The Lake County Sheriff declared a local emergency yesterday due to the winter storms in the area. Excessive rain, high winds, and snow have brought down several trees and power lines in the area. Flooding and damage are widespread across the county. In a news release, the county said fire, public works, and utility crews are working to clear roads and assess damage to utilities. Lake County residents have been asked to stay off the roads and avoid unnecessary travel. Treat any downed power lines you come across as live and report them immediately. Check in on your family and neighbors, especially the elderly and those without power.
An accident involving a car and a pedestrian left a Clearlake woman dead. Police responded around 7:30 Sunday night. When they got to the scene they found the driver of the car, Sara Whitman and one passenger. They were both uninjured. Officials said it was dark and rainy and the pedestrian was walking along Highway 20 in Nice when Whitman’s car hit her. The victim was taken to Sutter Lakeside Hospital where she was pronounced dead. Police have not yet released her name. CHP continues to investigate.
Lake County residents and businesses owners who have suffered damage from the storms can participate in their own damage assessments. Officials said home and business owners can identify possible ways for the state or federal government to help with recovery. IF you have damage to your home or business, report it at LakeSheriff.com or call the Community Development Department during normal business hours. Reporting damage is not the same as applying for assistance, but the information may be used to plan for future emergency management. Lake County OES has a post pinned to the top of their Facebook page with helpful links and information.
With the Primary Election on March 5th, take the opportunity to meet the candidates running for State Assembly District 2. This month, there will be a forum featuring all the candidates answering questions and meeting with the public. It’s scheduled for Thursday, February 15th at 6pm. The forum will be held at the Ukiah Civic Center. The 2nd District is one of the largest in the state and includes Mendocino County and Northern Sonoma County. The district has 3 local offices, one of them in Ukiah.
The City of Fort Bragg Public Works and Facilities committee will meet this week. The meeting is scheduled for Thursday at 3pm at the Town Hall on North Main Street. The meeting will also be broadcast live on Zoom. Agenda items include a report from the director on Departmental Activities and Project updates.
P G & E says there are still a lot of customers waking up with no power this morning. At last check there are 6,770 without power in Mendocino County, and another 2,356 in the dark in Lake County. PG&E officials said they hope to have everyone restored by 10:00 tonight. You can check the latest outage maps here.
The New World String Project will perform in celebration of Valentine’s Day. It’s part of the Ukiah Community Concert series. The show is scheduled for Sunday, February 18th at 2pm at the Mendocino College Center Theater. Advance tickets are available now at Ukiah Concerts dot ORG and at Mendocino Book Company in Ukiah.
As of yesterday afternoon, State Route 128 was open again. State Route 175 is still closed from US Route 101 to McDowell Street in Hopland. Crews are still busy cleaning up downed trees and powerlines all over Mendocino County. Several schools are closed again or on an alternative schedule today. Manchester Union Elementary, Pacific Community charter School and Point area schools are all closed according to the Mendocino County Office of Education website.
The District Attorney for Mendocino County has announced the hiring of two men to serve on the investigations team. The two men are retired local law enforcement officers. One of the men is actually the former Police Chief from Fort Bragg PD. Scott Mayberry will return to the DA’s team as a civilian administrator and advisor. He’ll also mentor young peace officers in both Mendocino and Lake Counties according to Fort Bragg Advocate-News. Mayberry joins a team that includes former officers from the California Highway Patrol, the Ukiah PD, Mendocino County Sheriff’s Office, and the Willits Police Department.
McKinleyville Community Forest has new owners. Last week, 599 acres of forest was sold to the McKinleyville Community Services District. That means the forest is now publicly owned, something that has been in the works for a very long time. The sale was made possible by a 3.8 million dollar grant from the California Natural Resources Agency, according to the Times Standard. The next step is to decide what to do with the property. The original plan was to use the forest for public recreation, timber, fish and wildlife, and conservation efforts. Read more about the full plan here.
