How the Timber Fire Is Impacting Business in Big Sur, More Young People Are Choosing Skilled Trades Over College

from KQED. Support for KQED podcasts comes from Star 1 Credit Union. Give your savings account the love it deserves. When you keep your money with Star 1, you keep more of your money. Star 1 credit union in your best interest. Minions don't wait, especially for Wi-Fi. Summons Same Day Wi-Fi from Xfinity and get the same price for five years and seen minions and monsters only in theaters. Xfinity. Imagine that. Restrictions apply not available in all areas. Learn more at Xfinity.com slash same-day Wi-Fi. Plan B is a backup birth control option that's there for you when things don't go according to plan. It specifically works after unprotected sex and before pregnancy occurs by temporarily delaying ovulation. Plan B is available nationwide at all major retailers and through delivery apps like DoorDash. No ID, prescription or age requirement. It's the number one OBGYN-YN recommended brand of emergency contraception, and it won't impact your future fertility. That's Freedom to Be. Use us directed. From KQED, this is the latest, a podcast that updates throughout the day, bringing you local news when you want it. I'm Dana Cronin. It's Thursday, August 13th. Here are this hour's headlines from the KQED Newsroom. ED News. I'm Natalia Navarro. A newly formed street vendors collective today urged the city of Oakland to provide more resources and help with permits. That's after what they described as instances of intimidation from city workers. Members of the Oakland Street Venter Collective say city staff have damaged and thrown away vendors' goods in multiple sweeps over the last year. David Jim Himes is a sole food vendor who works at Lake Friedrich Merz. He said he was forced to shut down his his stand at one point due to delays in the permitting process caused by the city. The bureaucracy and the politics shouldn't have to be the way they are. We should be able to change this. It's the way they work with us. I mean, we're not the side show. We're just selling chicken. City spokesperson Sean Péter Magyar says that the city understands the process for permit approvals is challenging and is prioritizing education and outreach before enforcement. The Sheriff's Deputies Union in Sonoma County has been fined $11,000 for failing to disclose political spending. KQED's Gabe Maline reports. The fine comes from the Fair Political Practices Commission. It found that the Sonoma County Sheriff's Deputies Association failed to disclose its sponsorship of a 2020 campaign against expanded oversight of the Sheriff's Department. The deputies also failed to report certain expenses and contributions in a timely manner. In a statement, the union took responsibility for the errors. Sebastopol resident Robert Edmonds, who filed the complaint, says the fine is too small. I think it is really a slap on the wrist. I mean, I think the amount of money that it represents for the harm that it caused is not nearly enough. Measure P was ultimately approved by two-thirds of Sonoma County voters. I'm Gabe Maline, KQED News.

New research from UCSF reflects a sea change in how doctors care for low-risk prostate cancers at the VA with more taking an active surveillance approach instead of defaulting to invasive treatments. KQED's health correspondent, April Dembski, has more. Historically, low-risk prostate cancers were treated aggressively with surgery and radiation. This often led to devastating side effects like incontinence and erectile dysfunction. Urologist Matt Cooperberg says many of these men were over-diagnosed and overtreated. Meaning, men would go on to surgery, radiation therapy, other treatments that they did not need, that did not extend their life, and only threatened their quality of life. Cooperberg's research shows the tide has shifted in the last 20 years, especially at the VA. Now, 93% of low-risk prostate cancers are monitored with blood tests and checkups. I'm April Demboski, KQED News. Oakland police accountability advocates say newly released body camera footage of a fatal shooting contradicts earlier police statements. KQED's Juan Carlos Lara reports. Hours after police killed Jose Angel Castillo last month, Chief James Beer spoke to gathered media. The officers attempted to de-escalates situation by giving commands. The subject refused, at which point the subject attacked the officers. causing the officers to use less lethal and lethal force. The footage released this week shows the shooting occurred less than 10 minutes after California Highway Patrol officers approached Castillo at a homeless encampment along Highway 185. Castillo can be seen holding two poles with knives attached to the ends while he walks away from police who repeatedly order him to drop the weapons. Police fired tasers and Castillo began to swing one of the makeshift spears at the officers who stood about two parking spaces away. Two officers immediately fired about seven shots. Castillo fell on his face and then an officer fired again. Kat Brooks is head of the Anti-Police Terror Project. She says chasing Castillo while shouting is not de-escalation and describing his actions as an attack is inaccurate. He swung it, but he was nowhere within arms reach to them. He swung it. I'm guessing in his escalated mental health state. They could have backed up. They could have backed up. Brooks says the incident highlights the need for more mental health professionals and improved de-escalation tactics. Police have previously said Castillo was a risk to nearby civilians. The Oakland Police Department declined to comment. I'm Juan Carlos Lada. KQED News. More news online at kQED.org. I'm Natalia Navarro.

Here's a deeper dive into the local stories we've been following. The timber fire has been burning in Big Sur for nearly a week, destroying thousands of acres and has led to evacuations. It's 7% contained and has forced many local businesses and tourist destinations to close during one of the busiest seasons. KQED's Katie de Benadetti reports. Meredith Gaffell has lived near Loma Vista in Big Sur for more than three decades. Everything about Big Sur is abundance. plants, the rain, that's why it's so beautiful. That's why people love it so much. And it also comes with a huge price tag. Her family runs Nepenthe, a popular restaurant with panoramic views of the Pacific Ocean. Many of the restaurant's employees live in staff housing in the area. They had to evacuate Sunday night as the timber fire spread along Highway 1. You could see the smoke from the patio at Nepenthe pretty clearly and later that night some flames. She says her son was working there and shared photos of the fire with her. She was in Monterey at the time, but has dealt with evacuations of the restaurant before. I've gone to bed and... Looked off my back deck and thought, how do you go to sleep when there's a fire behind your house? Big Sur has weathered a series of major wildfires just in the last 20 years. Collectively, they've burned hundreds of thousands of acres and disrupted the area's tourism economy. For example, the basin complex fire in 2008 resulted in more than $10 million in tourism-related losses. Now, the timber fire is threatening many of the same businesses. And Caltrans is asking people to stay off Highway 1, the main road through Big Sur. That's complicating tourist attractions underway, like the annual Car Week in Monterey. The event includes 10 days of car shows, sales, and auctions, and draws more than 100,000 visitors. It's a beautiful drive. That's why people come up Highway 1. It's part of the experience of Car Week. George Krieger of Seaside has been going to Car Week for decades. He says many people coming up the coast from Southern California take this scenic route through Big Sur. During normal times, that's amazing. It gives Big Sur great business. The timber fires economic impact won't be known for a while. But in the past, a single car week has generated more than $130 million for Monterey County. I'm Katie Devanedetti, KQED News.

From fire to potentially heavy rains. Federal scientists now say it's very likely that a strong El Nino will continue through the end of this year. The natural phenomenon is pushing a massive stretch of warm water toward the Bay Area and climate scientists worry that this process could trigger monumental flooding later this year. KQED climate reporter Ezra David Romero explains. Derek Bentley is practicing karate on new blue mats in his San Rafael studio. His business is just yards from a marina connected to San Francisco Bay. The building flooded through seams in the foundation during a January storm stacked on top of a king tide. We were closed for about a week after the flood, and then we opened, but we had air dryers and some of the mats were still wet. Some of the old dirty mats are still stacked in a corner. Took a little bit of a credit card to it, but we got some new mats finally. We're slowly rebuilding. He fears that a very strong El Nino will raise water levels and steer storms toward the Bay Area. What's your worst man there? That this place goes completely underwater. Climate scientists warn the effects of El Nino could result in unprecedented flooding around the region. Warm water expanding could contribute several inches of temporary sea level rise. Plus, a slow-moving pulse of water known as Kelvin waves could cause a rise of up to nine inches or more over days or weeks. Daniel Swain is a UC system climate scientist. We could see potential for record-breaking water levels in some areas. Add natural king tides, which will be among the highest on record in December, Changes in pressure and storm surge, and Swain says some places could experience as much as five to six feet of temporary inundation above historical high tide levels at times. Anything that's tidily influenced will be affected. You're also generally going to see that all the way inland into the Delta to Stockton. The high water has already begun and is about six inches above normal at the tide gauge near the Golden Gate Bridge. Sean Batusik is a research oceanographer at the U.S. Geological Survey. And that's partially because of El Nino, and they will probably get larger in the winter as you get more of the storm surge effects. To find out how cities are preparing, I checked in with officials across the region. Up north, San Rafael is coordinating with critical agencies to enable quick road closures. Kate Hageman is the city's climate adaptation resilience planner. That unfortunately doesn't reduce the risk that those road flood or those facilities are impassioned. Travel south to the island city of Alameda and officials are beginning to service pumps, clear out storm drains, and prepare barricades. Aaron Smith is a city's public works director. We have a vacuum truck that's able to quickly dislodge material that may be preventing the stormwater from flowing. Head west to San Francisco and officials are planning similar steps along a stretch of seven and a half miles of shoreline. Cruise will prepare sandbags, staged pumps, and planned traffic detours.

Brad Guy Benson is with the port of San Francisco. The king tides and these El Nino events are a glimpse into the future. Some of these areas, we have very important assets. He's referring to Muni in public spaces like the ferry building. If you drive west until you reach the Golden Gate Bridge, you'll find the Pacific Ocean forcing waves into San Francisco Bay. Christina Hill and I chatted near Fort Point with the view of San Francisco's seawall, beaches, and skyscrapers. Hill studies sea level rise at UC Berkeley and thinks the temporary high water line could expose weaknesses in the Bay Area's human-made barriers meant to keep water out. We've been trying to fill the cracks in the bathtub by putting out little informal levees and then occasionally a very big project like the San Francisco seawall. Hill says flooding this winter could show decision makers that it's time to think about long-range solutions differently. And the things we've done in the past to prevent coastal flooding won't work when that water doesn't go back down again. And she says higher water levels are predicted to become an everyday reality in just a couple decades. I'm Ezra David Romero, KQED News. The latest will be back after this quick break. Plan B is a backup birth control option that's there for you when things don't go according to plan. It specifically works after unprotected sex and before pregnancy occurs by temporarily delaying ovulation. Plan B is available nationwide at all major retailers and through delivery apps like DoorDash. No ID, prescription, or age requirement. It's the number one OBGYN recommended brand of emergency contraception and it won't impact your future fertility. That's Freedom to be. Use us directed. Support for KQED comes from Genentech, the original biotech company. For 50 years, Genentec has pioneered more than 40 scientific breakthroughs across various diseases, bringing greater hope to patients everywhere. Learn more at gene.com. That's g-e-ne.com. We're back with the latest. Now, here's a look at the top news and culture stories from around the Golden State. This is the California report. I'm Alex Hall in San Francisco. A new poll shows Democratic candidate Xavier Becerra with a comfortable lead over his Republican rival in California's governor's race. KQED politics correspondent Marisa Lagos reports. The poll from UC Berkeley shows that Xavier Becerra, a former health and human services secretary, holds an 18-point lead over a Republican businessman Steve Hilton. Poll director, Mark D. Camillo. I would say it's... shaping up to be a pretty traditional Democrat versus Republican general election matchup. He says nearly 90% of Democrats are backing Xavier Becerra while around the same share of Republicans are behind Hilton. But Democrats outnumbered GOP voters nearly two to one. Unfortunately, for Republicans and for Hilton, there's not enough of them. The survey's findings track with trends in recent statewide races where Democrats regularly beat Republicans by double digits. For the California report, I'm Marisa Lagos.

Forecasters say fire activity could pick up this week due to dry lightning around the state. And there could be more to come into next week. Big Sur could see some additional starts due to lightning, the eastern Sierra, the Tahoe Reno area, and some parts of Southern California are also affected. Looking into the weekend, forecast show there could also be widespread dry lightning over northwestern California into Oregon and Washington. The state's largest producer of oil, California Resources Corporation, has agreed to purchase a critical pipeline in the state that has been closed for months. The San Pablo Bay pipeline, which carries petroleum from Kern County's oil fields all the way to Martinez, stopped operating in December. John Cox is a reporter with the Bakersfield Californian who's been covering this. He says the deal is seen as a potential lifeline for Kern County oil producers. If the deal goes through, it could be a big help to especially the smaller producers here at the southern end of the Central Valley because they just don't have too many buyers that they can go to anymore. This is partly because there's been trouble in California refining. The state is even looking to import more refined fuels. The California Public Utilities Commission is set to vote on whether to allow the purchase today. For many young people, the default blueprint for life after high school is clear, go to college and then get a job. But with soaring tuition in an uncertain job market, that calculus isn't adding up like it used to. As KCRW's Megan Jamerson reports, today, more young people are considering the skilled trades. From high school to community college to apprenticeships, more people are learning to weld, install electrical equipment, and run X-ray machines. Welcome to the machine shop. We are a traditional metal fabrication program. I met 17-year-old Carson Pacanzo and Aidan Hernandez on the shop floor at Pasadena City College. They're part of a summer program for high school students interested in the traits. What are you, doing? We're making a hammer. We're making a hammer. We're making like the top screw right now. Hernandez is a rising senior thinking a lot about his post-graduation plans. Really, I'm just worried about not getting paid enough. to live in California. His mom thinks the answer is college, which is still what 60% of high school graduates do. But Hernandez is eyeing a career as an electrician. His mom doesn't let this. She thinks like I'm going to get tired of it. Like my body's going to give out before like I can retire. Hernandez says taking on physical labor feels like a far safer bet than taking on massive debt. Besides, what's the return on investment on a degree in the age of artificial? intelligence. According to a recent Harvard youth poll, nearly two-thirds of young adults see AI as a threat to job prospects. But an AI app can't install an air conditioning unit or plumb a building yet. So high school senior Jasmine Chong is taking a welding course at Pasadena City College as a backup to an accounting career. Like in the future, if those jobs aren't available, I'll definitely pursue welding.

Across the country, enrollment at public two-year colleges that focus on vocational and trade programs is up by 20% since 2020. That's according to student clearinghouse, which tracks this data. Local campuses, like L.A. Trade Tech, tell me they have weightless every single semester. And the promise of a lasting career is also triggering a rush for union apprenticeships. When the Electrical Training Institute and Commerce opened its most recent application window, it hit its cap of 2,000 in two hours. So far this year, they've brought in 350 apprentices. This isn't for everybody, right? This is early mornings. This is lots of driving. This is hard physical labor, right? David Knott is the training director at the Institute, which supports the local electricians union. He says when apprentices finished the five-year program, they'll be journeymen, debt-free and making about $120,000 a year plus a pension. They can enjoy a nice middle-class life, you know, raise a family, go on vacations, and have a retirement ready for them. 38-year-old Kareem Crawford is a third-year apprentice. He says the program has been life-changing after years of working in retail. Now he feels confident he'll be able to support his two young kids. Plus, there's a sense of pride in the work. This is exciting seeing lights come on, seeing, you know, wiring up receptacles and stuff, you know, hammer your tool, your tool belt on every day, getting up in the morning knowing that you're doing something with purpose. There are a lot of union electrician jobs right now, including Olympic prep and LAX expansions. Second-year apprentice Patrick Gabblitch says there's a real sense of job security. Because there's no way AI is going to go and climb 30-foot scaffold and go install some conduit or wire up a panel. The trend toward the trades could only accelerate. The Bureau of Labor Statistics estimates and need for more plumbers and electricians amid an aging workforce. Also, the AI boom means tech companies are investing millions of dollars in training the next generation of workers. Here's David Knott again. So they see very clearly that... They are going to be building data centers for the next five to ten years, if not longer. And they know they need a workforce to do that. And, of course, the faster they're built, the faster they start making their money, right? But even when those construction jobs go away, Nott says there will always be something that needs repairing in a place like L.A. For the California report, I'm Megan Jamerson. And that's the California report for Thursday, August 13th. We're a production of KQED News. I'm Alex Hall. Thanks for listening and have a great day. That's the latest from KQED, but remember we're updating throughout the day, so come back anytime. The latest is powered by the newsroom at member-supported KQED in San Francisco and is made by me, Dana Kronin, Srishti Prabha, and Bianca Taylor, with support from Jen Chien, Ted Goldberg, Keith Miziguchi, and Katie Springer. Some members of the KQED podcast team are represented by the Screen Actors Guild, American Federation of Television,

and radio artists, San Francisco Northern California Local. Thanks for listening. Support for KQED podcast comes from San Francisco Opera. This fall, dive into a world of political intrigue with Simone Bocanegra and Mary Queen of Scots. Discover a life of Parisian luxury in Monon and laugh along with the marriage of Figaro. Learn more at sphopra.com. Minions don't wait, especially for Wi-Fi. Summends Same-Day Wi-Fi from Xfinity and get the same price for five years. And seeing minions and monsters only in theaters. Exfinity. Imagine that. Restrictions apply not available in all areas. Learn more at Xfinity.com slash same-day Wi-Fi.