaze from reaching the observatory Tuesday , when flames came within of the structure , but officials say they are not out of the woods yet .
“ It made a significant run [ Wednesday ] when the fire hit a string of conifer trees and started pushing up to the lookout in Skyline Park , ” Mitchell said @ @ @ @ @ @ @ high as 30 feet .
The fire is also showing growth on the north side in Cooper Canyon , which is expanding into the Pleasant View Wilderness , and near the Crystal Lake area and the West Fork , where officials said there is heavy fuel .
The Bobcat fire , along with the El Dorado fire in San Bernardino and a slew of fires in Central and Northern California , Oregon and Washington , is also contributing to dreadful air quality in Southern California .
were extended through Thursday — the 11th @ @ @ @ @ @ @ — and forecasts for the area range from “ unhealthy ” to “ very unhealthy , ” according to the “ I left to stay with a friend in another neighborhood because the air was so poor and hard to breathe , ” Pasadena resident Erin Greeson said .
Fire officials don ’ t expect full containment of the Bobcat fire for at least six weeks .

The Bobcat fire opened a new, dangerous front as it barreled toward homes in the Antelope Valley, prompting more evacuations.
More than a week after it started burning through the Angeles National Forest, the Bobcat fire opened a new dangerous front as it barreled toward homes in the Antelope Valley on Thursday, prompting new evacuations and further straining exhausted firefighters.
For 12 days, the fire has menaced the San Gabriel Mountains, including foothill neighborhoods in Monrovia, Arcadia and other cities, as well as the Mt. Wilson Observatory, where a team of firefighters is standing guard to protect the historic structures.
But Thursday, officials issued evacuation orders for areas toward the fires northern boundaries after the blaze jumped Highway 2 in the Angeles National Forest, fueled by canyon winds, officials said.
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Evacuation warnings were issued Thursday evening on a different side of the fire for Wrightwood and Pinon Hills in San Bernardino County.
As of Thursday night, the fire had grown to about 55,000 acres, with containment at 9% — mostly along the southern and eastern edges of the blaze.
Residents in parts of the Antelope Valley were ordered to evacuate as the fire moved toward Juniper Hills and burned downhill toward Devil’s Punchbowl county park, officials said Thursday.
1 / 42 Blue Ridge Hot Shots crew members from Arizona work on a backfire operation north of Mt. Wilson on Angeles Crest Highway. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times) 2 / 42 Blue Ridge Hot Shots crew members from Arizona join forces with firefighters from Northern and Southern California on a backfire operation north of Mt. Wilson on Angeles Crest Highway. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times) 3 / 42 Smoke and ash filter the sunset looking west from Angeles Crest Highway as the Bobcat fire continues to burn. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times) 4 / 42 Blue Ridge Hot Shots crew members from Arizona help on a backfire operation on Angeles Crest Highway. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times) 5 / 42 Firefighters continue to battle the Bobcat fire north of Mt. Wilson along Angeles Crest Highway. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times) 6 / 42 Blue Ridge Hot Shots crew members from Arizona work on a backfire operationon Angeles Crest Highway. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times) 7 / 42 The Bobcat fire continues to burn in the Angeles National Forest as seen from the Evergreen Cemetery in Los Angeles on Sept. 21. (Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times) 8 / 42 Horses are spooked by the approaching Bobcat fire on 106th Street in Juniper Hills on Sept. 18. (Irfan Khan / Los Angeles Times) 9 / 42 A resident flees as Bobcat fire approaches Cima Mesa Road in Juniper Hills. (Irfan Khan / Los Angeles Times) 10 / 42 A Joshua tree burns as the Bobcat fire rages in Juniper Hills. (Irfan Khan / Los Angeles Times) 11 / 42 A Super Scooper dives behind a house in Juniper Hills to make a water drop. (Irfan Khan / Los Angeles Times) 12 / 42 The view from Big Pines Highway as the Bobcat fire continues to burn in the Angeles National Forest. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times) 13 / 42 A statue sits on top of a house that burned to the ground in Juniper Hills. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times) 14 / 42 A house on Cima Mesa Road in Juniper Hills burns Sept. 18 as the Bobcat fire continues to rage. (Irfan Khan / Los Angeles Times) 15 / 42 Mike Gregoryan is frustrated as he is asked to leave his home on Cruthers Creek as Bobcat fire closes in on structures. (Irfan Khan / Los Angeles Times) 16 / 42 A smokey sunset as the Bobcat Fire continues to burn in the Angeles National Forest. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times) 17 / 42 Bear Divide Hotshots cover a U.S. Forestry Department information center Sept. 19 in Wrightwood to protect it from the Bobcat fire. (Irfan Khan / Los Angeles Times) 18 / 42 A man riding a tractor evacuates Valyermo as the Bobcat fire burns Sept. 18 in Angeles National Forest. (Dania Maxwell / Los Angeles Times) 19 / 42 Castle Snider, 8, looks on as flames from a control burn are used to reduce fuel near homes in Monrovia as the Bobcat fire continues to burn in the Angeles National Forest. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times) 20 / 42 A statue is left charred Sept. 19 after the Bobcat fire roared through Juniper Hills. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times) 21 / 42 The LA County Fire Camp 9 hand crew rests on Big Pines Highway after working the north flank of the Bobcat fire near Mile High. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times) 22 / 42 LaVerne engine 761 arrives to offer defense as the Bobcat fire burns near homes in Monrovia. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times) 23 / 42 A fire engine drives into air thick with smoke along Juniper Hills Rd. as the Bobcat fire advances north into the Antelope Valley. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times) 24 / 42 Flames crest a hill a few miles from Juniper Hills Rd. as the Bobcat fire advances north into the Antelope Valley. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times) 25 / 42 Los Angeles County firefighters standing on outlook as they monitor the Bobcat fire burning in a canyon near the Mt. Wilson Observatory in Angeles National Forest. (Irfan Khan/Los Angeles Times) 26 / 42 A helicopter fights the Bobcat fire burning close to Mt. Wilson Observatory. (Irfan Khan/Los Angeles Times) 27 / 42 After spending night at camp Pasadena, firefighters Christina Terrazas, left, and Jason Van Vlymen have their breakfast standing next to their fire truck. Hundreds of firefighters from different agencies fighting Bobcat Fire in San Gabriel mountains above Arcadia, Monrovia and Duarte camp overnight in Santa Fe Dam Recreation Park in Irwindale. (Irfan Khan/Los Angeles Times) 28 / 42 Roland Pagan surveys the remains of his home on Juniper Hills Drive. (Irfan Khan / Los Angeles Times) 29 / 42 A plane makes a fire retardant drop in the Antelope Valley. (Irfan Khan / Los Angeles Times) 30 / 42 Road Runners hand crew from the Angeles National Forest walk single file as they head for breakfast at the Bobcat fire command post at the Santa Fe Dam Recreation Park in Irwindale. (Irfan Khan/Los Angeles Times) 31 / 42 Flames from a control burn are used to reduce fuel near homes in Monrovia as the Bobcat fire continues to burn in the Angeles National Forest. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times) 32 / 42 Curious deer look on as firefighters watch the progress of the Bobcat fire as it continues to burn in the Angeles National Forest. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times) 33 / 42 Firefighters look on from Sawpit Canyon as a controlled fire burns on a hillside overlooking the San Gabriel Valley. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times) 34 / 42 Firefighters keep watch from an overlook on Mt. Wilson as the Bobcat fire burns in the Angeles National Forest near Pasadena. (Mario Tama / Getty Images) 35 / 42 A Coulson 737 firefighting tanker jet drops fire retardant to slow Bobcat fire at the top of a major run up a mountainside in the Angeles National Forest. (David McNew / Getty Images) 36 / 42 Los Angeles County firefighters, using only hand tools, keep flames from jumping a fire break in the Angeles National Forest north of Monrovia. (David McNew / Getty Images) 37 / 42 Mormon Lake, Ariz. Hotshot Squad team member Jessy Twin looks over charred hillsides after clearing brush. Twin said his crew is on their sixth day of cutting line. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times) 38 / 42 A firefighting helicopter refills in a reservoir on Grand View Ave. as crews continue to battle the Bobcat fire. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times) 39 / 42 A line of California fire engines head to the flaming Santa Anita Canyon as the Bobcat fire burns near Arcadia. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times) 40 / 42 Claudia Alcaino walks her dogs along Highland Oaks Drive as crews continue to battle the Bobcat fire in the nearby Angeles National Forest. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times) 41 / 42 A worker installs a street camera along North Azusa Avenue as smoke covers the sky from the Bobcat fire. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times) 42 / 42 The Bobcat fire continues to blaze in the mountains above Monrovia. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)
The order applies to Juniper Hills, Devil’s Punchbowl and Paradise Springs, including the area east of Devil’s Punchbowl Road, south of Big Pines Highway, north of Big Rock Creek and west of Jackson Lake, the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department said. Residents in the surrounding areas remain under an evacuation warning.
About 60 deputies have been dispatched to the area, along with some California Highway Patrol officers, to help facilitate evacuations, said Capt. Andy Berg of the Sheriff’s Department’s San Dimas station.
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“If you’re in one of those evacuation areas, please leave now,” he said.
Fire officials say residents who have been ordered to evacuate should quickly gather family members and pets and head outside the evacuation zones.
Los Angeles County Fire Capt. David Dantic said crews knew the fire was moving north, “but it had more activity than we thought” on Thursday.
The Bobcat fire, which started Sept. 6, has grown steadily in multiple directions. Officials say the spread is caused by a combination of bone-dry vegetation and rugged topography that makes it hard to fight the fire.
“Our canyons have a tendency to run north and south, so if a 15-to-20 mph wind reaches that, it’s enough — with the driest fuels we’ve had in a long time — to really drive the fire,” Angeles National Forest spokesman Andrew Mitchell said Thursday.
Nearly 1,300 personnel have been assigned to the blaze, up from just more than 1,100 Wednesday, and crews have gained some control over its southern end — which was a top priority for days due because of its proximity to several foothill communities.
“Right now, we feel like we’ve closed the ‘front door’ of this fire,” Mitchell said, referring to the southern perimeter.
Evacuation orders for portions of Arcadia and Sierra Madre were lifted Wednesday, although residents are being urged to stay vigilant and alert should fire conditions change.
Similar evacuation warnings remain in place for Monrovia, Bradbury, Altadena, Duarte and Pasadena. Los Angeles County Fire Department Deputy Chief Anthony Whittle warned residents in the foothills that even though the risk to those areas has lessened, the evacuation warning still means people need to be prepared to leave.
“What we want the community to understand is the evacuation warning means that you are now a partner in protecting life,” he said.
No structures have been lost, and no civilians had been injured as of Thursday night. Jerry McGowan, an incident commander for the Bobcat fire, said one firefighter had suffered a separated shoulder and a few others had suffered ankle sprains and other minor injuries.
The top priority for Thursday remained the continued protection of the Mt. Wilson Observatory as well as a huge spot fire in the northeast where the blaze jumped Highway 2 in the Angeles National Forest, Mitchell said.
Mt. Wilson is not only an important piece of history, but also home to several broadcast towers. Crews kept the blaze from reaching the observatory Tuesday, when flames came within 500 feet of the structure, but officials say they are not out of the woods yet.
“It made a significant run [Wednesday] when the fire hit a string of conifer trees and started pushing up to the lookout in Skyline Park,” Mitchell said, adding that he saw flames as high as 30 feet.
Late Thursday night, the observatory’s official twitter account stoked concern, sharing an image from a web camera that appeared to show flames approaching the building. But Angeles National Forest personnel said the flames were actually from controlled burns “being used to expand containment lines.”
The fire is also showing growth on the north side in Cooper Canyon, which is expanding into the Pleasant View Wilderness, and near the Crystal Lake area and the West Fork, where officials said there is heavy fuel.
The Bobcat fire, along with the El Dorado fire in San Bernardino and a slew of fires in Central and Northern California, Oregon and Washington, is also contributing to dreadful air quality in Southern California.
Smoke advisories were extended through Thursday — the 11th straight day for such air quality alerts — and forecasts for the area range from unhealthy to very unhealthy, according to the South Coast Air Quality Management District.
“I left to stay with a friend in another neighborhood because the air was so poor and hard to breathe,” Pasadena resident Erin Greeson said.
Fire officials don’t expect full containment of the Bobcat fire for at least six weeks, an issue that could be complicated by shifting weather in the coming weeks.
Fire officials said Thursday night that while lower temperatures over the weekend might help moderate the blaze’s behavior, strong winds could change the fire’s direction and complicate containment measures. Temperatures are expected to be high again next week.


latimes--2020-09-17--Column: For decades, activists got free rent from a leftist landlord. His son is putting a stop to i

Column: For decades, activists got free rent from a leftist landlord. His son is putting a stop to it

In a land where next month ’ s rent hangs over so many like a cartoon anvil — and never so much as during this job-killing pandemic — the Peace Center was a dream come true .
Rent ?
What rent ?
At this property , the tenants didn ’ t have to pay a dime .
For 31 years , a parade of progressive nonprofits occupied two buildings and set up shop in them — first , a small spot down the street from the Original Farmers Market in Los Angeles , and then a squat , two-story office @ @ @ @ @ @ @ They did so at the invite of owner Aris Anagnos , a Greek immigrant who made his fortune in real estate and subsequently spent it on radical causes .
He palled around with Sandinistas , protested the Turkish occupation of Cyprus and the U.S. invasion of Iraq , funded peace efforts across Eastern Europe and Latin America , and served as president of the ACLU ’ s Southern California chapter for a couple of years .
Skeptics scoffed at how a Marxist like Anagnos could be interested in making money , he liked @ @ @ @ @ @ @ : “ The revolution needs money.
” Carol Wells , whose Center for the Study of Political Graphics is the Peace Center ’ s longest-lasting free renter ( since 1989 ) , said the militant Midas was so committed to his noblesse oblige that he once yelled at her and other tenants for hiring a cleaning crew without his permission .
“ He shouted to us , ‘ You are my guests !
You are paying nothing !
’ ” Wells recalled from her cramped suite , packed with file cabinets and cardboard @ @ @ @ @ @ @ posters — one of the largest collections of its kind in the world .
In 2009 , Anagnos created a charity named the Aris and Carolyn Anagnos Peace Center Foundation to formalize what before then had been handshake leases with his friends .
Wells and other former tenants say he assured them the nonprofit would ensure they never had to worry about getting kicked out .
But you know that old saying : If a millionaire Marxist promises you free rent for life , get it in writing .
For Anagnos lived a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ he passed away in 2018 .
And his eldest son , Demos , did not see the world — or at least part of it — the way his father had .
Demos Anagnos took over the Peace Center ’ s affairs .
But he wants to sell the building and dissolve the foundation .
That means the tenants and their free rent would be expelled from the premises .
On June 26 , he sent a letter to Peace Center tenants that read , “ If you are one of many guests @ @ @ @ @ @ @ my beloved father , I would urge you to start making arrangements immediately.
” Wells did : CSPG sued Demos in August in Los Angeles County Superior Court , alleging that he ’ s breaching the fiduciary duty to his father ’ s original vision .
Although the lawsuit remains unresolved , Wells already scored a big victory .
On Aug. 28 , California Atty .
Gen. Xavier Becerra ’ s office sent a cease-and-desist order that stopped any sale or transfer of the Peace Center .
It accused Demos Anagnos , his @ @ @ @ @ @ @ sit on the Peace Center ’ s governing foundation — of “ filing false , misleading or incomplete information ” and “ fail [ ing ] to act in the best interest ” of the building and its users .
The attorney general lays out a pretty convincing case .
IRS law is clear that charities can ’ t stack boards with trustees related to one another by kin or cash .
Becerra alleges that the Anagnos foundation board has consisted only of Demos Anagnos and his family since their patriarch ’ s @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the Peace Center , change its foundation ’ s articles of incorporation , and seek to dissolve said foundation “ violated ” California law , Becerra ’ s office says .
Via email , Anagnos wrote that he couldn ’ t “ comment on pending matters ” but added that “ it is an unfortunate reality that there are many false and defamatory allegations being made around this issue.
” While I wouldn ’ t say I ’ m about to pull out the world ’ s smallest violin — who closes a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ?
— I do feel for Anagnos .
Children are not obligated to carry on their parent ’ s passions .
Hey , I chose not to be a Dodgers fan like my papi .
And we don ’ t necessarily see the world in the same way , either .
Sometimes , a thing matters to your father and mother that matters less to you .
But the law has a certain , necessary rigidity .
And if you run afoul of it , which Becerra argues the younger Anagnos may well @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Sometimes , that price is having to honor what your late father wanted , whether you like it or not .
“ I didn ’ t spend 30 years with Aris to not fight , ” Wells said .
“ The groups he supported aren ’ t going to disappear .
But his vision might.
” The current Peace Center is an ideal gathering point for left L.A. — off the 405 , next to a bus line , with ample free parking and free meeting rooms for anyone who asks the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a place to feel the pulse of progressive L.A. , ” said Kent Wong , director of the UCLA Labor Center .
He frequently found himself over the years showing up to one meeting , then sticking around for others .
“ Aris really was a godsend to these groups.
” “ Half the world hated us for what we did , ” Theresa Bonpane said .
She and her late husband , Blaise , ran Office of the Americas , a nonprofit that sent peace delegations to Central America and was a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ when someone comes along and creates something where you go to work and be surrounded by people in solidarity … Aris could not be more kinder for fostering that.
” It became a second home for most ; birthdays and memorials were held alongside lectures and film screenings .
Every year , the Peace Center ’ s disparate groups held a Christmas party that Aris Anagnos always attended .
“ He never lost his sense of justice , ” said Wells , who keeps a self-published Anagnos autobiography in her office .
“ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
He was a presence.
” For someone who obviously loved his fellow travelers-cum-boarders , why didn ’ t Anagnos ever put his promise of eternal free rent in an ironclad contract ?
For someone willing to go so far to codify his beliefs into action — I mean , free rent in L.A. !
— what would it have cost to get it seared into paper ?
No one has an easy response .
The closest to a definite answer is a Peace Center directors meeting two months before Anagnos passed away @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Political Graphics ’ lawsuit claims Aris Anagnos , Demos Anagnos and other board members unanimously voted then to grant CSPG and other Peace Center tenants free leases “ in perpetuity.
” But there are no records or minutes of the motion , which has led to the current imbroglio .
Wells said Demos Anagnos never gave any clue that the Peace Center was in any danger of folding .
Yet a full month before slipping his breakup letter under the CSPG door , the Peace Center building was put up for sale for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that a since-deleted listing posted by Demos Anagnos ’ son said the “ charitable trust ” that held the property allowed only 20 % of its tenants to pay rent ( Aris Anagnos always allowed a few paying , non-activist renters to keep the Peace Center sustainable ) .
“ There is massive upside for a new owner , ” it continued , “ to achieve market rents and enjoy the massive cash flow this building will produce.
” “ I don ’ t know what ’ s motivating [ Demos Anagnos ] @ @ @ @ @ @ @ I do know his father would be horrified.
” The attorney general ’ s decision will become permanent unless Anagnos appeals , which is expected .
Meanwhile , Peace Center supporters continue to spread the word around town .
A petition to stop its sale boasts the signatures of politicians , labor activists and Hollywood luminaries like Jane Fonda and Martin Sheen .
L.A. County Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas wrote a letter to Becerra urging a “ timely review and investigation ” of the matter .
If a millionaire Marxist promises you free rent @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , you ’ re going to fight like hell to keep it .

Carol Wells of the Center for the Study of Political Graphics, one of the tenants of the Peace Center in Culver City, has sued to stop the evictions and planned sale of the building.
In a land where next month’s rent hangs over so many like a cartoon anvil — and never so much as during this job-killing pandemic — the Peace Center was a dream come true.
Rent? What rent? At this property, the tenants didn’t have to pay a dime.
For 31 years, a parade of progressive nonprofits occupied two buildings and set up shop in them — first, a small spot down the street from the Original Farmers Market in Los Angeles, and then a squat, two-story office complex in Culver City since 2014. They did so at the invite of owner Aris Anagnos, a Greek immigrant who made his fortune in real estate and subsequently spent it on radical causes.
Advertisement
He palled around with Sandinistas, protested the Turkish occupation of Cyprus and the U.S. invasion of Iraq, funded peace efforts across Eastern Europe and Latin America, and served as president of the ACLU’s Southern California chapter for a couple of years.
Skeptics scoffed at how a Marxist like Anagnos could be interested in making money, he liked to tell friends. His stock response: “The revolution needs money.”
Carol Wells, whose Center for the Study of Political Graphics is the Peace Center’s longest-lasting free renter (since 1989), said the militant Midas was so committed to his noblesse oblige that he once yelled at her and other tenants for hiring a cleaning crew without his permission.
“He shouted to us, ‘You are my guests! You are paying nothing!’” Wells recalled from her cramped suite, packed with file cabinets and cardboard tubes containing more than 90,000 human rights posters — one of the largest collections of its kind in the world.
In 2009, Anagnos created a charity named the Aris and Carolyn Anagnos Peace Center Foundation to formalize what before then had been handshake leases with his friends. Wells and other former tenants say he assured them the nonprofit would ensure they never had to worry about getting kicked out.
But you know that old saying: If a millionaire Marxist promises you free rent for life, get it in writing.
Advertisement
For Anagnos lived a long life. Ninety-five years. But he passed away in 2018. And his eldest son, Demos, did not see the world — or at least part of it — the way his father had.
Demos Anagnos took over the Peace Center’s affairs. But he wants to sell the building and dissolve the foundation. That means the tenants and their free rent would be expelled from the premises.
On June 26, he sent a letter to Peace Center tenants that read, “If you are one of many guests who were here at the invitation of my beloved father, I would urge you to start making arrangements immediately.”
Wells did: CSPG sued Demos in August in Los Angeles County Superior Court, alleging that he’s breaching the fiduciary duty to his father’s original vision.
Although the lawsuit remains unresolved, Wells already scored a big victory. On Aug. 28, California Atty. Gen. Xavier Becerra’s office sent a cease-and-desist order that stopped any sale or transfer of the Peace Center. It accused Demos Anagnos, his wife and their two sons — who sit on the Peace Center’s governing foundation — of “filing false, misleading or incomplete information” and “fail[ing] to act in the best interest” of the building and its users.
The attorney general lays out a pretty convincing case. IRS law is clear that charities can’t stack boards with trustees related to one another by kin or cash. Becerra alleges that the Anagnos foundation board has consisted only of Demos Anagnos and his family since their patriarch’s death.
So for Anagnos to sell the Peace Center, change its foundation’s articles of incorporation, and seek to dissolve said foundation “violated” California law, Becerra’s office says.
Via email, Anagnos wrote that he couldn’t “comment on pending matters” but added that “it is an unfortunate reality that there are many false and defamatory allegations being made around this issue.”
While I wouldn’t say I’m about to pull out the world’s smallest violin — who closes a Peace Center in an era like this? — I do feel for Anagnos.
Children are not obligated to carry on their parent’s passions. Hey, I chose not to be a Dodgers fan like my papi.
And we don’t necessarily see the world in the same way, either. Sometimes, a thing matters to your father and mother that matters less to you. But the law has a certain, necessary rigidity. And if you run afoul of it, which Becerra argues the younger Anagnos may well have done, you pay a price.
Sometimes, that price is having to honor what your late father wanted, whether you like it or not.
“I didn’t spend 30 years with Aris to not fight,” Wells said. “The groups he supported aren’t going to disappear. But his vision might.”
The current Peace Center is an ideal gathering point for left L.A. — off the 405, next to a bus line, with ample free parking and free meeting rooms for anyone who asks the current tenants.
“It’s a place to feel the pulse of progressive L.A.,” said Kent Wong, director of the UCLA Labor Center. He frequently found himself over the years showing up to one meeting, then sticking around for others. “Aris really was a godsend to these groups.”
“Half the world hated us for what we did,” Theresa Bonpane said. She and her late husband, Blaise, ran Office of the Americas, a nonprofit that sent peace delegations to Central America and was a longtime Peace Center tenant. “So when someone comes along and creates something where you go to work and be surrounded by people in solidarity … Aris could not be more kinder for fostering that.”
It became a second home for most; birthdays and memorials were held alongside lectures and film screenings. Every year, the Peace Center’s disparate groups held a Christmas party that Aris Anagnos always attended.
“He never lost his sense of justice,” said Wells, who keeps a self-published Anagnos autobiography in her office. “He wasn’t just the landlord. He was a presence.”
For someone who obviously loved his fellow travelers-cum-boarders, why didn’t Anagnos ever put his promise of eternal free rent in an ironclad contract? For someone willing to go so far to codify his beliefs into action — I mean, free rent in L.A.! — what would it have cost to get it seared into paper?
No one has an easy response.
The closest to a definite answer is a Peace Center directors meeting two months before Anagnos passed away. The Center for the Study of Political Graphics’ lawsuit claims Aris Anagnos, Demos Anagnos and other board members unanimously voted then to grant CSPG and other Peace Center tenants free leases “in perpetuity.”
But there are no records or minutes of the motion, which has led to the current imbroglio.
Wells said Demos Anagnos never gave any clue that the Peace Center was in any danger of folding. Yet a full month before slipping his breakup letter under the CSPG door, the Peace Center building was put up for sale for $11.5 million.
Her lawsuit states that a since-deleted listing posted by Demos Anagnos’ son said the “charitable trust” that held the property allowed only 20% of its tenants to pay rent (Aris Anagnos always allowed a few paying, non-activist renters to keep the Peace Center sustainable). “There is massive upside for a new owner,” it continued, “to achieve market rents and enjoy the massive cash flow this building will produce.”
“I don’t know what’s motivating [Demos Anagnos],” Wells said. “But I do know his father would be horrified.”
The attorney general’s decision will become permanent unless Anagnos appeals, which is expected. Meanwhile, Peace Center supporters continue to spread the word around town.
A petition to stop its sale boasts the signatures of politicians, labor activists and Hollywood luminaries like Jane Fonda and Martin Sheen. L.A. County Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas wrote a letter to Becerra urging a “timely review and investigation” of the matter.
If a millionaire Marxist promises you free rent in the City of Angels for life, you’re going to fight like hell to keep it.


latimes--2020-09-17--Why we made a Chicano Moratorium project zine

In August , the Los Angeles Times published a series of stories , videos , graphics and archival materials on the Chicano Moratorium .
This series of anti-Vietnam War activism ended with a rally in East Los Angeles on Aug. 29 , 1970 , that attracted over 20,000 attendees .
It started in peace but turned into the biggest , bloodiest disturbance in Los Angeles since Watts five years earlier and led to the death of three people , including pioneering Times columnist Ruben Salazar .
The response to our series was overwhelming .
Many readers admitted they had never @ @ @ @ @ @ @ were Mexican American or had lived their entire lives in Southern California .
The only real complaint was a logistical one : Readers who weren ’ t subscribers inevitably hit our paywall and couldn ’ t read the whole thing .
Great journalism costs money , of course .
But we also heard from high school teachers and college professors who asked whether we could make some articles available for their students .
So we did better than that : We created a zine .
“ The Chicano Moratorium : 50 Years Later @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a 36-page booklet .
It ’ s available for sale at the L.A. Times store .
The vibrant covers were printed at Los Angeles Risograph studio Tiny Splendor .
We ’ re also excited to offer the zine as a free download here .
All you have to do is print it out on 8.5 x 11-inch paper and assemble .
The pages are already laid out for booklet printing so that when the sheets of paper are folded together and stapled , the pages will read in the appropriate order .
How @ @ @ @ @ @ @ browser and printer is a little different : You may have to adjust some basic print settings to correctly order the pages .
There are a few key parameters to think about when you ’ re printing , including paper size ( set to “ letter ” if it ’ s not already selected by your printer ) and orientation ( rotate the page layout to “ landscape ” if your printer doesn ’ t automatically orient each page horizontally ) .
All you ’ ll have to do is fold it all @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the binding .
You may need to experiment with a couple of trial copies to ensure the pages are oriented right-side up and in the correct order .
We recommend perfecting your method on one copy before printing a large batch .
We recommend using a printer that can print on both sides of a page .
Most copy machines and commercial printers can print double-sided , like those you might find at a copy shop or office .
Do a test run — our document is set up to easily print on @ @ @ @ @ @ @ does not come out the way you were expecting , turn on “ short-edge binding ” ( or check the box labeled “ flip on short edge , ” depending on your printer ) , which can help orient your pages right-side up .
Most home printers fall into this category .
If you ’ re using this type of printer , you ’ ll have to print the file twice in order to achieve a double-sided print .
First , hit “ Print ” and navigate to the paper handling settings in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
You ’ ll want to set the printer to output “ odd only ” first , meaning that it ’ ll print only the spreads on pages 1 , 3 , 5 , etc .
Once those are printed , you ’ ll need to feed those pages back into the printer tray and hit print again , this time with paper handling set to “ even only.
” This will ensure that the correct pages print on the back of the pages you ’ ve just printed .
We hope you @ @ @ @ @ @ @ future projects like these .
And if you can , please subscribe to the L.A. Times .
Buy the zine , and posters commemorating the Chicano Moratorium , here .
| Print the zine for free here .

Gustavo Arellano, Martina Ibáñez-Baldor, Alex Tatusian

Most of The Times’ series on the 1970 Chicano Moratorium will be collected in a 36-page booklet available as a free download or as a printed zine.
In August, the Los Angeles Times published a series of stories, videos, graphics and archival materials on the Chicano Moratorium. This series of anti-Vietnam War activism ended with a rally in East Los Angeles on Aug. 29, 1970, that attracted over 20,000 attendees. It started in peace but turned into the biggest, bloodiest disturbance in Los Angeles since Watts five years earlier and led to the death of three people, including pioneering Times columnist Ruben Salazar.
The response to our series was overwhelming. Many readers admitted they had never heard of these events even though they were Mexican American or had lived their entire lives in Southern California. The only real complaint was a logistical one: Readers who weren’t subscribers inevitably hit our paywall and couldn’t read the whole thing.
Great journalism costs money, of course. But we also heard from high school teachers and college professors who asked whether we could make some articles available for their students.
So we did better than that: We created a zine.
(Martina Ibáñez-Baldor / Los Angeles Times)
Advertisement
“The Chicano Moratorium: 50 Years Later” collects most of the series in a 36-page booklet. It’s available for sale at the L.A. Times store. The vibrant covers were printed at Los Angeles Risograph studio Tiny Splendor.
We’re also excited to offer the zine as a free download here. All you have to do is print it out on 8.5 x 11-inch paper and assemble. The pages are already laid out for booklet printing so that when the sheets of paper are folded together and stapled, the pages will read in the appropriate order. You also can view and read the zine in the appropriate order here.
How to print and assemble
Every computer, browser and printer is a little different: You may have to adjust some basic print settings to correctly order the pages.
There are a few key parameters to think about when you’re printing, including paper size (set to “letter” if it’s not already selected by your printer) and orientation (rotate the page layout to “landscape” if your printer doesn’t automatically orient each page horizontally).
All you’ll have to do is fold it all together and put a few staples along the binding.
You may need to experiment with a couple of trial copies to ensure the pages are oriented right-side up and in the correct order. We recommend perfecting your method on one copy before printing a large batch.
If you’re using double-sided printing
Advertisement
We recommend using a printer that can print on both sides of a page. Most copy machines and commercial printers can print double-sided, like those you might find at a copy shop or office.
Do a test run — our document is set up to easily print on such a machine. If the print does not come out the way you were expecting, turn on “short-edge binding” (or check the box labeled “flip on short edge,” depending on your printer), which can help orient your pages right-side up.
If you’re using single-sided printing
Most home printers fall into this category.
If you’re using this type of printer, you’ll have to print the file twice in order to achieve a double-sided print. First, hit “Print” and navigate to the paper handling settings in your printer’s system dialog box.
You’ll want to set the printer to output “odd only” first, meaning that it’ll print only the spreads on pages 1, 3, 5, etc. Once those are printed, you’ll need to feed those pages back into the printer tray and hit print again, this time with paper handling set to “even only.” This will ensure that the correct pages print on the back of the pages you’ve just printed.
We hope you enjoy our journalism and look forward to future projects like these. And if you can, please subscribe to the L.A. Times.
The full series remains at latimes.com/chicanomoratorium.
Buy the zine, and posters commemorating the Chicano Moratorium, here. | Print the zine for free here.


latimes--2020-09-17--California is turning the corner on the coronavirus. Will it last?

After months of bleak figures and forecasts , California now appears to be riding a wave of success beating back the coronavirus as officials express cautious optimism about what is next for the state .
Hospitals across the state are treating the fewest patients with COVID-19 since April .
The percentage of tests coming back positive for the virus is lower than ever , proof that the state has reined in a massive surge that began this summer .
“ We are turning the corner , ” said Gov .
Gavin Newsom in a news conference Wednesday as he listed @ @ @ @ @ @ @ what we ’ ve seen in a number of months.
” But these signs of progress also bring concerns that it could be erased .
Many businesses are pushing for a faster reopening timeline , including Disneyland , Universal Studios and other theme parks , which wrote a letter to Newsom this week urging him to quickly issue guidelines so they can start allowing visitors again .
Also this week , a group of nearly 300 fitness centers filed suit against the governor protesting their extended closure .
Experts fear that reopenings could @ @ @ @ @ @ @ with people becoming more complacent in their day-to-day lives , wearing masks less or choosing to attend gatherings likely to spread the virus .
Such loosening happened before , in late May and June , and there is no reason it would play out differently this time , they say .
“ The virus is the same .
These numbers we generate are markers of how efficiently we ’ re avoiding the virus , ” said UC San Francisco epidemiologist Dr. George Rutherford .
“ We ’ re not doing anything to the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ there is a delicate balance that can be struck , with eased restrictions that cause only a slight increase in case numbers that don ’ t overwhelm the healthcare system or lead to hundreds of deaths .
But California failed in its first attempt , so the question now is whether it can pull it off this time .
In recent weeks , as much of the state ’ s attention has turned to devastating wildfires , significant gains have been made against COVID-19 .
Daily case numbers have dropped from more than @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to fewer than 3,000 .
The number of people hospitalized with COVID has shrunk from a peak of 7,170 in late July to 2,821 on Tuesday , according to the California Department of Public Health .
“ This is all good news , ” said UCLA epidemiologist Dr. Timothy Brewer .
“ Everything is moving in the right direction , so I would personally be positive.
” Brewer attributed the progress to a combination of business closures , wearing masks , physical distancing , more testing and faster contact tracing .
But he @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Labor Day , the numbers could start heading in the opposite direction .
Both the Memorial Day and July Fourth holiday weekends proved to be breeding grounds for coronavirus as people used the time off to throw parties and share meals with friends and family .
It will be a few weeks before the data show the complete picture of what happened during the holiday weekend , he said .
“ I think we have been , as a community , doing an excellent job , but fatigue does kick in , ” @ @ @ @ @ @ @ change in the short term if evacuations from the wildfires have pushed people to stay with their friends or family , or in shelters where the virus could easily spread among people in close quarters .
Testing in some places , including Los Angeles County , has also been limited because of testing site closures because of extreme heat and hazardous air quality in recent days , which could also affect the numbers .
Assuming the numbers stay low , many counties could soon begin reopening businesses .
State officials said Wednesday that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the green light next week to move into a less restrictive tier , which would allow more reopenings .
But it is reopenings that largely drove the surge earlier this summer , experts say .
As cases skyrocketed in July , Newsom was forced to close bars , zoos and museums as well as indoor dining statewide to curb the spread .
Some counties , including L.A. and Orange , were also forced to close gyms , houses of worship , hair salons and malls .
Though the standards for opening in May @ @ @ @ @ @ @ shortcoming was not hard-wiring those or following them diligently , ” which allowed reopenings to happen too quickly , said USC epidemiologist Dr. Neha Nanda .
In early summer , counties were allowed to ask for exemptions to the criteria that had been set , and often opened multiple sectors at once .
In a single week in May , L.A. County officials opened restaurants for indoor dining , barber shops and hair salons , places of worship , in-store shopping at retail stores and malls , drive-in movie theaters and flea markets @ @ @ @ @ @ @ follow a step-by-step plan , spending at least three weeks in each tier .
To move into a less restrictive tier , counties must meet the criteria for two weeks straight .
If a county moves into a new tier but then fails to meet the criteria , it will be bumped back down , according to Newsom ’ s plan .
On Wednesday , Dr. Mark Ghaly , California Health and Human Services secretary , said that San Diego County , one of a few counties in Southern California to move into @ @ @ @ @ @ @ movie theaters and gyms , appeared to be failing to meet the standard required to stay in that tier .
He said that if the numbers persist , the county could be forced to close those businesses until the numbers improve .
“ If that ’ s what the data shows , that ’ s what the state is going to expect , ” Ghaly said .
“ We ’ re reaching levels of transmission that are lower than we ’ ve seen in many months , but we still need to continue @ @ @ @ @ @ @ said hospitals need to keep their coronavirus numbers low to prepare for winter and the flu season , which could fill hospital beds .
In the coming days , the state will provide an update about theme parks and other sectors looking to reopen , Newsom said .
The logic behind the reopenings is not that the threat of coronavirus has vanished , but that some things can be open because they become less risky as the spread of the virus falls .
For example , if everyone has COVID-19 in a community @ @ @ @ @ @ @ very dangerous .
If only one out of 1,000 people is infected with the virus , the risk drops .
That ’ s the balance that counties will be trying to achieve over the next months : keeping the numbers low enough so that the risk of doing activities doesn ’ t skyrocket .
No one yet knows exactly how to strike that balance , and the stakes are high , experts say .
“ As long as community transmission exists , as long as its higher than zero , it can come @ @ @ @ @ @

After months of bleak figures and forecasts, California now appears to be riding a wave of success beating back the coronavirus as officials express cautious optimism about what is next for the state.
Hospitals across the state are treating the fewest patients with COVID-19 since April. The percentage of tests coming back positive for the virus is lower than ever, proof that the state has reined in a massive surge that began this summer.
“We are turning the corner,” said Gov. Gavin Newsom in a news conference Wednesday as he listed multiple coronavirus metrics now “lower than what we’ve seen in a number of months.”
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But these signs of progress also bring concerns that it could be erased. Many businesses are pushing for a faster reopening timeline, including Disneyland, Universal Studios and other theme parks, which wrote a letter to Newsom this week urging him to quickly issue guidelines so they can start allowing visitors again. Also this week, a group of nearly 300 fitness centers filed suit against the governor protesting their extended closure.
Experts fear that reopenings could coincide with flu season as well as with people becoming more complacent in their day-to-day lives, wearing masks less or choosing to attend gatherings likely to spread the virus. Such loosening happened before, in late May and June, and there is no reason it would play out differently this time, they say.
“The virus is the same. These numbers we generate are markers of how efficiently we’re avoiding the virus,” said UC San Francisco epidemiologist Dr. George Rutherford. “We’re not doing anything to the virus except avoiding it.”
Ideally, there is a delicate balance that can be struck, with eased restrictions that cause only a slight increase in case numbers that don’t overwhelm the healthcare system or lead to hundreds of deaths. But California failed in its first attempt, so the question now is whether it can pull it off this time.
In recent weeks, as much of the state’s attention has turned to devastating wildfires, significant gains have been made against COVID-19. Daily case numbers have dropped from more than 10,000 a day a few months ago to fewer than 3,000. The number of people hospitalized with COVID has shrunk from a peak of 7,170 in late July to 2,821 on Tuesday, according to the California Department of Public Health.
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“This is all good news,” said UCLA epidemiologist Dr. Timothy Brewer. “Everything is moving in the right direction, so I would personally be positive.”
Brewer attributed the progress to a combination of business closures, wearing masks, physical distancing, more testing and faster contact tracing. But he warned that if people socialized unsafely on Labor Day, the numbers could start heading in the opposite direction.
Both the Memorial Day and July Fourth holiday weekends proved to be breeding grounds for coronavirus as people used the time off to throw parties and share meals with friends and family. It will be a few weeks before the data show the complete picture of what happened during the holiday weekend, he said.
“I think we have been, as a community, doing an excellent job, but fatigue does kick in,” he said.
The trends could also change in the short term if evacuations from the wildfires have pushed people to stay with their friends or family, or in shelters where the virus could easily spread among people in close quarters.
Testing in some places, including Los Angeles County, has also been limited because of testing site closures because of extreme heat and hazardous air quality in recent days, which could also affect the numbers.
Assuming the numbers stay low, many counties could soon begin reopening businesses. State officials said Wednesday that they expect that several counties will get the green light next week to move into a less restrictive tier, which would allow more reopenings.
But it is reopenings that largely drove the surge earlier this summer, experts say. As cases skyrocketed in July, Newsom was forced to close bars, zoos and museums as well as indoor dining statewide to curb the spread. Some counties, including L.A. and Orange, were also forced to close gyms, houses of worship, hair salons and malls.
Though the standards for opening in May were smart and well-crafted, the “shortcoming was not hard-wiring those or following them diligently,” which allowed reopenings to happen too quickly, said USC epidemiologist Dr. Neha Nanda.
In early summer, counties were allowed to ask for exemptions to the criteria that had been set, and often opened multiple sectors at once. In a single week in May, L.A. County officials opened restaurants for indoor dining, barber shops and hair salons, places of worship, in-store shopping at retail stores and malls, drive-in movie theaters and flea markets.
“Obviously, we learned a lesson,” Nanda said.
Now Newsom is mandating that counties follow a step-by-step plan, spending at least three weeks in each tier. To move into a less restrictive tier, counties must meet the criteria for two weeks straight. If a county moves into a new tier but then fails to meet the criteria, it will be bumped back down, according to Newsom’s plan.
Science & Medicine Coronavirus Today: The other education divide Our special-edition newsletter breaks down the latest coronavirus news, including a digital divide for L.A. students and an annual celebration of Mexican independence.
On Wednesday, Dr. Mark Ghaly, California Health and Human Services secretary, said that San Diego County, one of a few counties in Southern California to move into a tier that allows indoor dining, movie theaters and gyms, appeared to be failing to meet the standard required to stay in that tier.
He said that if the numbers persist, the county could be forced to close those businesses until the numbers improve.
“If that’s what the data shows, that’s what the state is going to expect,” Ghaly said. “We’re reaching levels of transmission that are lower than we’ve seen in many months, but we still need to continue to keep our guard up.”
Ghaly said hospitals need to keep their coronavirus numbers low to prepare for winter and the flu season, which could fill hospital beds. In the coming days, the state will provide an update about theme parks and other sectors looking to reopen, Newsom said.
The logic behind the reopenings is not that the threat of coronavirus has vanished, but that some things can be open because they become less risky as the spread of the virus falls. For example, if everyone has COVID-19 in a community, then going to a restaurant becomes very dangerous. If only one out of 1,000 people is infected with the virus, the risk drops.
That’s the balance that counties will be trying to achieve over the next months: keeping the numbers low enough so that the risk of doing activities doesn’t skyrocket. No one yet knows exactly how to strike that balance, and the stakes are high, experts say.
“As long as community transmission exists, as long as its higher than zero, it can come back,” Brewer said.
Times staff writer Iris Lee contributed to this report.


latimes--2020-09-17--How disaster relief has adapted to two horrors: Wildfires and coronavirus

James Wood checks his clipboard and bangs on the door at a Motel 6 .
The air is thick with smoke .
“ Red Cross , ” he calls , loudly , through his heavy , protective mask .
“ Dinner !
” His gloved-and-masked partner places four white foam boxes on the ground .
They are filled with chicken tacos , compliments of the Salvation Army .
The motel door swings wide .
A head pops out .
There are thank yous and the murmur of comforting conversation .
Then the refugee from the North Complex fire picks up @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and the volunteers move on to the next room .
And the next one .
And the next .
This is how emergency services are provided in the fall of 2020 at the intersection of twin horrors — natural disasters of record proportions and a global pandemic .
There are no longer massive shelters in California where the coronavirus could spread among traumatized people running for their lives ; the state prohibits large gatherings .
That means no dining halls .
No in-person counseling , no hugs , no tissues to dry tears @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and hurricanes pummel the Gulf Coast , disaster aid has been forced to evolve , for better or for worse .
When large-scale disasters strike in states with looser restrictions than California ’ s , the Red Cross has instituted coronavirus precautions in group shelters : health screenings , mandatory face coverings , staggered meal times , extra space between cots and tables .
In Butte County — where the North Complex fire rages and the per capita coronavirus rate is 33 % higher than Los Angeles County ’ s — evacuees are @ @ @ @ @ @ @ fairgrounds or school gymnasiums .
Yes , this means there are beds and private bathrooms instead of cots and shared facilities .
But Butte County is a rural area .
There aren ’ t a lot of options .
And when the North Complex fire bore down on this thickly forested , mountainous region 70 miles north of Sacramento , many motel rooms had already been commandeered for people fleeing wildfires in neighboring counties .
“ We don ’ t have 45 hotels to choose from , and we fill up quick , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the Butte County Department of Employment and Social Services .
“ We ’ ve had to shelter survivors of this fire into Roseville and Sacramento .
We ’ ve driven people there… .
The folks we ’ ve had to deliver to a hotel outside of the community , we ’ ll bring them back.
” The novel coronavirus “ has thrown a wrench into the well-oiled machines of congregate sheltering , ” she said , upending disaster systems honed here over years of worsening fire seasons and a major dam that threatened @ @ @ @ @ @ @ than 180,000 frightened people to evacuate .
“ We ’ ve had to make adjustments as we go .
Adapt and overcome.
” It ’ s hard to find anyone in this part of Butte County who hasn ’ t been touched by fire in recent years .
Boston calls herself a survivor of the 2018 Camp fire , which razed the small city of Paradise and killed 85 people .
Boston ’ s house survived , she said , but “ we lost everything around it .
It ’ s not easy @ @ @ @ @ @ @ s been completely destroyed by fire.
” The Camp fire provided a cautionary tale for emergency service providers .
Eight of the nine group shelters operating between Butte and Glenn counties during that disaster had serious outbreaks of norovirus .
The highly contagious intestinal malady causes diarrhea and vomiting .
A quarter of all evacuees served came down with the bug , according to the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention ; so did 12 staff members .
Twenty-one patients had to be evaluated in a hospital or urgent care facility , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a far more lethal disease .
By Wednesday evening , the North Complex fire had burned 273,335 acres and was 36 % contained .
Red Cross spokesman Justin Kern said more than 1,000 evacuees are being provided with emergency shelter by his organization or the state because that group of conflagrations .
“ This pandemic has added layers of complexity to what we do , ” Kern said .
“ This is the health and safety of our workforce , as well as the people we serve .
It ’ s important we @ @ @ @ @ @ @ is staying at the Motel 6 with her children — Jessie , 12 , and Madelynn , 11 — and their two chihuahuas , Sugar and Mary .
The small family is grateful for new coronavirus protections for reasons of both physical and mental health .
After they were evacuated from their home in the tiny enclave of Rackerby , southeast of Oroville and a fraction of the size , they slept for two nights in their car .
Emergency services had lost their paperwork .
Madelynn is on the autism spectrum .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ was bolt from the vehicle .
In a group shelter , with dozens of people arrayed on cots , “ my son would have done OK , ” Bickford said , “ my daughter not so much .
She doesn ’ t understand what ’ s going on… .
She ’ d have just run .
She ’ s a runner.
” And Bickford fears the coronavirus because of her own health problems .
She has congestive heart failure .
Her heart works at about 30 % capacity .
If she contracted the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ “ I ’ d probably not survive.
” She is grateful for the motel room and the four boxes of hot food that arrived in time for dinner .
So grateful , she said , that she ’ s been cleaning the room herself .
“ They ’ d do it for me , ” she said with a shy smile .
“ But I can take out my own trash .
I ’ m a grown-up.
” On Tuesday evening , the low-slung stucco motel hard by Highway 70 was quiet .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Patricia Baker , 82 , was out walking Rascal , her companion dog with fluffy Shih Tzu hair and stumpy dachshund legs .
Baker was the rare motel guest wearing a mask .
She hasn ’ t had the flu in 50 years , she said .
She takes blood pressure medication and has a bum hip , but said , “ I ’ m very healthy.
” Except she left her medication behind when she fled her Berry Creek home as the fire approached .
Her son was driving their Honda @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Blazer in his pocket .
Baker and Rascal hitched a ride down the mountain from a truck driver — a complete stranger — who happened to drive by in the nick of time .
The mask is for the rest of us , not for her , she said , after listing her daily regimen of the vitamins that keep her her spry : B12 , B3 , C , fish oil .
She ’ s not worried about falling to COVID-19 , she said , “ but I don ’ t want @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to you .
”

James Wood checks his clipboard and bangs on the door at a Motel 6. The air is thick with smoke.
“Red Cross,” he calls, loudly, through his heavy, protective mask. “Dinner!”
His gloved-and-masked partner places four white foam boxes on the ground. They are filled with chicken tacos, compliments of the Salvation Army. The motel door swings wide. A head pops out. There are thank yous and the murmur of comforting conversation. Then the refugee from the North Complex fire picks up the food, shuts the door, and the volunteers move on to the next room. And the next one. And the next.
This is how emergency services are provided in the fall of 2020 at the intersection of twin horrors — natural disasters of record proportions and a global pandemic. There are no longer massive shelters in California where the coronavirus could spread among traumatized people running for their lives; the state prohibits large gatherings. That means no dining halls. No in-person counseling, no hugs, no tissues to dry tears.
As wildfires rage in the West and hurricanes pummel the Gulf Coast, disaster aid has been forced to evolve, for better or for worse. When large-scale disasters strike in states with looser restrictions than California’s, the Red Cross has instituted coronavirus precautions in group shelters: health screenings, mandatory face coverings, staggered meal times, extra space between cots and tables.
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At the Motel 6 in Oroville, evacuees from Berry Creek and other areas affected by the North Complex fires are staying with the assistance of the Red Cross. Kristal Buchholz of Berry Creek is living in her van at the motel, where her mother has a room. (Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times)
In Butte County — where the North Complex fire rages and the per capita coronavirus rate is 33% higher than Los Angeles County’s — evacuees are being housed in motel rooms, not fairgrounds or school gymnasiums.
Yes, this means there are beds and private bathrooms instead of cots and shared facilities. But Butte County is a rural area. There aren’t a lot of options. And when the North Complex fire bore down on this thickly forested, mountainous region 70 miles north of Sacramento, many motel rooms had already been commandeered for people fleeing wildfires in neighboring counties.
“We don’t have 45 hotels to choose from, and we fill up quick,” said Shelby Boston, who heads the Butte County Department of Employment and Social Services. “We’ve had to shelter survivors of this fire into Roseville and Sacramento. We’ve driven people there…. The folks we’ve had to deliver to a hotel outside of the community, we’ll bring them back.”
The novel coronavirus “has thrown a wrench into the well-oiled machines of congregate sheltering,” she said, upending disaster systems honed here over years of worsening fire seasons and a major dam that threatened to burst in 2017, forcing more than 180,000 frightened people to evacuate. “We’ve had to make adjustments as we go. Adapt and overcome.”
A Red Cross volunteer delivers meals to Bill Rauckman, who had to leave his Concow home because of the North Complex fire, at the Motel 6 in Oroville. (Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times)
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It’s hard to find anyone in this part of Butte County who hasn’t been touched by fire in recent years. Boston calls herself a survivor of the 2018 Camp fire, which razed the small city of Paradise and killed 85 people. Boston’s house survived, she said, but “we lost everything around it. It’s not easy to live in a community that’s been completely destroyed by fire.”
The Camp fire provided a cautionary tale for emergency service providers. Eight of the nine group shelters operating between Butte and Glenn counties during that disaster had serious outbreaks of norovirus. The highly contagious intestinal malady causes diarrhea and vomiting.
A quarter of all evacuees served came down with the bug, according to the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; so did 12 staff members. Twenty-one patients had to be evaluated in a hospital or urgent care facility, but no one died. COVID-19 is a far more lethal disease.
By Wednesday evening, the North Complex fire had burned 273,335 acres and was 36% contained. Red Cross spokesman Justin Kern said more than 1,000 evacuees are being provided with emergency shelter by his organization or the state because that group of conflagrations.
“This pandemic has added layers of complexity to what we do,” Kern said. “This is the health and safety of our workforce, as well as the people we serve. It’s important we take the extra steps.”
Lea Bickford, right, is staying at the Motel 6 with her 11-year-old daughter, Madelynn, and her 12-year-old son, Jessie (not shown here), and their two chihuahuas, Sugar and Mary. (Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times)
Lea Bickford is staying at the Motel 6 with her children — Jessie, 12, and Madelynn, 11 — and their two chihuahuas, Sugar and Mary. The small family is grateful for new coronavirus protections for reasons of both physical and mental health.
After they were evacuated from their home in the tiny enclave of Rackerby, southeast of Oroville and a fraction of the size, they slept for two nights in their car. Emergency services had lost their paperwork. Madelynn is on the autism spectrum. All the little girl wanted to do was bolt from the vehicle.
In a group shelter, with dozens of people arrayed on cots, “my son would have done OK,” Bickford said, “my daughter not so much. She doesn’t understand what’s going on…. She’d have just run. She’s a runner.”
And Bickford fears the coronavirus because of her own health problems. She has congestive heart failure. Her heart works at about 30% capacity. If she contracted the virus, her doctor told her, “I’d probably not survive.”
She is grateful for the motel room and the four boxes of hot food that arrived in time for dinner. So grateful, she said, that she’s been cleaning the room herself. “They’d do it for me,” she said with a shy smile. “But I can take out my own trash. I’m a grown-up.”
Patricia Baker, 82, and her dog, Rascal, are staying at the Motel 6 in Oroville after having to evacuate their home in Berry Creek. (Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times)
On Tuesday evening, the low-slung stucco motel hard by Highway 70 was quiet. Wood had not yet arrived with dinner. Patricia Baker, 82, was out walking Rascal, her companion dog with fluffy Shih Tzu hair and stumpy dachshund legs.
Baker was the rare motel guest wearing a mask. She hasn’t had the flu in 50 years, she said. She takes blood pressure medication and has a bum hip, but said, “I’m very healthy.” Except she left her medication behind when she fled her Berry Creek home as the fire approached.
Her son was driving their Honda and had the keys to their Chevy Blazer in his pocket. Baker and Rascal hitched a ride down the mountain from a truck driver — a complete stranger — who happened to drive by in the nick of time.
The mask is for the rest of us, not for her, she said, after listing her daily regimen of the vitamins that keep her her spry: B12, B3, C, fish oil.
She’s not worried about falling to COVID-19, she said, “but I don’t want to be the person who gives it to you.”