CHP officers face off demonstrators while clearing the Palestine solidarity encampment at Dickson Plaza outside of Royce Hall on the campus of UCLA in the early morning hours of May 2, 2024.
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Brian Feinzimer
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LAist
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Topline:
Hundreds of law enforcement officers in riot gear cleared out a pro-Palestinian encampment at UCLA early Thursday, firing flash bangs and dismantling barriers.
A California Highway Patrol spokesperson, Steven Salas, said 132 arrests were made as of Thursday morning, although that number could grow.
Where things stand: UC President Michael Drake on Wednesday said he ordered an independent outside review of UCLA's planning and actions surrounding the overnight violence between pro-Palestinian demonstrators and counterprotesters.
On campus: After initially forming a line and holding it, officers began to move more aggressively before 5 a.m., pushing back protesters holding makeshift shields and lobbing items at the police line. In short order, they cleared dozens of protesters who had set up on the front portico of Royce Hall, where pro-Palestinian graffiti had been spray painted on the ornate stone doorways and scores of flyers taped on pillars and screwed into the barricaded front doors.
Other reactions: A group of faculty and staff are demanding in a letter to UCLA Chancellor Gene Block that peaceful protesting students do not face disciplinary action and that the encampment be allowed to continue without an “illegal” designation. The letter concludes by warning that a one-day work stoppage has already been proposed by the Faculty for Justice in Palestine group as they’re prepared to deepen their support for students.
What's next: Since disbanding the encampment, crews have been working to clean up the debris and graffiti.
Hundreds of law enforcement officers in riot gear cleared out a pro-Palestinian encampment at UCLA early Thursday, firing flash bangs and dismantling barriers.
UCLA Chancellor Gene Block released a statement Thursday confirming that 200 people were arrested. UCLA associate professor Graeme Blair told LAist that around 10 of those arrested were faculty members.
A tense standoff at UCLA has officers begin making arrests early Thursday and dismantling a pro-Palestinian encampment that went up a week ago.
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Brian Feinzimer for LAist
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After initially forming a line and holding it, officers began to move more aggressively before 5 a.m., pushing back protesters holding makeshift shields and lobbing items at the police line.
In short order, they cleared dozens of protesters who had set up on the front portico of Royce Hall, where pro-Palestinian graffiti had been spray painted on the ornate stone doorways and scores of flyers taped on pillars and screwed into the barricaded front doors. By 5:15 a.m. the encampment was clear, with only a small contingent of protesters remaining.
A CHP officer tears down tents while clearing the Palestine solidarity encampment at Dickson Plaza outside of Royce Hall on the campus of UCLA in the early morning hours of May 2, 2024.
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Brian Feinzimer
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LAist
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CHP officers face off demonstrators while clearing the Palestine solidarity encampment at Dickson Plaza outside of Royce Hall on the campus of UCLA in the early morning hours of May 2, 2024.
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Brian Feinzimer
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LAist
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The initial police action began about nine hours after the first order to disperse was made. Law enforcement first declared the protest an unlawful assembly about 6:15 p.m. Wednesday night.
Then by around 3:15 a.m. Thursday, officers began breaking down tents and dismantling plywood boards to remove a makeshift barrier wall erected by protesters in the week since the encampment went up.
By the time CHP officers removed most barricades along the east side of the encampment, the number of protesters had thinned significantly in the early morning hours.
Earlier, the LAPD told LAist that the CHP would be leading the operation, but the department and the L.A. County Sheriff's Department also had a heavy presence on campus. Many students said ahead of the move by police that they were willing to be arrested.
Block, who held a special UCLA Alumni Town Hall on Thursday, said the protests had been overall peaceful, but that the encampment became a focal point for serious violence.
"It left us with very strong feelings. The fact that the encampment represents not only a risk to the students inside the encampment, because it's very hard to protect their security unless you have a very large number of police continually guarding the encampment," Block said during the virtual town hall.
When asked if university disciplinary action would be taken, Block said it’ll be on a case by case basis.
“It's very different, obviously someone who's actively resistant and may have even, you know, really assaulted to a police officer though. Some of those are quite serious and should have consequences clearly” Block said. “I should emphasize students were all free to leave before they became arrested. They were told to leave the encampment, and many did just walk out and leave. So this was really a choice. It wasn't the police surrounding them and they (were) stuck. They could leave.”
The university will also continue to investigation the attack overnight Tuesday by counterprotesters and the security measures employed, Block said.
Earlier in the night
Pro-Palestinian demonstrators lined up in anticipation of law enforcement clearing the Palestine solidarity encampment at Dickson Plaza outside of Royce Hall on the campus of UCLA in the early morning hours of May 2, 2024.
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Brian Feinzimer
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LAist
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As a police helicopter circled overhead for hours, many people on campus wore face masks. Some even had gas masks, saying they were worried police or counterprotesters would use tear gas or pepper spray on them.
The move to clear the encampment came after a night of violence from Tuesday into Wednesday.
UCLA canceled classes Wednesday after students and journalists reported that counterprotesters attacked the pro-Palestinian encampment, leading to more than a dozen injuries. Then, Wednesday evening, UCLA officials said classes would be remote Thursday and Friday and employees were "encouraged to work remotely." They also advised people to avoid Royce Quad, where the protests are taking place.
UC President Michael Drake, who oversees the University of California system, said Wednesday that he ordered an independent outside review of UCLA's planning and actions surrounding the overnight violence between pro-Palestinian demonstrators and counterprotesters.
Inside the encampment after police declared an unlawful gathering
Pro-Palestinian protesters work together to screw signs onto barricaded front doors at Royce Hall on UCLA's campus Wednesday night. Protesters said they were concerned police could come through the building into the encampment.
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Brian Feinzimer for LAist
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As officers moved around outside of the encampment — an area fortified by plywood — protesters and observers remained largely calm.
Many people inside the encampment wore construction, bicycle or other types of helmets in anticipation of another confrontation with pro-Israeli counterprotesters or police.
Pro-Palestinian demonstrators observe law enforcement massed outside of the Palestine solidarity encampment at Dickson Plaza outside of Royce Hall on the campus of UCLA in the late evening hours of May 1, 2024.
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Brian Feinzimer
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“Most people are getting ready in case the cops try to do something violent against them,” said Mahmoud Abobaker, a 28-year-old film and TV major who is Palestinian American. “Everybody is expecting something.”
The mood was at once anxious and festive, with a couple of drummers and a trumpet playing near one end of the camp. Others chanted slogans in support of Palestine. A small group of Muslims got on their knees as a man chanted the traditional call to prayer over a bullhorn.
A Pro-Palestinian demonstrators sleeps ahead of law enforcement clearing the Palestine solidarity encampment at Dickson Plaza outside of Royce Hall on the campus of UCLA in the late evening hours of May 1, 2024.
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Brian Feinzimer
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LAist
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UCLA student Sydney Do helps pass out food from Muslims of LA to pro-Palestinian demonstrators at the Palestine solidarity encampment at Dickson Plaza outside of Royce Hall on the campus of UCLA in the early morning hours of May 2, 2024.
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Brian Feinzimer
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Several Palestinian flags blew in a light breeze. Many wore Keffiyehs.
Some people lounged inside their tents. Others walked about the encampment visiting with friends. Still others secured the plywood they’d put up on around the perimeter.
Around 10 p.m., a large number of people not involved in the camp rallied outside of it in support of the students.
Pro-Palestinian demonstrators pray at the Palestine solidarity encampment at Dickson Plaza outside of Royce Hall on the campus of UCLA in the late evening hours of May 1, 2024.
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Brian Feinzimer
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All the while, majestic Royce Hall, much of it covered in pro-Palestinian graffiti and signage, stood witness to it all.
Sarah Adams, who works for UCLA’s humanities department, said she was on the outskirts of the encampment in the early hours of Thursday “to watch out for our students and protect them and be there for them as best as we could.”
“A lot of us are tired, we're angry, we're upset at our university, we're upset at the way that students who pay tuition and staff and faculty who give their labor, who care so much about the school, the way that we've been treated by our school,” Adams, a trained medic, said.
Blair, an associate professor of political science, was one of the faculty members arrested during the dispersal.
He said he shared a jail bus with some of the arrested students and was “amazed by their resilience in the face of the horrible, violent attacks by outsiders and their focus on their mission.”
L.A. Mayor and others condemn violence
The scene Wednesday night at UCLA.
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Brian Feinzimer for LAist
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Mayor Karen Bass said in a statement Wednesday that she met with various law enforcement agencies, including LAPD and UCPD, about the “absolutely detestable violence on campus.”
“There must be a full investigation into what occurred on campus last night,” Bass said in a statement. “Those involved in launching fireworks at other people, spraying chemicals and physically assaulting others will be found, arrested, and prosecuted, as well as anyone involved in any form of violence or lawlessness. I want to make sure the message I delivered to law enforcement and other officials earlier today is clear: Free speech will be protected. Violence and bigotry will not.”
In his statement, Drake said the external review would also look at the effectiveness of the mutual aid response and will help address many immediate questions and guide possible future events,.
“Through the early morning hours, mutual aid was summoned from the LAPD and others to help UCLA restore control,” Drake said. “Unfortunately, there are a reported 15 injuries, including one hospitalization. The situation has been stabilized and UCLA Chancellor Gene Block has reiterated that, having declared the encampment unlawful yesterday, he will dismantle it at the appropriate time. My office has requested a detailed accounting from the campus about what transpired in the early morning hours today.”
What happened overnight Tuesday into Wednesday
The Los Angeles Times reported that the violence started close to midnight when a large group of counterprotesters tried to tear down the makeshift barricades surrounding the encampment.
Videos sent to LAist from students on the ground show the counterprotesters launching fireworks into the encampment and using what appears to be bear spray at the pro-Palestinian protesters. Television news footage and images on social media showed some students bleeding from wounds and flushing their faces with water.
Felicia Ford of Inglewood told LAist she arrived shortly after midnight and saw people fighting with bats and poles. She also said fireworks were thrown into the encampment.
"That's not what represents the people that are protesting for a change of what's going on in Israel and the Gaza Strip," she said, adding that once police arrived, they "shut it all down."
Officers in riot gear reportedly arrived around 1:40 a.m., but students said they did not immediately intervene as counterprotesters continued to attack the camp.
Demonstrators restore a protective barrier at an encampment on the UCLA campus, the morning after clashes between Pro-Israel and Pro-Palestinian groups, on May 1, 2024.
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Jae C. Hong
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Raymond Durr, a third-year student studying data theory and economics, said counterprotesters have been the agitators.
"The pro-Palestinians are the ones who get punished with threats by the chancellor of disciplinary action, including expulsion, because of the general violence, but we're not the ones causing the violence, so why are we the ones who are getting punished?” said Durr, who identifies as half-Palestinian.
He added that he’s happy with the increased police presence on campus.
"I hope that they stay the night to stop the (pro) Israeli counterprotesters from attacking the encampment," he said.
Tai Min, a 20-year-old sociology major, told LAist that a mob of hundreds of people descended on the encampment with weapons.
“We have folks who had to get sent to the ER,” Min said. “We had a lot of folks who were pepper sprayed, bear maced. There’s folks in the ER with like blunt force trauma.”
The UCLA First Thursdays event scheduled for May 2 in Wilson Plaza has been canceled because of the “distress following the violence on Royce Quad and ongoing tension regarding campus demonstrations,” the university announced Wednesday afternoon.
The backstory
Students and demonstrators have formed a Pro-Palestinian occupation encampment protest on campus at UCLA in front of Royce Hall on April 25, 2024.
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Brian Feinzimer
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The encampment on UCLA's campus was set up last Thursday, with pro-Palestinian demonstrators demanding an end to Israel's assault on Gaza and divestment by the university from companies. Unlike an earlier encampment across town at USC, UCLA protesters fortified their area with plywood and pallets.
On Sunday night, pro-Israeli protesters set up a counter protest that included a giant screen playing images of Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack on Israel.
After some clashes Sunday, a university spokesperson said UCLA would increase security measures. In addition to canceling classes for Wednesday, the university said Royce Hall and Powell Library would remain closed.
Reporting from the scene
Reporters on the ground, including student journalists from the student-run Daily Bruin newspaper, say law enforcement was called in but did not intervene until after the violence broke out. LAist has reached out to the Los Angeles Police Department for comment.
It has been 4 hours since the violence erupted on campus. This violence has been allowed to continue, instigated and continued by counter-protesters, unstopped. Injuries all night long. Cops are watching it continue right now. This is a colossal failure by the powers that be. pic.twitter.com/HOxSzVGYTk
According to the Daily Bruin, the university declared the encampment “unlawful and violates university policy.”
In a message to the Bruin community on Wednesday afternoon, Chancellor Gene Block said:
“However one feels about the encampment, this attack on our students, faculty, and community members was utterly unacceptable. It has shaken our campus to its core and — adding to other abhorrent incidents that we have witnessed and that have circulated on social media over the past several days — further damaged our community’s sense of security.”
He added, “I want to express my sincere sympathy to those who were injured last night, and to all those who have been harmed or have feared for their safety in recent days. No one at this university should have to encounter such violence. Our student affairs team has been reaching out to affected individuals and groups to offer support and connections to health and mental health resources.”
Block said in the statement they will conduct a thorough investigation that may lead to arrests, expulsions, and dismissals. He noted that they’re also carefully examining UCLA’s security processes and encouraged people who’ve encountered violence to report their experiences to UCPD, and those who’ve faced discrimination to contact the campuses’ Civil Rights Office.
“This is a dark chapter in our campus’s history,” Block said in a statement. “We will restore a safe learning environment at UCLA.”
But some students said they haven't heard from the university about the injuries they sustained.
Aidan Doyle, a philosophy and jazz student, told LAist he had a battery thrown at his right cheek.
"As I was trying to keep the metal barriers attached to the barricade, I was dragged out into a group of six men who whipped my back, who attacked me with sticks, who punched my face, and who slashed me with a sharp metal rod," he said.
Aisha Syed, who is part of UCLA's Muslim Student Association, described the pepper spray and fireworks as causing "a burning sensation in my eyes, my mouth, and my throat. It settled into my hijab and into my other clothing, so much so that when I finally went home hours later, that stinging feeling was still there."
The encampment at UCLA on Wednesday, May 1, 2024.
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Frank Stoltze
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Nancy Mithlo, a professor who teaches gender studies, told LAist that she’s disappointed in how UCLA has handled the protests.
“They refused to protect our students that were engaging in civil disobedience, were engaging in their right to free speech, that were doing actually what we want them to do here,” Mithlo said.
A group of faculty and staff are demanding in a letter to Block that peaceful protesting students do not face disciplinary action and that the encampment be allowed to continue without an “illegal” designation. The letter concludes by warning that a one-day work stoppage has already been proposed by the Faculty for Justice in Palestine group as they’re prepared to deepen their support for students.
In an interview Wednesday morning with NPR, reporter Steve Futterman said "things have really calmed down" after high tension overnight.
"A few hours ago it was anything but," he said, "there were pro-Palestinian protesters and pro-Israeli counterprotesters essentially facing off. There were numerous scuffles, lots of pushing fist fights, nasty words exchanged."
Samuel Ahmed, a first-year graduate student who is part of UCLA's encampment, told LAist that the community within the camp is feeling "more resolute and more willing to fight for what we're fighting for.”
Ahmed said the violence started around 10 p.m. Tuesday when masked counterprotesters showed up to the encampment, which he said is made up of about 300 tents.
"All of a sudden, people, 30 or 40 students [in the pro-Palestinian camp], just fall to the ground covering their eyes screaming for help," he said. "From there, it was just a nonstop onslaught, a barrage of weaponry just attacked at us, bricks just slamming at our barriers. This persisted for several hours while the university police, the private security they had hired to somehow keep the peace, just stood idly by watching."
Students inside the encampment were starting to wake up shortly after 10 a.m. Wednesday, with one person picking up trash and a strong skunk smell lingering in the air.
Gov. Gavin Newsom said in statements that his office was closely monitoring the situation at UCLA and that he condemns the violence that unfolded.
"The law is clear: The right to free speech does not extend to inciting violence, vandalism, or lawlessness on campus," Newsom said in a statement. "Those who engage in illegal behavior must be held accountable for their actions — including through criminal prosecution, suspension, or expulsion."
Bass said she’s spoken with Newsom and thanked him for his continued support.
Muslim community leaders respond
Amir Mertaban, the executive director of Islamic Society of Orange County reached UCLA at around 1:00 a.m. Wednesday morning. He said community leaders in the Muslim community were responding after receiving multiple calls, messages, and texts from students in the encampments.
“I saw was something that I never thought I would ever see in L.A. and that was students getting attacked, and at night, with the lights on, masked students with pepper spray, bear spray, mace, pipes, bats,” Mertaban said. “I never thought I would see this level of violent attacks on students at UCLA, while UCPD, the LAPD, the Sheriffs, Highway Patrol, all had their backs turned while this was happening right behind them.”
Many of the students, he said, had to be transported to hospital by car.
Mertaban added that doctors from the Muslim community also rushed to UCLA overnight to set up a makeshift medic tent within the encampment with milk, saline and other supplies.
“The Muslims, Palestinians and their supporters are concerned for the safety of our communities,” he said. “We haven't seen this vitriol and violence since 9/11.”
Mertaban said he visited the encampment over the weekend too and “nothing violent is happening.”
UCLA Health did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
How we're reporting this
LAist reporters Yusra Farzan and Frank Stoltze reported from the campus throughout the day. Stoltze remained on the scene until late Wednesday. Makenna Sievertson reported from LAist's newsroom. Farzan wrote and reported earlier in the morning from sources at the camp and official statements. Karina Gacad, Tiffany Ujiiye, Megan Garvey and Jason Wells have done editing on this breaking news coverage.
This is a developing story. We fact check everything and rely only on information from credible sources (think fire, police, government officials, community organizers and reporters on the ground). We do our best to verify the information being provided is accurate. Sometimes, however, we make mistakes and/or initial reports turn out to be wrong. In all cases, we strive to bring you the most accurate information in real time and will update this story as new information becomes available.
The Diablo Canyon Power Plant in San Luis Obispo on Feb. 13, the state’s only active nuclear power plant. All eyes are turned to power plant as the debate about extending its life returns to Sacramento. But what’s it like inside?
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Beth LaBerge
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KQED
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Topline:
Diablo Canyon is California’s last operating nuclear power plant. Just years ago, the plant was slated to close, and employees worked to decommission it, until a 2022 about-face by Gov. Gavin Newsom led the state to extend its operations to 2030. Now lawmakers in Sacramento are talking about allowing it to operate even longer, potentially to 2045.
What do those who oppose the plant say? Local groups, some of whom have protested the plant since its construction, are banging the drum ever louder about their concerns for safety or a catastrophic meltdown, as well as the danger posed by spent nuclear waste at a site near several seismic fault lines.
What about academics? Academics are furiously analyzing how much keeping Diablo Canyon open would cost and if it would support or hinder the state’s clean energy transition. And business groups are lining up in support.
Read on ... for a rare look inside the last operating nuclear power plant in the state.
The most striking view off one of San Luis Obispo County’s winding coastal roads is not the lashing ocean waves of the Pacific Ocean or cows plodding out from the shade of a California live oak tree.
It is two enormous concrete domes that come into focus along a final climb that began 7 miles back at Avila Beach. The land sinks away, and what looks like a small town emerges, showcased in a palette of grays, whites and terracotta.
This is Diablo Canyon, California’s last operating nuclear power plant.
Just years ago, the plant was slated to close, and employees worked to decommission it, until a 2022 about-face by Gov. Gavin Newsom led the state to extend its operations to 2030. Now lawmakers in Sacramento are talking about allowing it to operate even longer, potentially to 2045.
But local groups, some of whom have protested the plant since its construction, are banging the drum ever louder about their concerns for safety or a catastrophic meltdown, as well as the danger posed by spent nuclear waste at a site near several seismic fault lines.
Meanwhile, academics are furiously analyzing how much keeping Diablo Canyon open would cost and if it would support or hinder the state’s clean energy transition. And business groups are lining up in support.
So when PG&E offered press tours earlier this year, KQED accepted. The nuclear power plant has not garnered this much attention in years, but now, once again, all eyes are on Diablo Canyon. What does it look like inside?
Out on the water
PG&E’s Diablo Canyon Power Plant tour started on a boat in a protected marina just south of the reactors. This, and another cove just outside the breakwaters, are the site of a key piece of the plant’s cooling system — and a major concern for environmentalists, who argue it hoovers up and kills marine life and have called it “the most destructive facility” along California’s coast.
Dipping a hand in Diablo Cove, the water is lukewarm, not the frosty standard for the ocean in these parts.
That’s because Diablo Canyon draws 2 billion3-2.5 billion gallons of ocean water daily — enough to fill more than 3,000 Olympic-size swimming pools — into the plant to cool equipment, and discharges the water back into the ocean typically 16 to 17 degrees hotter.
The warmer water makes it feel as if a chunk of Southern California’s coast has been lobbed off and transferred north.
Out on the water, there was a hotbed of animal activity: a floating sea otter and chubby seals sunning themselves on rocks.
There were other species too — sea bass, stingrays, and California’s state fish, the garibaldi, which typically live farther south along California’s coast, but have moved here.
Diablo Canyon staff said the warm water leads to essentially no change to the environment. Because fishing and other activities are not allowed within 2,000 yards of the plant, it’s a “de facto marine sanctuary,” said Tom Jones, a senior director in charge of future planning for Diablo Canyon.
But the California Coastal Commission, the state agency tasked with protecting the coastline and its natural resources, reported in 2025 that the plant’s cooling system kills almost two billion larval fish annually, plus other organisms that aren’t measured.
While adult populations may be abundant in Diablo Cove, the commission wrote that adults often appear far from where they spawn, and their presence here may be the result of productive marine habitats nearby.
The commission also warned that removing eggs and larvae near Diablo Canyon leads to “a significant reduction” of species dozens of miles from the plant.
“These planktonic organisms,” wrote the commission, “constitute the base of the food web in California’s coastal waters.”
To the turbine deck
We donned hard hats and safety equipment and passed through heavy security to enter the “protected area,” which consists of spaces closer to the nuclear reactors.
We entered the turbine deck, an industrial building the size of two-and-a-half football fields. It was hot and loud on the deck, with a slight vibration underfoot.
The steam-driven turbine inside is an enormous semi-cylinder that looks like a horizontal steel pipe cut in half, and spins a generator to produce electricity.
The PG&E guide pointed out the window at a containment dome, where uranium atoms are split apart, releasing huge amounts of heat.
A cascade of effects follows: the heat warms water and creates steam, the steam travels through pipes to turn the turbine, the turbine connects to a generator, which makes electricity that’s then sent across the grid and delivered to about three million Californians.
Nuclear generates nearly 9% of the state’s energy supply, part of an energy mix that includes gas, hydroelectric, solar, wind, geothermal and even small amounts of coal.
While California’s demand for electricity has been flat for years, it’s now growing with the adoption of electric vehicles, people swapping gas appliances for electric ones, and data centers.
The debate to keep Diablo Canyon open is spurred, in part, by this uptick in demand. Maureen Zawalick, senior vice president and chief risk officer at PG&E, said stepping into the turbine deck reminds her of the end uses of all this power: “safety in hospitals, kidney dialysis, stop lights and everything else.”
The state’s growth in the 20th century was built on a foundation of fossil fuels, but leaders see its future as being powered by the buildout of renewables like solar and wind, along with batteries to store excess power.
When heat waves strained California’s power grid and caused rolling blackouts in 2020, state lawmakers and Newsom voted to extend Diablo Canyon’s operation.
Now, as electricity bills continue to rise and demand is forecast to grow, proponents argue that keeping the plant open even longer can help California wobble across the precarious middle of the tightrope.
The simulator
We shed our safety gear and headed to the training building, with classrooms and an exact replica of the control room, called the simulator.
It was cool and quiet again as employees completed a training exercise, manipulating switches, lights and screens on a semicircle of vertical boards. Zawalick said the simulator’s seafoam green walls are meant to inspire calm, but its very existence is due to nuclear disasters that have occurred elsewhere in the U.S.
Simulators became a requirement for all nuclear power plants in 1979 after the Three Mile Island nuclear accident in Pennsylvania. The partial meltdown was the most serious nuclear accident in U.S. history and was caused by both human and equipment failure.
Practicing in a replica of Diablo Canyon’s actual control room is meant to train workers with the muscle memory to handle a variety of emergencies.
Employees spend 20% of their time in the Diablo Canyon simulator training for everything from planned refueling to routine maintenance to major emergencies.
Spent nuclear fuel
To finish the tour, we drove uphill and farther from the ocean to find dozens of hulking concrete cylinders that contain spent fuel, called “dry casks.”
The nuclear material is the concern of resident groups who fear an earthquake or terrorist attack could destabilize the storage and spew radioactive waste into the ocean or nearby communities. People living nearby are mailed annual emergency preparednessdocuments and have access to a free dose of potassium iodide, which protects the thyroid gland against radiation.
Linda Seeley has rallied against Diablo Canyon for decades as a member of the anti-nuclear nonprofit Mothers for Peace.
“As much as I would love it if nuclear waste were not toxic and lethal to a thousand generations in the future, that’s not the fact. The fact is that it is toxic,” she said.
Once fuel has been used inside the plant, radiation levels are dangerously high and have the potential to kill an exposed person in minutes.
The spent fuel spends 7 to 10 years next to the reactors in “wet storage,” a large pool of water treated with chemicals. The liquid absorbs heat and decays of the uranium, which has high levels of radiation.
The nuclear material is then packed into the double-lined, stainless steel and reinforced dry casks, roughly 20 feet tall. Each is bolted to a 7.5-foot-thick, steel-reinforced concrete pad designed to withstand earthquakes. The fuel requires special handling for tens of thousands of years.
Diablo Canyon is located roughly 3.5 miles from the Hosgri fault, which presents the main seismic risk to the plant. Another fault, the Shoreline, is closer to the plant, but smaller. Some seismologists are concerned that a quake along the faults could cause a meltdown.
The U.S. government is legally obligated to take ownership of all commercially spent nuclear fuel, but because the government has not yet built a permanent place to put it, the fuel is stored at the power plant.
Current solutions like Diablo Canyon’s dry storage casks, while they may be thorough, are only licensed until 2064 by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Zawalick said PG&E is confident in the storage of Diablo Canyon’s spent fuel, though. She pointed out that nuclear power is “the only energy source that knows exactly where every ounce of our waste is.” The Nuclear Regulatory Commission and PG&E monitor the spent fuel on a daily and annual basis. “It’s secured, it’s inspected, it’s audited, it’s sampled. I’m a fan of all energy sources, but I don’t know where solar panels are sent when they’re done, and batteries, and all of that.”
Zawalick pointed to the powerful transmission lines carrying energy created here out to millions of Californians: to illuminate rooms for special and mundane occasions, preserve food in refrigerators, run air conditioners, and warm their shower water.
Order and safety come up frequently on the Diablo Canyon Power Plant tour: background checks, armed guards, seismic protective measures, reminders to hold on to handrails when on steps. The result is a calm and kempt environment, situated on a hillside overlooking the Pacific.
But underneath the serenity lie the inherent risks of nuclear power, especially when sited near seismic fault lines. Diablo Canyon has been the source of passionate debate as long as the idea of it has existed. And any effort to keep it operating longer will be no different.
And with that, the tour was over, and the guides returned to their work. A cow made its way slowly across the access road, with no idea of its contentious neighbor.
Thomas Dambo's "TROLLS: A Field Study" exhibition is at the South Coast Botanic Garden through October.
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Courtesy South Coast Botanic Garden
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In this edition:
Spaceballs at Griffith Observatory, Netflix is a Joke kicks off, Trolls take over South Coast Botanical Garden, and more of the best things to do this week.
Highlights:
Where to even begin with all the incredible comedy listings for this year’s Netflix Is a Joke festival? Pretty much every venue in L.A. has a comedy show this week.
Griffith Observatory is hosting a very special screening of the best spoof of all time ever (don’t @ me), Spaceballs.
L.A. has a wealth of architectural and modern building feats, many of which we have more access to than any other city, given our (relative!) youth. UCLA’s School of Architecture has some of this history on display at the "Core Samples" exhibit, including posters from talks by Frank Gehry and John Julius Norwich and archival materials.
We all need a good story to start the week, and this one is the best. Pasadena Humane has rehomed its last dog rescued from the Eaton Fire. Artemis, a German shepherd, is happily in his forever home, and now we can all sleep a little easier. What a good boy!
Music this week includes the last of the free spring lunchtime concerts at the Colburn on Tuesday, May 5. Licorice Pizza has more picks, including Meshell Ndegeocello at Blue Note on Monday and Tuesday. Wednesday, Sports are at the Roxy, Saults are at the Teragram, Waxahatchee and MJ Lenderman play Disney Hall, and over at the Grammy Museum, there’s a screening of the Ann Wilson documentary In My Voice, followed by a conversation with the Heart legend herself. Thursday, The Dear Hunter will be at the Glass House.
Tuesday, May 4, 6 to 10 p.m. Griffith Observatory 2800 E. Observatory Road, Griffith Park COST: MEMBER ADMISSION, $45, MEMBER ADMISSION, $50 WAITLIST; MORE INFO
I don’t even really have to say it, do I? Griffith Observatory is hosting a very special screening of the best spoof of all time ever (don’t @ me), Spaceballs. In celebration of the upcoming sequel, Spaceballs: The New One (tbd if that was necessary), star Josh Gad will be on hand and the evening includes parking, drinks and snacks, and photo ops. It’s currently waitlist-only … may the Schwartz be with you.
Cinemasianamerica
Through Thursday, May 7 Laemmle Royal 11523 Santa Monica Blvd., West L.A. COST: FROM $11.50; MORE INFO
Just in time to kick off Asian American Pacific Islander Month, director Quentin Lee has put together an exciting screening series at the Laemmle Royal, featuring 30 years of Lee’s work. The Cinemasianamerica series runs through May 7 and includes screenings of Ethan Mao, The People I’ve Slept With, The Unbidden, Rez Comedy, and Last Summer of Nathan Lee. The series will wrap with Comedy InvAsian III, a sneak preview of Lee’s stand-up showcase. Most screenings include a Q&A with Lee and fellow cast members.
Core Samples
Through Tuesday, June 30, by appointment UCLA Architecture and Urban Design 1317 Portola Plaza, Perloff Hall 1118, Westwood COST: FREE; MORE INFO
L.A. has a wealth of architectural and modern building feats, many of which we have more access to than any other city, given our (relative!) youth. UCLA’s School of Architecture has some of this history on display, including posters from talks by Frank Gehry and John Julius Norwich and archival materials, including VHS tapes, faculty portraits, 35mm slides of student work, travel photographs, office drawings, and posters. It uses a classroom space to allow visitors to explore, so since the exhibit is also a working teaching archive, you do have to make an appointment.
Netflix Is a Joke Festival
Through Sunday, May 10 Netflix Is a Joke Festival Multiple locations COST: VARIES; MORE INFO
WANTAGH, NY - SEPTEMBER 10: Comedian Pete Davidson performs onstage during Oddball Comedy Festival at Nikon at Jones Beach Theater on September 10, 2016 in Wantagh, New York.
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Where to even begin with all the incredible comedy listings for this year’s Netflix Is a Joke Festival? Whether you’re a theater person (see: Rachel Bloom guesting with Theater Adult on May 7), a fan of roasts (head to the Forum for the Roast of Kevin Hart on May 10), an SNL superfan (Pete Davidson at the Wiltern on May 9) or a podcast junkie (Girls Gotta Eat at the Palace Theatre on May 7), there’s a show for you. I didn’t even mention the 40th Anniversary of Pee-Wee’s Playhouse with the B-52s and Danny Elfman (May 4) or the Lizzo show at the Greek (May 7)! Pretty much every venue in L.A. has a comedy show this week – it might be harder not to see comedy. So find your favorite (or someone you’ve never heard of!) and get a taste of the L.A. and international comedy scene right here.
Anissa Helou x Now Serving: For Lebanon
Monday, May 4, 7 to 8 p.m. 727 N. Broadway #133, Chinatown COST: FROM $11.49; MORE INFO
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L.A. Times restaurant critic Bill Addison hosts this conversation with James Beard-winning cookbook author Anissa Helou at cookbook store Now Serving in Chinatown. Helou’s latest is Lebanon: Cooking the Foods of My Homeland, celebrating the diversity of dishes from the Mediterranean country.
TROLLS: A Field Study
Through Sunday, October 4 South Coast Botanic Garden 26300 Crenshaw Blvd., Palos Verdes Peninsula COST: FREE WITH GENERAL ADMISSION ($18); MORE INFO
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South Coast Botanic Garden
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South Coast Botanic Garden
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Thomas Dambo’s oversized trolls are as cute as they are creepy. Twelve of those giants made entirely of reclaimed wood have made their way across the pond to guard the South Coast Botanic Garden until October. Walk through this fairytale land with admission to the gardens or plan a special guided weekend Troll Trek.
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Elly Yu
reports on early childhood. From housing to health, she covers issues facing the youngest Angelenos and their families.
Published May 4, 2026 5:00 AM
New amendments to legislation would require independent evaluations of state education programs that spend at least $500 million annually.
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Laure Andrillon
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CalMatters
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Topline:
A bill in the state legislature would require evaluations of statewide education programs, like transitional kindergarten. LAist reported in February that the state had no plans to evaluate the new grade for four-year-olds, despite billions of dollars being spent.
Why it matters: The bill’s author, state Assemblymember David Alvarez, said he was shocked to find out how much the state has spent on initiatives without a plan for evaluation. “I really see this as the opportunity to really cement what I think is a good governance practice, long-term,” he said.
A bill moving through the state legislature would require independent evaluations of any new education initiative that costs at least $500 million a year or $1 billion in one-time spending.
The proposed requirement is part of a larger bill that would restructure the role of the state superintendent, an elected position that currently oversees the California Department of Education.
“That means that as we make massive investments, as have occurred in the last several years, like universal transitional kindergarten, that there is a built-in independent check to tell us what is actually working,” Assemblymember David Alvarez, the bill’s author and chair of the assembly subcommittee on education, said at a hearing a few weeks ago.
”For TK, as you've covered well, you know, it's nonexistent,” Alvarez told LAist.
The state has spent billions on the program, including $3.9 billion to administer it this fiscal year.
The amendments to the bill also follow reports from the research group Policy Analysis for California Education, as well as the Legislative Analyst’s Office, that recommend reshaping the role of an elected state superintendent to include evaluation duties. But Alvarez said he thought it was crucial to take the legislation a step further and include a fiscal trigger to make evaluations mandatory, and envisions the requirement to apply to new state spending.
How would reviews work?
The bill as currently written only applies to new initiatives, but the superintendent would have authority to order reviews of existing programs like transitional kindergarten.
"I'm hopeful that as we engage more with the administration on this issue, that there's an interest in evaluating a program like this one of this magnitude and others,” Alvarez said. Other existing programs include the Community Schools Partnership Program, a wrap-around services initiative, and the Expanded Learning Opportunities Program.
The bill would allow for the independent evaluations to be done by outside research organizations.
“I really see this as the opportunity to really cement what I think is a good governance practice, long-term,” he said. “ Resources are limited, and we don't have an infinite number of dollars to do all the work we want to do, so we’ve got to make sure that dollars are being used in the best way that serves the most number of students.”
Have thoughts?
Who oversees the state's education budget?
The California State Assembly's Subcommittee on Education Finance and the State Senate's Education Committee are the points of contact for proposals and oversight of public education funding, including:
Kavish Harjai
has been keeping track of progress on the LAX Automated People Mover.
Published May 4, 2026 5:00 AM
The workers represented by the union have been testing and commissioning the LAX Automated People Mover, which is seen here going through reliability and safety testing in April 2026.
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Kavish Harjai
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LAist
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Topline:
A subcontractor on the LAX Automated People Mover project owes a group of workers unpaid wages and benefits, according to a grievance filed by the union representing the workers. An arbitrator in March sided with the union in its case against the subcontractor, Alstom Transport USA.
What does this mean: The arbitrator’s decision calls on Alstom to pay the workers back wages and benefits. The International Union of Elevator Constructors, Local 18, who brought the grievance forward, said Alstom has “already shown that they don’t intend to comply with the arbitrator’s award.” In that case, the general contractor, LINXS, would be liable to remedy the pay issue, according to a copy of the arbitrator’s decision shared with LAist by the union.
The broader context: Disputes in large-scale capital projects are not uncommon. This is one of many surrounding the Automated People Mover and not the only one to involve subcontractors. Earlier this year, LAist reported about how the main contractor, a group of companies called LINXS, is engaged in legal battles with two of its other subcontractors.
Read on … for more details about the arbitration.
A subcontractor on the LAX Automated People Mover project owes a group of workers unpaid wages and benefits, according to a grievance filed by the union representing the workers.
An arbitrator held a hearing on the matter last December and formally sided with the union in his decision, which was released in March.
The International Union of Elevator Constructors, Local 18, had argued in a grievance filed in May 2025 that subcontractor Alstom Transport USA has been paying people who have been preparing train vehicles for passenger service and testing parts at a lower rate than what’s outlined in a labor agreement governing the project.
The union said in a statement to LAist that it is “satisfied” its claims were backed by the arbitrator and that the decision reflects the power of collective action.
The union added that this isn’t the end of the fight since Alstom has “already shown that they don’t intend to comply with the arbitrator’s award.”
The arbitrator noted in his decision there is some uncertainty as to how many workers would be affected since some of them were hired directly by Alstom and others through third-party firms. The union says there are 28 total workers who, regardless of how they were hired, should be compensated for their work and estimates Alstom owes them millions in wages and benefits.
A spokesperson for Alstom said it is “reviewing the arbitrator’s recommendations.”
“Alstom remains committed to reaching a fair and competitive wage and benefit package that recognizes the valuable contributions of our employees,” the spokesperson said.
LINXS did not respond to a request for comment.
Disputes in large-scale capital projects are not uncommon. This is one of many surrounding the Automated People Mover and not the only one to involve subcontractors working on the project. Earlier this year, LAist reported about how the main contractor, a group of companies called LINXS, is engaged in legal battles with two of its other subcontractors.
At the heart of this dispute is the collective bargaining agreement that sets wages for on-site construction work, establishes dispute procedures and ensures there won’t be work stoppages over labor issues on capital projects owned by Los Angeles World Airports, the city agency that oversees LAX. The project labor agreement was first forged in 1999 and, in 2020, the airport’s board renewed it for an additional decade.
LINXS agreed that it would be bound to the agreement and “shall require all of its subcontractors … to be similarly bound,” according to a copy of the arbitrator’s decision the union shared with LAist.
The union has claimed that the Alstom employees were doing work that is covered by the agreement and that they should be paid accordingly.
Alstom, according to communications cited in the arbitrator’s decision, said it never signed a document called a Letter of Assent, which formalizes a company’s obligation to follow the project labor agreement, and that, even if it did, its employees’ work isn’t covered.
The arbitrator’s decision
David Weinberg, the arbitrator, said the testing and commissioning work Alstom employees did is covered by the project labor agreement. Weinberg added that Alstom consented to abide by the agreement when it signed a contract to work with LINXS.
“Not signing the Letter of Assent does not absolve Alstom of its contractual obligations to LINXS or to the Union under the [Project Labor Agreement] due to the pass-through provision,” Weinberg wrote in his decision.
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Weinberg said that the Alstom employees should get paid the national wage and benefits rate for the International Union of Elevator Constructors for any hours of work completed starting 60 days before the union filed its grievance. Weinberg also ordered Alstom to provide the hours of work completed on-site.
Weinberg said in his decision that if Alstom does not comply, LINXS would be on the hook, though for a smaller amount. LINXS would be liable to pay for any hours of work starting 60 days before Nov. 4, when it became a formal party to the grievance.
