Kevin McKay was driving school bus #963 to his Paradise home when he was radioed — just as the film “The Lost Bus” shows — that an empty bus was needed for stranded students at Ponderosa Elementary.
That was the morning of Nov. 8, 2018, when the flames of the Camp Fire that ultimately would claim 85 lives and destroy 11,000 homes were raging through Feather River Canyon toward Paradise. McKay was about to make a decision that would make him one of the most famous school bus drivers in the country.
Part of him wanted to rush home, to alert his mother and son, Shaun, to leave for Chico to escape the fire. But another part of him knew the kids at school were waiting — and they needed him, too.read more
Despite a turbulent period since the Camp Fire, further complicated by the COVID-19 pandemic, Chico Unified School District (CUSD) administrators say so far this fall, enrollment is rising and teacher staffing levels are recovering. That has given some running for the school board hope to be able to tackle multiple high-pressure concerns.
Jim Hanlon, human resources assistant superintendent, told ChicoSol last month that the district was facing some staffing issues. However, as the school year began he said in an interview that although enrollment dropped from 12,253 students in 2019 to 11,834 in 2021 -– its lowest point in five years -– it has increased to 12,176 this year.
Hanlon noted attendance fluctuates as families move in and out during the summer, and could be affected by the growth of Oak Bridge Academy Online School during COVID from 75 to 300 students.
Teacher staffing has also improved since the pandemic’s peak, with full time teachers “holding fairly steady” from kindergarten through 8th grade, Hanlon said. He said they hired 30 high school teachers and lowered the need for substitute teachers this year, after a high need during COVID’s peak.
“We did temporarily increase substitute pay about two years ago because of the sub shortage due to COVID, and the board just voted last month to make the pay increase permanent,” he said. Short-term subs (who work 1-10 consecutive days) get $175 per day and long-term subs (working 11 or more consecutive days in a classroom) get $200 per day.
However, the district remains low on entry-level positions, from bus drivers to classroom aides, which may complicate strategies to improve students’ educational scores and campus facilities and safety. Wages for these positions have been increased to try to attract more workers, but the data still shows an increase in retirements and resignations during the first year of the pandemic.
And Tom Lando, one of the incumbents on the school board running for re-election, said in fact the district expects lower future enrollment numbers to come out within the next year -– due to large outgoing classes and smaller incoming classes. Only time will tell how major that gap in incoming classes will be, and what effect it could have on the school district as a whole, he said.
Read about the Nov. 8 CUSD board election here.
Natalie Hanson is a contributing writer to ChicoSol.
The Greenpeace protest balloon floats up over the north Chico farm in the early morning light.
If you were driving west on Sacramento Avenue past the CSA GRUB Farm early Oct. 8, you might have seen a big blue and green globe floating above the tall trees on the edge of the farm.
It was a Greenpeace hot air balloon, painted to look like planet Earth and trailing a giant banner with a definite and firm message to the governor of California: “Newsom: Stop fueling the flames.”
The message was in reference to the massive climate change-driven wildfires that have scorched Northern California.
Greenpeace, along with some 750 groups, have formed the Last Chance Alliance that claims that Gov. Gavin Newsom isn’t doing enough to facilitate the switch from fossil fuels to renewable energy sources. According to the Alliance, Newsom has issued more than 1,500 oil and gas permits in 2020.
Greenpeace chose to bring its Earth balloon to Butte County because of the climate-fueled Camp Fire that killed 86 people in 2018 after years of drought, a fire that was triggered by a fatal spark due to PG&E negligence.
Representatives of local environmental groups showed up to help inflate and tether the big balloon and it floated above the farm, an urgent reminder of the importance of Last Chance Alliance’s call to: 1) Stop new oil permits, 2) Drop existing oil production and 3) Implement oil field setback limits.
The rise of the Greenpeace balloon is a crucial reminder that our lives depend upon what we do now.
Karen Laslo is a Chico photographer who publishes a blog called “A Picture’s Worth.”
Did Ramsey deal save utility from probation violation?
by Dave Waddell | Posted September 15, 2020
Wikimedia photo
Just one month before the horrendous 2018 Camp Fire, Butte County District Attorney Mike Ramsey freelanced a money deal with Pacific Gas & Electric Co. that allowed PG&E to escape a criminal charge for its negligence in starting the 2017 Honey Fire that threatened Paradise.
PG&E’s extreme desire to avoid a criminal charge in Butte County – and Ramsey’s willingness to play along – was motivated by the company’s desire to avoid violating terms of its federal probation for the 2010 pipeline explosion in San Bruno that killed eight people.
“We very much appreciate the cooperation of PG&E in stepping forward once again and making fire safety a top priority,” Ramsey quoted himself as saying in a news release his office issued about the Honey Fire deal on Oct. 5, 2018.
Just 33 days later, on Nov. 8, the PG&E-caused Camp Fire roared through Paradise, Magalia and Concow, burning more than 153,000 acres, destroying more than 18,800 structures and killing at least 84 people. It was the deadliest and most destructive fire in the history of California. Total damages have been estimated at $16.5 billion, with one-quarter of that amount uninsured.
In June, PG&E pleaded guilty in Butte County Superior Court to 84 counts of involuntary manslaughter because its transmission lines were responsible for causing the Camp Fire. The company agreed to pay a $3.5 million fine as part of that criminal plea. PG&E had previously paid $255 million to Butte County government in Camp Fire damages.
Ramsey’s rationale for making the Honey Fire deal was that the county Fire Department would get $1.5 million from PG&E, while a misdemeanor criminal fine for the utility would have maxed out at $1,000. The agreement says it “does not constitute any admission of wrongdoing on the part of PG&E.” The money was contractually obligated to pay for wages and equipment for four county power line inspectors for four years. The agreement was signed by only Ramsey and a lawyer for PG&E, which holds assets that have been valued at $15 billion and clearly preferred a $1.5 million hit over going to criminal court in Butte County.
“Our settlement was in lieu of a criminal filing,” Ramsey told San Francisco-based public radio station KQED in December 2018. “We felt that this was a much better outcome for the citizens of Butte County.”
While receiving little if any attention locally, the implications of Ramsey letting PG&E off criminally were covered by news media in the Bay Area. KQED’s “California Report” program devoted nearly four minutes to the story, headlined “PG&E May Have Dodged Probation Violation by Striking Deal With Butte County.” Ramsey told KQED that PG&E was obviously motivated to avoid a violation of probation terms imposed for breaking federal pipeline safety laws in the San Bruno blast. In addition to killing eight, the explosion, caused by a ruptured 30-inch natural gas pipeline, injured 58 and destroyed dozens of homes.
In 2016, a federal jury in San Francisco found PG&E guilty of five safety violations. As part of the terms of its five-year probation period imposed by U.S. District Judge Thelton Henderson in January 2017, PG&E was ordered to not “commit another federal, state, or local crime.”
While Ramsey saw holding PG&E criminally faultless for the Honey Fire as a good deal for Butte County, a lawyer involved in the explosion case indicated it may not have been so for the people of San Bruno.
Britt Strottman told the San Jose Mercury News that she was both surprised and not surprised that PG&E did not disclose to its probation officer that it was under criminal investigation in Butte County.
“It seems irresponsible for PG&E to not report any possible violation of probation,” Strottman was quoted as saying about the company’s Honey Fire involvement. “You’d think they’d be under high alert … It would be the first thing a responsible corporation would do.”
She argued that the judge should reopen the utility’s punishment for the San Bruno explosion.
“They probably should be re-sentenced,” said Strottman, a former San Mateo prosecutor who represented the city of San Bruno after the blast. “That might be the only way they learn their lesson. A slap on the wrist will not change the culture of PG&E.”
One persistent critic of Ramsey’s PG&E Honey Fire deal is David Edward Martin, a former Butte County sheriff’s deputy who Ramsey tried unsuccessfully to prosecute for gun violations. For years, Martin has penned long epistles to various officials and agencies, making detailed accusations about some of the players in the criminal justice system in Butte County. Included are allegations describing racist acts by Sheriff’s Office personnel in years past.
Ramsey did not respond to ChicoSol’s request for comment on both his Honey Fire deal and Martin’s various claims.
Martin has accused Ramsey of vindictiveness because Martin says he reported an allegation of child abuse against Ramsey in the 1990s. According to Martin’s writings, he was dispatched to a shooting at the Ramsey residence in Oroville. Ramsey’s teenage daughter told deputies she had fired the gun because Ramsey was man-handling her two younger sisters and she feared for their well-being, according to Martin.
Ramsey alleged in 2018 that 23 of Martin’s more than 100 guns were illegal assault weapons under California law. Martin says they were all legal and that much of his extensive gun collection had been inherited from his father. Martin alleges Ramsey withheld exculpatory evidence so that Martin would be locked up in jail for several months for crimes he did not commit.
Ramsey’s case against Martin was quickly tossed by Butte County Superior Court Judge Michael Deems. Deems ruled that not only had a search warrant of Martin’s property been issued without probable cause, but that the state warrant had been served improperly by federal agents during a stakeout by the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF).
Judge Deems also said there was documentation Martin had legally purchased parts of World War II-era firearms, but no evidence provided to support Ramsey’s claim that Martin was manufacturing machine guns.
To Martin, Ramsey’s Honey Fire deal was a matter of a corporation buying its way out of the consequences of its own criminal negligence. Martin, who says he has a law degree, also wrote that Ramsey should stick to his job – prosecuting criminal violations – and not negotiate civil settlements on behalf of Butte County, which is what County Counsel Bruce Alpert is paid to do.
Seven months after the Honey Fire, in May 2018, Ramsey received a report from fire investigators blaming PG&E for the fire. The report found that an untrimmed tree branch in heavy winds had fallen into the company’s power transmission lines, sparking the blaze. No lives or structures were lost in the Honey Fire, which was contained to 150 acres of Butte Creek Canyon grasslands.
Martin criticizes Ramsey for sitting on a fire-related criminal charge against PG&E through the height of Butte County’s 2018 fire season and then settling just for money as the misdemeanor statute of limitations was about to expire — allowing PG&E to try to cover up a likely violation of its federal probation.
Dave Waddell is a contributor to ChicoSol, covering criminal justice issues.
Sacramento-based NorCal Resist is asking for food and cash donations and gift cards for its May 16 Car Caravan to Butte County that will provide emergency pandemic assistance to immigrant families ineligible for government aid.
NorCal Resist organizer Autumn Gonzalez said many of the immigrant families that will be assisted with cash for rent or in other ways are Camp Fire survivors who contacted the organization’s hotline.
“We’ve had a lot of calls from Butte County,” Gonzalez said today. “It’s really sad because so many work all the time and pay into unemployment, and now aren’t working and aren’t able to collect unemployment. We’ve heard from people who say, ‘We have no food left and we’re down to our last $10.’”
Some of the Camp Fire survivors have needs even greater than those of people who are struggling in the Sacramento area, she added.
ChicoSol recently posted an Ethnic Media Services story explaining that millions of people in this country have received no relief, not even a stimulus check — including American citizens who have an undocumented person in their family.
NorCal Resist, a grass-roots immigrant aid organization, raised more than $100,000 to assist undocumented and asylum-seeking immigrants in the Sacramento area in recent weeks. However, the fund is almost depleted and donations are needed for the Butte County caravan.
Cash donations can be made here. Gift cards for grocery stores, Walmart, Target, or other places can be mailed to NorCal Resist, P.O. Box 188331, Sacramento, CA 95818.
The organization is not taking more requests for assistance at this time, but has about 2 dozen families in this area awaiting emergency relief. — Leslie Layton
Utility giant seeks rate increase in wake of Camp Fire
by Karen Laslo | Posted July 20, 2019
photo by Karen Laslo
“This meeting should be about breaking up PG&E and taking local control,” said protester Susan Sullivan.
Chico area residents spoke at two forums held July 18 on PG&E’s request for a rate increase, and some participated in a rally to protest the utility, which owns the electrical transmission lines that Cal Fire says caused the Camp Fire.
The forums were sponsored by the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) to take public comment on the request for a rate increase on gas and electricity that would take effect in January 2020. Several people spoke at the second forum at 6 p.m., including Camp Fire survivors, PG&E customers, and environmental and social justice advocates. All spoke against the rate increase.
The CPUC’s Christopher Chow said the Commission will most likely make its decision by the end of this year. However, if the Commission decides to grant the increase, but doesn’t do it until later in 2020, the rate increases could be made retroactive to January of 2020.
According to PG&E, the rate increases are needed for wildfire prevention and liability insurance. The utility says it would make the following allocations:
$580 million to the Community Wildfire Safety Program for fire prevention and risk reduction;
$273 million for increased insurance costs;
$205 million for gas main replacement and corrosion management.
Protester Steve Marquardt from the Sunrise Movement said that asking PG&E customers to pay more is a “gross injustice.”
“PG&E’s criminal negligence has led to the destruction of our region and the death of at least 85 people,” Marquadt told ChicoSol. “We are specifically demanding no bail out of PG&E, public and worker control of PG&E, and a Green New Deal.”
Mary Kay Benson from Butte County 350.org said the rate increases will pay for fire liabilities “resulting from PG&E violations of state code…”. In an email prior to the rally, she noted that a recently passed bill, AB 1054, also asks PG&E customers to pay for a bond issue to protect shareholders from future liability.
Karen Laslo is a freelance photographer and a frequent contributor to ChicoSol.
