Berkeleyside’s wildfire guide: Everything you need to know to prepare for and survive wildfires
Preparation advice, evacuation guidance and answers to your questions about air quality, power outages and defending your property.
Nature
Top Stories
Supervised swims in the bay are popular and safe — just don’t stare at Homer the seal
Attendance at a local company’s chaperoned Sunday swim from the Berkeley Marina has quadrupled since 2018. And while Homer might chase you, he probably won’t bite.
The shrubs across the street nearly cost him his home insurance
It’s not yet common, but in high-risk fire neighborhoods, Berkeley Hills residents may find that keeping their home insurance depends on how well their neighbors prune their property.
In brief
Red Flag Warning issued for Berkeley, East Bay Hills
The Red Flag Warning due to low humidity and windy conditions will be in place Sunday evening through Monday evening.
East Bay Regional Park District
Coyote bounty earns reproach for Berkeley man whose cat got eaten
Coyote sightings are flooding social media, though pet killings are down this year in Berkeley. Many wildlife experts agree: Coyotes will adapt, and we’ll have to learn to live with them.
Hungry deer, shrinking ponds, speeding golf balls: the drought’s toll around Berkeley
Strawberry Creek and the city’s trees are doing OK, but Lake Anza is unswimmable, turtles are getting run over by cars and wild pigs may be moving in.
As mass tree death worsens, East Bay parks get $10M for removal
About 1,500 acres of trees in the East Bay Regional Park District have been affected by a new die-off pattern that’s seen as dangerous during fire season.
Wildlife
UC Berkeley’s 3 falcon brothers now have names
The brothers are growing “contour” or “body” feathers that cover their down and make them aerodynamic in flight.
Frightful, Wek’-Wek’ and Fauci? Vote to name Berkeley’s 3 falcon chicks.
There were 650 name suggestions submitted for the three chicks born atop the Campanile. You have until Wednesday to choose your favorite.
Oh, boy! Time to name Berkeley’s 3 new falcon brothers
May 12 was banding day for the campus’s newest peregrine falcon chicks.
Recent stories
Popular Cal trail closes for wildland fire safety work, but bulk of the wildfire mitigation plan mired in lawsuits
During the six-month “Jordan Fire Trail Improvement” project, the trail will be closed, except on Sundays, according to the university.
There have been fires before at Berkeley’s Echo Lake Camp
Buildings have burned and been crushed by snow but there has never been a threat as large as the Caldor Fire.
Update: Firefighters forced to retreat from Berkeley’s Echo Lake Camp as Caldor Fire advances
“The fire has crested over the hill and is coming down towards the camp,” the city’s parks director said Monday afternoon.
Water main break briefly revived Codornices Creek
The runoff caused a milky hue due to natural sediment flowing into the streambed.
‘Lobster claws’ test questions land Crowden School principal in hot water
Teachers are quitting and parents are pulling their kids from a private Berkeley music school after the principal was fired in connection with a fill-in-the-blank vocabulary test involving crustacean jokes.
Red flag warning for Napa County could also impact East Bay hills
An air quality advisory has been issued for smoke from Northern California wildfires.
