Californians over the age of 70 can renew their driver’s license online. The California Department of Motor Vehicles says any licenses that were due to expire by March 1st and all during the pandemic are eligible. And that includes REAL ID renewals. There’s a snail mail option coming soon. Anyone under 69 can also renew online even if it says you have to come into the office on your renewal notice. There’s a temporary waiver for renewing in person because of California’s State of Emergency. Before this there was an automatic extension for senior drivers whose licenses were set to expire in March.
A grim milestone in Calif., the distribution of 5,000 body bags and refrigerated trailers for makeshift morgues. Most of the items head to Los Angeles and San Diego in the face of another wave of coronavirus deaths. We’re seeing two times the amount of deaths we had during the summer peak of the virus. The latest data shows the deaths have quadrupled since the summer and we’re seeing record breaking daily confirmed cases, over 32,500 a day. That should bring 3,900 hospitalizations/day and almost 500 ICU patients. The governor says we’re in the middle of the most acute peak.
The first shots of the Pfizer vaccine into the arms of healthcare workers in Calif as more than 32,000 cases are reported in a day. The Governor says it’s the worst moment of the pandemic, but he was hopeful yesterday as the first shots were administered. The Gov. says the vaccine is not coming soon enough though as cases have been dramatically increasing since last month. He’s urging residents to take safety measures seriously, wear masks and maintain distance from others. The state got 33,000 doses from Pfizer distributed Monday to hospitals in San Francisco, San Diego and Eureka. Gov. Newsom says around 400,000 more doses are set to get to hospitals next week.
The Lake County Board of Supervisors out with their end of year and holiday message in the face of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. The Board Chair, Moke Simon says “the frustrations, the life-changing moments that have happened so differently this year – they have shown us a lot about ourselves. There is a strength inside every one of us that will not be torn down.” Other supervisors also spoke out saying people need to be fed and need shelter, and the county rose to meet the needs by helping local businesses, which has been a high priority. The holidays are here they say and 2020 taught major lessons, we can overcome challenges, we can change our approach faster that we thought and we are all connected and must be heard, no matter our point of view – we have to work together.
California’s been averaging over 32,000 cases of COVID19 a day. One news organization says there were over 41,000 on Monday. That was the first day the vaccine went into the arm of a nurse in Los Angeles. Barely any ICU beds are available across the state. That was the benchmark for more closures, if there are less than 15% ICU beds in any county, they will go back into strict lockdowns, with business closures we saw at the beginning of the pandemic in March. Last Friday there were more than 35,000 new cases. And during the last couple of weeks, California’s daily average exploded by 132% and the daily death rate was up 157%.
The Konocti Unified School District has a new plan to spruce up their infrastructure and shore it up in the case of power downs by PG&E. The Record Bee reports the board of trustees approved the $8.5 million renewal program over the summer as the LNU Lightning Complex and the August Complex Fires burned. The plan will take the power shutoffs, blackouts, indoor air quality and rising utility costs all into account. So over the next year, the school sites will have construction work going on. The Superintendent of Schools says protecting everyone and improving indoor air quality is their guiding force. So they’ll add high-efficiency heating to some classrooms, better ventilation and new air conditioning (HVAC) units, with MERV 13 filters.
The Ukiah City Council is looking at how to fill the seat of council member Maureen Mulheren who won a seat on the Board of Supervisors. The staff report for tonight’s meeting says they’ve got to decide if they should have a special election or appoint someone, which will be less of an expenditure. Mulheren will not take part in the discussion. The next election wouldn’t be until next May, but they have to decide before Jan. 10th if they want to spend $30,000; but if another agency has to have a special election it could be consolidated, at less of an expenditure for the city. Mulheren’s term was set to expire in November of 2022.
The CEO of the county started the latest board of supervisors meeting discussing their “mass casualty plan” to prepare for an expected spike in hospitalizations and deaths amid new coronavirus cases expected in coming weeks. The supervisors also heard from the Public Health Officer, Dr. Andy Coren, and with him our former health officer, and current deputy, Dr. Noemi Doohan. They also talked about the upcoming vaccine arrival, but Dr. Coren says the vaccine won’t get us out of the current mess and we will still need to mask up and socially distance for a long time. They discussed ICU capacity, which is still at around 30%, much higher than the 15% threshold for closure of more businesses. Coren reminded it has to do with staffing too. Coren and the supervisors spoke out about people not believing how terrible the disease is, and the major issue in the county, is minimal compliance with protocols. The mass casualty plan includes talking to closeby mortuaries, and possibly using the fairgrounds or other places for medical tents for a possible disaster ahead, according to CEO Carmel Angelo. 24 people have died so far in the county, and over 2,050 have tested positive.
The Mendocino County Sheriff’s office sending deputies out for reports of a man passed out at an apartment complex, and he can’t be awakened. An arriving officer administered NARCAN to the 21 year old yesterday. They couldn’t get there right away, so a sheriff’s sergeant went before medics and found the man laying in the apartment complex carport. He said there was a faint pulse and was unresponsive to pain stimulus and thought he may have been overdosing and gave him the NARCAN, then when nothing happened, a second dose. The young man woke up as medical personnel arrived. He refused further treatment and said he took a marijuana edible and did not use any opioids. But deputies say they believe since he had positive reaction to the NARCAN, it’s possible the cannabis edible was laced with opioids. This is the 6th time deputies have used NARCAN in about 18 months of using it.
A young Ukiah woman is in trouble with the law after an older couple is ripped off at their home. Deputies got a call last week to a home burglary. A 69 year-old woman and 65 year-old man say their security safe was taken, but nothing else was touched. Deputies say they thought it might be someone who knew the two, then found the stuff in the safe was pawned at a local business. The pawn shop gave the deputies the stolen property and tied it to 30 year old Mandee Nelson, a relative of the victims. They contacted her over text and she agreed to bring the stuff back to the victims. Nelson was arrested with the rest of the stolen property and held in jail on $50,000.00 bail.
A man and woman from Ukiah have been arrested for fraud and identity theft. A 65 year old man reported his bank card had been stolen and used a bunch of times at various businesses in Ukiah. The victim showed deputies his bank statements and they called the businesses and identified Jessica Escobedo-Fernandez as a suspect. They then developed more evidence and probable cause to believe Robert Huang had gotten ahold of the victim’s personal info and he worked with Escobedo-Fernandez to use the fraudulent debit cards, spending almost $5,000. Escobedo-Fernandez and Huang were arrested on various charges including forgery, grand theft, conspiracy to commit felony crime and obtaining credit and using others ID. The pair were booked into jail on $15,000.00 bail.
