We are in the middle of whale migration season off the coast. The Noyo Center for Marine Science in Fort Bragg is doing its part to help people get to know the world’s biggest mammals. On Saturday, as part of Whalefest 2022, the center will host researchers who study whales for a living at the Crow’s Nest Interpretative Center. From now until April 2nd, there will be other expert talks and exhibits, including a blue whale skeleton with 73 bones, and a whale-themed scavenger hunt. There is information on the website noyocenter.org.
It’s “spring forward” into Daylight Saving Time this weekend. Before you go to bed Saturday dig out the instructions and reset that clock on the microwave — and all the other clocks around the house — ahead by an hour. If not, you’ll be an hour LATE come Sunday morning. Fire departments say it is also a good time to check your smoke and carbon monoxide detectors. It’s smart to replace the batteries twice a year, so this weekend can be a reminder to do that. If you hate the twice a year clock-adjustment ritual, lawmakers in California and more than a dozen other states have passed bills favoring year-round saving time. It will literally take an act of congress for a change to happen though.
After a gas station in Mendocino County went viral for having the most expensive gallon of gasoline in the United States, there’s one now, that may be one of the cheapest… at least in Calif. The Hidden Oaks Convenience Store is apparently the second cheapest in the state, per GasBuddy, a site that tracks prices for gas, nationwide. The manager of the Mendocino station Shlafer’s that had gas at $8.45/gallon said, it is what it is, and that she’d go out of business otherwise, but the manager at the Hidden Oaks Convenience Store said it’s their goal to keep gas affordable as prices keep going up daily. Hidden Oaks was at about $4.85 for a regular gallon of gas. The highest price, besides in Mendocino, in the state, is in Mono County, where it’s at about $6.50/gallon.
Police officers in Ukiah, who were accused of manhandling and using force on a naked man in a mental health crisis, have been cleared. The department has announced no charges for officers after the arrest last year of 25-year-old Gerardo Magdaleno. They say they used regular police tactics to take him down. Reports say that included pepper spray after they say he wouldn’t comply, and a taser on his head, dozens of times. The city reportedly agreed to pay over $200,000 though in a settlement agreement for Magdaleno. His lawyer says he suffers from schizophrenia and bipolar disorder and was never a threat.
A new report by the Sonoma County DA’s office says the Board of Supervisors violated California’s open meetings law during the county’s redistricting process. The District Attorney’s office said there were two times the board along with county officials, did not follow the law. But she says it didn’t influence the redistricting outcome. The DA put out a public letter yesterday saying she started an investigation in December after the County Counsel requested it. Plus there were complaints from community members too.
The state agriculture department is warning not to participate in any horse shows for hunter/jumpers for a month due to a recent outbreak of Equine Herpes. The agency put out an open letter saying if the outbreak isn’t controlled, there may be serious consequences to the horse industry, infecting thousands of horses due to the extensive mixing of horses at statewide, national, and international horse events. It’s not the traditional herpes you may expect, this causes respiratory disease, abortion, neonatal death, and the neurological disease known as EHM. It spreads in aerosolized secretions, by direct contact, and by contact with surfaces containing infected secretions.
One of the Lake County Sheriff’s Dept. Detectives has been recognized as the investigator of the year in sex crimes. Lake County Detective Todd Dunia was awarded the Patrick Sullivan Investigator of the Year by the California Sexual Assault Investigator’s Association. The award is handed out yearly in the name of Fresno Police Detective Patrick Sullivan. Detective Dunia is the 17th Investigator to receive the prestigious award, recognizing his professionalism, commitment to his community and his outstanding work in the field of Sexual Assault Investigations. He’s been with the department 15 years and the Sexual Assault Investigator for ten.
Ahead of what looks to be another dry season in Calif., Pacific Gas and Electric Co. has arborists and foresters out doing foot patrols and say there are an unusually high amount of dead or dying trees in the Cobb Mountain area. Due to the drought, hotter weather, way more bark beetles and sudden oak death, they have more inspectors out. The energy company says they’re offering tree felling for property owners and the removal of the wood. But you’ll need to give them written approval. The company says they’ve not seen this many trees like this anywhere else and no other county in the state has been hit harder, than Lake.
Customers who have questions about the Wood Management Program for 2022 tree mortality in Cobb Mountain, please call 1-877-295-4949.
State Senator Mike McGuire has introduced a bill to provide grants to pay for mental health clinicians to work in high need communities. In an appearance with the State Superintendent of Schools earlier this week, McGuire announced there will be 10,000 new counseling positions at schools and youth organizations across the state, especially the ones with a high rate of negative childhood experiences. He says the pandemic has laid bare, more anxiety, depression, loneliness and, even, suicidal thoughts. He also said adverse childhood experiences were going on long before the pandemic.
A woman accused of arson in Lower Lake had a review hearing moved to next month. Kayla Renee Main was at the latest hearing remotely, but the court ordered the matter to be continued until April 5th to see if the defendant had yet been transferred to a state mental hospital for treatment. Since there were behavioral issues at the jail, the defendant was not moved last year after she was to be committed for inpatient treatment. The court also found that she needed to be involuntarily administered drugs so she could even get to a hospital for treatment. Her lawyer also told the court he doubted she was competent to understand the proceedings against her after her arrest for an incident last July. She was reportedly seen near fires and accused of starting them after witnesses put the fires out.
Some Bank of America employees have been donating to a booster shot program to help end hunger. And Redwood Empire Food Bank is reaping the benefits. A $25,000 dollar donation has been made to the food bank that serves Sonoma, Lake, Mendocino, Humboldt, and Del Norte counties. B of A North Bay donated the money to encourage food bank teammates to get their Covid-19 booster shots. Each team member who got their shot before the end of January got $100. The $25,000 raised will provide 100,000 meals to those in need.
