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CLEARLAKE, Calif. – One Lower Lake High School student has been arrested and three others remain under investigation in a case involving threats made with a handgun over Snapchat.

Due to the fact this investigation involves juveniles, their names will not be released, according to Det. Ryan Peterson.

On Wednesday at approximately 9:40 a.m. Clearlake Police Department School Resource Officer Stephanie Green was contacted by Lower Lake High School administration for a report of two students making threats to hurt each other, Peterson said.

Peterson said the school’s administration advised Officer Green that two 14-year-old male students were threatening to fight each other over the social media app Snapchat.

One of the students was viewed by the other holding a handgun while making the threats during the Snapchat conversation. The student displaying the handgun had been suspended from school and was not attending during this time, Peterson said.

Officer Green contacted both students, with their parents, at the school. Peterson said Green interviewed both students, who admitted to threatening each other and arranging to fight when the suspended student returned to school, which was scheduled to take place on Wednesday.

Through the investigation and interviews, Peterson said the suspended student admitted to having the handgun and displaying it during the Snapchat conversation. The student also stated that he had received the handgun from two other male Lower Lake High School students aged 15 and 16.

Peterson said that the suspended student advised that the 15- and 16-year-old students had transported the handgun in their backpack and had given it to him to hold.

The suspended student admitted the handgun was currently located at his residence and his parent gave consent for officers to go to their residence to recover the firearm, Peterson said.

Officer Green and Officer Jared Nixon responded to the residence and recovered the firearm, which Peterson said was found to be a loaded .45-caliber handgun. A records check of the serial number from the firearm was conducted which revealed it was an unregistered firearm.

Based on the investigation, Peterson said the suspended student was placed under arrest for the felony violations of criminal threats and minor in possession of a firearm. He was transferred to the Lake County Probation Department and subsequently booked into the Tehama County Juvenile Detention Facility.

On Thursday, the 15- and 16-year-old students were contacted and interviewed by Officer Green, and Peterson said both students denied any involvement in this investigation or knowing the suspended student.

Peterson said this case is continued to be investigated by Officer Green and being forwarded to the Lake County Probation Department for review and additional charges.

The two 14-year-olds have been suspended from school based on the investigation. Peterson said disciplinary action and criminal charging for the two older students are pending further investigation from Officer Green and Lower Lake High School administration.

The Clearlake Police Department stressed the importance for people to speak up when these types of incidents or suspicions of weapons and threats to students, school staff and facilities are made.

Peterson said the Clearlake Police Department and Konocti Unified School District will continue to work diligently to maintain a safe learning environment for youth and will fully investigate any threats to students, school staff and facilities.

Anyone with information in regard to this investigation or any threats made to students or schools are asked to contact the Clearlake Police Department or Officer Green at 707-994-8251, Extension 517.

KELSEYVILLE, Calif. – The American Legion Post 194 in Kelseyville has honored the Lake County delegates to Boys State and Girls State.

American Legion Post 194 sponsors students from Upper Lake High School, Clear Lake High School in Lakeport, and Kelseyville High School.

The post held events for the Kelseyville students on Sept. 28, and for the Upper Lake High and Clear Lake High School students on Oct. 26.

American Legion Boys State is among the most respected and selective educational programs of government instruction for U.S. high-school students.

Boys State was founded in 1935 and is a participatory program in which students become part of the operation of local, county and state government.

Operated by students elected to various offices, this year’s Boys State was held at California State University, Sacramento on June 17 through June 24.

American Legion Auxiliary sponsors a separate but similar program for young women called Girls State.

It is a leadership program designed to increase awareness and knowledge of governmental processes while learning about the duties, privileges, rights and responsibilities of citizenship.

Girls State was held at Claremont McKenna College in Claremont from June 26 through July 1.

This year’s Lake County delegates included the following.

BOYS STATE

– Brent Hinchcliff (Clear Lake High School);
– Garrett Grossner (Kelseyville High School);
– Jacob Kalawaia* (Upper Lake High School);
– Jason Gentle (Kelseyville High School);
– Kevin Sanchez (Kelseyville High School);
– Michael Camacho (Clear Lake High School);
– Nicholas Warner (Upper Lake High School).

Although chosen to participate in Boys State, Jacob Kalawaia from Upper Lake was unable to attend due to his participation in the National Competition of Robotics, occurring at the same time.

GIRLS STATE

– Anisha Kalan (Upper Lake High School);
– Ariana Montero (Kelseyville High School);
– Brooklyn Jenkins (Clear Lake High School);
– Hayley Martin (Clear Lake High School alternate).

Lake County Superintendents of Schools Brock Falkenberg congratulated the 2017 Lake County delegates to Boys and Girls State.

“Thank you to American Legion Post 194 for their continued support in this worthwhile program which helps our students become more engaged in understanding the inner workings of our local, county and state governments,” Falkenberg said.

LOWER LAKE, Calif. – The Anderson Marsh Interpretive Association, or AMIA, is happy to announce that its old-fashioned Victorian “Christmas at the Ranch” open house returns to the historic ranch house at Anderson Marsh State Historic Park after being canceled for the past two years.

The event will take place on Saturday, Dec. 9, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. and is free to the public.

As always, the ranch house will be warmed by cheery wood fires. Coffee, hot cider, tea, cookies and other refreshments will be served.

Last year, as the Clayton fire burned onto Park property near the ranch house, State Parks personnel rushed to remove the historic furniture and other objects at risk due to the fire.

Although the ranch house was undamaged, the evacuation left the house empty at Christmas and in need of a good cleaning due to the effects of the fire.”

Under a new agreement reached with State Parks, AMIA has taken over responsibility for the cleaning of the ranch house and has had the exterior of the house sealed to keep the friendly neighborhood bats out of the house.

AMIA and State Parks personnel have worked hard to clean and restore the contents of the Ranch House and it is once more ready to host this year’s Christmas at the Ranch.

As always, AMIA Board members and volunteers will be available at the Christmas event to answer questions about the Ranch House and how Christmas was celebrated in Victorian days.

The Christmas tree set up in the ranch house parlor will have Victorian-style decorations hand-made by local school children, who will visit the Ranch House earlier that week to decorate the tree. Santa Claus will be present at the event for visiting with children of all ages.

Singing along is encouraged as local musicians volunteer their time, performing Christmas carols throughout the day.

For more information about the event, contact AMIA at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or call 707-995-2658.

LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – Wildfire has taken a great toll on so many in our region, and Sulphur Fire Survivors continue to wrestle with and untangle the many aspects of recovery.

Taking the right steps, in the right sequence, is tough for anyone, and everyone experiences things differently.

For some, the emotional challenges can be particularly difficult.

The county of Lake encourages fire survivors and those they love to get the help they need.

Resources are available through the California Department of Health Care Services and the American Red Cross.

If you or someone in your care needs help managing their emotional recovery from wildfire, please call the American Red Cross 24/7 Disaster Distress Helpline at 800-985-5990. You can also text, “TalkWithUs” to 66746.

For more information, visit https://www.samhsa.gov/find-help/disaster-distress-helpline.

For additional state resources, go to http://wildfirerecovery.org/.

ACCUWEATHER GLOBAL HEADQUARTERS – AccuWeather reports as millions of Thanksgiving travelers plan to travel by plane or driving, quick-hitting storms will cause slowdowns across different regions of the United States.

Nearly 51 million Americans will travel more than 50 miles away from home for Thanksgiving, according to the American Automobile Association. This represents a small increase from 2016.

New information suggests the weather pattern is much less likely to lock into a cold and stormy pattern through the Thanksgiving weekend across the Northern states. Meanwhile, multiple days of unsettled conditions may evolve in the Deep South.

"Weather systems are now more likely to keep moving along, rather than stall across the northern half of the nation over the next week to 10 days," according to AccuWeather Chief Meteorologist Elliot Abrams.

With this more progressive idea, there will still be blasts of chilly air and rounds of lake-effect snow. However, cold outbreaks will be limited to a couple of days and storms will tend to be weaker and swept along by the fast flow of air.

Storm to spread wet weather over central, eastern US this weekend

As Thanksgiving travel ramps up, one storm will sweep across the nation from Friday to Sunday.

Spotty rain and snow will affect the central and northern Rockies on Friday.

On Friday night and Saturday, drenching rain and locally heavy thunderstorms are forecast from the middle Mississippi Valley to the lower Great Lakes region.

Motorists may have to slow their commute and rely heavily on their windshield wipers. Airline passengers from St. Louis to Nashville, Cincinnati, Cleveland and Pittsburgh may face some turbulence and delays.

The same storm will race across the Eastern states from Saturday night to Sunday. Over the Appalachians and in the coastal mid-Atlantic and New England, several hours of rain are in store. There may be a rumble of thunder.

People catching flights Saturday night to Sunday morning from Washington, D.C., to New York City and Boston may experience some delays.

In parts of the Appalachians, the rain may end as a brief period of snow.

East of the Appalachians in the South, a singular gusty shower may mark the arrival of the chilly air in lieu of long-lasting rain during Saturday night.



First round of lake-effect snow to yield hazardous travel conditions

Colder air sweeping in behind this storm will cause lake-effect snow to break out from west to east this weekend.

Areas over northern Michigan will get hit first on Friday night and Saturday. Meanwhile, bands of heavy snow and snow squalls will hit parts of western and northern New York, western Pennsylvania and northeastern Ohio by Sunday.

While an excessive amount of snow is unlikely, several inches to a foot of snow are possible with the greatest risk to motorists on highway such as Interstates 75, 79, 80, 81, 90 and 196 being sudden changes in visibility and icy conditions.

Gusty winds will force motorists to keep a firm grip on the steering wheel in the Upper Midwest and Northeast this weekend and could add to airline delays at some airports.

Sunday to Tuesday may offer best national travel weather

Aside from retreating lake-effect snowfall immediately downwind of lakes Erie and Ontario, much of the nation is projected to be free of rain and snow from Sunday to Tuesday.

These three days may offer the best travel conditions on the ground and in the air due to calmer weather conditions predicted across much of the country.

The only major exception will be the approach of a new storm from the Pacific that will spread some rain and high country snow into the Northwest.

Seattle will be the major airport most affected by the new storm on Sunday.

The rain will shift southward into San Francisco during Sunday night and Monday morning.

Some mountain snow may settle across the upper part of the Great Basin and northern Rockies by Tuesday.

Spotty rain showers will be more of a nuisance in Houston and perhaps Orlando during the first part of next week.

On Tuesday, another burst of chilly air will emerge over the North Central states, this will kick up winds and is likely to initiate a new pulse of lake-effect snow over the Upper Midwest but north of the major hubs of Chicago and Detroit.



Rain may slow Wednesday, Thanksgiving Day travel in Deep South and northwestern US

Wet weather may be in store for portions of the mid-Atlantic and New England coasts by Tuesday night, should a batch of rain be pulled in from the Atlantic.

"Any rain to start the day on Wednesday in the coastal Northeast is likely to end during the morning," according to AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Kristina Pydynowski. "However, this may be enough to put some airlines behind schedule for the day and may lead to ripple effects across the nation as the day progresses."

During the middle part of next week, moisture is likely to gather around the Gulf of Mexico as a storm slowly brews.

Rainfall associated with this storm is forecast to expand northward and eastward but only to a certain point in the Southern states. At this time, areas near the I-10 corridor are most likely to turn damp and unsettled on Wednesday. The wet weather may linger through Thanksgiving Day.

"Motorists from coastal Texas to Florida may have to contend with blowing spray and reduced visibility at times," Pydynowski said. "Minor delays associated with low clouds and perhaps fog may occur at area airports."

Meanwhile, another storm is forecast to roll ashore in the Northwest on Wednesday and spread inland on Thanksgiving Day.

While the potency of this storm is still in question, there is the potential for substantial rain-related travel delays with the storm along the I-5 corridor from Washington to northernmost California, as well as the risk of lowering snow levels over Snoqualmie Pass along I-90 in Washington.

AccuWeather will continue to provide updates on the Thanksgiving travel weather forecast through the holiday weekend.

Alex Sosnowski is a senior meteorologist for www.AccuWeather.com.

LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – A flood advisory has been issued for parts of Northern California, including southern Lake County, through Thursday afternoon due to heavy rain in the forecast.

The National Weather Service issued the advisory through 2:45 p.m. Thursday. A flood advisory means minor flooding is possible.

The forecast called for a band of heavy rain to develop along and north of Interstate 80, roughly from Solano County and southern Lake County into the foothills and higher elevations of the Sierra Nevada.

The specific Lake County forecast calls for rain across the county on Thursday, with rainfall amounts of up to a quarter of an inch.

Rain also is likely on Thursday night, with conditions forecast to be clear through Sunday night, when rain reappears in the forecast and continues through the middle of next week.

Lake County received steady rainfall on Wednesday, based on reports from the National Weather Service’s observation stations.

Twenty-four hour rainfall totals, reported through 3:30 a.m. Thursday, are as follows, in inches:

– Bartlett Springs: 1.25;
– High Glade Lookout: 1.66;
– Indian Valley Reservoir: 0.82;
– Kelseyville: 1.10;
– Lakeport: 0.82;
– Lower Lake: 0.92;
– Soda Creek: 1.93;
– Upper Lake: 0.90;
– Whispering Pines: 2.28.

Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.