Here's what's happening in the Bay Area, as curated by KALW news:
Fire at Potrero Hill homeless camp scorches nearby warehouse // SF Gate
“A fire with flames that soared up to 40 feet high burned part of a sidewalk homeless encampment Saturday morning in San Francisco’s Potrero Hill district.”
“The blaze, which spread to a nearby warehouse, engulfed a tent, shopping cart and other materials at 15th and Carolina streets, was reported shortly before 11 a.m. Firefighters were able to put the fire out within 15 minutes of arriving on the scene, said Bryan Rubenstein, a battalion chief for the San Francisco Fire Department.”
-----
San francisco supe seeks to increase support for breastfeeding city employees // ABC 7
“Working moms are getting a boost from the city of San Francisco. Legislation has been introduced to help them continue breastfeeding after returning to work.”
“For now, this effort only applies to moms who work for the city. It does not apply to moms who work for San Francisco-based companies.
-----
San Francisco’s underground river // SF Examiner
“Ever hear that adage: 'You don’t buy beer; you just rent it'? Well, it’s true with water, too.”
“In San Francisco’s water system, the brief moment from faucet to drain is a tiny fraction of our water’s journey from high atop the Sierras to miles out in the Pacific. So how does it all work? And should we worry the well may run dry?”
“Oddly enough, our entire drinking water system is predicated on environmental decisions that would probably never get approved today. Exhausting its local supplies a century ago, San Francisco somehow got Congressional approval, via the 1913 Raker Act, to dam a valley in Yosemite National Park and transport its water 167 miles west.”
-----
UC Davis dermatologist offers skin care for people of all tones // Sacramento Bee
“April Reding started finding painful, walnut-sized boils on her armpits and in her groin during her teenage years, an outbreak that stressed her out and made it difficult to sleep. Dermatologists gave her confusing diagnoses and ineffective treatments as the lesions continued to grow and burst.”
“That ended when Reding, now 34, started seeing Dr. Oma Agbai, a UC Davis dermatologist who specializes in patients with non-white skin tones. Agbai was able to identify the rare chronic condition hidradenitis suppurativa, which is found more commonly in African American women. She came up with an aggressive treatment plan that includes steroid injections and a new pill prescription called Accutane.”
"'It makes a huge difference,' Reding said of dermatologists trained to work with African American women. 'You can really be honest in telling them what works, and they’re really responsive.' For one thing, she said, Agbai listens more closely to her than any doctor she’s seen before.”
-----
Native turtles growing steadily at SF’s Mountain Lake // SF Examiner
“One of three remaining natural lakes in San Francisco is once again brimming with native animals after a years-long cleanup effort.”
“Following the removal of destructive elements like invasive plants, unwanted pets dumped in the area and a half-dozen feet of residue that had built up at the bottom of Mountain Lake, wildlife officials last year reintroduced native species to the freshly sanitized waters.”
-----
Food Network baking star, 12, begins new business // East Bay Times
"Yahshimabet Selassie, 12, was the first runner-up in the Food Network's Kids Baking Championship this spring, wowing celebrity chef judges Valerie Bertinelli and Duff Goldman in the eighth and final round of the baking bonanza with her two-tier mocha chocolate-chai spice concoction.”
“The Oakland girl's path to the championship bake-off, which called for the three finalists to create a multilayered cake with a 'Spring Break' theme, included such challenges as 'Éclairs Gone Wild' and 'Candymonium.'"