Barger calls for countywide earthquake readiness review
Los Angeles County Supervisor Kathryn Barger (R-Palmdale, Lancaster, Santa Clarita, San Marino, Pasadena, La Cañada Flintridge, portions of the San Gabriel Valley) introduced a motion at this week’s Board of Supervisors meeting calling for a comprehensive review of the county’s earthquake preparedness, directing emergency officials to engage seismologist Dr. Lucy Jones and experts from Caltech and UCLA to help shape the county’s readiness for the next major quake.
The motion follows new scientific findings showing tectonic strain along portions of the San Andreas and San Jacinto fault systems near the Cajon Pass has reached its highest level in at least 1,000 years.
Researchers stress the findings don’t mean a major earthquake is imminent, but note that accumulated seismic energy is only released through large earthquakes, underscoring the need for preparedness. Los Angeles County has not experienced a large-scale, damaging earthquake since the 1994 Northridge earthquake, which killed approximately 60 people, injured more than 9,000, displaced 20,000 residents, and caused tens of billions of dollars in damage.
“Science is sending us a clear warning and we have a responsibility to listen,” said Barger. “No one can predict when the next major earthquake will occur, but we know with certainty that one will happen. Los Angeles County must engage the best scientific expertise available — including Dr. Lucy Jones — so that we’re not simply reacting after a disaster but preparing before lives, homes, and critical infrastructure are impacted.”
Under the motion, the county’s Office of Emergency Management will return to the Board on September 29 with a comprehensive assessment evaluating the readiness of county facilities, emergency personnel, continuity of government operations, and critical infrastructure, along with any gaps that need addressing before a major seismic event.
The motion also directs development of an online “Know Your Risk” portal and a multilingual public education campaign ahead of the Great ShakeOut on October 15, along with recommendations for sustained, year-round outreach to residents, businesses, schools, and community organizations.
Bass, McOsker shape future of Vincent Thomas Bridge
Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass (D) joined Los Angeles City Councilmember Tim McOsker (D-San Pedro, Wilmington, Harbor City, Watts, Harbor Gateway) and state and port leaders yesterday to sign a memorandum of understanding (MOU) launching a long-term planning effort to evaluate replacing or modifying the Vincent Thomas Bridge, the suspension bridge linking San Pedro and Terminal Island at the Port of Los Angeles.
Completed in 1963, the bridge’s vertical clearance currently blocks the largest modern container ships — vessels capable of carrying 22,000 to 24,000 twenty-foot equivalent units — from reaching roughly 40% of the port’s container terminal capacity north of the span.
The MOU, signed between the Port of Los Angeles, the California State Transportation Agency, and Caltrans, sets a roadmap for evaluating long-term options and formally launches technical work, with the port committing $5 million toward preliminary engineering and environmental studies. Officials say raising or replacing the bridge could preserve the 5 million TEUs currently handled at the northern terminals while supporting more than 1 million TEUs per year in additional capacity, and would allow access for cleaner, dual-fuel vessels capable of running on alternative maritime fuels like e-methanol.
“This MOU demonstrates our commitment to investing in one of Los Angeles’ greatest economic assets,” said Bass. “The Vincent Thomas Bridge has served the Port of Los Angeles for more than 60 years, and it’s time we start planning for the future. This partnership will strengthen our port’s economic output, create good-paying jobs, and position Los Angeles to compete in a rapidly changing global marketplace.”
“The infrastructure that connects LA and Long Beach to the rest of the world is critically important for the economic development of this region and for global trade,” said McOsker. “Even as we repair the current bridge, it is responsible of the State and the Port to advance plans for the future of logistics through the San Pedro Bay Complex.”
The Port of Los Angeles has ranked as the No. 1 container port in the U.S. for 26 consecutive years, generating $301 billion in trade and handling 10.2 million container units in 2025.
Officials say keeping cargo in Los Angeles rather than losing it to competing gateways sustains 144,000 jobs annually and supports roughly one in nine jobs across five Southern California counties.
Chu presses VA on mental health workforce cuts affecting veterans
U.S. Rep. Judy Chu (D-Pasadena, Monterey Park, San Gabriel, Alhambra, and the west San Gabriel Valley), the only psychologist currently serving in Congress, led 62 House Democrats this week in a letter demanding answers from Veterans Affairs Secretary Doug Collins about significant reductions to the Veterans Health Administration’s behavioral and mental health workforce.
The VA serves nearly 9 million veterans nationwide, and nearly a third of those enrolled in VHA care have a confirmed mental health diagnosis, with more than 6,398 veterans dying by suicide in 2023 alone. Since the start of the Trump administration, the VA has lost more than 300 psychologists and 700 social workers, including over 200 psychiatrists in 2025 alone, with 57% of VA facilities reporting severe psychology staffing shortages last year — making psychology the most understaffed clinical occupation across the VHA.
“The consequences for Veterans are evident,” the members wrote. “Staffing shortages have caused longer wait times, cancelled appointments, interrupted treatment, and the loss of trusted clinicians. Some Veterans report waiting multiple months for an available appointment and constantly having to rebuild their relationships with therapists from scratch as they are forced to switch between multiple therapists in succession.” The letter cites one veteran who called continued access to a trusted therapist a matter of “life or death.”
The letter also raises concerns from VA clinicians themselves, who Chu’s office says have reported unmanageable caseloads, uncertainty about their job security, and concerns that political directives around diversity, equity and inclusion have made it harder to provide quality care.
“This loss of hundreds of experienced clinicians — and the therapeutic relationships they built with veterans over years of care — cannot be quickly or easily replaced, even as the need for Veterans’ mental health services continues to grow,” the letter states.
Friedman announces six district students admitted to service academies
U.S. Rep. Laura Friedman (D-Burbank, Glendale, West Hollywood, parts of Los Angeles, Pasadena) announced yesterday that six students she nominated from California’s 30th Congressional District have been accepted into elite military service academies and preparatory schools for the Class of 2030, including West Point, the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy, and the Naval and Air Force Academy Preparatory Schools.
The accepted nominees include Joseph Janghyun Baik of Los Angeles and David Juho Lee of Glendale at West Point; Maxwell Ryder Martin-Beckmann of Sun Valley at the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy; Esther Yunjeong Cha of Glendale at the Air Force Academy Preparatory School; and Isabel Eunjung Kim of Glendale and Aurelia Fleur Thiel of Burbank at the Naval Academy Preparatory School.
“Serving our nation is a solemn commitment and act of patriotism, one that these young students are undertaking without hesitation,” said Friedman. “Their acceptances into the prestigious military academies and academy prep schools not only speak to their immense qualifications, but also reflect the support they’ve received from friends, parents, educators and loved ones throughout this process.”
Friedman selected and nominated the students with guidance from her Academy Nominations Review Board, a panel made up of military veterans and leaders of local veterans’ organizations.
