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LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – Fire officials said the Peterson fire near Kelseyville reached 90-percent containment on Wednesday evening.
The fire, which has burned 215 acres, began in the area of Peterson Lane and Adobe Creek Road on Saturday evening.
Cal Fire said Wednesday that a preliminary finding in the investigation into the fire's cause involves the use of equipment.
Email Elizabeth Larson at
LAKEPORT, Calif. – Community Care HIV/AIDS Program (CCHAP) of Lake County will present the eighth annual Lake County AIDS Walk on Saturday, Sept. 12.
This family friendly community event to raise awareness around HIV/AIDS and healthy living will be held from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. at Library Park in Lakeport.
This year's AIDS Walk will feature country musician McKenna Faith, along with food, a silent auction, and a variety of nonprofit and community participants.
A $5 minimum donation is requested to walk, and walkers of all ages and abilities are welcome.
All proceeds from this event go toward client services and community wellness efforts. Sponsors include Moran’s Pharmacy, Redbud Health Care District, Sutter Health, Foods Etc., MCHC Health Centers and Lake Event Design.
If you would like to walk, create a team of walkers, have a table of related information, or volunteer please call CCHAP at 707-995-1606.
Visit the event's Facebook page at www.facebook.com/lakecountyaidswalk .
California Controller Betty T. Yee has updated her Government Compensation in California Web site to include 2014 self-reported data for community college districts, fairs and expositions, and First 5 commissions.
The new additions to the Web site total 100,408 positions and $2.7 billion in wages.
The site now contains information on more than two million jobs in California, as reported by each government entity.
The newly published data include 96,889 positions at 37 community college districts; 2,631 positions at 30 fairs and expositions; and 888 positions at 43 First 5 commissions.
For this most recent posting, 35 community college districts, 29 fairs and expositions and eight First 5 commissions provided incomplete information or did not file on time.
Among community college districts, Yee's office reported that both the Mendocino-Lake Community College District and the Yuba Community College District failed to file.
All other Lake County entities required to file at this time are in compliance, based on Yee's records.
Since the site was launched in 2010, it has registered more than eight million page views.
Users of the site can:
· View compensation levels on maps and search for compensation by region;
· Narrow results by name of entity or by job title;
· Build charts and trend graphics; and
· Export custom reports or raw data.
City and county government 2014 compensation data will be uploaded in December, and special districts data will be added in February, Yee's office reported.
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – Lake County's second-largest wildland fire of the season is now fully contained.
Cal Fire said the 25,118-acre Jerusalem fire reached full containment as of Monday night.
It had been burning since Aug. 9 in the Jerusalem Valley area northeast of Middletown, eventually burning into Napa and Yolo counties.
The incident also burned into the southern perimeter of the much larger Rocky fire, which scorched 69,438 acres in Lake, Colusa and Yolo counties.
Together, the fires burned approximately 94,556 acres in Lake and its neighboring counties.
Over the last week, the Jerusalem fire's containment had continued slowly, sometimes changing by just a percentage point or two a day, or going a few days with no changes.
Like the Rocky, the Jerusalem fire led to evacuations and burned a total of six homes and 21 outbuildings, Cal Fire said.
The Jerusalem fire's cause remains under investigation, Cal Fire said.
Cal Fire spokeswoman Suzanne Blankenship said an engine crew will be patrolling the fire area to monitor it for the next two to three days to make sure there are no issues.
However, with wildland fires burning all over the state, the rest of the resources have been released or reassigned to other incidents, she said.
Blankenship said patrol on the Rocky fire – which was fully contained as of Aug. 14 – has ended, with personnel on that also sent to new assignments.
With the Jerusalem fire now fully contained, the California Department of Fish and Wildlife reported that the Cache Creek Recreation Area reopened to the public as of Tuesday.
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LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – Lake County has reported its first probable case of West Nile virus and is investigating a second, which officials said serves as a reminder that this mosquito-borne disease is present and circulating.
“Even though our attention has been dominated by recent wildfires, we should not forget that West Nile Virus season is in full force,” said Lake County Health Officer Dr. Karen Tait. “Since there is no specific treatment once the infection develops, the best prevention is to avoid exposure through mosquito bites.”
West Nile Virus infection can range from mild, even symptom-free infections, to deadly forms of the disease. Mild forms of the infection often go undetected.
Less than 1 percent of cases result in severe illness and these are the most likely to be diagnosed. People over age 50 and diabetics are at risk for the more severe forms of the disease.
Local surveillance is a joint effort of Lake County Vector Control District and Lake County Public Health.
Typically, before human cases occur, the infection first appears in mosquito pools, followed by wild birds and sentinel chicken flocks selected for regular testing.
This pattern was the case this year, with the West Nile virus first noted in mosquitoes on July 9, a positive wild bird on July 24, and a positive sentinel chicken flock on July 27.
The first human case reported this year in Lake County became ill during the third week of July, officials said. The second probable case that remains under investigation became ill in mid-August.
Both individuals experienced the “neuroinvasive” form of the infection, which can produce symptoms ranging from a form of meningitis to more severe and potentially permanent effects on the nervous system.
Officials said both Lake County residents are making a good recovery.
Lake County Public Health and Lake County Vector Control District have a strong partnership for control of West Nile virus and other vector-borne diseases.
When Public Health receives a report of a suspected case, Vector Control is immediately informed and takes action to increase surveillance and reduce mosquitoes in the locations where the individual was likely to have been exposed.
“Even though we cannot always prevent a first case of West Nile virus, we have tools at our disposal to reduce the chance of additional cases in the same neighborhood,” said Tait.
Dr. Jamesina Scott, Vector Control district manager and research director, said the steps in response to reported West Nile virus activity include searching for sources of standing water where mosquitoes develop, which are often in the form of neglected ponds and swimming pools.
“We’re fortunate to have a close partnership with Public Health. When there is a suspected West Nile virus case, we are able to respond quickly to reduce the risk of additional human cases,” said Scott.
“With the drought, we’re seeing more swimming pools being taken out of service. When a pool isn’t being chlorinated or filtered, it becomes the perfect home for mosquitoes,” Scott explained. “We offer free mosquito-eating fish for use in unmaintained swimming pools – they eat the immature mosquitoes before they grow into flying, biting adult mosquitoes.”
Since 2004, six people in Lake County have been diagnosed with West Nile virus. For 2015, West Nile virus has been detected in 20 mosquito samples, three dead birds, and two sentinel chickens in Lake County.
So far this year in California, 57 human cases, including two fatalities, have been reported from 13 counties. More than one-third of the cases were reported in the past week.
In recent years, Lake County reported one case in 2012 and another in 2014.
How to prevent infection
Residents are urged to help reduce their risk of contracting mosquito-borne diseases by following these guidelines:
• Dump or drain standing water. Mosquitoes can't begin their lives without water. If the water cannot be drained (like an unused swimming pool), call Vector Control at 707-263-4770 for free mosquitofish.
• Defend yourself against mosquitoes by using repellents containing DEET, Picaridin, IR3535, or oil of lemon eucalyptus.
• Avoid being outdoors when mosquitoes are present, typically dawn and dusk.
• Report neglected swimming pools by calling 707-263-4770 or visiting www.LCVCD.org . Anonymous calls accepted. Just one neglected pool can produce thousands of mosquitoes every day that affect people up to five miles away.
• Report dead birds to the state hotline: 1-877-968-2473. All reports are crucial, even if the bird does not meet criteria for testing.
Residents with questions, or who need help with a mosquito problem should contact the Lake County Vector Control District at 707-263-4770 or visit www.lcvcd.org .
For more information about West Nile virus, visit http://www.westnile.ca.gov/ .
Information about mosquito repellents can be found on the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Web site at http://www.cdc.gov/westnile/faq/repellent.html .
KELSEYVILLE, Calif. – With Lake County's other two major wildland incidents now fully contained, firefighters are closing in on being done with the third.
The Peterson fire, burning since Saturday evening off of Peterson Lane near Kelseyville, reached 75-percent containment as of Monday evening, Cal Fire said.
The fire burned 215 acres in steep terrain, but firefighters were able to keep it from destroying any structures, and Cal Fire said there have been no injuries.
Work is continuing to fully contain the incident, with Cal Fire reporting that 370 firefighters, 52 overhead or command personnel, 31 engines, 12 fire crews, four water tenders and one helicopter remaining assigned.
The fire's cause remains under investigation, Cal Fire said.
Also on Tuesday, Cal Fire said the Jerusalem fire northeast of Middletown, which burned 25,118 acres since Aug. 9, and the Grade fire, which began Monday afternoon and burned 22 acres, were both fully contained.
Email Elizabeth Larson at