A man wanted in connection to a murder in Covelo has reportedly been spotted. Mendo Fever reports scanner traffic indicated Dino Michael Blackbear was seen in Fort Bragg this weekend. That triggered the Sheriff’s Office, Fort Bragg Police, the Fish and Game Dept., and California State Parks officers to descend on the area. They also sent out a Nixle Alert for residents in the area to shelter in place. They named the suspect they were looking for and his description, saying residents should report any suspicious activity and not to call 911 unless they felt their safety was at risk. Law enforcement also searching for Carina Amanda Carrillo since last Wednesday night when a man was shot in the neck outside the Buckhorn Bar. They say Blackbear should be considered “armed and dangerous.”
Nearly $700,000 has been doled out by the California Fire Foundation in wildfire safety grants to 55 local fire departments, fire agencies and community groups. The grants from the agency’s Wildfire Safety and Preparedness Program will go to six agencies in Northern Calif. The grants got an injection of cash from PG&E in charitable funding. The program looks to raise awareness about wildfire safety and distribute resources to underserved communities in high fire-threat areas. Money went to 3 fire departments in Humboldt County, the Elk Volunteer Fire Dept. in Mendocino County, the Lake Pillsbury Fire Protection District in Lake County, and the Yurok Fire Department in Del Norte County.
A crowd of people almost had to be rescued from the Point Arena pier as the tide got too high to leave on their own. Mendo Fever reported hearing on the scanner that someone was in the water, but got out and was stuck on some rocks as the tide was rising. An air ambulance was sent in along with other resources to help pluck the victim from the area. But they were able to get themselves out and walk out and all rescuers were told they could leave the scene.
Not unusual in Calif. anymore, a couple of lightning-sparked wildfires have merged and are creeping toward a grove of ancient sequoias. The world’s largest tree is wrapped in protective foil after the weather shifted and the KNP Complex made a run for the Sequoia National Park in the Sierra Nevada. The Giant Forest trees are known as the “Four Guardsmen” which are at the entrance to a grove of 2,000 sequoias. The massive General Sherman Tree is the one wrapped in aluminum. It’s 275 feet high and 103 feet wide at ground level. There was a red flag warning for the area yesterday which the National Weather Service reported could create conditions for rapid wildfire spread.
A Public Safety Power Shutoff is coming to several counties in Calif. including Lake County. PG&E made the announcement that starting tonight they will shut off power to fire prone areas, but only about 50 or less people will be impacted in Lake, and none in Mendocino County. In all there will be about 7,100 customers affected. Power was starting to be turned off as soon as 5 am this morning and some were told it would be by 10 pm tonight. There had been another 10,000 customers included but that changed. Colusa, Glenn, Napa, Tehama and Yolo counties were also affected. Customers will get updates today about when they can get their power back. That comes after crews inspect their deenergized lines for hazards or damage to make sure it is safe to restore power.
The Clearlake City Council will once again discuss the Cache Fire. The meeting will cover the latest cleanup and recovery after the Governor declared a state of emergency for Lake County due to the fire. That will free up more resources and help with the removal of hazardous debris and ash. The cleanup should start in the coming weeks after proposals come into the city. The city manager says the Cache fire was prioritized as one of the first fire cleanups in the state. There is a site meeting planned too this week with the city engineer. Those who lost their homes are being taken care of by the city and North Coast Opportunities.
In Lakeport the City Council is taking up organic waste requirements. The city’s apparently looking to get an exemption from the state. They’ll take up the matter at their meeting tomorrow night. The meeting is open to the public but for those not vaccinated, they need a face mask. The meeting is also happening online. The city’s looking to CalRecycle for an exemption to a 2016 law to reduce methane emissions by the year 2025. If the city gets CalRecycle’s approval the exemption is valid until Dec. 31st of 2026.
A special meeting’s being held by the Mendocino County Board of Supervisors to declare a local emergency due to the Hopkins Fire. The declaration would free up resources from the state due to the arson fire that broke out in Calpella Sept. 12th. They will also discuss an urgency ordinance for an administrative permit program so trailers can be used to shelter people who lost their homes in the fire. There are regulations including needing certain permits for temporary housing. This would allow those rebuilding the ability to have a trailer on their property in the boundary of where the fire burned, or on a separate property in the county.
A bunch of cases of COVID19 have shut down some schools as the delta variant ravaged the country. But overall case and hospitalization rates are on the way down in California and around the country. Especially here in children. Ed Source reports an infectious disease expert tracking demographic trends says cases have shifted substantially towards children and adolescents since the beginning of the school year in mid- to late August and that’s led some school districts to mandate vaccines. But weekly infection rates for all age groups were way down in California as of June, but then spiked in August. With children having higher rates than most adults. The Governor tweeted this weekend though that Calif. has the lowest case rates in the country.
A woman from Lakeport accused of starting a fire has pleaded not guilty. Court papers say 35 year old Jamie Rae Lukens was in court, remotely last week for arson, possessing a device for arson and unlawful fire for a fire near a bank in Lakeport which spread to trees and shrubs. Two witnesses nearby fingered Luken as the fire starter. She’s due back in court in mid October with a jury trial slated for the 20th. She’s in jail on $100,000 bail.
The Lake County Public Health Dept. homing in on the homes that could have tainted drinking water due to high levels of bacteria in areas of Clear Lake. Last week we told you that routine testing at 15 sites turned up high levels of cyanobacteria and that water was unsafe to drink – if the water came from a personal, private intake from the lake. They’ve now identified about 280 properties in the Oaks and Lower Arms of Clear Lake who draw water from the lake. There are now alternative filling stations for potable, drinkable water, one in Clearlake provided by the Golden State Water Company, and the other in Kelseyville, provided by Mt. Konocti MWC. The fillable stations started Saturday and were only for property owners affected by the Health Advisory. There was also a limit of 25 gallons/week per household.
Lake County Continuum of Care says they’ve got two grants available for rehousing and emergency shelter for nonprofits. Two grants through the Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD) Emergency Solutions Grant (ESG) Program. Each has just under $124,000. Agencies who apply have to be a 501(c)3 nonprofit, government agency including housing authority, or a state or federally recognized tribe/tribal entity serving those struggling with homelessness or at-risk of becoming homeless in Lake County. Continuum of Care will help make recommendations for the grants.
Police in Ukiah say they received reports of shots fired, finding a man with a gunshot wound to his hand. It happened earlier today in the 800 block of Cindee Drive. UPD Officers, Ukiah Valley Fire Authority and paramedics went to the scene and took the victim to Adventist Health Ukiah Valley. Detectives were called to the scene and found someone had gotten out of a car and fired 24 shots at two homes. One of the homes was hit in an upstairs bedroom window. That’s where the man was shot in the hand. Police are searching for a possible suspect.
The Lake County Vet Connect Volunteers are hosting an event at the fairgrounds to help at risk and homeless veterans. This Wednesday the annual “Lake and Mendocino Stand Down and Resource Fair” is happening from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. to help veterans find immediate help. They will have folks there to help with veterans’ services, housing and homeless assistance, employment, medical insurance counseling and more. There will be various regional veterans’ services and local organizations will be there to meet with veterans.
PG&E could be raising rates again because of wildfires, coronavirus challenges and other catastrophes. The energy company says they’ve asked for two rate increases which could mean a raise so that most customers pay over $200 a month for electricity and gas services. Right now the typical electric and gas customer pays a bit under the $200/month mark. One of the requests says PG&E needs about $1.47 billion for expenses related to wildfire mitigation, some catastrophic events and multiple other activities. The filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission last Thursday.
