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LOWER LAKE, Calif. – A portion of Highway 29 is temporarily closed due to downed power utilities that resulted from a vehicle crash.
The highway was first reported to be blocked shortly after 1:30 p.m. Tuesday.
California Highway Patrol Officer Kory Reynolds said the downed lines and pole are in the area of the Glasgow Grade on Highway 29, near Seigler Canyon Road outside of Lower Lake.
He said an initial report about a crash – but with no other details – was issued.
The CHP's online reports about the crash later indicated that the vehicle that hit the pole had left the scene and had been seen in the Clearlake area.
Reynolds said just after 2 p.m. that Caltrans was on scene and working to ascertain what had occurred.
Highway 29 is closed in both directions around the scene, Reynolds said.
So far, he said there's been no estimate on what the highway will reopen.
Reynolds said Pacific Gas and Electric has been asked to expedite its response to the area.
PG&E's online outage center reported three outages nearby – in Clearlake, Kelseyville and Lower Lake – that occurred shortly after the crash was reported.
Approximately 740 customers are affected by those outages, PG&E reported.
Additional details will be posted as they become available.
Email Elizabeth Larson at
LAKEPORT, Calif. – After months of construction and preparation, brothers Alex and Tim O'Meara are set to open their new brewery and restaurant this weekend.
O'Meara Bros. Brewing Co., located at 901 Bevins St., will celebrate its grand opening beginning at 11 a.m. Saturday, Dec. 6.
Final preparations were still under way on Monday, as Tim O'Meara discussed the opening against the sound backdrop of power tools.
“It seems like construction will never end,” he said.
However, the tools at work on Monday were being used to install lights over the business' signage.
“That's literally the last thing,” he said.
The O'Mearas describe their new venture as a fusion of microbrewery and restaurant, featuring several beers brewed on site and a specially designed menu of “pub grub.”
Alex, 30, and Tim, 27, grew up in Upper Lake and later moved to the Bay Area to pursue careers.
Tim O'Meara has been a homebrewer for years while his brother has been in business. In recent years they returned home and decided to go into business together.
“We've been interested in running a business like this for our whole lives,” Tim O'Meara said.
He said he and his brother put their heads together and said, “This is the right time.”
The brothers started developing their new venture about three years ago, and eight months ago began working to prepare their brewery and restaurant at their Bevins Street location, he said.
Bevins Street, according to O'Meara, offers easy access off the freeway, is open and accessible, and has better parking that downtown.
The location, in a recently constructed building, also suited them for size, he said.
Then, there are plans to locate a new county courthouse just around the corner on Lakeport Boulevard, which he said was the clincher as far as deciding on the location.
The brothers' beers have won local awards for homebrewing and certified beer judges have come in and given them great reviews, O'Meara said.
“We're getting great, positive feedback,” he said. “Everybody is so ready for this.”
The brewery and restaurant will serve up five specially crafted ales – including one seasonal brew on rotation – plus local wines, he said.
Fresh craft ales on tap will be German Hefeweizen, American Blonde Ale, IPA and what they call “Irish American Stout,” among others.
They're sourcing as much of their product as they can locally, including some of the hops, which O'Meara said are grown by friends who are small hops producers.
They also are using hops sourced from Oregon and Washington. “We plan to be sourcing locally as much as possible in the future,” he said, adding that currently the malt grain can't be sourced from anywhere closer than the Central Valley.
The brothers have been working for the last few months with their chef, Roy Iversen, to develop their menu and recipes.
“We'll do things that are a little different,” O'Meara said.
Featured menu items include deep-fried macaroni and cheese, a stuffed mushroom sandwich and the “Irish egg roll,” which O'Meara said is corned beef and cabbage placed in an egg roll wrap and lightly fried, accompanied by a variety of dipping sauces.
In addition to beer and food, the new establishment will feature local bands.
During Saturday's grand opening, they'll feature the Gnarly Pints, which plays Irish rock and acoustic, starting at 3 p.m., with local rockers The Kentucky Jugglers taking the stage at 7 p.m.
O'Meara Bros. Brewing Co. is located at 901 Bevins St. in Lakeport; telephone 707-262-1234; Web, www.omearabros.com ; Facebook, https://www.facebook.com/omearabros ; and Twitter, https://twitter.com/obrosbrew .
Hours are 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. Tuesdays through Saturdays, 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Sundays, closed on Mondays.
Email Elizabeth Larson at
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – As incidents of an aggressive telephone scam continue across the country, the Internal Revenue Service in recent weeks has unveiled YouTube video with a renewed warning to taxpayers not to be fooled by imposters posing as tax agency representatives.
The new tax scams video, which can be seen above, describes some basic tips to help protect taxpayers from tax scams.
These callers may demand money or may say you have a refund due and try to trick you into sharing private information.
These con artists can sound convincing when they call. They may know a lot about you, and they usually alter the caller ID to make it look like the IRS is calling.
They use fake names and bogus IRS identification badge numbers. If you don’t answer, they often leave an “urgent” callback request.
The IRS last put out a warning about the scams in April, when taxes initially were due. The warning has been put out again since the October tax extension deadline, at which time the scams appeared to have gained steam again.
The scams also have been reported as targeting Lake County residents.
In some recent instances, an individual claiming to be “Officer Julie Smith” has called Lake County residents to threaten legal action over the phone if they or their attorneys don't respond and make an immediate tax payment.
IRS Commissioner John Koskinen said they've continued to see the scam used in all parts of the United States.
“We have formal processes in place for people with tax issues,” Koskinen said. “The IRS respects taxpayer rights, and these angry, shake-down calls are clear warning signs of fraud. This is not how we do business. We urge people to be careful when they get these threatening phone calls.”
The IRS reminds people that they can know pretty easily when a supposed IRS caller is a fake.
Here are five things the scammers often do but the IRS will not do. Any one of these five things is a tell-tale sign of a scam.
The IRS will never:
– Call to demand immediate payment, nor will the agency call about taxes owed without first having mailed you a bill.
– Demand that you pay taxes without giving you the opportunity to question or appeal the amount they say you owe.
– Require you to use a specific payment method for your taxes, such as a prepaid debit card.
– Ask for credit or debit card numbers over the phone.
– Threaten to bring in local police or other law enforcement groups to have you arrested for not paying.
If you get a phone call from someone claiming to be from the IRS and asking for money, here’s what you should do:
– If you know you owe taxes or think you might owe, call the IRS at 1-800-829-1040. The IRS workers can help you with a payment issue.
– If you know you don’t owe taxes or have no reason to believe that you do, report the incident to the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA) at 1-800-366-4484 or at www.tigta.gov .
– If you’ve been targeted by this scam, also contact the Federal Trade Commission and use their “FTC Complaint Assistant” at www.FTC.gov . Please add "IRS Telephone Scam" to the comments of your complaint.
Remember, too, the IRS does not use email, text messages or any social media to discuss your personal tax issue.
For more information on reporting tax scams, go to www.irs.gov and type “scam” in the search box.
Additional information about tax scams is available on IRS social media sites, including YouTube http://www.youtube.com/user/irsvideos and Tumblr http://internalrevenueservice.tumblr.com , where people can search “scam” to find all the scam-related posts.
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – After a rainy holiday weekend, Lake County can expect to start the week off with more rain and possibly even some thunderstorms, the National Weather Service reported.
The updated forecast expects more rain on Monday and the rest of the way through the week, with chances of showers lessening by week's end.
Meteorologists also are warning of the potential for thunderstorms Tuesday and Wednesday.
Estimated rainfall totals around the county on Monday range up to about a third of an inch, with as much as an inch on Tuesday.
That follows a weekend of healthy rainfall.
The National Weather Service posted 48-hour rainfall totals for the period ending at approximately 1:39 p.m. Sunday.
For Lake County, the totals from weather stations at the following locations were reported:
– Nine miles north northeast of Witter Springs, 1.78 inches;
– Two miles southwest of Gravelly Valley Airport near Lake Pillsbury, 1.48 inches;
– High Glade Lookout above Upper Lake, 1.43 inches;
– Whispering Pines, 1.36 inches;
– Five miles west northwest of Hough Springs, 1.20 inches;
– Mt. Konocti, 1.20 inches;
– Two miles east northeast of Hidden Valley Lake, 1.17 inches;
– Boggs Mountain, 1.16 inches;
– Cache Creek near Lower Lake, 1.14 inches;
– Lakeport, 1.13 inches;
– Two miles east northeast of Hidden Valley Lake, 1.10 inches;
– Eight miles east northeast of Hidden Valley Lake, 1.02 inches;
– One mile south southwest of Lakeport, 1 inch;
– One mile south southeast of Wilbur Springs, 0.89 of an inch;
– Cow Mountain Ridge, 0.87 of an inch;
– Two miles west southwest of Kelseyville, 0.81 of an inch;
– Three miles south of Indian Valley Reservoir, 0.62 of an inch.
The rainfall gave a boost to Clear Lake's level, bringing it up to -0.58 feet Rumsey late Sunday.
During the last weeks of November, the lake's depth had dipped to about -0.85 feet Rumsey, a low level comparable to those seen in 1976 and 1977, according to US Geological Survey records.
Email Elizabeth Larson at
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – This week Lake County Animal Care and Control has six cats of all ages needing homes.
The cats include four males and two females, in a variety of coat lengths and colors.
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”).
Male orange tabby kitten
This male orange tabby kitten has a short coat.
He's in cat room kennel No. 33b, ID No. 1012.
Male orange tabby kitten
This male orange tabby kitten has a short coat.
He's in cat room kennel No. 33c, ID No. 1013.
Male domestic short hair mix
This male domestic short hair mix has an all-black coat and yellow eyes.
He's in cat room kennel No. 64, ID No. 1314.
Domestic medium hair
This male adult domestic medium hair cat with a gray tabby coat.
He is in cat room kennel No. 66b, ID No. 1168.
Female gray tabby
This female gray tabby kitten has a medium-length coat.
She's in cat room kennel No. 90a, ID No. 1276.
Female gray tabby
This female gray tabby kitten has a medium-length coat.
She's in cat room kennel No. 90b, ID No. 1277.
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
CLEARLAKE, Calif. – With Clearlake's annual Christmas celebration just a week away, a young city resident has been crowned as the event's princess.
Ellie Swanson, 7, will join Santa and Mrs. Claus as she serves as the Clearlake Christmas Parade princess on Saturday, Dec. 6.
Earlier this year, Ellie waged a successful battle against a rare type of childhood cancer, as Lake County News has reported.
The Dec. 6 procession begins at 6 p.m.
It starts at Redbud Park and will continue down Lakeshore Drive to Austin Park, where the annual city tree lighting ceremony will follow.
Santa and Mrs. Claus will be waiting in the gazebo to take pictures with the children as well.
Parents are welcome to take their own pictures; however, photos will be available for purchase will all proceeds supporting area foster care programs.
This year's celebration also will feature a new Christmas tree, which was planted earlier this month after the old one had to be removed.
The new blue spruce, located at Austin Park, was donated by Nottingham Nursery & Garden Supply.
Email Denise Rockenstein at