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MIDDLETOWN, Calif. – Two pedestrians were struck by a vehicle in Middletown on Wednesday night, with one of them flown to a regional trauma center.
The incident occurred shortly before midnight on Highway 29 and Armstrong Street, in front of Five Star Towing, according to scanner reports.
Firefighters arriving at the scene found both people down in the roadway, with one of them unconscious and suffering head trauma, radio reports indicated. The roadway subsequently was shut down temporarily.
An air ambulance was requested to fly out a victim with major injuries.
REACH 6 responded and picked up the crash victim at a landing zone set up at a nearby fire station. Radio reports indicated the air ambulance transported the patient to Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital.
It was not clear if the second pedestrian was transported to a local hospital or released at the scene.
Information on the driver who allegedly hit the two pedestrians wasn't immediately available early Thursday morning.
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LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – A moderate-sized earthquake was reported on Cobb early Thursday morning.
The quake, which occurred at 2:39 a.m., measured 3.3 magnitude on the Richter Scale, according to an initial report from the US Geological Survey,
Its epicenter was located three miles northwest of The Geysers and 14 miles southwest of Clearlake, at a depth of 2.2 miles, the US Geological Survey reported.
The survey reported receiving shake reports from Cloverdale and Middletown.
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LOWER LAKE, Calif. – It was nighttime before firefighters cleared the scene of a wildland fire sparked Wednesday afternoon by a vehicle crash south of Lower Lake.
The fire was first reported at around 3:15 p.m., when a gold-colored SUV hit a power pole, damaging the pole and knocking out power to some south county customers and igniting the blaze, as Lake County News has reported.
Two people were in the vehicle, with one of them flown out to a regional trauma center with what radio reports indicated were moderate injuries.
Firefighters who responded to the scene had been warned that power lines were down, but Cal Fire Battalion Chief Mike Wink said that in fact lines weren't on the ground when they arrived.
The roadway also initially was closed as firefighters began working to knock down the fire, according to reports from the scene.
Wink said it took a total of about two hours to put out the fire, which burned a total of 11 and a half acres between Highway 29 and Clayton Creek Road, next to Epidendio Construction's yard. No buildings were damaged.
Cal Fire, South Lake County Fire, Lake County Fire and Kelseyville Fire all responded, Wink said.
“We were under red flag conditions, so it was automatic mutual aid from all departments,” he said.
He estimated a total of 75 firefighters worked the fire, along with nine fire engines, two bulldozers, two hand crews, four airplanes, one helicopter and four chief officers, with two ambulances and a rescue unit responding to the vehicle crash portion of the incident.
Wink said two firefighters experienced heat stress but were OK once they were able to cool down.
The afternoon breeze that is common in Lake County wasn't present when the fire was active, which Wink said worked in firefighters' favor. Had there been a breeze, the fire would have spread much more quickly and been more difficult to fight.
The breeze, he added, appeared about an hour after the fire was contained.
He said fire units remained at the scene until dark.
“They will be out there again tomorrow morning to check on it,” he said Wednesday evening.
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LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – A sample of mosquitoes collected Tuesday near Upper Lake tested positive for West Nile Virus.
This is the second sample of West Nile Virus-positive mosquitoes from Lake County this year.
The first West Nile Virus-positive sample was collected on June 19 south of Kelseyville, as Lake County News has reported.
“The hot days – and especially the high temperatures overnight – provide ideal conditions for West Nile Virus to increase in the mosquitoes. Statewide, we’ve seen the number of West Nile Virus-positive mosquito samples double from 70 to 124 West Nile Virus-positive samples just in the last week,” said Jamesina Scott, Ph.D., District Manager and Research Director of the Lake County Vector Control District.
“We are working hard to reduce the risk of West Nile Virus to our residents and visitors, but people need to use common sense – if you notice a lot of mosquitoes, please go inside, and use an insect repellant if you must be outside,” Scott recommended.
Officials encourage residents to protect themselves from mosquito bites by avoiding being outside at dusk and dawn when mosquitoes are most active, and to wear long sleeves and use an insect repellant containing an EPA-registered active ingredient like DEET, Picaridin, Oil of Lemon Eucalyptus or IR353.
West Nile Virus has been detected in 24 California counties so far this year, mainly in mosquitoes and dead birds. One fatal human case was reported earlier this year in Sacramento County.
West Nile Virus causes no symptoms in approximately 80 percent of people who catch the infection. Up to 20 percent of people experience a variety of symptoms that range from fatigue, fever, headache, body aches, rash and even nausea and vomiting.
Less than 1 percent of cases suffer severe illness, including neurologic effects that may be permanent, and some instances are fatal.
There is no specific treatment for the virus, so the best approach is to avoid exposure to mosquito bites, which is the means by which the virus is transmitted.
Residents who would like help with a mosquito problem should contact the Lake County Vector Control District at 707-263-4770 or visit the district's Web site at www.lcvcd.org .
For more information about West Nile virus, visit http://www.westnile.ca.gov/ .
LOWER LAKE, Calif. – A vehicle that crashed into a power pole Wednesday afternoon sparked a wildland fire and caused a power outage in parts of the south county.
The crash occurred at 3:15 p.m. on Highway 29 south of Lower Lake, near Spruce Grove and Clayton Creek roads, according to the California Highway Patrol and witness reports.
Reports from firefighters arriving at the scene indicated lines were down and the pole was leaning, with the grass alongside the highway catching fire.
Two people in the vehicle, reported to be an SUV, were able to get out on their own, with one believed to have moderate injuries, according to firefighters.
A REACH air ambulance was dispatched to transport a crash victim, according to radio reports.
At about 4:15 p.m. the fire was reported to be about eight acres. Cal Fire air resources were called to work the fire.
The fire was burning toward the east, with the CHP reporting that traffic was being turned at Clayton Creek. One-way traffic control was expected to be implemented to move traffic through the area.
Hidden Valley Lake residents were reporting outages in their area. Pacific Gas and Electric was reporting 185 customers in the south county were without power as a result of the crash.
Additional details will be posted as they become available.
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LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – With the July 4 holiday set to arrive, weather experts are forecasting continued hot temperatures, with chances of showers and thunderstorms on Wednesday evening and Thursday morning.
The National Weather Service is reporting that an excessive heat warning remains in effect for Lake County through 8 p.m. Thursday, when conditions are expected to cool down.
July 4 itself is expected to have temperatures topping out in the low 90s, based on the forecast.
Cooler temperatures are expected on Friday and into the weekend, according to the agency.
A hazardous weather outlook also is in effect for parts of Northern California, including Lake County. That's because forecasters are predicting a 20-percent chance of showers and thunderstorms Wednesday evening and into Independence Day morning, with light winds also expected.
A red flag warning is in effect for the northern part of Lake County – including the Mendocino National Forest – until Wednesday night due to critical fire weather conditions.
Officials are concerned about the potential for dry lightning strikes in the area, similar to those which late last month sparked fires around the region.
Since Tuesday morning, an estimated 2,800 lightning strikes have hit in the state's northerneastern region, setting off 16 fires in Cal Fire's Siskiyou, Lassen-Modoc-Plumas Unit and Nevada-Yuba-Placer units, the agency said.
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