To celebrate this monumental achievement, we interviewed each member of our Pulitzer Prize-winning team to reflect on their on-the-ground coverage of the 2023 storms and the recognition that followed.
Today, Hillary Ojeda, Lookout’s Education Correspondent, shares her stories as the storms surpassed all expectations and the team had to rally together to meet the moment.
In her interview, Hillary reflects on her time speaking with families evacuated from the town of Pajaro.
“One of the most memorable moments was going to the Pajaro River … people were standing on the Watsonville side of the river … and telling us that they had been told to evacuate in the middle of the night and they didn’t know when they would be able to go back home … not knowing what was going to happen, and just living in that uncertainty was unbelievable. … My emotions at the time were all over the place, but calm at the same time just trying to figure out how I could be most useful to the community and to my coworkers.”
Thank you to all our Lookout members for supporting this work. Lookout members pay the salaries of local journalists, like Hillary, so they can bring the news to our community everyday — and be ready in times of crisis, as they were for the 2023 winter storms. If you are not already, please consider signing up today.
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