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CLEARLAKE, Calif. – A pickup traveling at high speed along Lakeshore Drive in Clearlake Monday morning crashed into another vehicle and then a restaurant, resulting in two people being flown out of county for medical care.
The crash occurred at Howard's Grotto, 14732 Lakeshore Drive, at approximately 11:10 a.m., according to radio reports.
Witnesses reported an older model red pickup hauling a load of rocks was traveling at a high rate of speed down Lakeshore Drive, and ran other drivers off the road.
Clearlake Police Lt. Tim Celli said police received calls of an erratic driver speeding down Lakeshore Drive, and dispatched an officer to the area.
Before the officer arrived, Celli said they received reports of the crash.
According to witnesses, the pickup hit another vehicle – reported to be a Jeep Cherokee – and flipped multiple times before hitting the restaurant. Rocks were reported to be all over the roadway, which also was blocked with emergency vehicles.
Additional fire units were dispatched to assist with extricating the occupants of the pickup from the wreckage, reports from the scene indicated.
Two air ambulances were dispatched, with REACH 6 and CalStar 4 responding. Both set down at a landing zone set up at Redbud Park.
Celli said the drivers of each of the vehicles were flown out of county. He said that based on the information he had early Monday afternoon, he was unaware of there being other occupants in the vehicles.
The investigation was still under way shortly before 2:30 p.m., Celli said, with Sgt. Tim Hobbs, the investigating officer, still on scene at that point.
“We have secured evidence,” said Celli, adding that he didn't have the names of the drivers.
Celli anticipated a police report being issued later on Monday.
Howard's Grotto had been closed on Monday, according to a message left on the restaurant's answering machine.
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LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – Firefighters on Sunday continued making progress on wildland fires in Lake County and in neighboring Sonoma County.
Dry and windy conditions over the last several days have added to the challenges for firefighters, but Sunday's conditions proved calmer.
Cal Fire said two Lake County wildfires were contained on Sunday.
The Bruner Fire, which began on Friday off of Bruner Drive and Al Drive at the Kono Tayee subdivision near Lucerne, was fully contained Sunday morning at 50 acres, the agency said.
On Sunday afternoon, firefighters contained the Dam Fire near Clearlake at 23 acres. That fire had started on Saturday afternoon.
Another fire that started on Saturday, the High Glade Fire – located on the Mendocino National Forest's Upper Lake Ranger District – continued to burn actively on Sunday.
Forest officials said the fire had burned 350 acres, with little potential for new growth, and is estimated to be 5 percent contained.
The region's biggest wildland fire, the McCabe fire, reached 3,300 acres on Sunday, with 65 percent containment, according to Cal Fire.
The fire, which began early Friday morning, is burning in and around The Geysers geothermal steamfield, just inside the Sonoma County line. One power plant cooling tower has so far been destroyed.
Cal Fire said firefighters made significant progress on the fire on Sunday, aided by favorable weather conditions.
Two injuries have been reported so far, according to Cal Fire, with radio traffic Sunday night indicating another injury had taken place, involving a firefighter who may have suffered heat exhaustion.
Approximately 1,684 personnel were assigned to the incident on Sunday, along with 111 fire engines, 65 fire crews, two air tankers, six helicopters, 16 dozers and nine water tenders, according to Cal Fire.
Officials said there would be a significant release of equipment off the incident on Monday and Tuesday, with full containment expected on Wednesday.
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MIDDLETOWN, Calif. – The Middletown Mustangs football team saw what had been a dominating season come to a sudden end at the hands of an old nemesis last Friday on Bill Foltmer Field.
The Salesian Pride of Richmond eliminated Middletown from the North Coast Section Championship Division V tournament 21-13.
It was the third time in six years Salesian eliminated Middletown, each time winning on a score in the game’s last four minutes.
It had been a spectacular year for Middletown, from a last minute come-from-behind win at Salesian in their opener, to a North Central I league season in which they defeated league runner-up Saint Helena 21-6 and beat every other one of their seven opponents by at least 32 points.
The only blemish on their record was an administrative error which caused that season-opening win to be forfeited to Salesian, leaving Middletown with a 10-1 record and Salesian at 6-5 prior to last Friday's game.
Things started will for the Mustangs, with Lake County’s rushing leader Austin Benson scoring on a 40-yard run and the team threatening to score again late in the first quarter.
But Middletown lost big lineman Travis Titus to a leg injury that first quarter, the second threat was denied in the red zone, then De-Angelo Hernandez capped a Salesian drive with a 9-yard run to tie the game, and the young Pride seemed to gain maturity and confidence as the game wore on.
Brad Beckwith led Middletown to a strong start in the second half with a 40-yard kickoff return which set up his 2-yard touchdown run, giving Middletown a 13-6 lead. But Salesian soon tied the game on a 1-yard run by Galuega Toailoa.
Middletown briefly appeared to take the lead again in the middle of the final quarter, but Beckwith’s run was called back by a holding penalty, the Mustangs gave up the ball on downs at the 13, and Salesian’s offensive line and senior running back Hernandez took over from there.
Hernandez pounded out a steady drive that ended with a two-yard run, plus a two-point conversion run by Toailoa for a 21-13 lead.
Despite losing the ball on a fumble, Middletown held Salesian to gain another chance, and a desperate last minute effort returned them again inside the 20, but an incomplete pass and quarterback sack ended the game and the season.
Quarterback Josiah Amos completed eight of 18 passes for 122 yards with two interceptions.
After the game, Coach Foltmer said like most teams this season, Salesian’s defense keyed on stopping Benson, which opened up some passing opportunities, but several passes that could have been caught were not.
Salesian plays Valley Christian of Dublin in the championship game at Chabot College in Hayward at 7 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 30.
Next year Salesian will return a majority of their starters, as their squad this season was mostly juniors and the sophomore Toailoa.
Middletown will turn primarily to players from its junior varsity, which had a perfect 10-0 this season.
NICE, Calif. – Nice Mutual Water Co.'s plant is back up and running after a storm-caused power outage late last week, but the company is asking customers to conserve through Tuesday while the district's tanks refill.
General Manager David Fultz said the water plant lost power due to the windstorm that hit last Thursday night and continued through Friday morning.
Nice was one of the areas hardest hit by the storm. Power in some areas of the county, including Nice, stayed off into Saturday night and early Sunday, according to Pacific Gas & Electric Co., which had more than two dozen crews in the county working to restore power.
Fultz said Nice Mutual's water plant, which serves 1,060 customers, had power restored on Saturday at around 5 p.m., after the power had been off for 45 hours due to the windstorm.
“We never lost pressure and we always had some water in the tanks,” he said.
It was the longest time the plant has gone without power in Fultz's six years with the company.
“We're making water at full capacity right now,” he said early Monday afternoon.
Besides the power issues, the water plant and its tanks came through the storm in good condition, Fultz said.
The district's water supply dropped during the outage, but so did usage, said Fultz. Some leaks due to pipes broken during the storm also were reported.
At one point on Saturday, Nice's low water situation was presenting concerns for Northshore Fire, with Deputy Chief Pat Brown reporting that they were unable to send water tenders to the Dam Fire because of it.
Fultz anticipated the district's water tanks would be full once again on Monday night.
As the tanks are replenished, Fultz asked community members to conserve water through Tuesday.
He said the district has lost its phone lines, which help the tanks communicate with the pumps. That has meant district staff are needing to manually monitor operations in the short-term.
The district's office phone lines also are down, so Nice residents with water-related emergencies are asked to call the answering service number at 707-995-8149.
Email Elizabeth Larson at
UPPER LAKE, Calif. – Firefighters are continuing their efforts to contain a wildland fire that broke out on Saturday morning in the Mendocino National Forest.
The High Glade Fire, currently burning on the forest's Upper Lake Ranger District, is holding at approximately 350 acres and is estimated at 5 percent containment, according to the report from forest spokesperson Tamara Schmidt.
There was minimal fire growth overnight and, as long as wind speeds remain low, there is little potential for growth, Schmidt said.
Hand crews, engine crews and aviation resources continued making progress on the fire Sunday in an effort to increase containment. However, as the fire continues to burn, Schmidt said smoke will remain visible in the area.
The High Glade Fire was spotted early Saturday morning. Schmidt said the cause of the fire is under investigation.
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – Lake County Animal Care and Control has a whole new group of cats waiting for adoption this week.
They include orange tabbies and calicoes, ranging in age from 6 to 7 months.
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.
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”).
Orange tabby
This orange tabby of undetermined gender is 6 months old.
The cat has a short coat and is of medium size.
Find the cat in cat room kennel No. 6b, ID No. 38523.
Female orange tabby
This female orange tabby is 6 months old.
She has a short coat and a curly tail, and has not yet been spayed.
She's in cat room kennel No. 82a, ID No. 38524.
Female orange tabby
This female orange tabby is 6 months old.
She has a short coat and a curly tail, and has not yet been spayed.
She's in cat room kennel No. 82b, ID No. 38525.
Tortie point
This calico with tortie point markings is 7 months old.
She has a short coat and has not yet been spayed.
Find her in cat room kennel No. 84a, ID No. 38527.
Tortie point
This calico with tortie point markings is 7 months old.
She has a long coat and has not yet been spayed.
Find her in cat room kennel No. 85a, ID No. 38526.
Female orange tabby
This female orange tabby is 6 months old.
She has a short coat and a curly tail, and has not yet been spayed.
She's in cat room kennel No. 86a, ID No. 38522.
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