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NORTHERN CALIFORNIA – A crash on Highway 29 at the Lake and Napa County line on Monday evening resulted in major injuries.
The crash occurred shortly after 6:30 p.m. just inside Napa County, according to reports from the scene.
The California Highway Patrol reported that the vehicles involved were a Mazda Miata and a GMC Yukon Denali.
One person had to be extricated and had major injuries, radio reports indicated.
A REACH air ambulance responded to a nearby landing zone and flew the patient out to Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital, according to an online report from the CHP.
Additional details will be published as they become available.
Email Elizabeth Larson at
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – The California Highway Patrol is urging motorists to start the new year on the right path by celebrating responsibly.
If the night’s events include alcohol, make the smart choice and designate a driver before the celebrating begins.
The CHP will be ringing in the new year on the roadway with motorists as part of a maximum enforcement period, or MEP, which begins at 6 p.m. Wednesday, Dec. 31, and continues through 11:59 p.m. Sunday, Jan. 4.
“New Year’s Eve is celebrated around the world, signifying the beginning of a new year,” said CHP Commissioner Joe Farrow. “Start the new year by doing the right thing: designate a sober driver or have a plan in place for a sober ride before the celebration starts.”
During 2013's New Year’s MEP, 14 people were killed in collisions statewide. In addition, CHP officers arrested more than 450 people for driving under the influence throughout the 30-hour traffic safety effort.
This holiday season, the CHP joins with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration for its “Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over” education and enforcement campaign.
In addition, the public is encouraged to call 9-1-1 if they suspect another driver of being under the influence.
Be prepared to provide the dispatcher with the location, make, model, and license plate number of the vehicle, and any other pertinent information.
“The focused enforcement period is aimed at reducing the number of tragedies on our roadways over the holiday weekend,” added Commissioner Farrow. “With all the available transportation methods to choose from on New Year’s Eve, there is no excuse to drive under the influence behind the wheel of a vehicle. Designate a sober driver, take a taxi, or use public transportation to make it a safe night for everyone on the road.”
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – The National Weather Service in Sacramento has issued a wind advisory for Lake County due to a cold storm that's moving over California this week.
The biggest impact of this week's storm will be strong north winds that peak on Tuesday, according to forecasters.
The advisory period is from 6 a.m. Tuesday to noon on Wednesday.
It warns of winds from the northeast between 15 and 30 miles per hour, with gusts ranging between 40 and 50 miles per hour.
Forecasters predict the strongest winds will occur during the day Tuesday and into Tuesday evening.
The winds are expected to create difficult driving conditions with possible tree damage and power outages.
Trees remain drought-stressed and may be more susceptible to being toppled than normal and drivers are urged to use particular caution.
The forecast calls for breezy winds to continue into New Year's Eve on Wednesday.
Some showers may occur across the region, with forecasters predicting a few inches of snow accumulation possible for the Sierra and a few flurries into the foothills.
For information about Lake County road conditions, visit the Lake County Department of Public Works at http://www.co.lake.ca.us/Government/Directory/Public_Works/Roads.htm or find them on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/groups/Lakecountydpw/ .
Pacific Gas & Electric cautions residents that if you see a downed power line, assume it is energized and keep yourself and others away.
Call 911 immediately to report the location of the downed line then 1-800-743-5002, PG&E's 24-Hour Emergency and Customer Service Line.
During and after a storm, keep away from flooded areas and downed trees, as these areas could be hiding an energized power line.
For additional storm, power outage and power line safety information, visit http://www.pge.com/en/safety/naturaldisaster/stormsoutagessafety/index.page .
The U.S. Department of Transportation's National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has released data showing a historic low in traffic deaths was reached in 2013.
The 2013 Fatality Analysis Reporting System, or FARS, data that shows a 3.1-percent decrease from the previous year and a nearly 25 percent decline in overall highway deaths since 2004.
In 2013, 32,719 people died in traffic crashes. The estimated number of people injured in crashes also declined by 2.1 percent.
“With the holidays upon us, I give thanks that more of our friends and family are with us this year because of the broad partnership of safety-driven individuals and organizations who have joined us in making our roads safer for everyone,” said U.S. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx. “Safety truly is a shared responsibility and we’ve all got more work to do in the New Year to keep more families together – that’s my resolution to the American people.”
Earlier this year, Secretary Foxx announced grants totaling approximately $1.6 million for public education and enforcement initiatives to improve pedestrian safety as part of the Department’s “Everyone Is a Pedestrian” campaign to help communities combat the rising number of pedestrian deaths and injuries that have occurred from 2009 through 2012.
Earlier this week, the department kicked off the annual “Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over” holiday crackdown on drunk driving by unveiling a new mobile app to help people who have been drinking get a safe ride home.
The more than 3-percent decline in traffic fatalities continues a long-term downward trend leading to the fatality rate matching a historic low – 1.10 deaths per 100 million vehicle miles traveled in 2013, down from 1.14 deaths per 100 million vehicle miles traveled in 2012.
Other key statistics include:
– The number of passenger vehicle occupants killed in crashes declined by 3 percent to 21,132 – the lowest number on record dating back to 1975. Passenger vehicles include passenger cars, SUVs, minivans and pickup trucks.
– Large truck occupant (0.9 percent) and motorcyclist (6.4 percent) fatalities declined for the first time since 2009.
– Pedestrian fatalities declined by 1.7 percent to 4,735, but remains 15 percent higher than the record low of 4,109 pedestrian fatalities in 2009.
– Pedal cyclist fatalities increased by 1.2 percent, the highest since 2006.
– The estimated number of people injured in crashes decreased across all person types in 2013 when compared to 2012, with declines among passenger vehicle occupants (2.2 percent), large truck occupants (4 percent), motorcyclists (5.4 percent), pedestrians (13 percent), and pedalcyclists (2 percent).
– The number of people killed in distraction-affected crashes fell to 3,154 in 2013 from 3,380 in 2012, a 6.7 percent decrease. However, the estimated number of people injured in distraction-affected crashes (424,000) increased by 1 percent compared to 2012.
“Almost 90 people on average lose their lives each day – and more than 250 are injured every hour – due to drunk driving, not wearing a seatbelt, and the many other factors associated with traffic crashes,” said Deputy Administrator David Friedman of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, or NHTSA. “As we work each day at NHTSA, these are tragic reminders of the importance of our efforts and how we must build on our many successes and continue to work even harder to protect the American public.”
Alcohol-impaired-driving fatalities decreased by 2.5 percent in 2013 to 10,076, accounting for 31 percent of the overall fatalities in 2013.
Thirty-four states experienced reductions in overall traffic fatalities, led by Ohio (132 fewer fatalities), Kentucky (108 fewer), Pennsylvania (102 fewer), South Carolina (96 fewer) and Arkansas (77 fewer).
The Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS) contains data for a census of fatal traffic crashes within the 50 states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico.
To be included in FARS, a crash must involve a motor vehicle traveling on a trafficway customarily open to the public and must result in the death of at least one person (occupant of a vehicle or a non-motorist) within 30 days of the crash.
FARS was conceived, designed, and developed in 1975 by NHTSA’s National Center for Statistics and Analysis to provide an overall measure of highway safety, to help identify traffic safety problems, to suggest solutions, and to help provide an objective basis to evaluate the effectiveness of motor vehicle safety standards and highway safety programs.
A new report released by the U.S. Commerce Department's Economics and Statistics Administration, or ESA, examines, for the first time, competition at the full range of speeds of Internet service in the U.S.
The ESA report, titled “Competition Among U.S. Broadband Service Providers,” finds that far more competition exists at slower speeds than at higher speeds.
“This report gives policymakers a deeper understanding of what is occurring in the ISP marketplace," says U.S. Commerce Department Chief Economist Sue Helper. “We know that competition typically drives down prices. And we also know that increasingly, higher Internet speeds are required for optimal functionality of popular, high-bandwidth computing applications. As more and more commerce and information move online, we risk further widening the digital divide if access to affordable, higher speed Internet doesn’t keep pace.”
Specifically, at download speeds of 3 megabits per second (Mbps), 98 percent of the U.S. population had a choice of at least two mobile ISPs, and 88 percent had two or more fixed ISPs available to them.
However, when multiple household members consume video streaming services, music streaming and online games, 3 Mbps can quickly become inadequate.
To understand download speed at 3 Mbps, it takes approximately 2.25 hours to download a 6 gigabyte movie. The same movie would take only 16 minutes to download at 25 Mbps.
At somewhat higher speeds, such as 10 Mbps, the typical person is able to choose among two fixed ISPs. They also have the option of subscribing to any of three mobile ISPs at 10 Mbps.
Because fixed and mobile service is imperfect substitutes, the report analyzes them separately.
At speeds greater than 10 Mbps, the number of providers decreases further.
For example, only 37 percent of the population had a choice of two or more fixed-service providers at speeds of 25 Mbps or greater; only 9 percent had three or more choices.
The report also found that four out of 10 Americans did not live where very-high-speed broadband service – 100 Mbps or greater – is available.
Of those with access to fixed broadband service at this speed, only 8 percent of the population had access to two or more providers, and 1 percent had access to three or more.
Only 3 percent of the population had 1 Gbps or greater available, and none had two or more ISPs at that speed. Mobile service is virtually nonexistent at download speeds of 25 Mbps or greater.
Competition Among Us Broadband Service Providers by LakeCoNews
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – Lake County Animal Care and Control is once again offering two cats for adoption this week.
The two adult cats are domestic short hair mixes, one female and one male.
In addition to spaying or neutering, cats that are adopted from Lake County Animal Care and Control are microchipped before being released to their new owner. License fees do not apply to residents of the cities of Lakeport or Clearlake.
If you're looking for a new companion, visit the shelter. There are many great pets there, hoping you'll choose them.
In addition to the animals featured here, all adoptable animals in Lake County can be seen here: http://bit.ly/Z6xHMb .
The following cats at the Lake County Animal Care and Control shelter have been cleared for adoption (other cats pictured on the animal control Web site that are not listed here are still “on hold”).
Domestic short hair
This female domestic short hair mix has a coat with white and brown tabby markings.
She's in cat room kennel No. 73, ID No. 1316.
Domestic short hair mix
This male adult short hair mix cat has a coat with brown and white markings.
He's in cat room kennel No. 48, ID No. 1364.
Adoptable cats also can be seen at http://www.co.lake.ca.us/Government/Directory/Animal_Care_And_Control/Adopt/Cats_and_Kittens.htm or at www.petfinder.com .
Please note: Cats listed at the shelter's Web page that are said to be “on hold” are not yet cleared for adoption.
To fill out an adoption application online visit http://www.co.lake.ca.us/Government/Directory/Animal_Care_And_Control/Adopt/Dog___Cat_Adoption_Application.htm .
Lake County Animal Care and Control is located at 4949 Helbush in Lakeport, next to the Hill Road Correctional Facility.
Office hours are Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., and 1 p.m. to 3 p.m., Saturday. The shelter is open from 10:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday and on Saturday from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m.
Visit the shelter online at http://www.co.lake.ca.us/Government/Directory/Animal_Care_And_Control.htm .
For more information call Lake County Animal Care and Control at 707-263-0278.
Email Elizabeth Larson at