Rain has begun falling in California where an atmospheric river is expected to bring heavy downpours, winds and flooding Thursday to areas ravaged by wildfires. Ahead of the storm’s arrival, officials distributed sandbags, prepositioned rescue swimmers and told residents to have their go-bags ready.
Southern California could see as much as 6 inches (about 15 centimeters) of rain in the mountains and 3 inches (nearly 8 centimeters) in coastal areas and valleys, according to Brent Bower, a hydrologist with the National Weather Service. Strong wind gusts could bring down trees, cause power outages and delay flights.
Evacuation warnings were issued in Mandeville Canyon and other areas ravaged by the Palisades Fire, which was the most destructive in Los Angeles’ history, over concerns about potential debris flows during the storm. There were also warnings for Trabuco Canyon and other areas near the burn scar for an earlier wildfire.
A $6.8 million federal grant to St. Thomas’ School of Education to address a teacher shortage was canceled by the Trump administration, The Crest learned Tuesday.
In an email to St. Thomas faculty Tuesday, President Rob Vischer wrote that the grant was canceled by the administration because of its classification as a “DEI initiative.” St. Thomas was notified of the cancellation on Feb. 7, according to a St. Thomas spokesperson.
The grant, called the Supporting Effective Educator Development Grant Program, offered 120 St. Thomas qualified students up to $10,000 in tuition support annually since 2023.
Vischer wrote that he plans to appeal the decision by the administration and that current students who receive grant funding would maintain that funding through the end of the semester.
Vischer also signaled that other federal funding grants may get canceled.
“These grant cancellations, changes to federal research funding, and other legislative proposals currently being discussed in Congress will likely have an impact on our operating budget,” he wrote.
Vischer also wrote that St. Thomas’ core mission and values that are based on building an academic community that “reflects the awe-inspiring diversity of the world we aspire to serve” would not change.
A driver drove a car into a labor union demonstration in central Munich on Thursday, injuring at least 28 people including children, authorities said. Officials said it was believed to be an attack.
The suspect, an Afghan asylum-seeker, was arrested. The incident follows a series of attacks involving immigrants in recent months that have pushed migration to the forefront of the campaign for Germany’s Feb. 23 election.
Juan Del Valle can be reached at delv9625@stthomas.edu.
