Category Archives: Solano County CA

Benicia CA, Benicia Unified School District, Coronavirus, Covid 19, Solano County CA

Coronavirus updates from Solano County, City of Benicia and Benicia Unified School District

By Roger Straw

UPDATE: See today’s latest information

UPDATE ON FRIDAY, MARCH 15

Solano County

As of today [March 15], Solano County has 7 confirmed positive cases of the Coronavirus 2019 disease (COVID 19).   This number is updated daily at 2 pm on the website of the Solano County Department of Public Health.

Of particular interest: Solano County Fact sheet – Guidance for Vulnerable Populations at High Risk

Also: Solano County Press Releases

The City of Benicia

The City of Benicia has also published an online Coronavirus page.  Of interest: a March 11 press release from Fire Chief Josh Chadwick.  Of interest (excerpt):

…City Hall, Benicia Public Library, Benicia Community Center and Benicia Senior Center remain open and operational with appropriate measures in place to protect the health of staff and the community. In an abundance of caution, the following events are City of Benicia programs which will be postponed or canceled until further notice due to the difficulty in maintaining social distancing:

      • Wednesday, March 11: Family Reading Night for students at Robert Semple and Joe Henderson Elementary Schools
      • Wednesday, March 17: Objective Planning Standards Stakeholder meeting
      • Sunday, March 22: Ramana Vieira and Ensemble at the Library
      • Fridays: Board Game Evenings at the Library
      • Next two weeks: All Storytimes and After School Zone, due to limited space at the Library

The Benicia Unified School District

The BUSD sent the following announcement to parents this afternoon:

March 12, 2020

Dear Families,

Benicia Unified School District (BUSD) continues to monitor the COVID-19 with on-going, regular guidance and communication from Solano County Health Department (SCHD) who works directly with the Center of Disease Control (CDC), the State Department of Health (SDH) and the California Department of Education (CDE).  The health and safety of our students and staff continues to be our number one priority. At this time, BUSD has not been notified of any confirmed cases. As schools are deemed an essential service, schools will remain open unless ordered to close by The Solano County Department of Public Health. If the situation changes, BUSD will follow the COVID-19 school protocols established by the SDH in partnership with the agencies listed above regarding any further measures.

The Health Department continues to recommend and we continue to promote the following:

  • Wash hands often with soap and water for at least 20 seconds. Use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer if soap and water are not available
  • Cough into a tissue or your elbow
  • Avoid touching your eyes, nose, and mouth
  • Stay home when you are sick
  • BUSD staff are taking extra measures to deep clean buildings and classrooms each night

In addition, we are implementing social distancing protocols effective through the end of Spring break April 12, 2020, as outlined in new guidelines from SCHD. Therefore we will be:

  • Postponing all events at our facilities outside of the school day, including outside user groups
  • Postponing or canceling all field trips, fundraisers, music events, performances, enrichment activities, school assemblies, and club meetings
  • Having no classroom volunteers on campuses
  • Having no guest speakers or outside group performances
  • Having only Diablo Athletic Leagues (DAL) sanctioned supporting events and practices
  • Having no spectators, including, parents and guardians at sporting events; only those adults needed to manage the event will be allowed at the event

We are working on plans to provide a continuity of learning should the situation change or school(s) need to be closed in the future. As part of our ongoing partnership, we are asking our parents to look ahead and make contingent plans in case things change and we are forced to close schools. If your child has extenuating health circumstances, please contact your health care provider to get additional recommendations.

Please continue to refer to Solano County Public health and the CDC websites for updated information pertaining to the virus.  We will continue to provide updates as information is made available to us. Thank you for your patience and your partnership.

Sincerely,

Dr. Charles Young
Superintendent

Coronavirus, Covid 19, Solano County CA, Travis Air Force Base

Coronavirus news from Travis Air Force Base

UPDATE: See VIDEO: Quarantined Passengers Critical of Travis Air Force Base ‘Camp Corona’ and First person account of troubled quarantine at Travis Air Force Base

Travis upgrades health protocols amid Covid-19 spread off base

The Fairfield Daily Republic, By Glen Faison

TRAVIS AIR FORCE BASE — The base implemented an enhanced health alert Wednesday as a result of the new coronavirus situation in communities outside the base and said there were no confirmed cases on base.

The move by Travis officials to implement what they call Health Protection Condition Bravo follows a public health emergency declaration Feb. 27 at the base. Solano County declared a public health emergency the previous day.

“This is a moderate health alert in response to public health risks in the local community,” Tonya A. Racasner, 60th Air Mobility Wing deputy chief of public affairs, said in a prepared statement. “The decision to elevate the HPCON is independent of quarantine operations currently taking place on Travis (Air Force Base), and directly correlates to the evolving situation in the local area.”

Racasner in the statement Wednesday said the base’s action was also taken in response to “the sustained transmission of coronavirus (Covid-19) in the surrounding community.”

The move comes two weeks after a Vacaville women became the first patient-to-patient or community-spread case of Covid-19 in the country that was not attributable to travel or close exposure to someone with the disease.

She arrived Feb. 15 at NorthBay VacaValley Hospital in Vacaville with flu-like symptoms and was transferred Feb. 19 to UC Davis Medical Center in Sacramento once her condition worsened. She was tested Feb. 23 for the new coronavirus, which causes Covid-19. Test results came back positive Feb. 26.

Testing protocols at the time from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention limited who and under what conditions people could be tested for the novel coronavirus. Only a limited number of test kits were available in California at the time. The CDC has since loosened its protocols for testing and additional test kits have arrived in the state.

Travis has served as a quarantine site for several waves of U.S. residents who repatriated to the U.S. from China and Japan. Hundreds of passengers – all California residents – from the Grand Princess cruise ship have arrived this week to begin 14 days in quarantine at the Westwind Inn.

The California Office of Emergency Services announced Wednesday that up to 120 California passengers from the cruise ship will be housed at a vacant hotel in San Carlos because they are exhibiting mild symptoms that may be from the new coronavirus but do not require hospitalization. Another 24 passengers were previously sent to Asilomar State Beach and Conference Grounds in Pacific Grove, also because they were not free of symptoms.

None of those passengers have tested positive for Covid-19, Cal OES reports, but because they are symptomatic they cannot serve their 14-day quarantine at Travis Air Force Base.

A total of 149 passengers from the Grand Princess were transported Monday from the cruise ship to Travis for quarantine, Cal OES reports. Another 613 passengers arrived Tuesday at Travis for quarantine.

Racasner said in the statement Wednesday that base officials were monitoring the situation as it relates to the new coronavirus and are “closely engaged” with Solano County Public Health and CDC officials.

Practical implications of the escalation to HPCON Bravo at the base include direction for those on the base to practice social distancing and refrain from physical contact such as shaking hands, fist bumps and similar activities; and cancellation of all gatherings of 100 or more people through April 30 unless they are mission-essential as directed by a unit commander.

“While this measure may seem drastic, it will help to mitigate potential community spreading on base,” Racasner said in the statement.

Military and civilian personnel and dependents on the base are being asked to continue standard anti-virus activities such as washing hands with liquid soap and water and rubbing them for at least 20 seconds; wiping common-use items with disinfectant; covering their mouth and nose with a tissue or their sleeve (not their hands) when coughing or sneezing; staying home if they are sick; and getting a flu shot to protect themselves and others from flu, which has similar symptoms to Covid-19.

On-base child care facilities remain open, Racasner said in the statement. Officials with the Travis School District will make decisions about school operations independent of the base’s actions.

Anyone who develops flu-like symptoms with fever and cough or shortness of breath and may have had contact with a person who has Covid-19 or had recent travel to countries considered high-risk are asked to contact their health care provider before seeking medical care to prevent possible transmission in the health care setting.

People who are normally seen at David Grant Medical Center are asked to first call the TRICARE nurse advice line at 1-800-874-2273 or the David Grant Medical Center appointment line at 707-423-3000 prior to coming to the hospital.

“This is an emerging, rapidly evolving situation,” Racasner said in the statement. “We will continue to partner with local agencies to ensure the safety and welfare of our force and families.”

More information

Benicia CA, Local elections, Solano County Board of Supervisors, Solano County CA

Benicia and Vallejo – Solano County Supervisor Candidates’ Forums and Links

Find out about Solano County Supervisor candidates – Vote on March 3!

” All Vallejo Candidates” Forum
Wednesday, Feb. 5, 7pm
Anchor Center
355 Georgia Street, Vallejo

Solano County Board of Supervisor Candidates’ Forum for candidates from Districts 1 AND District 2.  Candidates attending:

Co-sponsored by League of Women Voters of Solano County and the Vallejo Alumnae Chapter of the Delta Sigma Theta Sorority.

[…previously…] Candidates’ Forum
Wednesday January 29, 7pm
The Benicia Library
250 East L Street, Benicia

Come hear from District 2 County Supervisor candidates:

…,at the 7pm forum Wednesday night at the Benicia Library. Co-sponsored by the League of Women Voters Solano County and the Vallejo-Benicia AAUW.

 

Benicia CA, Climate emergency, Solano County CA

Benicia and Solano County should declare climate emergency

[Editor: UPDATE ON 11 Sept – Benicia Mayor Elizabeth Patterson petitioned her colleagues on the City Council to adopt a Climate Emergency Resolution.  The first step was on Tuesday, September 3, when Council considered whether to approve adding a discussion on this to a future agenda.  The Council chose to schedule a public WORKSHOP on the issue instead, date to be announced.  BACKGROUND: see City Council Agenda, 9/3/2019.  See the Mayor’s attachment Draft Climate Emergency Resolution(based on a resolution adopted by the City of Santa Cruz).
…FROM 27 AUG – the following article serves as a call to action for Benicia and Solano County, indeed for EVERY community.  I challenge our local and County elected officials and staff to immediately set aside time to formulate and pass the necessary ordinances to commit to the goals outlined here by Santa Clara Supervisor Cortese.  “Business as usual” must take a back seat to the crisis that is our climate emergency.  – R.S.]

Why Santa Clara County should declare a climate emergency — A bold commitment would serve as a model for other communities

Mercury News, By Santa Clara County Supervisor Dave Cortese, August 27, 2019
Santa Clara County Supervisor Dave Cortese is pushing the county to serve as a model for other communities in the fight against climate change. (Nhat V. Meyer/Bay Area News Group)

Our county, our country and our world are in the midst of an existential crisis.

In dire times, times that require our immediate attention and action, Santa Clara County has always been a leader. The crusade against climate change is no different.

The County Climate Coalition, a project spearheaded by my office in partnership with Al Gore’s Climate Reality Project, affirmed the county’s commitment to emission reductions deadlines and called on counties across the nation to achieve 100 percent renewable energy and commit to the goals set forth in the United Nations’ Paris Climate Agreement — an agreement that our science-denying presidential administration withdrew from in 2017.

At the center of this agreement is the ambitious, yet achievable, goal of preventing global temperatures from rising more than 2.7 degrees Fahrenheit by 2100.

Surpassing the climate-reduction goals enacted by California last year, the county is on track to achieve 100 percent renewable electricity for county operations by the end of this year and will be 100 percent carbon-neutral by 2045.

We have stayed on the forefront of the battle against climate change not only because we sit on the San Francisco Bay Area and have much to lose but also because we have the brightest minds in the world leveraging investment capital, research, incentives and regulatory powers. The ardent support and partnerships we have made with grassroots environmental activists have pushed us toward bold action and concrete climate solutions.

Thanks to the support of environmental groups, business associations, labor unions, public health organizations and other community groups, the county has been able to pass aggressive sustainability policies and take bold action to quickly and safely draw down carbon from the atmosphere.

These actions have included pledging that 100 percent of our electrical power originates from clean renewable sources, that our public vehicles are electric, hybrid-electric or run on alternative fuel, that county buildings are LEED certified and energy efficient, that 100 percent of county waste is diverted from landfills and then converted to energy, and vowing to employ 20,000 blue- and white-collar “clean and green workforce” trainees regionally and in the county. This confluence of bright minds and bold activism has made it possible for us to push forth policies that are essential to sustaining human life and dignity.

At our Tuesday meeting, I will call on my colleagues on the Board of Supervisors to continue our county’s history of ambitious climate action by voting in favor of a resolution to declare a countywide climate emergency: a partnership with local and global advocates demanding political collaboration and the immediate mobilization of resources at the county, state and worldwide level to combat this environmental crisis.

Our planet, our livelihoods and the livelihoods of generations to come are at stake. A declaration of a climate emergency is not only a commitment to transitioning away from greenhouse gasses, it also sets a powerful example for other communities and calls upon them to join our emergency mobilization effort.

We are at an important junction in our history where folks from all walks of life are uniting behind a global mission to restore the climate for future generations. It is imperative we, as a county, accomplish this goal for the health and well-being not only of our own community but also communities around the world.

Dave Cortese represents District 3 on the Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors.