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KELSEYVILLE, Calif. – Authorities are investigating the cause of an early morning fire that destroyed a Kelseyville auto shop.
The fire was first reported just before 10:45 p.m. Monday at the shop in the 3500 block of Big Valley Road.
Kelseyville Fire Chief Joe Huggins said that the fire originally was dispatched as being located at Mike's Auto.
However, Huggins said that the fire actually occurred in an adjacent building that was part of another business, the name of which he did not know.
“They were obviously doing body work and repair,” as well as paint work, said Huggins.
Huggins said the initial report stated that fire and smoke were seen from the roof. When he got there, he said the fiberglass skylight had burned out. “The fire was coming from that, from the inside out.”
Kelseyville Fire had three engines, a water tender, nine firefighters plus Huggins on scene, while Lakeport Fire sent a truck and its chief, plus four firefighters. Another six firefighters, a battalion chief and two engines came from Cal Fire's Kelsey-Cobb station, Huggins said.
The building was a complete loss, Huggins said.
He estimated that the fire was contained by about midnight, but fire units remained on scene for another two hours for mop up and overhaul.
Huggins said the fire's cause is under investigation.
Email Elizabeth Larson at
THIS STORY HAS BEEN UPDATED.
KELSEYVILLE, Calif. – A Monday night fire burned an automotive repair shop in Kelseyville.
The fire was dispatched just before 10:45 p.m. Monday, according to radio reports.
Lake County Central Dispatch received several reports of flames coming out of the building. The first units on scene found smoke and fire coming from the building's roof.
Kelseyville Fire, Lakeport Fire and Cal Fire all sent units to the incident, according to radio reports.
Reports from the scene indicated the Kelseyville Fire chief terminated the incident just before 2 a.m.
A full assessment of the damage to the building wasn't immediately available early Tuesday.
Editor's note: Fire officials said that the fire, originally dispatched as being at Mike's Auto, actually was at an adjacent business.
Email Elizabeth Larson at
On Sept. 14, the Bureau of Land Management and U.S. Forest Service co-hosted a most interesting and engaging public meeting in Upper Lake, as the first of three important community conversations to discuss the management plan for the Berryessa Snow Mountain National Monument.
Attendance was so large most of the agency representatives remarked on it, but given the tremendous community support for the proper protection and management of these lands that was expressed during the campaign for permanent protection a large turnout probably should have surprised no one.
The format did not include a formal presentation. Instead, the plan was to give people from our community an opportunity to talk face to face with the folks from our federal agencies, and to examine an impressive array of maps, fact sheets, photographs and other resources, including such specialized items as a rainfall map of the national monument, and a map showing fire scars on the landscape.
These conversations are powerful opportunities for the public to express what they value most in the management of this region.
Public input – both oral and written – was requested continually, and agency staff displayed an obvious keen interest in what we had to say.
For those who were not able to attend, do try to get to one of the remaining meetings: Sept. 28 at the Winters Community Center, 201 Railroad Ave; and Oct. 4 at the Holiday Inn Express, 545 N. Humboldt Ave in Willows. Both take place from from 5:30 to 7 p.m.
Victoria Brandon is chair of the Sierra Club Redwood Chapter. She lives in Lower Lake, Calif.
MENDOCINO NATIONAL FOREST, Calif. – Firefighters are working to contain a small wildland fire that began on Mendocino National Forest lands on Monday.
The Alder fire was first reported just after 7 a.m. Monday, according to Punky Moore, the forest's public affairs officer.
Moore said the fire is approximately 40 miles northwest of Stonyford, off County Road 311 near Logan Basin.
On Monday night, the Alder fire was lined and estimated at five acres, Moore said.
She said approximately 60 personnel are assigned to the fire, including two crews, engines, water tenders, fuels, patrols, a dozer and a helicopter. Resources are remaining on scene working to strengthen fire lines.
The cause of the fire is under investigation, Moore said.
Moore said there are no forest closures associated with the incident.
However, she advised travelers to drive with caution and be alert to firefighters and response equipment in this area.
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – A Lucerne man who led sheriff's deputies on a high speed chase earlier this month remains in custody on charges that include causing serious bodily injury to passengers in his vehicle.
Ruben Flores, 25, was arrested by the sheriff's task force on the afternoon of Sept. 9, according to the Lake County Sheriff's Office.
Flores had led Lake County Sheriff's deputies on a high speed chase in and around Upper Lake at around 2:30 a.m. that day, as Lake County News has reported.
Lt. Steve Brooks said the pursuit began when deputies tried to perform a vehicle stop on Flores for not switching his high beams to low beams and for an improper lefthand turn as he turned onto Old Lucerne Road.
From there, Flores led deputies on a high-speed pursuit that passed Upper Lake High School on Clover Valley Road, and continued through town, eventually ending up on Elk Mountain Road, Brooks said.
Brooks said that when the pursuit got onto Elk Mountain Road, Flores was passing over double-yellow lines and driving on the wrong side of the road, on blind curves, at speeds of up to 80 miles per hour.
In the area of White Rock Canyon Road, Flores' vehicle swerved and hit a dirt shoulder, then corrected before finally overturning and rolling onto the passenger side in a creek, Brooks said.
Flores has four adult passengers, one male and three females, said Brooks. Deputies originally had reported all were juveniles.
Brooks said Flores crawled out of the vehicle and fled, leaving his passengers behind as the rear undercarriage of the vehicle caught fire and became engulfed in flames.
Northshore Fire responded to the fire, which spread to the vegetation and burned about an eighth of an acre, Brooks said.
Brooks said all four of the passengers had complaints of pain, and one appeared to have a seizure after the collision.
Deputies saw Flores in the driver's seat and recognized him. He also was identified by witnesses at the scene, according to Brooks.
Later that day, the task force went looking for Flores, who Brooks said has had numerous contacts with law enforcement and a history of resisting and evading officers.
Flores was found as he was walking out of a residence on Highway 20 in Upper Lake and taken into custody, Brooks said.
Flores initially was booked on a misdemeanor bench warrant and a misdemeanor charge of obstructing officers, and felony charges of evading peace officers with disregard to safety, hit and run causing injury and evading peace officers resulting in serious bodily injury, according to jail records.
Since his arrest, additional charges have been added, including misdemeanor driving on a suspended license, and felony counts of possession of a stolen vehicle and assault with a deadly weapon.
His booking sheet shows his bail currently is set at $385,000. As of Monday, he remained in custody, and he's scheduled for a Tuesday court appearance.
Flores previously had been named as a suspect in a Lakeport stabbing in late July, as Lake County News has reported.
Email Elizabeth Larson at
California’s 2016 deer season continues with the opening of the D3-D5, D8-D10, X8 and X10 Zones on Sept. 24.
Drought and dangerous fire conditions persist in many areas of the state, and the California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) urges hunters to be mindful of wildfires and forest closures that could affect the area where they plan to hunt.
CDFW does not refund tag fees due to wildfire closures.
CDFW does not close or open areas due to fires, but leaves that authority to incident commanders with CAL FIRE and the U.S. Forest Service.
Current information on forest closures can be found at the following links:
– CDFW: www.wildlife.ca.gov/hunting/area-alerts ;
– Cal Fire: www.fire.ca.gov/general/firemaps.php ;
– U.S. Forest Service: http://inciweb.nwcg.gov/closures .
Hunters are encouraged to check these links frequently in order to obtain the most up-to-date information.