enterprise THE DAVIS
FRIDAY, JULY 14, 2023
Drones, satellites and AI: State goes high-tech to fight fires By Julie Cart CalMatters
lion of specified projects to include Knight’s Landing Park, Vic Fazio Wildlife Area, Crisis Nursery Expansion and the Ujamaa Farmer Collective (formerly known as the Underserved Farmers Cooperative); and adopt a budget resolution to approve acceptance of grant award funds from the State of California Department of Parks and Recreation and increase the fiscal year 2023-24 budget for parks by $5,000,000.
an update on the drought and current groundwater conditions spearheaded by the Yolo County manager of natural resources, Elissa Sabatini. She delved into reports of the dry wells popping up around Yolo County, which include 49 confirmed since 2021, 21 of those remaining dry; and the fact that there’s been no reports since March of 2023. Sabatini also mentioned a current petition making the rounds on change.org to stop
Cal Fire Battalion Chief Jon Heggie wasn’t expecting much to worry about when a late summer fire erupted north of Santa Cruz, home to California’s moist and cool “asbestos forests.” This place doesn’t burn, he thought, with just three notable fires there in 70 years. Heggie’s job was to predict for the crews where the wildfire might go and when, working through calculations based on topography, weather and fuels — the “immutable” basics. For fire behavior analysts like Heggie, predictable and familiar are manageable, while weird and unexpected are synonyms for danger. But that 2020 fire was anything but predictable. Around 3 a.m. on Aug. 16, ominous thunder cells formed over the region. Tens of thousands of lightning strikes rained down, creating a convulsion of fire that became the CZU Lightning Complex. By noon there were nearly two dozen fires burning, and not nearly enough people to handle them.
After that, the board received
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See FIRES, Page A3
Almond trees bloom in rows at the southwest corner of Pedrick and Vaughn roads in 2016. Fred Gladdis/ Enterprise file photo
Supervisors tackle rural water issues By Aaron Geerts Enterprise staff writer The Yolo County Board of Supervisors showed themselves to be — as one individual referred to himself as in the public comments — “agvocates” at the board meeting on Tuesday, July 11. Not only did they approve the acceptance of a sizeable grant from the California Department of Parks and Recreation, the supervisors addressed the seriousness of groundwater
sustainability issues raised by small farmers and rural residents in Yolo County’s areas of special concern. After a public comment section filled with advocacy for wildlife initiatives and providing land for underserved farmers and farmers of color, the board of supervisors unanimously voted to authorize the director of general services to enter into a contract with the California Department of Parks and Recreation to fund $5 mil-
Saturday fundraiser aids Uman By Lauren Keene Enterprise staff writer Community members are invited to help support Davis’ sister city of Uman, Ukraine at a fundraising event Saturday at the Varsity Theatre. Proceeds from program, featuring several short films and guest speakers, will aid students at Pavlo Tychyna University in Uman who have had a parent killed, captured or injured in the ongoing war. Saturday’s event, emceed by former Davis Mayor Brett Lee, lasts from 10 to 11:30 a.m. at the downtown theater, 616 Second St. Tickets cost $10 per
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VOL. 125 NO. 85
INDEX
Arts ���������������������B1 Forum �����������������B3 Pets ��������������������A6 Classifieds ��� A3-A4 Movies ���������������B2 Sports ���������������B6 Comics ���������������B4 Obituaries ���������A5 The Wary I ���������A2
Suspect in domestic-violence altercation booked into jail By Lauren Keene Enterprise staff writer
Courtesy photo
Former Davis Mayor Brett Lee, second from left, presents a generator to citizens in Uman, Ukraine, during a March visit. With him are, from left, volunteers Andre Cheraso and Julia Klymenko, and Galyna Kucher, the head of Uman’s social services department. Uman is currently housing several thousand people who have fled from the front lines of the war.
WEATHER Saturday: Scorching hot. High 111. Low 69.
A Davis man facing domestic-violence charges was booked into the Yolo County Jail on Wednesday after recovering from stab wounds inflicted by his alleged victim. Jorge Lomeli Navarro, 39, makes his first court appearance at 1:30 p.m. Friday in Yolo Superior Court. He’s charged with felony assault causing great bodily injury and other domestic-violence offenses. He remains in Yolo County Jail custody on a $1 million bail hold.
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Davis police initially arrested Lomeli Navarro’s wife after responding to the couple’s apartment in the Wildhorse neighborhood Saturday afternoon, arriving to find evidence of a violent struggle both inside and outside the residence.
Deputy Police Chief Todd Henry said Lomeli Navarro sustained at least one stab wound to the neck area, while his wife had “very prominent, visible injuries consistent with a physical assault.”
She was booked into jail early Sunday morning
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