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NORTH COAST, Calif. – A crash involving a vehicle and a motorcycle near Potter Valley on Saturday left two people injured.
The crash occurred just after 11 a.m. on Highway 20 just west of Potter Valley, according to the California Highway Patrol's Ukiah Area office.
Mario Alioto, 78, of Lucerne was driving a 2003 Ford westbound in the slow lane just west of the Potter Valley exit, the CHP said.
Robert Wiley, 60, of Citrus Heights was driving a 2005 Harley Davidson westbound in the No. 1 lane with 68-year-old Jennifer Todd, also of Citrus Heights, riding as his passenger, according to the CHP.
As Wiley was passing Alioto, he allowed the motorcycle to drive into the slow lane, with the side of the motorcycle hitting the rear of Alioto's vehicle, the CHP said.
The CHP said the crash caused the motorcycle to lay over on its left side, with Wiley and Todd both being thrown from the bike.
Wiley was flown to Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital with major injuries, while Todd was taken to Ukiah Valley Medical Center with moderate injuries, according to the CHP report. Alioto was uninjured.
All three individuals were using their safety equipment, the CHP said.
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LAKEPORT, Calif. – The 2015 Heroes of Health and Safety Fair will be held on Saturday, Oct. 17.
The event will take place from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Lake County Fairgrounds, 401 Martin St.
The free, family-friendly event will include exciting safety demonstrations, including a “Jaws of Life” demonstration, medical helicopter landings and liftoffs, and a SWAT Unit Armored Vehicle.
Sutter Lakeside Hospital and the Lake County Fire Chief’s Association are the major sponsors for this exciting event.
More than 40 Lake County health- and safety-focused organizations will host booths and provide information to community members about local services ranging from disaster preparedness and electrical safety to obesity awareness.
Last year more than 450 free vaccinations were administered at the event; this service will be provided again this year along with free health checks.
Other highlights include free car seat safety inspections and replacements, free bike helmets, a chance to win exciting raffle prizes including kids’ bikes, and opportunities to mingle with safety characters McGruff and Smokey the Bear.
“In 2014 more than 1,500 people attended the Heroes of Health and Safety Fair, and our goal is to double that number this year,” said Siri Nelson, chief administrative officer for Sutter Lakeside Hospital. “This is an incredible venue to showcase Lake County’s health and safety resources. I hope everyone will come to learn about these resources and other ways to keep their families safe.”
Additional event sponsors include the California Highway Patrol, St. Helena Hospital Clear Lake, Lakeside Health Center, the American Red Cross, the Lake County Sheriff’s Office, the Lake County Office of Education and The Hero Project, and Lake County Behavioral Health Services.
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – A wildland fire that began on Cobb Mountain on Saturday afternoon scorched thousands of acres and chased residents across the south county from their homes.
The Valley fire in the 8000 block of High Valley Road off Bottle Rock Road was first reported at approximately 1:24 p.m. Saturday, according to Cal Fire.
Within a few hours it had injured four firefighters and resulted in evacuations impacting thousands of south Lake County residents.
Shortly before 7 p.m., Cal Fire reported that the incident had ballooned to 10,000 acres.
The Lake County Sheriff's Office ordered mandatory evacuations for High Valley Road, Bottle Rock Road, the entire community of Cobb, Harbin Hot Springs, Big Canyon Road, Hidden Valley Lake, all of the community of Middletown, Highway 29 from Clearlake to Tubbs Lane in Calistoga and over to Berryessa Estates.
Numerous road closures also were in effect, including High Valley Road at Bottle Rock Road, High Valley Road at Highway 175, Highway 29 at Highway 175 in both Kelseyville and Middletown, Highway 29 at Red Hills Road, Highway 29 at Loch Lomond, Highway 29 at Lower Lake, and Highway 29 from Spruce Grove Road North in Lower Lake to Butts Canyon Road in Middletown.
Resources from around Lake County and other parts of the state responded through the afternoon and into the evening.
Traffic around the south county was reported to be jammed as residents tried to evacuate the fire.
One minor-injury crash was reported on Highway 29 and Spruce Grove Road, with first responders reporting that northbound traffic was using all lanes on Highway 29 trying to escape the fire.
Units also were being dispatched to help evacuate residents who were unable to get out on their own.
At about 7:30 p.m. The Geysers was asked to open its gates to the roads through the facility could be used as evacuation routes through to Sonoma County if necessary.
A dark, thick pall of smoke stretched across Lake County, extending even into areas not directly impacted by the blaze.
There were numerous reports of structures damaged or destroyed, but details were not immediately available due to the quickly developing situation.
Just before 8 p.m. Cal Fire reported that all four firefighter injured in the fire's early stages had suffered second-degree burns and were in stable condition at UC Davis Medical Center.
The Lake County Office of Emergency Services activated the county's Emergency Operations Center to help coordinate response to the incident, as it had done with the Rocky and Jerusalem fires.
Evacuees are being directed to an emergency shelter at Kelseyville Presbyterian Church, 5340 Third St., as well as an evacuation center at the Napa County Fairgrounds, 1435 N. Oak St., Calistoga.
Lake County OES indicated details would be forthcoming on other shelters.
Lake Evacuation and Animal Protection and Animal Care and Control also are on call to evacuate animals from the fire area, according to Lake County OES.
Those needing help evacuating animals are directed to call Lake County Animal Care and Control at 707-263-0278.
Additional details will be posted as they become available.
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THIS STORY IS BEING UPDATED REGULARLY WITH NEW DETAILS.
COBB, Calif. – Firefighters are on the scene of a wildland fire first reported Saturday afternoon in the Cobb area that has resulted in evacuations and road closures.
The Valley fire in the 8000 block of High Valley Road initially was dispatched just before 1:30 p.m., according to Cal Fire.
Cal Fire reported that mandatory evacuations have been implemented for High Valley Road and Bottle Rock Road, and the community of Cobb.
Just before 3:30 p.m., mandatory evacuations were ordered for Harbin Hot Springs and Big Canyon Road, and Loch Lomond was added to the evacuation order at around 3:45 p.m.
At 6 p.m., Cal Fire reported that mandatory evacuations had been ordered for Hidden Valley Lake, and Highway 29 was being closed. The fire had reportedly just jumped Highway 29 at that point.
Then, just before 6:30 p.m. Cal Fire reported that Middletown had been placed under a mandatory evacuation.
Road closures include High Valley Road at Bottle Rock Road, High Valley Road at Highway 175, Highway 29 at Highway 175 in both Kelseyville and Middletown, Highway 29 at Red Hills Road and Highway 29 at Loch Lomond, and Highway 29 at Lower Lake.
Shortly after dispatch, Cal Fire's Copter 104 arrived on scene to find the fire burning about two acres with one structure threatened.
Incident command subsequently called for additional copters, tankers, hand crews and dozers, reporting a strong west wind was hitting the fire.
Shortly before 2 p.m., incident command called for evacuations of High Valley Road.
A short time later, the fire was reported to be making a strong push and crossing Bottle Rock Road, leading to calls for evacuations along Highway 175, with the possibility that Cobb may have to be evacuated.
Just before 2 p.m. a hard closure of Bottle Rock Road was implemented, with officials prepared to close Highway 175 if necessary.
A call for an in-county strike team of engines went out just before 2:15 p.m., with agencies around the lake responding.
Safety concerns for firefighters also were reported due to power lines being down in the area.
As of 2:30 p.m., the fire was two acres, Cal Fire said, and was burning at a moderate rate of spread in oak and grass woodland. Structures are threatened.
Cal Fire spokesman Daniel Berlant said a short time later that the fire size had risen to 50 acres.
Just after 3:30 p.m., the fire was at 400 acres, according to Berlant.
Resources on scene at that point included 139 firefighters, 10 engines, five air tankers, four bulldozers, four fire crews, three helicopters, two water tenders, two overhead/command personnel and one volunteer company, according to Cal Fire.
By 6:45 p.m., Cal Fire said the fire's size had ballooned to 10,000 acres.
At around 2:30 p.m. radio reports indicated there were two patients with burn injuries, with an air ambulance responding.
Berlant later reported that there were four firefighters from Copter 104 that had suffered injuries and were being transported to a burn center. Radio reports indicated they were taken to UC Davis Medical Center.
The Lake County Office of Emergency Services reported that the county's Emergency Operations Center was activated to help coordinate response to the incident.
An evacuation shelter was being set up at Kelseyville Presbyterian Church, 5340 Third St., Lake County OES reported.
Lake Evacuation and Animal Protection and Animal Care and Control also were activated to help evacuate animals from the fire area, officials said.
At about 4 p.m., incident command was reporting that Pacific Gas and Electric was planning to deenergize power facilities in the fire area, which was a concern due to the potential impact on fire pumps.
Just before 5:15 p.m., the fire was reported to be making a “significant run” toward Hidden Valley Lake, with the fire anticipated to be at Spruce Grove Road and Highway 29 within the hour.
At 5:25 p.m., Central Dispatch indicated that an advisory evacuation order had been issued for all of Hidden Valley Lake.
A witness reported that a large spot fire had occurred near Hidden Valley Lake a short time before that advisory notification was issued.
Additional details will be posted as they become available.
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CLEARLAKE, Calif. – Police are investigating the Friday discovery of the body of a man who they believe was murdered.
Clearlake Police Sgt. Martin Snyder said that at approximately 5:20 p.m. Friday the agency received a call from a resident in the 16000 block of 19th Avenue reporting a young juvenile had located a deceased male in a wooded area east of 12th Avenue.
Officer Joseph Myers responded and contacted the reporting person and the young juvenile, Snyder said.
Snyder said the young juvenile took Officer Myers several hundred yards out to a wooded area near a recently cut fire trail where the officer, with the child's help, located a deceased male.
The cause of death appeared suspicious and Clearlake Police detectives were called to the scene and took over the investigation, Snyder said.
The body appeared to be that of a Hispanic male between 18 to 30 years of age. The male had dark-colored hair which was short in length, according to Snyder.
Identification of the male is pending an autopsy, Snyder said.
Based on the findings at the scene, Snyder said it was apparent the male was a victim of a homicide and had been dead for several days.
Due to this being an active homicide investigation, limited information is being released regarding the cause of death, Snyder said.
He said information regarding the cause of death will be released at a later time.
If anyone has information regarding this investigation, they are encouraged to contact Det. Ryan Peterson at 707-994-8251, Extension 320.
NORTHERN CALIFORNIA – State Sen. Mike McGuire, the author of SB 643 – The Medical Marijuana Regulation and Safety Act – announced late Friday that the state Legislature has passed a package of legislation that he called “historic,” adding that it will change the face of a multibillion dollar industry that has gone largely unregulated for almost 20 years.
“From seed to sale, medical marijuana is one step closer to being regulated across the state of California,” McGuire (D-Healdsburg) said. “SB 643 is the bill we began working on the day I was sworn into the Senate. It has been a productive nine months working with our partners in the Assembly and of course, with Gov. Brown’s office. The hard work of countless individuals over the last 20 years has paid off and we are now sending the governor one of the strongest medical marijuana regulation packages in the country.”
SB 643 was approved in the Assembly Business and Professions Committee Friday afternoon and received overwhelming bipartisan support on both the Assembly and Senate floors as votes were cast late into the night on Friday.
“After two decades of no regulation, we will finally have a comprehensive regulatory framework for medical marijuana,” McGuire said.
The three historic marijuana bills, headlined by Sen. McGuire’s SB 643 – cover every aspect of the commercial medical marijuana industry would be regulated and subject to licensure – both by the state and local authorities.
The bills create a Bureau of Medical Marijuana Regulation under the Department of Consumer Affairs led by a director who will be confirmed by the Senate.
Cities and counties will be eligible for grants from the Marijuana Production and Environmental Mitigation Fund. These monies can be used for local law enforcement activities and environmental cleanup.
Key to SB 643 are provisions that will track and trace all marijuana products, and a provision that will once and for all make medical marijuana officially an agricultural product in California.
Cultivators will have to abide by the same rules and regulations as all other agriculture, including water use, water discharge, pesticide and insecticide use and more.
SB 643 also includes robust provisions governing indoor and outdoor cultivation standards for small, medium and large growers to ensure that best practices related to land conversion, grading and electricity usage are instituted.
The bill makes sure that the environment is cared for and that the products are safe, while also mandating strict standards for transportation to ensure that no marijuana is diverted out of state for illegal use.
“These regulations are long overdue and I’m thrilled that we were able to work together to find common ground on these historic medical marijuana regulations for our state,” McGuire said. “The time is now. Our environment and our communities have been paying the price for the state’s lack of action over the past 20 years and this package of legislation will advance sweeping regulations and desperately needed resources that are necessary to address the impacts of this multi-billion dollar industry.”
McGuire represents the North Coast of California, where the majority of marijuana is grown in the nation.