After rebuilding the La Rue Road-Hutchison Drive intersection last week, Western Engineering Inc. has moved on to the southbound lanes of La Rue Road between Hutchison Drive and Garrod Drive (leading to the Health Sciences District) for a repair and repaving project scheduled to last until Nov. 2.

The southbound lanes are closed, with traffic diverted to the northbound lanes, which has been converted to two-way traffic. Pedestrians and bicyclists are being diverted to the east side of La Rue Road.

Other road work:

• Dairy Road Bicycle Path — Between the north end of the Pavilion Parking Structure (west entry garage) and the south end of the Transportation Services Building. Restricted to one lane, alternating directions, through Friday, Sept. 14, for utilities work.
• Garrod Drive — Short stretch on the west side of the Veterinary Medical Teaching Hospital, restricted to one-way traffic, alternating directions, for autos and bicycles, from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday, Sept. 17-21, for construction activities related to the Large Animal Support Facility project.
• Tercero Hall Circle — Closed to all through traffic (vehicular and bicycle) through Monday (Sept. 17) for construction activities related to the Tercero Dining Commons 2 project.

Keep an eye on your laptop computers

Laptop computers disappeared in three residential burglaries at the north edge of the main campus early Friday (Sept. 7). The next day, police said, someone stole a laptop from a car in the South Entry Parking Structure.

The residential burglaries occurred between midnight and 5 a.m. in the Russell Park neighborhood and on Parkway Circle, near the intersection of La Rue Road and Russell Boulevard. Police said the burglar or burglars gained access through unlocked doors or windows.

Campus police said the city Police Department is investigating the theft of a laptop in a residential burglary during the same time frame on Arthur Street in northwest Davis. 

Saturday (Sept. 8), someone smashed a window in a car to steal a laptop in the South Entry Parking Structure, between 8 a.m. and 4 p.m., police said.

Officers are reminding people in the campus community to protect their property by keeping doors and windows locked, and keeping valuables such as laptops out of sight from the outside. Also, people are asked to report suspicious people or incidents by calling police, 530-754-COPS (2677).

Firefighters assigned to Delta Fire

Campus firefighters are assisting state and federal crews on yet another of the wildfires ravaging California this summer.

Assistant Chief Nathaniel Hartinger, Capt. Dave Stiles, engineer Paul Rush and firefighters Chad Cunningham and Ryan Tooley have been assigned since last Thursday (Sept. 5) to the Delta Fire, the blaze that closed down Interstate 5 north of Redding for five days. Hartinger is a strike team leader trainee, while the others comprise the crew on the Fire Department’s Brush Truck 34.

The Delta Fire, on the Shasta-Trinity National Forest, had consumed 53,000 acres and had been 5 percent contained as of this morning (Sept. 11), according to the U.S. Forest Service.

Before heading off to the Delta Fire, Brush Truck 34 had been assigned from Aug. 20 to 26 to the Mendocino Complex fires around Clear Lake. Crew members on that assignment: Capt. Joe Newman, engineer Derek Carthy, and firefighters Cunningham and Corrie Beall.

The complex — comprising the River Fire west of Clear Lake and the Ranch Fire north and northeast of the lake — had consumed 459,000 acres and was 98 percent contained as of today, according to the U.S. Forest Service.

Campus firefighters the summer have worked on the Creek and Carr fires near Redding, the Ferguson Fire near Yosemite, and the County Fire in western Yolo County.

Summer’s last blood drive nets 241 pints

The campus’s final blood drive of the summer drew hundreds of participants to the bloodmobiles parked alongside the Quad — a good showing as UC Davis gears up for the 11th annual Causeway Classic Blood Drive, Tuesday-Thursday, Nov. 6-8.

In the Summer Session 2 blood drive, Aug. 22-23, 329 people answered the call to give blood — 78 of them first-time donors. The Sacramento-based BloodSource collected 241 pints (not everyone who registers is able to complete the donation process, for a variety of reasons).

“A huge thank-you to everyone for all of your efforts to ensure a successful turnout,” said Stephanie Kresse, a representative of BloodSource.

UC Davis holds a 6-4 lead over California State University, Sacramento, in the Causeway Classic Blood Drive, in which each school holds a multiday blood drive in advance of the Causeway Classic football game between the Aggies and Hornets.

Aggies go for 2nd win on the other Farm 

The UC Davis football team returns to Stanford this Saturday (Sept. 15), hoping for a repeat of the Aggies’ upset win over the Cardinal in 2005.

Kickoff is set for 11 a.m. Tickets are available here, or you can watch on television (Pac-12 Networks).

The University Farm first played the Stanford Farm in 1932 (Stanford prevailed, 59-0), then did not meet again until 2005 for what turned out to be one of the most memorable victories in Aggie football history: UC Davis 20, Stanford 17.

The Aggies fell to the Cardinal, 45-0, in 2014, also at Stanford — and now comes the fourth “Farm vs. Farm.” The Aggies go into their third preseason game with a 2-0 record (having defeated San Jose State and San Diego).

The Aggies next play at home Saturday, Sept. 22, vs. Idaho in the teams’ conference opener. Kickoff is set for 4 p.m. Tickets are available online or by calling the ticket office, 530-752-2471.

UCDrive adds FleetShare app

UC Davis’ car rental service, UCDrive, has added to its convenience by linking up with the FleetShare app, through which users can use their smartphones to see available vehicles and make reservations. Users can also access UCDrive rental histories.

The FleetShare app is available for free from Apple’s App Store and the Google Play Store. If you are already signed up for UCDrive, enter your username and password, and use “UCD” as your company name. You can apply to join UCDrive by filling out this form.

UCDrive offers rental vehicles at these locations:

• Fleet Services/Visitor Parking Lot 49, near the corner of La Rue Road and Garrod Drive
• Facilities Services Building on Crocker Lane, near the intersection of La Rue Road and California Avenue (south part of the main campus)
• North Entry Parking Structure

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