March 18, 2023 The neighborhood at Hillside Estates in Woodlake in Tulare County is flooded Wednesday after the previous night's heavy rains. (Gina Ferazzi/Los Angeles Times) By Kenya Romero Good morning, and welcome to the Essential California newsletter. It is Saturday, March 18. Here’s a look at the top stories of the last week Age, drought, rodents and neglect weaken California levees, heightening flood danger. The Pajaro River levee failure points to hazards that California has yet to address in many areas where communities are vulnerable, experts say. More: The levee breach in Monterey County triggered massive flooding and prompted evacuations and rescues. The migrant town of Pajaro was flooded last week during powerful storms that caused a levee to break. Now, another storm is moving in. As floodwaters rise in California, so does the risk of more levee failures. Experts say decades of government neglect puts more vulnerable communities at further risk of catastrophic flooding. Days after the rain stopped, communities across Central California, including Porterville and Visalia, are still under evacuation orders and flood warnings. And more rain is on the way. LAUSD teachers and staff prepare for a massive three-day strike. Los Angeles Unified School District, the nation’s second-largest school district, will shut down all 1,000 campuses beginning Tuesday as teachers and school staff unions strike for three days. What to know about Silicon Valley Bank’s collapse. Silicon Valley Bank, or SVB, collapsed late last week as venture capitalists pulled out billions of dollars in a short time span. Here’s everything to know about SVB’s spectacular collapse. Eric Garcetti finally got the ambassadorship he wanted. After nearly two years in limbo, former L.A. Mayor Eric Garcetti was confirmed on Wednesday as the next U.S. ambassador to India. Here’s how he did it.