University wildlife reserves also heavily affected by fires
Students, faculty and staff seeking housing support can call the Human Resources Shared Services call center at (530)754-4772 etween 8 a.m. and 8 p.m. today and Monday. Additional resources can be found on this page.
UC Davis has offered temporary emergency housing for community members affected by the wildfires that swept through Northern California last week, according to an Aug. 23 press release on the UC Davis News site.
The offer, made on Aug. 20, extends to professors, staff members and students and their families. As of last night, the university has provided shelter for 45 people from 15 households, as well as 19 animals, including service and emotional support dogs.
Emergency housing stays can last up to five days, the press release said. For those seeking long-term housing, the university said it could assist with that search.
UC Davis Medical Center is also treating patients with fire-related injuries including burns. Many of the patients were affected by the flames in the LNU Lighting Complex and other locations in the northern part of the state. The School of Veterinary Medicine is treating animals, including an alpaca, a pony and a horse.
University firefighters are fighting the fires in Angeles National Forest and Nevada County. Recently, fires broke out closer to campus following instances of dry lightning near Lake Berryessa, and an engine crew was deployed to protect structures in the nearby towns of Vacaville and Winters.
An Aug. 21 email from Chancellor May to the university community noted that officials hoped that Quail Ridge, Stebbins Cold Canyon and Cahill Riparian Preserve – all natural reserves owned by UC Davis – remained safe. The reserve director’s house, however, and eight cabins on Quail Ridge burned down.
Shane Waddell, the reserve director, was able to escape safely with his family last Tuesday night. At the time that the email was written, the field station and research house were still standing, as was another house.
Waddell also found that Stebbins Cold Canyon was completely burned on both slopes; the entirety of the reserve was also previously burned in the summer of 2015.
Outdoors work and operations on campus have been limited, and outdoor employees have been given N95 masks.
Written by: Rebecca Bihn-Wallace — campus@theaggie.org
