Authorities urged residents with flooded homes to remain alert and follow certain recommendations, which have been expanded for the safety of residents, following the storms recorded over the New Year's weekend throughout the Bay Area, which caused severe flooding in various areas, landslides, rising rivers and falling trees, among others.
"As our community deals with the impacts of flooding on homes and property, the San Mateo County Health Department urges residents to take precautions to protect themselves and their families," the county said in a statement.
Floodwater can contain untreated sewage, animal waste, toxic substances, chemical compounds, fungi, bacteria and other harmful materials, he said. Storm debris and the effects of power outages can present additional hazards.
Expanded Health and Safety Guidelines
Wear boots and gloves when working in areas that have been flooded.
Make sure the main electrical switch is off before entering a flooded structure. Do not turn it back on until you are sure there has been no damage to any wires or appliances connected to the electrical system.
If you smell gas or suspect a gas leak, call 911. Then call PG&E at (800) 743-5000. Warn your neighbors of the potential problem.
Wash your hands frequently and thoroughly. If you have children who have been in contact with water, make sure they wash their hands too.
Keep children and pets away from floodwaters and avoid outdoor areas that have recently flooded. Remove shoes and wipe paws before returning indoors.
If you have open wounds or sores, protect them from water. Keep them clean by washing them with soap and applying antibiotic ointment to prevent infection. If a wound becomes red, swollen, or oozing, seek medical attention immediately.
If you swallow flood water, you should consult a doctor immediately due to the risk of hepatitis A infection.
If you are unsure of the quality of your drinking water, use bottled water. Check with your local water provider for any boil water orders. If you have a domestic well, it may require disinfection if it was affected by flooding. See guidelines here: smchealth.org/welluse
Do not allow children to play with toys that have been in contact with flood water until the toys have been disinfected. You can disinfect toys with a solution of 1/4 cup bleach in one gallon of water.
For general surface disinfection, use a cloth soaked with 1 tablespoon of bleach in one gallon of water.
Contact your local sewer authority if you see solid waste coming from your sewage.
Contact your insurance company for additional guidance if your home suffered water damage.
Do not eat any food that may have come into contact with flood water. Throw away any food that is not stored in a waterproof container if there is a chance it may have come into contact with flood water.
Commercially canned foods that are not spoiled can be saved if you remove the labels from the cans, wash them thoroughly, and then sanitize them with a solution consisting of ¼ cup bleach in one gallon of water.
Food containers with screw-on lids, snap-on lids, crimp-on lids (soda bottles), twist-on lids, flip-top lids, push-open lids, and home-canned foods should be thrown away if they have come into contact with flood water because they cannot be sanitized.
If there was no power, throw away all discolored or bad-smelling food, especially meat, poultry, and fish in the refrigerator.
Frozen food can last 48 to 72 hours if the freezer is full and the door is closed. When in doubt, throw it out.
Thawed food is usually safe to eat if it is still “refrigerator” cold or can be refrozen if it still contains ice crystals. Discard any food that has been at room temperature for two (2) hours or more and any food that has an unusual odor, color or texture.
Discard fruits and vegetables that have been in contact with flood waters.
Upholstered clothing and furniture
Wash all clothing, bedding and sheets in hot water or dry clean.
For mattresses and upholstered furniture that cannot be dry cleaned or washed, dry them in the sun and spray them thoroughly with a disinfectant such as Lysol.
buildings and structures
Clean walls, hard-surface floors, and other surfaces with soap and water. Disinfect with a solution of 1/4 cup bleach added to one gallon of water. Take special care to disinfect areas where food is stored or prepared, such as countertops, pantry shelves, refrigerator walls, and shelves.
Prevent outside water from coming back into your home. Rainwater from gutters or the roof should drain away from the house; the ground around the house should slope away from the house to keep basements and crawl spaces dry.
Ensure crawl spaces and spaces beneath dwelling units have adequate drainage to limit standing water. Ventilate to allow the area to dry out.
Use fans and dehumidifiers to remove excess moisture. Fans should be placed in a window or door to blow air out rather than in, so as not to spread mold.
Thoroughly wash and sanitize all dishes, utensils, and food preparation equipment.
Steam clean any carpet that can be salvaged.
Careless cleaning can do more harm than good by spreading mold and bacteria that can grow on damp materials to other areas of the building and to heating and ventilation systems.
Contact your insurance company for additional guidance if your home suffered water damage.
A strong storm system has put the entire Bay Area under a flood watch starting Wednesday that is expected to be as bad or worse than Saturday's deluge, with possible life-threatening events, according to a forecast update from the National Weather Service.
The update issued Monday afternoon includes five key points, with the first noting a “likely threat to life during this storm.” Mudslides are anticipated due to soil saturation, and rapidly rising creeks will present additional hazards.
“Simply put, this will likely be one of the most impactful large-scale systems this meteorologist has seen in a long time. Impacts will include widespread flooding, washed out roads, collapsed hillsides, downed trees, widespread power outages, immediate disruption of commerce, and worst of all, likely loss of life. This is truly a brutal system we are watching and needs to be taken seriously,” one meteorologist noted of the forecast for the upcoming storm.
The forecast includes an updated threat matrix that categorizes “extreme risk” for conditions expected Wednesday and Thursday, including increased wind gusts, a flood watch that now includes the entire Bay Area, and an additional forecast Friday through Sunday following the big storm for about 1 to 2 inches of rain in most areas.
Wednesday morning into Thursday will be the worst of the storm, with heavy rain and strong winds with gusts of 35 to 55 mph in most areas, and stronger winds at higher elevations.
A flood watch will be in effect from Wednesday morning through Thursday afternoon, with rainfall amounts of 2 to 4 inches expected in valleys, 3 to 6 inches on foothills, and 8 to 10 inches in coastal mountains.
The updated forecast includes higher rainfall totals for several areas than the previous forecast issued on Sunday:
San Rafael (4-6 inches, 3-4 inches);
San Jose (2 to 3 inches, 1.5 to 2 inches);
Livermore (2-3 inches, instead of 1.5-2 inches);
Stockton (2-3 inches, instead of 1.5-2 inches); and
Hollister (2-3 inches, instead of 1.5-2 inches).
Two areas on the coast south of San Francisco may see slightly less rain than the first forecast. However, the revised forecast is for 2 to 3 inches of rain in Half Moon Bay, down from 3 to 4 inches, and 3 to 4 inches in Santa Cruz instead of 4 to 6 inches in the previous forecast.
Notably, little to no rain is expected for the region on Tuesday and represents the last chance to clear Saturday's storm before the next one arrives, forecasters said.
Sunday's dry spell helped the Bay Area briefly recover from a powerful storm over New Year's weekend, but a Pineapple Express — a term meteorologists use to describe a flow of moisture from areas just north of Hawaii directly into the Pacific Northwest that is typically accompanied by heavy rain — is on its way to the area and will generate a midweek storm in the Bay Area, forecasters said Monday.
Clean-up efforts to rescue flooded basements and clear mudslides from roads will therefore be halted by the storm, which is expected to hit late Tuesday and into the early hours of Wednesday.
Soils already saturated by last weekend's downpours will only intensify the impacts of the new storm, which this time will be accompanied by strong winds, the National Weather Service for San Francisco and the Bay Area said.
The latest system could bring a repeat of recent flooding and the National Weather Service is urging residents to prepare for rising creeks, falling trees, mudslides and power outages.
Most areas will see light rain starting Monday afternoon and evening, setting the stage for the big storm, according to the National Weather Service.
The showers will be more intense from Wednesday afternoon until early Thursday morning and will be accompanied by strong winds. Scattered showers are expected to continue from Thursday until early Friday morning.
The weather service said totals as of Tuesday night are expected to reach between 4.5 and 6.5 inches in the Santa Lucia Mountains and Big Sur coast.
The coastal mountains in the North Bay are forecast to see 4.5 to 6.5 inches, and the Santa Cruz Mountains and northern Monterey Bay will see 3.5 to 6 inches.
The inland North Bay is expected to get 2.75 to 5 inches. San Francisco, along with the East Bay and South Bay areas, are forecast to get 1.5 to 3 inches.
Southern and eastern Monterey Bay is expected to see 2 to 3 inches and the Salinas Valley/San Benito County area 1.5 to 3 inches.
During the latest storm, San Francisco had its second-wettest day on record, when the city received 5.46 inches of rain on Dec. 31, just shy of the all-time record of 5.54 inches of rain set on Nov. 5, 1994, according to Jan Null, a certified meteorologist with Golden Gate Weather Services.
That brought San Francisco's December total to 11.60 inches, the wettest December 15 on record for the city, which has held a rainfall record since 1849.
San Jose is the No. 1 metropolitan area for immigrants in the US looking for a better life.
That’s according to a study released this month by the George W. Bush Institute that shows immigrants thrive in tech hubs. San Jose is classified as a fast-growing suburban area within a large metropolitan region that draws immigrants from across the country. The study defines the San Jose metropolitan area as San Jose, Santa Clara and Sunnyvale.
The report examines immigrant satisfaction based on factors such as median household income, housing status and language proficiency. It used data from the U.S. Census Bureau’s 2020 American Community Survey and looked at the country’s 100 largest metropolitan areas.
NAACP San Jose-Silicon Valley President Bob Nunez said San Jose's appeal goes beyond the tech industry. He said immigrants are drawn to the area for a high-quality education for their children, as well as economic and job opportunities.
“It’s a desire to be able to dictate your own destiny,” Nunez told San Jose Spotlight.
The Baltimore metropolitan area ranks second and the San Francisco metropolitan area, which includes San Francisco, Oakland and Berkeley, ranks third in terms of immigrant well-being.
The study finds that San Jose also ranks first among the nation's largest metropolitan areas for median foreign-born household income at $136,154. San Francisco ranks second, with a median foreign-born household income of $102,953.
Dennis King, executive director of the Silicon Valley Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, said a diverse community is an underrated factor and another draw for immigrants seeking guidance.
“Most immigrants in our community have essentially returned home to an infrastructure that was presented to them, either from people in their nation or from their communities,” King told San Jose Spotlight. “There are infrastructures created, both formally and informally, between a number of different service organizations, but also between people themselves.”
The study shows that San Jose is the top metropolitan area for foreign-born Asian immigrants, a group that makes up 24.5 percent of the overall population according to 2020 data.
San Jose ranks 17th among foreign-born Hispanic immigrants, who make up 8.4 percent of the overall population.
Overall, immigrants make up 39.1 percent of the area's population, more than 770,000 residents, a figure surpassed only by Miami.
The study doesn’t tell the whole story, Nunez said. Immigrant families flocking to San Jose face the same high costs as everyone else, she said, and families of color are displaced in the process.
The report shows that San Jose still ranks first nationally in terms of living standards for immigrant residents, even when the median income of foreign-born households takes into account living and housing costs.
Yet the wealth gap persists: Data from the 2022 Silicon Valley Pain Index revealed that about 11 percent of Latino residents live in poverty and saw an average drop of $404 in annual income last year. Residents say the minimum wage increases too little each year as San Jose, with the worst housing shortage in the nation, remains one of the most expensive areas to rent.
"People are leaving California, not just the Bay Area, because they find it difficult to maintain their standard of living here," Nunez said.
San Jose Chamber of Commerce CEO Derrick Seaver stressed that immigrants moving to San Jose face the same cost of living and affordable housing challenges as others in the region. He said those issues are further exacerbated by recent supply chain disruptions.
“Immigrant residents of our region have not been immune to these challenges,” he added.
Even with those setbacks, Seaver said San Jose still offers great opportunities for immigrants, including the ability to start small businesses. The study finds that long-term impacts of a large immigrant population include more startups, universities and cultural markers, such as food culture.
“Nearly every economic sector in this area has profound contributions from the immigrant community,” Seaver explained to San Jose Spotlight. “Many small, medium and large businesses in our area were founded by immigrants who used entrepreneurship as a path to economic mobility.”
Joint Venture Silicon Valley CEO Russell Hancock said Silicon Valley's tech industry draws residents from across the country, supporting both tech workers and food and cleaning workers at tech companies. Joint Venture is a research group on economics and quality of life.
“This is a very productive economy,” Hancock explained. “Technology is a huge ecosystem in itself, and it has a lot of room for… hundreds or even thousands of different roles.”
Los ingresos del condado de San Mateo, en todo el gobierno, aumentaron en 22 millones de dólares durante el año fiscal 2021-22, de acuerdo con el Informe Financiero Integral Anual, al tiempo que los gastos disminuyeron en 192 millones de dólares, principalmente debido a una reducción en los egresos relacionados con la COVID-19 por 156 millones de dólares.
El Informe Financiero Integral Anual ‒ACFR, por sus siglas en inglés‒ incluye los estados financieros auditados de las operaciones del condado durante el último año fiscal, y precisa que los ingresos del condado aumentaron un 1 por ciento, llegando a dos mil 49 mil millones de dólares, mientras que los gastos cayeron un 9 por ciento a mil 99 mil millones.
Y es que, los costos relacionados con COVID-19 del año pasado ‒año fiscal 2020-21‒ fueron más altos que los de este año porque incluyeron, entre otros gastos, costos de adquisición de hoteles/edificios de viviendas, mano de obra y el programa Great Plates que proporcionó comidas colectivas a los residentes necesitados.
«Es importante para nosotros brindar información transparente y útil sobre las actividades financieras del Condado a los contribuyentes y residentes. Estos dos informes anuales nos ayudan a hacer eso», señaló el contralor Juan Raigoza.
El ACFR detallado de más de 200 páginas, que ya está disponible al público en general, incluye, además de los estados financieros auditados, una carta que resume las políticas financieras clave del condado, las perspectivas económicas y financieras y la planificación financiera a largo plazo, entre otros análisis, notas e información estadística requeridos.
El informe Financial Highlights de 16 páginas, incluye estados financieros resumidos, gráficos de tendencias de varios años, gráficos circulares, glosarios de términos financieros y proporciona breves explicaciones sobre las actividades financieras del condado.
Raigoza dijo que los residentes pueden estar seguros de que los informes financieros anuales del Condado están completos y cumplen con los requisitos de informes financieros, ya que constantemente obtienen un Certificado de Logro por Excelencia en Informes Financieros de la Asociación de Oficiales de Finanzas Gubernamentales de los Estados Unidos y Canadá ‒GFOA‒.
El ACFR del condado, los puntos destacados financieros (PAFR), los puntos destacados del impuesto a la propiedad y otros informes están disponibles en https://controller.smcgov.org/.
San Mateo County Health Officer Dr. Scott Morrow warned residents Sunday that floodwaters pose health and safety risks for those returning to flooded areas in San Mateo. In response, officials have issued some recommendations for those returning to those areas.
"Flood water can contain all sorts of hazardous materials and it's obviously best to avoid any contact with water," Dr. Morrow said.
She also warned that “raw sewage, animal waste, toxic substances, chemicals, fungi, bacteria – things you would rather avoid – can be in the water and you should take precautions to prevent illness or injury.”
Among the guidelines the county health officer has issued are:
Wear boots and gloves when working in flooded areas.
Make sure the main electrical switch is off before entering a flooded structure. Do not turn it back on until you are sure there has been no damage to any wires or appliances connected to the electrical system.
If you smell gas or suspect a gas leak, call 911. Then call PG&E at (800) 743-5000. Warn your neighbors of the potential problem.
Wash your hands frequently and thoroughly. If you have children who have been in contact with water, make sure they wash their hands too.
Keep children and pets away from floodwaters and avoid outdoor areas that have recently flooded. Remove shoes and wipe paws before returning indoors.
If you have open wounds or sores, protect them from water. Keep them clean by washing them with soap and applying antibiotic ointment to prevent infection. If a wound becomes red, swollen, or oozing, seek medical attention immediately.
If you swallow flood water, you should see a doctor immediately because of the risk of hepatitis A infection. “While the hepatitis A virus will not pass through the skin, it does pose a threat to those who consume flood water. Your doctor will determine if you should receive an immune globulin injection to prevent infection,” Morrow said.
If you are unsure of the quality of your drinking water, use bottled water. Check with your local water provider for any boil water orders. If you have a domestic well, it may require disinfection if it was affected by flooding. See guidelines here: smchealth.org/welluse.
Do not allow children to play with toys that have been in contact with flood water until the toys have been disinfected. You can disinfect toys with a solution of 1/4 cup bleach in one gallon of water.
For general surface disinfection, use a cloth soaked with 1 tablespoon of bleach in one gallon of water.
If the power was out, throw away all discolored or odorous foods, especially meat, poultry and fish in the refrigerator. Frozen foods can last 48 to 72 hours if the freezer is full and the door remains closed. When in doubt, throw it away.
Contact your local sewer authority if you see solid waste coming from your sewage.
Contact your insurance company for additional guidance if your home suffered water damage.
By Loan-Anh Pham. San Jose Spotlight. Bay City News.
Para miles de viajeros, la alegría navideña se convirtió en un saco de carbón debido a las cancelaciones masivas de vuelos en el aeropuerto de San José, causadas por un evento meteorológico «único en una generación» y aerolíneas mal preparadas.
Las cancelaciones de vuelos comenzaron en la víspera de Navidad y continuaron aumentando durante la semana, dijeron funcionarios del Aeropuerto Internacional Mineta San José. Southwest Airlines, una de las principales aerolíneas del aeropuerto, tuvo la mayoría de las cancelaciones. Southwest canceló el 60 por ciento de los vuelos debido a las malas condiciones climáticas, dijeron funcionarios del aeropuerto.
«Los retrasos climáticos iniciales que vimos en todas las aerolíneas durante el fin de semana pasado no son del todo inusuales cuando ocurre el clima invernal en todo el país, pero los impactos continuos en la operación de Southwest son muy inusuales», dijo la portavoz del aeropuerto, Ana Maria State, a San Jose Spotlight.
La tormenta de cancelaciones probablemente afectará el número de viajes para la temporada navideña, dijo.
«No tenemos ninguna proyección en lo que respecta a retrasos o cancelaciones», refirió. «Esto es muy difícil de determinar, ya que pueden aparecer interrupciones».
The holidays ended abruptly for Duyen Luong Nguyen.
El residente de San José tenía un vuelo a Miami con su esposa en Navidad para visitar a su hermana y su nieta. Él y su esposa descubrieron que su vuelo fue cancelado durante su escala en Phoenix.
«Después de eso, reservamos ‒un vuelo para‒ el 26 y esa noche dijeron que estaba cancelado», dijo Nguyen a San Jose Spotlight en vietnamita. «Reservamos el 27, cancelamos. Reservamos el 28, cancelamos».
Después de días de intentar y no conseguir otro vuelo, el hombre de 74 años tiró la toalla y condujo 13 horas desde Phoenix de regreso a casa. Nunca vio a sus familiares, quienes para entonces habían regresado a Vietnam.
Nguyen regresó al aeropuerto el jueves por la mañana tratando de averiguar cómo obtener el reembolso de sus boletos.
Mientras tanto, las vacaciones apenas comienzan para Mariia Derevianko. La profesional de marketing de Seattle está en un largo viaje para ver a su familia en Ucrania, que celebra la Navidad el 7 de enero.
En el lapso de una mañana, a Derevianko, de 34 años, se le canceló el primer tramo de su viaje de Seattle a San José. Rápidamente volvió a reservar un vuelo al Aeropuerto Internacional de San Francisco y tomó un Uber hasta San José. Viajará en Alaska Airlines a Londres y luego a Cracovia, Polonia, seguido de un viaje en autobús de 10 horas a Ucrania. Cualquier retraso arruinará cada parte de su viaje, dijo Derevianko.
«Cuando perdí mi vuelo aquí, afectó todo», destacó Derevianko a San Jose Spotlight. «Solo voy a tener unos siete u ocho días con ellos. Es un largo camino para un corto período de tiempo».
La Navidad es diferente este año, dijo Derevianko, con la guerra en curso entre Rusia y Ucrania y las sirenas diarias de ataques aéreos en el vecindario de su familia. Todavía espera con ansias el tiempo que tenga con su familia, agregó.
«Mi tío murió en el frente», dijo Derevianko. «Todas las familias se han visto afectadas por la muerte de alguien o por la pérdida de todo lo que tenían, el negocio que siempre tuvieron o la casa en la que vivían».
Derevianko said that he is crossing his fingers to reach his final destination.
«Es un largo camino seguro, pero me alegro de poder hacerlo», dijo Derevianko a San Jose Spotlight.
Los planes de viaje de Kristine Hedaria están en el aire. Planeaba recibir el año nuevo embistiendo las heladas olas del Océano Atlántico con su hermana, pero su vuelo a Boston para visitar a sus hermanos, sobrinas y sobrinos fue cancelado.
«Me preguntó si quería saltar al océano ‒en‒ el primer día del año», dijo Hedaria a San Jose Spotlight. «Yo estaba como, “¿Sabes qué? Lo haré”».
La joven de 24 años dijo que está abrumada y preocupada, pero que aún espera asegurar otro vuelo a la costa este. Ella trabaja a tiempo completo y solo puede tener tiempo libre durante las vacaciones.
«Tengo que pagar mis cuentas», dijo Hedaria. «Solo puedo verlos una vez al año y no tengo familia en el área. Así que esto es realmente molesto».
Authorities have reported the closure of several roads due to flooding in San Mateo.
San Mateo police have urged drivers to avoid the area of 42nd Avenue between El Camino Real and Pacific Boulevard, which is a Caltrain underpass, as well as the area of Delaware Street between Bermuda Drive and Saratoga Drive.
They also say Bermuda Drive is also flooding due to the overflow of Borel Creek.
The National Weather Service reported Saturday morning that Alameda and Contra Costa counties were under a flood warning until 9:30 a.m.
Photo: P360P Readers
Residents can expect minor flooding in low-lying and poorly drained areas.
Santa Cruz County is also under a flood warning until 12:15 p.m. as urban and small stream flooding is expected due to excessive rainfall.
Authorities also said flooding of urban areas and small streams is expected in Santa Clara County on Saturday, New Year's Eve.
Video: P360P Readers
The National Weather Service has reported that moderate to heavy rainfall continues across the North Bay and is also beginning to affect the San Francisco Peninsula and East Bay.
In that sense, the authorities reminded drivers to avoid flooded roads.
The grapes are ready, the champagne is cold and the 12 wishes are already in our minds, and it is no wonder, because we leave behind a year that was not easy in many ways, but we also look with great hope towards a 2023 full of health, love, abundance and much happiness.
Over the past 12 months, we have had the privilege of having you as our patron, and we greatly appreciate your continued support. Get ready because in 2023 we will have the local, national and international information you need to stay up to date, exclusive interviews, recommendations, reviews and texts that will inspire you to expand your horizons.
Thank you for 365 days of being with us. On behalf of Península 360 Press, we wish you a very happy and prosperous 2023.
Here is a summary of the most viewed news in 2022, enjoy it.
Have you or someone you know tested positive for COVID-19, and after the illness went away did you continue to have symptoms or develop new ones such as depression, anxiety, short-term memory loss, or “brain fog”? If so, you may be suffering from “long COVID” or Post-Acute COVID-19 Syndrome.
The protest began, surprisingly, at López Obrador's morning press conference outside the National Palace on Tuesday, January 25. That same day, there were other protests in various parts of the country.
But on Tuesday the 25th, demonstrations were held like never before in thirty state capitals and in 64 cities to demand justice for the murders of journalists (called by, among other organizations, Periodistas Unidos), since at the beginning of this year José Luis Gamboa was murdered in Veracruz (January 10); Margarito Montes Esquivel, Tijuana (17 of this month), and María de Lourdes Maldonado, again in Tijuana (day 23).
Delayed maturity and increasing use of the Internet and digital media have caused sexual activity in the US to take a backseat for many young people and single and married adults.
This phenomenon is not precisely due to COVID-19, since according to researchers at San Diego State University, the decline in sexual life in young American men between 18 and 24 years old was more marked between 2000 and 2018.
There are two events that marked the beginning of Joan Didion's (United States, 1934-2021) writing career: 1) Being rejected by Stanford University and 2) Her mother convincing her to send an article to the legendary Vogue magazine. The first is relevant since Didion was one of the most recognized writers for her contributions to North American culture. However, the writer was rejected in 1952 with a letter in which she was warned that, despite meeting the minimum requirements, it was impossible to admit her to one of the most prestigious universities in California.
The conversation about abortion is important. It's important to talk about it because it affects many lives, not just the mother of the unborn child. Democrats and Republicans are very divided on how to approach this broader conversation.
Mandarin is the most widely spoken language in the world, with over a billion speakers, so learning Mandarin as a child provides the tools to better navigate the world of the future.
Orion High School's Mandarin Immersion Program in Redwood City celebrated the Lunar New Year on Saturday, February 5 at the Cultural Circle House.
Pregnancy and the time after the birth of a child is for many a time of joy and great expectations, but it can also cause stress and anxiety, not only in women. According to studies, up to 25 percent of men also suffer from postpartum depression and anxiety.
People often cut back on sleep because of work, family demands or even catching up on the latest TV series, but not getting enough sleep has serious health consequences.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), not getting enough sleep leads to an increased risk of obesity, type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure, heart disease and stroke, as well as poor mental health and even premature death.
Writing is not an easy task for anyone. It is an exercise in perseverance, time and discipline. It is even less complicated for women and journalists, needless to say, not because of a lack of ability, but because of the load of things to do that haunts us in our daily lives and when we finally find the time to sit down and put words together, we are overcome with fatigue and sometimes we give up at the end of the day.
Even so, we women have learned to lift stones and find little holes to sneak through.
It’s just a funny birthday card, sent to me with a lot of love. On the front it says, “Getting old is awesome…said no one ever. Anyway, happy birthday!” Considering the alternative, getting old is surely nicer than dying. Either way, I’ve never seen a card that says, “Dying is awesome,” and it’s hard to imagine who you might send such a message to. Surely, the deceased person’s family would find it confusing, to say the least.
I remember her smiling, slim and pretty. Francesca Gargallo, sitting in a flowerbed in the agora of the Faculty of Philosophy and Letters of UNAM, conveyed tranquility, human warmth and strength.
That bright afternoon, my mother, my son, who is barely two years old -as far as I remember- and I met with Francesca to talk about different topics that concerned the three of us, such as feminism, women's projects and literature.
They stare at the camera as if waiting for their portrait. Some of them have been working in houses or carrying out maintenance work at water plants for more than fifty years so that they can drink the vital liquid without toxins.
Others are responsible for keeping cities connected via the Internet to a population that, since the beginning of 2020, has sought refuge from the COVID-19 pandemic by working remotely from home.
They hold each other's arms facing each other, leaning their faces together until they meet in an intimate gesture of belonging, both wearing suits, one in light blue and the other in lilac, both have grey hair but only one of them hides it in a dark shade, Del Martin and Phyllis Lyon in the centre of a group of people celebrating their wedding. This is the photo that went around the country and tells of a lesbian cry for freedom in California.
In 1973, Texas law stated that abortion was prohibited, but a woman, now known as Jane Roe, who did not want to be pregnant due to financial problems, turned upside down the laws that prohibited it not only in that state, but also made it a constitutional right throughout the United States.
I have recently read three novels—two of them autofiction—that deal with child sexual abuse. In all three, the abuser was an adult male and the victim was a girl or teenager.
Before I go any further, I must warn you that I was not looking for books dealing with this topic, but rather they came to me by chance; in fact, if you only read their titles it is very difficult to know what they are about.
On June 4, 2022, Katya Echazarreta, a 26-year-old from Jalisco who has lived in Texas since she was 7, achieved the dream of millions of girls who do nothing but set their eyes on the stars. She became one of six tourists transported into space by Blue Origin's New Shepard spacecraft, proving that there is room in the universe for everyone who strives to reach it.
The trip, lasting just ten minutes, marked the fifth successful manned mission for Jeff Bezos' company, but the feat of a lifetime for Echazarreta.
Even though I was already sitting in waiting room number A18 at the airport more than half an hour in advance, having already gone through the stress of packing my bags, checking my passport a thousand times and having checked in at the airline counter, I still had that feeling of apathy.
And even though I tried to force some emotion, I couldn't feel the slightest enthusiasm. I felt a great disappointment at feeling so listless, and it was no small thing to return to my country after almost 20 years.
The number of homeless people in the country is increasingly worrying, however, three cities managed to reduce homelessness in the US.
Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, the United States has faced an increase in the number of homeless people, and despite the efforts made by the government and organizations, the homelessness rate has not been reduced.
Tacamocho is a district of the municipality of Córdoba Tetón, belonging to the Montes de María subregion, on the banks of the Magdalena River in the Colombian Caribbean. In addition to being a territory severely hit by illegal armed structures and drug trafficking, it is now facing the consequences of climate change, which has forced entire towns to flee to save their lives and the few belongings they have.
The COVID-19 pandemic affected everyone, but it significantly affected the most disadvantaged.
Imperial County, with a population of about 197,000, is one of the poorest regions in the United States. More than 86 percent of the area's total population is Latino.
Before the pandemic, this region was already suffering from serious health problems, as in addition to being a low-income community, it is located near Lake Salton, a highly toxic place due to pollution.
Created in 1999 as a police force to control protests by coca growers in northern Colombia, the Mobile Anti-Riot Squad (ESMAD) bears the infamous reputation of being responsible for direct attacks against protesters that have left more than 300 people seriously injured since 2019.
The hallmark of this repression is the shooting, with rubber bullets, directly at people's faces with the intention of causing serious injuries to the eyes, which in many cases (especially, but not exclusively, to those who belonged to the First Lines1 in the demonstrations) caused the loss of the organ or of sight.
Science and technology will enable humanity to explore outer space in greater detail thanks to projects by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA).
As time progresses, humans have found various ways and technologies that have allowed them to explore space. Such is the case of the James Webb telescope, which in recent weeks has provided incredible and impressive images of constellations and old stars.
Javier Marías has died. And yes, I have no doubt that the world of Spanish literature is in mourning. In addition to being a narrator, he was a translator, essayist and member of the Royal Spanish Academy. He was a perennial candidate for the Nobel Prize in Literature and a Knight of the Order of Letters, as well as winner of many very important literary prizes, such as the José Donoso, the Formentor de las Letras and the Library Lion from the New York Public Library. He received these numerous awards because he dedicated his entire life to writing and did so with skill and quality.
The short answer is because the phrase emerged as “a racist slur” that has been adopted and promoted by white supremacists.
And because it minimizes the Black Lives Matter movement, which was born to dismantle a system that was designed to criminalize people of African descent.
It's a phrase frequently used by supporters of former President Donald Trump.
«I learned when I was 4 years old. My grandmother taught me and she also taught my sisters, and now all of us, my daughters and my nieces, we all dedicate ourselves to making rebozos.» Reyna Nuci Hernández, originally from Ahuiran, in the municipality of Paracho, Michoacán, never misses an opportunity to show her work, which has been elaborated over months with great care for the threads and feathers she uses for some of the designs.
The City of San Mateo is in a bind. Newly elected City Council members Lisa Diaz Nash and Robert Newsom decided to turn the Dec. 5 City Council meeting, the first meeting after the 2022 election, into an embarrassing spectacle.
Despite campaign promises by Nash and Newsom to work for city unity, they began their activities by grotesquely blocking the succession of Councilwoman Amourence Lee, who was to be the new mayor of this city following the system of rotating mayors.
Stressors related to the COVID-19 pandemic have physically altered the brains of adolescents, making their brain structures appear several years older than comparable pre-pandemic brains, according to a new study from Stanford University.
The paper, published December 1 in Biological Psychiatry: Global Open Science, highlights that in 2020 alone, reports of anxiety and depression in adults increased by more than 25 percent compared to previous years. The new findings indicate that the neurological and mental health effects of the pandemic on adolescents may have been even worse.
En California, más de 500 mil trabajadores agrícolas están más expuestos a contraer COVID-19 debido a las condiciones de vida en las que se encuentran, advirtieron expertos.
En las comunidades agrícolas las tasas de infección por COVID-19 fueron hasta 2.5 veces más altas, además debido a la localización de estas comunidades, también están expuestos a otras enfermedades respiratorias como el asma.
Y es que miles de personas que trabajan en el campo, diariamente están expuestas a las malas condiciones del aire de sus zonas de trabajo y a pesticidas que diariamente dañan su salud.
A pesar de tener conocimiento de los riesgos que los trabajadores agrícolas corren al desempeñar sus funciones, las condiciones de salud de este sector comenzaron a ser tomadas en cuenta con la llegada de la pandemia por COVID-19.
«Sabíamos que los trabajadores agrícolas eran esenciales, pero nunca tomamos consciencia de eso, hasta que llegó la pandemia y todos estábamos en nuestras casas y ellos estaban asegurándose de que pudiéramos alimentar a nuestras familias», dijo Ian Shapiro, jefe de salud y asuntos médicos de AltaMed, en una rueda de prensa organizada por Ethnic Media Services en la que expertos se reunieron para discutir acerca de la importancia de la salud de los trabajadores agrícolas.
Asimismo, Shapiro señaló la necesidad de tener más médicos y vacunas en las comunidades agrícolas, además de un acceso equitativo a estos servicios.
«Tenemos que asegurarnos de que se cierren las brechas en la salud», puntualizó.
Por su parte, Noe Paramo, director del Proyecto de Comunidades Rurales Sostenibles de la Fundación de Asistencia Jurídica Rural de California, señaló también la necesidad de atender las desigualdades sociales, pues la pandemia las hizo aún más visibles.
Agregó que aunque se ha trabajado para mejorar el acceso a los servicios de salud, aún queda mucho por hacer. Señaló también que la propuesta de expansión de MediCal, para indocumentados de 26 a 49 años, dejará fuera al menos al 40 por ciento de los postulantes, pues no podrán ser elegibles debido a que sus ingresos estarán por encima de lo requisitado.
Paramo contó también acerca del proyecto en asociación con la Universidad de California, en Davis, en el que a través de un programa piloto se han repartido pruebas de COVID-19 en los condados del valle de San Joaquín.
«El reto es ver cómo lo aplicamos a los más marginados», señaló.
Trabajadores agrícolas tienen bajas tasas de vacunación
En California, las comunidades de trabajadores agrícolas tienen las tasas más bajas de vacunación, pues menos de la mitad de la población de estas comunidades ha recibido la vacuna y solo el 6 por ciento ha recibido los nuevos refuerzos.
Ed Kissam, miembro del Comité Asesor del Centro Nacional para la Salud de los Trabajadores Agrícolas de los Centros para el Control y la Prevención de Enfermedades, señaló la importancia de que todos reciban los refuerzos de las vacunas para prevenir complicaciones en caso de contraer la enfermedad causada por el virus SARS-CoV-2.
«El riesgo de enfermar gravemente de COVID-19, lo tienen no solo aquellos con quienes condiciones médicas como diabetes, enfermedades cardiovasculares y sobrepeso, sino también las personas mayores de 50 años».
El experto señaló la importancia de que las mujeres embarazadas reciban el esquema completo de vacunación para evitar que la enfermedad se complique en caso de tener COVID-19.
Finalmente, Arsenio López, director ejecutivo del Proyecto de Organización Comunitaria Mixteco/Indígena, señaló que una de las mayores barreras para los trabajadores agrícolas es el idioma, por lo que la desinformación predomina en estas comunidades, lo que provoca no solo que las tasas de vacunación sean bajas sino que prevalezcan los mitos acerca de las vacunas y la enfermedad causada por el virus SARS-CoV-2.
