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What is causing the storms battering California? A5

How do Warriors improve after 41 games? B1

FRIDAY | January 13, 2023 | $1.00

DAILYREPUBLIC.COM | Well said. Well read.

Storms add to difficulty of dealing with homeless, camps Todd R. Hansen

THANSEN@DAILYREPUBLIC.NET

Aaron Rosenblatt/Daily Republic

Mud covers the floor inside Michelle Valine’s house near Suisun Creek in Fairfield, Thursday.

Evacuation warning still in place for Suisun Creek area Todd R. Hansen

THANSEN@DAILYREPUBLIC.NET

FAIRFIELD — Friends helped Michelle Valine move her horses from the flooded pasture, and now friends from Larry’s Produce are lending a hand cleaning up her flooded studio. The work was being done as the entire Bay Area enjoyed a mostly dry Thursday that even included a breakout of blue skies. Part of Valine’s home was flooded when Suisun Creek topped its levee and flooded her property this week. But the local flooding isn’t the biggest concern with Suisun Creek. An evacuation warning issued Tuesday remains in place with additional storms forecast for Solano. The threat is if Lake Curry spills into the creek. The Suisun Creek evacuation warning extends the length of the creek in Solano County, from the Napa County line down to Chad-

bourne Slough. Residences a quarter-mile from the creek on either side are in the possible evacuation zone. There are no other evacuation warnings or evacuation orders in the county at this time, the county Office of Emergency Services reported in its afternoon media briefing. OES noted that in addition to monitoring the water levels of Suisun Creek and Lake Curry, “Lake Frey and Lake Madigan continue to spill within their designed engineered spillways. Significant downstream impacts are not expected.” “We are coordinating with the reclamation and levee districts and assisting in resource requests for flood fighting materials for the levees,” the briefing stated. It also warned that with the ground already saturated, “there may be ponding of water and roadway flooding as rains return (Friday) through the weekend. We

advise the community to never drive through standing water. Turn around; don’t drown.” As of Thursday afternoon, there were three power outages experienced, affecting six customers, the OES reported. Schools are not expected to be affected by the storms. The National Weather Service in Sacramento reports there will be a series of three more storms coming through the area starting Friday. “Rain will be coming (Friday) morning and pretty much staying with us through the weekend,” meteorologist Robert Baruffaldi said. The total rainfall is expected to be about 2.5 inches, with the most rain coming Saturday and the lightest storm arriving Sunday into Monday. “And that will probably be the windiest, too, Saturday,” said Baruffaldi, adding that even lighter See Warning, Page A8

12 apply for open Suisun council vacancy Todd R. Hansen THANSEN@DAILYREPUBLIC.NET

SUISUN CITY — A dozen city residents have applied for appointment to the City Council. Notably missing are Charles Lee Jr. and longtime Councilwoman Jane Day – two candidates from the Nov. 8 election who did not win one of the two open seats. The other, Katrina Garcia, has thrown her hat into the ring and is guaranteed to be among the seven semifinalists the council will consider.

The vacancy was created when Alma Hernandez won the mayor’s job. Lee, at the Nov. 29 council meeting, said he should be appointed straight out because he finished a close third in the election. A number of people at a subsequent meeting supported Lee, as did Councilman Mike Hudson, who was in a similar position after the 2018 election when he lost his seat on the council and sought appointment to fill the vacancy

GARCIA DAY created when Lori Wilson became mayor. Instead, the council, on the strength of then-Mayor Lori Wilson’s recommendation, appointed Anthony Adams, who is one of the 12 candidates seeking appointment, again.

LEE Also having met Tuesday’s filing deadline are mayoral candidate James Berg; Tara BeasleyStansberry; Lilia Dardon; Herbert Dardon; Amit Pal; Laura Cole-Rowe; Thomas D. Alder; George See Council, Page A8

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Los Angeles Times WASHINGTON — Attorney General Merrick Garland on Thursday named a special counsel to investigate the unauthorized removal and retention of classified documents that were discovered at President Joe Biden’s office and home. Garland tapped the former U.S. attorney for Maryland, Robert Hur, to conduct the investigation and examine whether “any person or entity violated the law in connection with this matter.” Hur was appointed to his U.S. attorney’s position by former President Donald Trump and previously served as a principal associate deputy attorney general. He is expected to begin work in the coming days. Hur said in a statement

that he “will conduct the assigned investigation with fair, impartial, and dispassionate judgment. I intend to follow the facts swiftly and thoroughly, without fear or favor, and will honor the trust placed in me to perform this service.” A special counsel has more independence to conduct an investigation, but ultimately the decision on whether to prosecute is left to the attorney general. Hur’s appointment “underscores for the public the department’s commitment to both independence and accountability for particularly sensitive matters,” Garland said. Documents with classification markings were found in two unsecured locations that Biden used after he served as vice See Biden, Page A8

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Garland names special counsel to review classified documents found at Biden’s office, home

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FAIRFIELD — Cordelia area residents near Central Way and the on-ramp to Interstate 680 and Interstate 80 are concerned garbage and other materials from an abandoned homeless camp will be washed out to the bay – down creeks and sloughs – by stormwaters. Dealing with the homeless population during the storms is, perhaps, the first priority. “The city opened up a temporary warming center for up to 25 individuals (Dec. 15-19) as the temperatures dropped to 32 degrees and below for three consecutive nights which is the criteria to open a warming center. Additionally, the library has been open to homeless individuals during the day as an opportunity to get out of the storms,” Delaney Lydon, an administrative assistant to the city manager, noted

in an email response to the Daily Republic. “Other than that, the city continues to work diligently with the police Homeless Intervention Team to refer individuals to emergency shelter such as Shelter Solano as space permits, as well as the Public Works Department’s Homeless Engagement and Response Team to clean up the streets and limit the debris in waterways.” But for a couple of sisters, Kathy Abreu and Vicki Long, the issue is a camp they first became aware of in July. Since then, they have been on a six-month crusade and have little to show for it but a growing directory of Fairfield, Solano County and state agencies. “There are pallets that have gone all the way down to Cordelia Road,” Abreu said. “I’m so frustrated because I’ve been trying to get this place cleaned up for

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