Two more people from Mendocino County have died from Covid-19. The victims were an 88-year-old man from the Ukiah area and a 94-year-old woman from the Fort Bragg area. Neither had been vaccinated and both had serious underlying medical issues. They were the 91st and 92nd people to die of Covid since the pandemic started.
The first two free FLU clinics of the season are planned this week in Lake County. The drive-up clinics will be tomorrow and Wednesday from 1:30 to 3:30 at the Public Health Division on Bevins Court in Lakeport. You can make an appointment online at mvturn.ca.gov. Two more clinics will be held in the same place at the same times on Wednesday and Thursday, November 17th and 18th. Flu shots are also available at places like pharmacies and your doctor’s office. Flu prevention depends on good and hygiene and covering your nose and mouth if you sneeze. The symptoms of the flu include a temperature of over 100 degrees F combined with a cough, sore throat, body aches, headache, and a lack of energy. If you are ill the health department urges you to stay home to keep from infecting others.
The Mendocino County Sheriffs’ office has arrested a man from Laytonville who was wanted in Texas. Deputies say they found 52-year-old Daniel Cook at a place in the 59-000 block of Bell Springs Road in Laytonville after a tip on Saturday. He was on the run from Texas, where he had a warrant for a prostitution-related crime. Cook is now at the Mendocino County Jail without bail, waiting to be sent back to Texas.
Firearms and drug charges for a man from Covelo. The Mendocino County Sheriffs Office says 30-year-old Lawence Freese was picked up when deputies served a search warrant at a home in the 100 block of Agency Road in Covelo on Saturday afternoon. The officers say they found two 9mm pistols and a bag of meth inside. They also say Freese was under the influence. He was booked into the Mendocino County lockup and accused of felony armed drug possession and two counts of illegal gun possession. He was booked into the Mendocino County Jail, where the judge set bail at $25,000.
A survey of families with children in Lake County suggests paying utility bills and job difficulty were the biggest problems from the Covid-19 pandemic. First 5 Lake County put out a survey in June. 269 people answered and the results are back. The survey asked about 11 different areas of need in the county caused by the outbreak. Lake Co News reports 44 percent of the respondents cited utility payments, followed by trouble with employment as their biggest difficulties since the pandemic began. Also among the top concerns: childcare and paying rent or mortgage. While the survey comments pointed out individual struggles, they also found words of hope and gratitude for how others responded to the crisis. First 5 Lake Executive Director Carla Ritz hopes the results will lead to improved support services for families and children who need them. First 5 has the survey findings on its website.
The Mendocino County Health Department is reaching out to anybody who went to the Rite Aid on Main Street in Willits between October 29th and October 31st. A confirmed positive case of Covid 19 is reported there, so the department wants anyone unvaccinated to get a test. Those vaccinated should watch out for Covid symptoms. The department says it only names locations with positive test results when it would be hard to find everyone who had been there. Rite Aid says is cooperating with the investigation.
Watch for high winds over Mendocino County today. The National weather service predicts gusts of more than 65 miles an hour at times. Those gusts could cause damage. Most like to get the wind– higher coastal ridges and interior mountains, as well as portions of the coast. The wind will die down by Tuesday.
You aren’t alone if the time change on Sunday threw off your sleep. Experts say the clock changes can have an impact on our BODY clocks, sometimes for days. CHP says you should keep that in mind on the roads. Disrupted sleep patterns can lead to drowsy drivers, with impairment similar to being under the influence. This is National Drowsy Driving Prevention Week, so CHP says it is a good time to watch how ALERT you feel behind the wheel.
The Mendocino County Department of Health thinks more people should take advantage of a treatment that can prevent serious illness from Covid-19. Monoclonal Antibodies only work if administered within the first 10 days of infection, but health officials say many people are getting the treatment too late. Health officer Dr. Andrew Coren says there are sites in the county where Monoclonal Antibodies are available. He cites the case of an elderly woman who missed that narrow window to get the infusion and was in the hospital for two weeks with severe Covid. You can find those locations on the Mendocino County website.
The Ukiah City Council will pick up where it left off this evening. The council’s last meeting on Wednesday was cut short because of a technical problem with streaming the session on cable channel 3. Council members say they want to make sure everyone has access, so they will reconvene at 6:00 via zoom. The city also says it will improve its YouTube feed as well. When the gavel falls again, the agenda will start with public comment on several items, including discussion of money the city wants to spend on several capital projects. 30 million would go to streets, right of way reconstruction, and utility projects. Another 10 million would be used on the city corporation yard, while 15 million more would be set aside for electric capital replacement and improvement. The council will look at options to PAY for the projects. The options include doing the work when the money is available, dipping into savings, or borrowing.
The Mendocino Health Alliance is holding a public training session this week on how to use the opioid reversal drug Narcan. The county has one of the highest Overdose rates in California, so officials say it important that everyone knows how to step in with if they see someone who is OD-ing. The Sheriff’s department said it may have saved a life as recently as last month when a deputy administered the medicine to a woman passed out outside the Ukiah Safeway The Zoom Training is on Wednesday at 4pm. Participants will get Narcan when the session is over. The sheriff’s office has more on the virtual training—and other resources about the opioid problem in Mendocino County.
Upgrades and new systems for the Konocti County Water district after a 10.7 million dollar state grant. The Record-Bee reports the improvements include a new lake water intake, screens to keep the fish out, and new pumping equipment. Water District General Manager Frank Costner says the work addresses some of the problems from the last drought in 2014. It will take two years to get everything done. Costner says the grant offset a rate increase so that new revenue is going to expenses related to the current drought.
A woman accused of setting a fire last summer that damaged or destroyed several buildings in Clearlake Oaks is being sent to a psychiatric hospital for treatment. The Record-Bee reports Tori Brannon will have to start that involuntary treatment within the next 60 days. The fire she is accused of setting on Hoover Street in July did more than $600,000 damage to 5 structures and 6 outbuildings. Brannon was arrested in the area the next day. At the time, reports say she threatened to burn down even more buildings.
Lake County Habitat for Humanity has finished work on its 38th volunteer-built home. The Cinema family now have a new place to live after Habitat volunteers put up the group’s 38th house. The family tells Lake Co News it is an inconceivable relief to have the new place. Habitat continues to offer help through its first-time homebuyer program. You can stop by their office on Lakeshore Drive if you would like more information.
