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LAKEPORT, Calif. – A Lakeport woman escaped injury after the county's district attorney pulled her from her burning vehicle early Sunday morning.
District Attorney Don Anderson happened to be passing by when he saw the vehicle catching fire and stopped to pull Jillian Roxanne Whitney, 33, to safety.
Firefighters were first dispatched to a vehicle fire in the area of Highway 175/Hopland Grade and Dixon Drive at about 1:19 p.m. Sunday morning, according to radio traffic.
California Highway Patrol Officer Joe Wind separately confirmed that the agency's dispatch center received a report of the vehicle catching fire.
Anderson said he had just dropped his granddaughter off at her home – she had returned late at night from a school field trip – and was heading back to his own home when he saw a vehicle parked on the side of the road.
Driving past the car, he noticed the smell of burning rubber. So he turned around and went back, at which time he saw the entire back end of the vehicle was on fire.
Anderson, a former deputy sheriff, said he called 911 and then went to the car, where he found Whitney passed out in the driver’s seat, with the vehicle filling with smoke.
“I just grabbed her by the shoulders and drug her out across the field,” he said.
About 30 seconds later the entire vehicle went up in flames, Anderson said.
He said he was just lucky being at the right place, at the right time.
After Whitney woke up, Anderson wouldn't let her leave the scene, noting that she was intoxicated. He said she became angry that he wouldn't let her go.
The CHP placed Whitney under arrest for misdemeanor driving under the influence.
She was booked at the Lake County Jail, with bail set at $5,000. Jail records indicated she later posted the required portion of bail and was released.
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LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – The Lake County Winery Association is welcoming its 2013 slate of seven directors.
This group of seven board members will direct the organization's marketing activities, which include promoting the wines, wineries and tourism of Lake County.
Returning LCWA board of directors are Nick Buttitta, owner of Rosa d’Oro Vineyards, chosen to chair the group in 2013; Gregory Graham, owner of Gregory Graham Wines, vice chair; and Steve Tylicki, general manager/viticulturist, Steele Wines.
Newly elected LCWA directors include Jacquelyn St. Martin, direct-to-consumer sales and hospitality manager, Six Sigma Ranch & Winery, who will be treasurer; Megan Hoberg, tasting room manager, Wildhurst Vineyards; Jonathan Walters, co-owner and manager, Robinson Lake Vineyards, board secretary; and Dustin Fults, consumer direct and hospitality manager, Langtry Estate & Vineyards.
“In 2013, it is our task to increase awareness of Lake County’s great wines and to promote Lake County as an adventurous wine tourist destination,” said Buttitta, a member of both the Lake County Chamber of Commerce and the Kelseyville Business Association, and a member of the California Wine Institute.
St. Martin attended the International Sommelier Guild in Austin, Texas, where she earned wine sommelier Levels I and II certification and later received her advanced certification with the Wine & Spirit Education Trust based out of London. She holds a marketing degree from Texas A&M University, and her wine experience includes direct sales, hospitality and wine club management.
Hoberg is a graduate of Oklahoma State University, enjoys running, hiking and managing the tasting room at Wildhurst. Her passion for wine and developing wine tourism is the spark for innovative and proactive ideas for the future of the winery association.
Walters, a graduate of Texas A&M University, has completed four years of winegrape harvest at Robinson Lake Vineyard in Upper Lake and was recently elected to serve on the board of the Lake County Winegrape Commission.
Fults, the other new member to the 2013 LCWA board, is a graduate of California State University, Northridge, and has worked in the wine industry in both the vineyard and wines sales and hospitality since 2005. His family owns a 45-acre ranch and plans to open its own winery and tasting room in Lower Lake in the near future.
In addition to the LCWA Board of Directors, several committees provide the drive and resources to complete a multitude of LCWA projects, promotions and activities that keep the Lake County high elevation wine region in the forefront of California’s wine industry.
Founded in 2007, LCWA is a nonprofit vintner organization representing more than 30 wineries.
Individuals interested in getting involved in the Lake County world of wine are invited to contact the Lake County Winery Association through its Web site at www.lakecountywineries.org .
LAKEPORT, Calif. – Preparations are in the final stages for a popular annual education fundraiser, which organizers said has had a last-minute change of venue.
The Lakeport Enhanced Education Foundation – or LEEF – will hold its Big Band Dance & Auction on Saturday, March 9. Doors open at 5:30 p.m.
Originally scheduled to have been held in Lakeport, organizers said this week that a conflict necessitated moving the event to Mt. Konocti Growers, located at 2550 Big Valley Road in Kelseyville.
The event features dancing, a buffet dinner, and live and silent auctions, all benefiting students and programs at Lakeport Unified School District.
Featured performers will include the Clear Lake High School Jazz Band, with dancing music provided by Soul Alliance.
Proceeds will support much-needed technical upgrades, music and many other valuable programs districtwide at a time when the state's fiscal crunch has caused many important educational services to be cut back.
Tickets are $30 per person, with tables of 10 are available for $500.
Tickets are offered for sale at the Terrace Middle School office, 250 Lange St.; the Clear Lake High School office, 350 Lange St.; or Linda's Hallmark, 991 11th St. in Lakeport. Clear Lake High School band members also have tickets available for purchase.
For more information, visit LEEF's brand new Web site at www.lakeportleef.com .
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LAKEPORT, Calif. – A fire did serious damage to a Lakeport home on Monday afternoon but the family living there was able to get out uninjured.
Lakeport Fire Chief Ken Wells said firefighters were dispatched to the home, located at 770 Third St., just before 3 p.m. on the report of a chimney fire.
When Wells got to the scene he found that the wood shake siding on the two-story structure also was on fire.
A woman, her daughter and three grandchildren were living in the home. “The occupants got out of the house,” Wells said. “They were out by the time I got there.”
He said Lakeport Fire sent one engine and five firefighters, with Kelseyville Fire sending an engine, two firefighters and a captain on mutual aid.
Lakeport Police and Lake County Sheriff's deputies also were on scene to help control traffic and keep motorists from driving over the fire hose, Wells said.
He said the home was roughly two blocks from a fire hydrant, so about 450 feet of hose had to be laid to reach the water source.
Firefighters worked on the outside of the home until it was safe, then went inside, cutting a hole in the ceiling. Wells said a hole also was cut in the roof to make sure the fire didn't extend into the attic.
The fire was controlled at approximately 3:41 p.m., Wells said.
He said it was determined that the fire had started in the fireplace, which was the home's only heat source.
The house wasn't a loss but it sustained serious enough damage that the family can't return until repair work is done, Wells said.
Wells said Red Cross will put the family up for two nights, while the home restoration company Servpro also is offering them a night of lodging.
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CLEARLAKE OAKS, Calif. – Four people were injured and one of them was arrested for driving under the influence following a Saturday evening all-terrain vehicle rollover on Indian Valley Reservoir Road.
Bryan Burgess, 52, of Ukiah, was arrested for driving under the influence causing injury following the crash, which occurred on Indian Valley Reservoir Road north of Walker Ridge Road at 5 p.m. Saturday, according to the California Highway Patrol's Clear Lake Area office.
Burgess was driving a 2012 Can Am “side by side” two-seat ATV with three passengers – Willits residents Elizabeth Roderick, 47; Norma Miner, 55; and Krystal Bouser, 19 – in an unknown direction on Indian Valley Reservoir Road, the CHP said.
The CHP said that, due to Burgess' alcohol intoxication, he lost control of the ATV and it overturned, ejecting Miner and Bouser, who were riding unrestrained in the back of the vehicle.
Miner sustained major injuries and was flown by REACH air ambulance to Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital, according to the CHP.
Roderick, who had been seated in the right-front passenger seat, also suffered major injuries. The CHP said a CalStar air ambulance took her to Santa Rosa Memorial for treatment.
Bouser and Burgess were taken to St. Helena Hospital Clear Lake, each with minor injuries, the CHP said.
Both Burgess and Roderick were wearing seat belts, according to the CHP.
In addition to being arrested for DUI, Burgess was driving an ATV that was not street legal, the CHP said.
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CLEARLAKE OAKS, Calif. – A Clearlake Park man suffered moderate injuries in a vehicle rollover near the Elem Indian Colony on Saturday.
Aaron Lang, 30, was injured in the crash, which occurred at approximately 12:55 p.m. Saturday, according to the California Highway Patrol's Clear Lake Area office.
The CHP report said Lang was driving his 1997 Ford Thunderbird northbound on Sulphur Bank Drive, one mile south of Elem Road, when – for reasons yet to be determined – he lost control of his car and it overturned, hitting a group of trees on the side of the road.
Lang was wearing his seat belt, according to the CHP, who also reported that driving under the influence is not believed to be a factor in the crash.
Northshore Fire Protection District transported Lang by ambulance to a local hospital for treatment, the CHP said.
Lang reported on Lake County News' Facebook page that his car was totaled and he was “pretty banged up,” but that he was blessed to be able to go home to his wife and children.
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