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- Written by: Lake County News Reports
LAKEPORT – Several dozen Lake County residents gathered in downtown Lakeport Saturday morning under cool gray clouds, ready to run or walk for a good cause.
An estimated 150 friends, family and event personnel were on hand to cheer them on during the 13th annual Sponsoring Survivorship walk/run fundraising event anchored at the Bank of America parking lot on Main Street.
The proceeds benefit Lake County women with financial assistance during their battles with cancer.
Participants were offered three challenges: a two-kilometer walk, a five-kilometer walk or run, and a 10-kilometer walk or run route. The majority of those choose the 5k walk. Event coordinators reported there were 200 participants.
More than three dozen businesses provided funding, goods and services, as well as raffle prizes which were awarded at the conclusion of the event Saturday morning.
Event organizers could not specify the precise number, but indicated that they appreciate the many individual volunteers and service groups that contributed their time and expertise to plan and execute the complex event.
E-mail Harold LaBonte at
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- Written by: Elizabeth Larson
Northshore Fire Battalion Chief Pat Brown said the emergency resulted in what was by far the biggest movement of local emergency equipment for a mass casualty incident.
Cal Fire officials reported that the crash was reported to them at approximately 6:26 p.m. Sunday. It took place on Lone Star Road and Abel Road, east of Interstate 5 between Williams and Colusa.
Brown said a bus that came from Colusa Casino had overturned along the stretch of rural road. There were 52 patients, 40 of them critical and five dead at the scene. Late Sunday news reports placed the number of dead at 10.
Nine ambulances from fire districts around the lake could be seen racing along Highway 20 toward the valley between 6:30 p.m. and 7:30 p.m.
Northshore Fire – which has a mutual agreement with Williams – sent three ambulances, said Brown, along with two from Lake County Fire Protection, one from South County Fire, two from Lakeport Fire and one from Kelseyville Fire.
Cal Fire said it sent four engines from Middletown, Clearlake Oaks, Wilbur Springs and Brooks.
Lake County Fire Protection Battalion Chief Willie Sapeta was the strike team leader for the Lake County resources, said Brown. Lake County News was unable to reach Sapeta late Sunday night.
Brown said there were ambulances and fire trucks from all over the valley, including Woodland, West Sacramento and Yolo County. “There was a lot of equipment there,” he said.
Helicopters transported crash victims to hospitals around the North State. Brown said some patients also were taken to Santa Rosa.
At around 8:30 p.m. all of the local ambulances and trucks were released, said Brown, who himself got back home at around 9:30 p.m.
E-mail Elizabeth Larson at
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- Written by: Lake County News Reports
CAL FIRE responds to more than 300,000 emergencies and calls for service each year. More than 5,000 of these emergencies are fires inside homes and other buildings.
“In the past three years hundreds of people have died in home fires in California,” said Cal Fire Director Chief Ruben Grijalva. “What is so tragic is that many of these fires are easily preventable when residents take simple steps.”
It is because of these startling figures that this year’s theme of Fire Prevention Week 2008 is “Prevent Home Fires!” From Oct. 5 through11, Cal Fire and fire departments across the country will be encouraging their communities to check their homes for fire hazards. With a little extra caution, preventing the leading causes of home fires – cooking, heating, electrical and smoking – is within their power.
Here are some simple steps to help prevent home fires:
Cooking: Stay in the kitchen when you are frying, grilling or broiling food. If you leave the kitchen for even a short period time, turn off the stove.
Heating: Keep all things that can burn, such as paper, bedding or furniture, at least 3 feet away from heating equipment.
Electrical: Replace cracked and damaged electrical cords; use extension cords for temporary wiring only. Consider having additional circuits or receptacles added by a qualified electrician.
Smoking: If you smoke, smoke outside; wherever you smoke, use deep, sturdy ashtrays.
Each year, the week surrounding the date of Oct. 9 is celebrated as National Fire Prevention Week.
Why Oct. 9? The date commemorates the infamous “Great Chicago Fire” of 1871 that killed 250 people and destroyed over 17,000 homes.
Fire Prevention Week is organized each year by the National Fire Protection Association.
For more fire safety tips visit the CAL FIRE Web site at www.fire.ca.gov.
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- Details
- Written by: Elizabeth Larson
CLEAR LAKE STATE PARK – Sharing the wonders of nature with today's children – who increasingly are in front of a video screen rather than climbing trees and playing in the open air – is a principal goal behind the Clear Lake State Park's new education pavilion, which was celebrated Saturday.
The groundbreaking for the education pavilion was part of “A Wild Affair in Your Park.” Rain earlier on Saturday had organizers of the outdoor event a little concerned, but the weather cooperated to offer a sunny and not-too-cool, picture-perfect fall afternoon.
Construction of the education pavilion, which will be located near the park visitor center, is expected to begin next month, said Madelene Lyon, president of the Clear Lake State Park Interpretive Association, which has worked for the last four years to make the project a reality.
Saturday's celebration was especially poignant in the aftermath of Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's proposal earlier this year to close 48 state parks – among them, Clear Lake State Park and Anderson Marsh State Historic Park – in order to address the state's budget crisis. That proposal was withdrawn in Schwarzenegger's May budget revise.
Federal, state and local officials who took part in Saturday's event credited Lyon for her hard work and tenacity in getting the project off the ground – including raising the $183,000 to build the pavilion.
After the idea originally was proposed four years ago, Congressman Mike Thompson – who took part in the groundbreaking – went to State Parks Director Ruth Coleman, one of his former staffers, and asked her for help.
At that time, Coleman set aside $60,000 for the project, an amount she managed to protect through a budget crunch and the threat to shut the park made earlier this year.
“This is a very important milestone for this park,” Coleman said Saturday.
Coleman said the pavilion's construction is coming at an important time. Pointing to the project's theme of “No Child Left Inside,” Coleman said it will help bring children back to the outdoors.
She said children today spend 30 minutes a week in unstructured play outside, versus 14 hours in front of a screen. “It's like they are under house arrest.”
That's leading to young people coming to parks with a very different mindset than those shared by previous generations, said Coleman.
Thompson, Coleman and Lyon were joined in the official groundbreaking by Supervisor Rob Brown; Wilda Shock of the Keeling-Barnes Family Foundation; Myron Holdenried, whose grandparents, Fred and Nellie Dorn, donated the property that became the state park 60 years ago, and who himself has donated to the pavilion effort; Steve Brookes, representing the Priest Family Foundation, another major project donor; the park's Supervising Ranger Ryen Goering; and Mark Covella, Bay Area manager of the California Conservation Corps, which will build the pavilion.
In addition to the $60,000 provided by the State Parks Department, the $183,000 raised to build the pavilion came from a variety of other sources, including a $6,000 grant from the California State Park Foundation, $10,000 from the Keeling-Barnes Family Foundation, and funds from the Priest Family Foundation and other local, private contributions.
Still needed, however, is money to outfit the pavilion with scientific and other equipment, said Lyon. In addition to featuring the groundbreaking, A Wild Affair – which Lyon said was a one-time event – also was a fundraiser to raise those additional funds.
Fifteen wineries and nine restaurants were featured, sheltered under tents set up within a green outline on the ground that signified the education pavilion's footprint. Visitors also could look at exhibits from the visitor center, included a large stuffed mountain lion. Live music added to the festive fall atmosphere.
As soon as the state signs the contract, the pavilion's construction can begin, said Lyon.
Covella said the California Conservation Corps is aiming to start construction in the middle of November.
A Conservation Corps team of about 12 people from Ukiah, led by two crew supervisors with general contractor experience, will build the facility over a span of about four months, he said.
Some of the work is likely to be held up by rain during the winter season, but if all goes well the building could be completed by spring, said Covella. Lyon added she would love to see the building completed in time for the Heron Festival and Wildflower Breakfast next April.
During his remarks, Thompson said Lyon had been tenacious in her desire to see the pavilion built. “When she knew that was the right thing to do, she didn't let go,” said Thompson.
But, he added, he didn't need much convincing. “She had me at 'hello.'”
Thompson, who reminisced about the importance of the outdoors in his childhood, said he looked forward to coming back when the pavilion was open and children were there to enjoy it.
Brown, who had traveled to Sacramento earlier this year to argue against closing the park, also credited Lyon for her efforts. He added that it's fortunate to be in a community “where we can put something like this together.”
Former state senator and current Assembly candidate Wes Chesbro said a longterm strategy is needed to help preserve the state's parks.
“State parks have been underfunded for years and years and years,” which he said he plans to address if he's elected in November.
A Wild Affair was six months in the making, said Lyon. “We're very, very pleased about how it turned out.”
E-mail Elizabeth Larson at
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