Bay Area
Oakland Police Allocates More Officers to Combat Gun Violence
Amid the deadliest week this year with eight lives lost, Oakland Police Chief LeRonne L. Armstrong deployed additional officers on overtime Sunday to reduce the amount of gun violence. To date, OPD has investigated 96 homicides, compared to 102 lives lost by this same time last year.

By Paul Chambers
In an all-hands-on-deck meeting, Oakland Police Department (OPD) Chief LeRonne L. Armstrong challenged his command staff to bring a different approach to fighting crime, with the goal of an immediate impact on the safety of residents, visitors, and businesses in Oakland.
Amid the deadliest week this year with eight lives lost, Armstrong deployed additional officers on overtime Sunday to reduce the amount of gun violence. To date, OPD has investigated 96 homicides, compared to 102 lives lost by this same time last year.
Although homicides are down slightly over last year, Armstrong added eight officers permanently to the Criminal Investigation Division (CID). The increase in staffing will lead to more criminal investigations and a higher number of solved cases, in turn keeping violent offenders from committing additional crimes in our city.
In the coming weeks, OPD will deploy all available resources throughout the city in a coordinated effort to enforce crimes associated with gun violence in Oakland. OPD will also restart the traffic enforcement unit and continue working with our federal and local law enforcement partners to support gun violence enforcement.
OPD has investigated 360 assaults with a firearm this year, compared to 465 incidents this time last year, which is a 23% reduction citywide. This year, officers are also on track to recover an astounding number of firearms. So far, OPD officers have safely taken 1,132 firearms off city streets, compared to 1199 during all of 2021.
OPD will add up to 50 officers with the successful graduation of the 189th and 190th Basic Academies in October and February.
OPD remains focused on proven violent crime prevention strategies such as Ceasefire to also address gun violence. The Department continues to rely on intelligence-led policing with the department’s Crime Gun Intelligence Center (CGIC), and the Violent Crime Operations Center (VCOC), leading focused enforcement and apprehension efforts.
Paul Chambers is the strategic communications manager for the Oakland Police Department.
Activism
Oakland Post: Week of May 28 – June 30, 2025
The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of May 28 – June 3, 2025

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Oakland Post: Week of May 21 – 27, 2025
The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of May 21 – 27, 2025

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Bay Area
Chevron Richmond Installs Baker Hughes Flare.IQ, Real-time Flare Monitoring, Control and Reduction System
While the sight of flaring can cause concern in the community, flares are essential safety systems that burn pollutants to prevent them from being released directly into the atmosphere. They activate during startup and shut-down of facility units or during upsets or equipment malfunctions. The typical flare stack is about 200 feet high so that vapors are well above street levels.

The Richmond Standard
Chevron Richmond recently installed flare.IQ, a real-time, automated system that will improve the facility’s flaring performance.
The technology, developed by Panametrics, a Baker Hughes business, uses sensors to monitor, reduce and control flaring in real time. It collects and assesses data on refinery processes, such as temperature, pressure, gas flow and gas composition, and adjusts accordingly to ensure flares burn more efficiently and cleanly, leading to fewer emissions.
“The cleaner the flare, the brighter the flame can look,” said Duy Nguyen, a Chevron Richmond flaring specialist. “If you see a brighter flame than usual on a flare, that actually means flare.IQ is operating as intended.”
While the sight of flaring can cause concern in the community, flares are essential safety systems that burn pollutants to prevent them from being released directly into the atmosphere. They activate during startup and shut-down of facility units or during upsets or equipment malfunctions. The typical flare stack is about 200 feet high so that vapors are well above street levels.
“A key element in Baker Hughes’ emissions abatement portfolio, flare.IQ has a proven track record in optimizing flare operations and significantly reducing emissions,” said Colin Hehir, vice president of Panametrics, a Baker Hughes business. “By partnering with Chevron Richmond, one of the first operators in North America to adopt flare.IQ, we are looking forward to enhancing the plant’s flaring operations.”
The installation of flare.IQ is part of a broader and ongoing effort by Chevron Richmond to improve flare performance, particularly in response to increased events after the new, more efficient hydrogen plant was brought online in 2019.
Since then, the company has invested $25 million — and counting — into flare minimization. As part of the effort, a multidisciplinary refinery team was formed to find and implement ways to improve operational reliability and ultimately reduce flaring. Operators and other employees involved in management of flares and flare gas recovery systems undergo new training.
“It is important to me that the community knows we are working hard to lower emissions and improve our flaring performance,” Nguyen said.
Also evolving is the process by which community members are notified of flaring incidents. The Community Warning System (CWS), operated by Contra Costa County is an “all-hazard” public warning system.
Residents can opt-in to receive alerts via text, e-mail and landline. The CWS was recently expanded to enable residents to receive notifications for “Level 1” incidents, which are considered informational as they do not require any community action.
For more information related to these topics, check out the resources included on the Chevron Richmond, CAER and Contra Costa Health websites. Residents are also encouraged to follow @chevronrichmond and @RFDCAOnline on Facebook and X (formerly Twitter), where additional information may be posted during an incident.
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