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VOLUME 148, ISSUE 14 | THURSDAY, JANUARY 30, 2025
Davis Fire Department assists with Los Angeles fires Alongside other Yolo County fire departments, Davis firefighters traveled to Southern California to help battle the Eaton Fire BY OLIVIA HOKR city@theaggie.org On the night of Wednesday, Jan. 8, four firefighters from the city of Davis Fire Department left for Southern California to provide mutual aid against the Los Angeles fires. Firefighters from the Woodland Fire Department, Winters Fire Department, Yocha Dehe Fire Department and the UC Davis Fire Department also mobilized in Southern California. At the time these engines departed, Los Angeles County was battling the major Palisades and Eaton Fires while smaller fires continued to ignite in new areas. Strike teams formed among the Yolo County fire departments, which are groups of firefighters and engines that gather to rapidly respond to emergencies. The Davis Fire Department was then assigned to the Eaton Fire in Pasadena. City of Davis Fire Chief Joe Tenney explained the responsibilities of the fire departments that volunteer to battle the fires. “Mobilizing hundreds of fire engines in the state of California in short order is something most fire departments do, Davis Fire Department included,” Tenney said. “Of those hundreds of engines from counties and cities, the assignments greatly vary from working at the fire
A firefighter stands in front of a fire truck at the city of Davis Fire Department Headquarters. (Sacha Chickering / Aggie) front, mopping up to prevent further spread or two miles in front of the fire anticipating the need to protect lives, homes and properties. Every day can be a different assignment by the incident commander.” The Los Angeles Fire Department needed more equipment, tools and people to battle the size and power of the fires. Tenney emphasized the
courage of those providing support for the needs of other fire departments on such short notice. “Davis Fire Department and the Yolo County Strike Team of five engines with leaders were deployed to the Eaton Fire and fulfilled whatever the need was on any given day,” Tenney said. “The bravery comes from working as a complete team to fill the need. They risk
their lives to safeguard others, turning courage into action and duty into service. All of California’s firefighters do this every day and are, frankly, some of the best in the world at mobilizing resources for large disasters and protecting our communities.” The strike team from the Woodland Fire Department that traveled to help fight the Eaton Fire was deployed for
nine days. They worked hand in hand with fellow Yolo County firefighters to protect people and property. “We want to extend our deepest thanks to these brave men and women for their selflessness and professionalism, as well as to their families who supported them during this time,” the Woodland Fire Department said in an Instagram post. “Thank you, Strike Team 4275C, for representing our community with such courage and commitment.” Strike Teams from the UC Davis and Yocha Dehe Fire Departments have almost entirely returned home. As of Jan. 24, UC Davis Fire Department Captain Steve Dunn has returned to campus from his work battling the Eaton Fire. With the help of hundreds of fire departments from across the state, as well as from Canada and Mexico, the Eaton Fire is now over 99% contained and the Palisades Fire over 96% contained at the time of publication. Fighting the fires in Los Angeles has been a collective effort by both local and international fire departments, and Strike Team 4275C has made the Davis community proud.
Mary L. Stephens Library holds ‘Disrupt the norm’: Davis Rave Collective Lunar New Year celebration for a packed house hosts first morning The Davis community was over the moon for the celebration’s set at Volt Coffee talented musicians, choreographed performers and
Local electronic music collective brings a lively approach to sleepy Saturday mornings
Davis Rave Co. puts on a DJ set for customers at Volt Coffee. (Christian Cendejas / Aggie) BY EMME DUNNING features@theaggie.org For many, listening to live music is strictly a nighttime activity. Electronic dance music (EDM) shows in particular have a longstanding reputation for large crowds, dark rooms and a party-like atmosphere. Davis Rave Collective, a local music collective, is attempting to shift this narrative. On Jan. 18, Davis Rave Co. held a morning music set at Volt Coffee, Tea & Taps, a coffee shop and beer garden located on Olive Drive in Davis. As patrons enjoyed their morning beverages, rotating DJs with the group played varying subgenres of electronic music such as minimal tech, progressive house and melodic tech. The set was the first event of a new initiative DRC is hoping to make a regular addition to Davis mornings — a monthly morning music set highlighting local artists for new and different audiences. For DRC, the main goal of the morning coffee set was increasing accessibility to live music.
“Some people are morning people, and just because you’re a morning person doesn’t mean you need to be any less involved in music,” Mikayla Bailey, a fourth-year environmental science and management major, said. “It’s a lot about expanding access.” Bailey is the current marketing lead for the DRC and believes that electronic music can and should be enjoyed by people of all ages, beyond just a traditional concert or rave setting. On the morning of Jan. 18, patrons of Volt could be seen doing just that. People of all ages gathered to enjoy the music while socializing, studying or nodding along. “People were there to vibe and have that morning boost and carry on with their day,” Bailey said. The DRC hopes that events such as this one will help integrate more people into the local music community and — as Aaron Helali, a recent UC Davis alum with a Bachelor of Science (B.S.) degree in biological sciences, described it — “disrupt the norm.”
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Dragon Dancers
Hualing Wan, a Yolo County BY MATTHEW MCELDOWNEY catalog librarian who helped organize city@theaggie.org the event, emphasized the importance of expressing the diversity of the Lunar New Year. On Jan. 18, Mary L. Stephens “In the past, we have invited Davis Library hosted an array of craft High School students from the Korean workshops and Lunar New Year-themed Culture Club, [also] Vietnam and even performances for their early Year of Brunei,” Wan said. the Snake celebration. Community Through inviting a diverse group members, including faculty from UC of guest performers and representing Davis, participated in and performed a wide range of cultures in their Lunar at this event. New Year reading list, Wan hopes This Lunar New Year celebration they can best capture the spirit of this was packed with Davis families holiday — a spirit that reflects the many enthusiastic to share and participate different backgrounds and identities in the dances, musical ensembles and that celebrate it. crafts inherent to the diverse cultures One such performer was Dr. Jiahui that celebrate this holiday. Wei, an associate professor of chemistry The event began with a musical at UC Davis. In Wei’s performance, she performance of “Happy Chinese played the guzheng, a type of plucked New Year,” “Clementine” and “Spring zither with an illustrious history in Carols” from a very young and gifted Chinese culture — an instrument ensemble of violinists, cellists, flautists that Wei has practiced for around 25 and harpists. Shortly after, the Mira years. Wei has previously performed Loma Chinese Club’s Performing Arts at similar events at the library, and she Team took stage as vibrant red and gold also makes other public appearances as dragons and lions. True to this famous recorded on her YouTube channel. In Lunar New Year tradition, they danced these performances, Wei describes the in rhythm and melodically banged their work that goes into playing a variety of drums. instruments in her elaborate hanfu dress In addition, Mary L. Stephens and preparing the traditional Chinese Library invited choreographed dancers makeup prior to these performances. to perform a variety of traditional and While Wei only showcased her modern Chinese dances. Modern guzheng and pipa, a traditional Chinese Persian fusion dancers also performed plucked instrument, for the library that more traditional folk dances, such as day, she has performed with up to six the Dai Peacock Dance. instruments in the past, sharing her
Dancers perform Chinese folk dances for the Lunar New Year celebration at the Mary L. Stephens Library. (Christian Cendejas / Aggie)
diverse skill set as well as the enduring musical and artistic traditions she expresses to this day. For Wei, whether it be to educate or enjoy, her passion for these Chinese traditions is an integral part of her identity. Wei explained that she incorporates this passion through a combination of artistic expression and teaching at UC Davis. For instance, she chooses color-coded modern hanfu to help students find corresponding online lectures more easily. “It’s part of the reason I teach at UC Davis and even at community colleges,” Wei said. “I want to see [and meet] the people that I would have never had the chance to be around when I grew up in China.” In this way, Wei’s passion for intercultural exchange goes hand in hand with her educational commitment to the community. It is this sense of community that lies at the very heart of this holiday. “In most of China, it’s the time for all of your family to come back [together],” Wei said. For Kacey Chan, a fourth-year history major, the significance of the Lunar New Year holiday celebration in Davis is dearly felt. “In terms of Davis, it is really good because we are ultimately in the [United States], and the Chinese are a group of diaspora in the U.S.,” Chan said. “So, it is good to provide that space for them to celebrate and find other Chinese families, especially if they do not know anybody near them.” This combination of cultural education and community is reinforced through the traditions preserved and passed down from generation to generation. Chan recalls the childhood memories of lion dancers going from apartment to apartment to throw vegetables for the families to collect. Wei is fond of coming with her friends to make handmade hairpins resembling flowers. LIBRARYLUNAR on 8