Fort Bragg’s Police Chief says his department is devastated after some remains found under the Noyo Bridge Monday morning are likely those of a teen who went missing December 7. In a statement Monday evening, Chief Neil Cervenka said a witness spotted the body around 830 am on the shore under the south side of the bridge. He says while the medical examiner will have to confirm using DNA, the clothing and jewelry match 15-year-old Roy Mora who was last seen on surveillance video crossing the bridge the night of December 7 which is where his phone was found by a passerby that night. Cervenka says Roy’s mother has confirmed the clothing and jewelry match. He says Roy was walking alone when he left the view of surveillance cameras and no one was seen on the video where Roy was last seen for over 30 minutes. Cervenka says there are still no signs of foul play but the investigation is ongoing.
Two Fort Bragg women have been arrested after a traffic stop by Ukiah Police on South State Street. Police say one of them, ID’d as Elaina Underhill, was wanted on a felony warrant from Burbank. After she was arrested police searched the car she was in and say they found meth and sawed off a shotgun and ammo. According to a press release officers linked the drugs and gun to the other person in the car, ID’d as Katelyn Walker who they allege has several previous felony arrests. UPD says Walker is now facing multiple felony charges allowed under the state’s new Prop 36, which recently went into effect. Underhill will be extradited to Southern California.
Unemployment has gone up a bit in Lake County. The California Employment Development Department says Lake County’s jobless rate in November was 6.2%, up from 6.1% in October and 6% last November 2023. Statewide the jobless rate was 5.4% in November, the same as October but up from November 2023 when it was 4.9%. Mendocino County’s jobless rate for November was close to the state level at 5.1%.
Ukiah Police are thanking Yokayo Elementary School for the gift of several blankets that were handmade by the students. UPD says the Yokayo Roadrunners generously crafted these blankets to be kept in patrol vehicles, ensuring officers have them on hand to offer comfort to those in need during police calls. Police say it is especially helpful during the holiday season.
The Santa Cruz Wharf is a casualty of Monday’s massive waves. Officials say two people had to be rescued and a third swam to safety when a pier collapsed in pounding 25-35 foot waves, sending a big chunk of the wharf into the ocean. Following the collapse, Santa Cruz city officials closed the coastal roads. The California Office of Emergency Services was coordinating with the local officials as a High Surf Warning remains in effect for San Francisco and the Monterey Bay through today.
In an effort to fight food insecurity the Ukiah Branch Library has launched a Little Free Pantry to support community members in need. The Mendocino County Public Library says the pantry operates on the principle of “take what you need, leave what you can,” and is stocked entirely through community donations. It is open 24/7 for anyone needing food or personal hygiene items. They are accepting donations of unopened, non-expired, and non-perishable items such as canned goods, rice, pasta, cereal, and infant formula. They also welcome hygiene products like shampoo, menstrual supplies, and toothbrushes. Donations can be dropped off at the library during operating hours.
Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library has helped bring in several books for kids in Mendocino County. First 5 Mendocino’s Raise & Shine Family Resource Center is a California partner with the country icon’s nonprofit which she started to promote childhood literacy in her home state of Tennessee but has since taken global. The non-profit offers low-cost access to the books. First 5 Mendocino’s executive director tells the Mendocino Voice they lost funding for the program right before the pandemic, but it came back in 2023 with Senate Bill 1183 The California State Library: Statewide Imagination Library Program which expanded the program to 30 California counties with the goal of adding all of them within five years.
