California Highway Patrol issued a report on the outcome of the maximum enforcement period through Independence Day. 68 people were killed in crashes in California between Friday evening and midnight on the 4th. Nearly half those who passed were not wearing a seat belt. Across the state, deputies wrote more than 9,700 speeding tickets. And CHP officers made over 1,200 arrests for driving under the influence. The next maximum enforcement period is scheduled for Labor Day Weekend, according to Lake County News.
California Highway Patrol issued a release about an ATV rollover on the Cow Mountain OHV area on the border of Mendocino County. Saturday morning after 7am, five people were in a Wrangler when it rolled off the road and ejected the driver and several passengers. The driver, Felipe Ramirez of Rohnert Park was killed during the crash. Several others weren’t hurt, but one person did have with minor injuries. The incident on Scotts Creek Road happened on BLM land. The accident is under investigation.
There was a three acre fire that threatened buildings in Kelseyville. Residents in the area were asked to evacuate. It started around 4pm yesterday. The Sylar Fire burned near Sylar Lane and State Street. Within half an hour, forward progress was stopped according to scanner traffic. Firefighters were putting out spot fires as they contained the blaze, according to reports in KymKemp.
Lake County officials will hold public meetings to help thousands of residents figure out if they meet the reinstated requirements for Medicaid and more. Lake County News reports increased eligibility requirements are back after the COVID emergency. Counties are now required to process redeterminations. All active Medi-Cal residents will be reviewed over the next year according to Lake County Social Services. There are over 37,000 recipients in the county that need to go through the process. They are asking residents who are on Medi-Cal to check your contact information and watch your mail. . Lake County Social Services will be in their Anderson Ranch Parkway in Lower Lake to help Monday thru Friday 8am to 5pm.
Lawmakers with law enforcement representatives and tribal leaders will meet today at 1pm to learn about a new law on the Feather Alert. AB1314 mandates that the public is notified when children are abducted or missing, or when seniors are missing. In a release issued by Assemblymen Ramos and Wood in MendoFever the groups will meet to discuss violence against Native American people, in particularly women and girls. More Native Americans than any other state live in California that also has the sixth highest death rate of indigenous women. The new Feather Alert system is aimed to help authorities work with the public to help find missing people. The meeting today will be at the Coyote Valley Casino in Redwood Valley with a roundtable discussion from 1 to about 4pm, then cultural presentations until 5pm.
The Round Valley Tribal community is hoping a skate board legend will help bring in funds for a skate park. The town of Covelo is hoping Tony Hawk will visit to publicize the creation of the skate park project. Hawk founded The Skatepark Project over 2 decades ago for guidance and grants in low-income communities to build safe public skate parks. His non-profit has helped well over 600 skate parks in the nation with over $11 million in grants. The Press Democrat reports young people have been dying in the community, with a teen girl who was murdered earlier this y ear. The tribal community hopes a skate park will help people come together, after seeing positive results with their portable ramps and boards monthly at a recreation center. They’re hoping to have a competition including Hawk to raise money for the project.
Mendocino College announced it received a $1.5 million grant from the California Community College system. The five-year grant will help the school continue providing resources, support and more to their Native American students. The college plans to hire staff and facilitate even more significant engagement with tribal communities. Mendocino College recently boasted the highest number of Native American students in California’s community colleges. Some of the college’s work for Native Americans this year included moving their Native American Student Resource Center to a better location near Pomo Plaza. They have a tribal community that shares cultural content with supplemental support. The college adopted an official Land Acknowledgement, has renamed the main quad as Pomo Plaza and added more cultural events and more.
The Unified Cannabis Enforcement Taskforce just issued a release on quarter two results of their work this year. The taskforce more than doubled the amount of illegal plants seized in quarter 1 statewide. The retail value of their results is about $109 million dollars. From April through June, they seized over three times the number of firearms. The report summarizes this year’s plants seized to over $160 million dollars. The taskforce was created last year to support the cannabis industry along with the local and federal partners. Their mission in part is to halt transnational criminal organizations, like cartels and gangs to safeguard the environment, the legal industry and residents of California.
A Mendocino County Deputy is credited with saving the life of an overdose patient with the administration of Narcan. It happened Monday morning when the call came in of an unresponsive man in Ukiah on Orr Street. The Narcan was given and the man was taken to Adventist Ukiah Valley. Narcan or Naloxone began widely available to Mendocino County Sheriff’ Office in 2019. In 2021 the California Opioid Overdose Surveillance Dashboard reported that Mendocino County ranked 2nd in all opioid overdose deaths. Officials want to remind people that Narcan can reverse the effects of an overdose for up to an hour, but medical help should be sought right away.
California State Parks’ Division of Boating and Waterways is accepting applications from marina owners for grants in 2024. KymKemp reports in a release that the federal Boating Infrastructure Grants could fund up to three quarters of private and public marinas for renovations and upgrades, through the US Fish and Wildlife Service’s Wildlife and Sport Fish Restoration Program. Grants are aimed at enhancing access to recreational, historic, cultural and scenic resources. They are focused on strengthening community ties to the water’s edge, promoting public/private partnerships, and promote awareness of transient boating opportunities. Information for interested applicants is available by contacting Ethan Tratner at 916-902-8823.
The city of Ukiah approved a permit for MedStar ambulance. The medical transportation company can operate out of a site on North State Street with non-emergency ambulances. During a public hearing in late June, the Planning Manager said the permit applied to a couple of buildings on a lot with the front building set for administrative purposes and the rear building proposed for staff quarters. The Ukiah Daily Journal reports Zoning Administration discussed noise complaints surrounding sirens the lights of the ambulance rigs. Conditions were set to allow sirens and lights once they reach State Street. The permit was approved after they discussed adding more ambulances to the site just in case.
Cal Fire is getting 24 more firefighting aircraft. The Record Bee reports the department is beefing up its air operations for a second year in a row. Over $72 million in funding was given by Governor Newsom’s administration. This year, 19 helicopters and 5 planes were secured to help the statewide efforts in fighting wildfires. The 3 fixed wing aircraft tankers can carry up to 4,000 gallons of retardant and are strategically placed in regions across the state, including in Humboldt, Napa and Sonoma Counties. Cal Fire reiterates their request that people not fly drones over areas with fire activity, so their air operations can do their work helping firefighters. Researches and fire officials are warning with the latest round of heat and extra vegetation this year’s season could be worse than last year.
The Department of Cannabis Control and Mendocino County have streamlined their licensing process for cultivation. In a Canna Note today, they announced Ascent Environmental is contracted to work on an environmental impact report on cultivation in the county. The California Department of Cannabis Control will be the lead agency overseeing Mendocino County in all licenses going forward. The department is reminding those who are licensed that the transition to state licensure requires local permitting.
