LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – A Lakeport woman was arrested early Saturday morning after she allegedly led law enforcement on a high speed chase.

Laurie Louise Cipriani, 38, was arrested for driving under the influence, evading and reckless driving at the end of the chase, according to a report from the California Highway Patrol’s Clear Lake Area office.

At 3 a.m. Saturday, the Ukiah CHP Dispatch broadcast a be on the lookout for a possible DUI driver traveling eastbound on Highway 20 from Mendocino County to Lakeport, the CHP reported.

CHP Officers Thomas and Geer responded, and they observed a 2000 Ford Expedition traveling southbound on Highway 29 at a high rate of speed just south of Highway 20, according to the report.

The Expedition quickly accelerated in an attempt to elude officers, with the CHP reporting that the vehicle reached speeds of more than 90 miles per hour as it approached the Nice-Lucerne Cutoff.

Thomas and Geer attempted to make an enforcement stop and the vehicle’s driver failed to yield. The CHP said a short pursuit ensued, during which it’s alleged that the driver committed several moving violations.

The Expedition continued southbound on Highway 29 at speeds of more than 90 miles per hour, with the driver eventually yielding near the Park Way off-ramp, the CHP reported.

The driver, identified as Cipriani, was taken into custody. The CHP said drugs were located inside the Expedition.

She was booked into the Lake County Jail on two felony charges of evading a peace officer, and misdemeanors including DUI, obstructing or resisting a peace officer, and destroying or concealing evidence, with bail set at $35,000, according to jail records.

Booking records indicated she is due to appear in court on the charges June 18.

Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. . Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.

LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – Thanks to a grant through the Home Depot Repair Corp, Habitat for Humanity Lake County is aiding selected county veterans with critical health and safety related home repairs.  

In conjunction with this grant, Home Depot employees from the Ukiah Home Depot are volunteering their time as well, in an effort to give back to the community and stretch the donated funds even further.  

The Home Depot volunteers joined Habitat staff and volunteers on April 19 and April 20 to assist in giving the first recipient’s home a much needed paint job.

General Manager Vince Malnati loves to help people, especially veterans, and sees his volunteering efforts as a means of repaying them for everything they have done for our country.  

Proud to work for a company that funds so many projects and give back to the community, he indicated that Home Depot Repair Corp. has funded many similar projects around the country and it makes him feel good that they can help people unable to help themselves.

Amongst the other volunteers present, some come from families with veterans; others have friends and acquaintances who have served in the armed forces. These relationships have instilled a desire to help and give back to the community, and to veterans, in a way that they can be proud of. Helping Habitat for Humanity aid veterans is one of those ways.

Though unable to help as much as he would like, the homeowner, disabled US Army veteran Gregory Belger, and his family, are appreciative of the assistance he is receiving from Habitat for Humanity and Home Depot.

Belger intends to help as much as he is able to show his appreciation for what he’s being given.

The Home Depot volunteers will return to finish the painting on April 26 and April 27.

To see how you can help with this, or future projects, please call Habitat for Humanity Lake County at 707-994-1100.

LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – The California Department of Fish and Wildlife seeks public comments and data related to the status of Clear Lake hitch, a freshwater fish endemic to Clear Lake in Lake County.

Over the next year, CDFW will evaluate the status of the species and develop a recommendation to the California Fish and Game Commission on whether listing the species as threatened under the California Endangered Species Act (CESA) is warranted.

The commission received a petition to list Clear Lake hitch, Lavinia exilicauda chi, as a threatened species under CESA in September 2012 (Cal. Reg. Notice Register 2012, No. 41-Z, p. 1502).

On March 6 the commission considered the petition, the petition evaluation report, a recommendation prepared by CDFW and comments received at a publicly noticed meeting.

The commission concluded the petition included sufficient scientific information to indicate that listing the species as threatened under CESA may be warranted and designated Clear Lake hitch as a candidate species pursuant to Fish and Game Code  Section 2074.2. The commission published notice of its action on March 22, 2013 (Cal. Reg. Notice Register 2013, No 12-Z, p. 488).

The public is invited to submit relevant data or comments about Clear Lake hitch ecology, biology, life history, distribution, abundance, threats, essential habitat, management recommendations or other factors related to the status of the species.

Comments, data and other information may be submitted in writing to:

California Department of Fish and Wildlife
North Central Region
Attn: Kevin Thomas
1701 Nimbus Road
Rancho Cordova, CA 95670

Comments may also be submitted by email to: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .

All comments received by 5 p.m. on June 14, 2013 will be included in a CDFW status report to the Commission that CDFW anticipates submitting on or before the due date of March 22, 2014.

Following receipt of the CDFW status report, the Commission will allow a 30-day public comment period.

CDFW’s petition evaluation report for the Clear Lake hitch can be seen below.

CDFW Clear Lake hitch petition evaluation by LakeCoNews

LAKEPORT, Calif. – As ground stability issues continued to worsen at a north Lakeport subdivision this week, some residents were looking at the possibility of leaving their homes.

Lakeside Heights is now closed to all but residents and invited guests, according to a sign posted at the entrance off of Hill Road.

Over the last month, several homes have been red-tagged and served with abatement notices as they’ve begun to slide off of an unstable hillside.

On Friday, some residents were considering if it was time to leave the 29-home subdivision, as they explain in the video above.

Kevin M. Ingram, the county’s public information officer, told Lake County News Friday evening that there were no mandatory evacuations in place at that time.  

“This afternoon due to continued slide movement some residents in the immediate slide area were notified in person by county officials on site that it would be a good idea to voluntarily leave. It is possible that more formal action may be necessary if conditions worsen,” he said.

Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. . Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.

LAKEPORT, Calif. – On Wednesday, the Lakeport Fire Protection District officially received a $5,000 grant check that has helped it purchase new, cutting edge technology for fighting fires.

Fireman’s Fund awarded the grant to the district, which received help in pursuing the funds from Tom Lincoln of Lincoln Levitt Insurance Group.

Lakeport Fire District purchased Streetwise CAD Link, three tablets and rugged military grade tablet protective covers and mounting brackets for district vehicles.

The video above explains how the new technology is used.

LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – Caltrans asks motorists to “Slow for the Cone Zone” as Caltrans Maintenance crews statewide dedicate Thursday, April 25, to litter removal for this year's Annual Litter Day.  

The Lakeport crew will be picking up litter on Highway 29 from post marker 40 to 44, according to Caltrans spokesman Phil Frisbie.

Last year, Caltrans picked up 2,533 cubic yards of litter on Earth Day alone. That much litter would fill 158 garbage trucks, and was the largest single day litter pick up event in the nation.

Litter is still a big problem in California. Every year Caltrans spends millions of dollars and thousands of hours picking it up.

Litter is not only ugly; it can lead to pollution in our lakes, rivers, and beaches.  Cigarette butts are the number one item littered in California – they are discarded by the millions, often causing roadside fires, clogging storm drains, and threatening our water quality and wildlife.

In addition, motorists face the risk of accident, injury, and death as the result of trash and other debris that falls from vehicles hauling unsecured and untarped loads.

“Please do your part and ‘Don’t Trash California’ – not only can we save millions of dollars that could be spent on improving safety, but it will also help Caltrans workers and volunteers who spend a lot of time and energy keeping California beautiful,” said Mark Suchanek, Caltrans District 1 deputy district director for Maintenance and Operations.

LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – Caltrans District 1 has been awarded a $200,000 grant from the Federal Highway Administration’s Climate Change and Extreme Weather Vulnerability Assessments and Adaptation Options Analyses Pilot Projects Program to assess short and long-term climate change adaptation strategies for four pilot project locations.  

The four District 1 pilot projects represent distinct environmental challenges, and are areas regularly impacted by extreme weather events.  

They include a flood zone in Lake County, and locations in the coastal zones of Del Norte, Humboldt and Mendocino counties.  

The adaptation assessment will address such factors as extreme weather events, sea level rise and chronic landslides.

“Through the recent award and matched funding, this proactive approach enables us to identify feasible, innovative, and cost effective measures to preserve and protect the state’s transportation investments. It gives us the opportunity to take a focused look at several locations in our region where we’ve identified different kinds of vulnerable infrastructure.  We’ll be able to develop a range of adaptation strategies, both short and long term,” said Rex Jackman, Caltrans District 1 regional and system planning branch chief.

District 1 is one of 19 state and regional transportation agencies nationwide to receive a grant from the program.

Caltrans will enhance funding by providing an additional $200,000 to match the federal grant.

LAKEPORT, Calif. – If you’re looking to bring home a new dog or cat, Lake County Animal Care and Control’s special adoption event is still taking place and offering reduced costs.

The event, which began last Saturday, continues through this Friday.

So far this week, Animal Care and Control Director Bill Davidson said seven dogs and two cats have been adopted, more than in a normal week.

During the adoption event, the county is waiving the $30 adoption fee for dogs and the $20 fee for cats.

Cats can be adopted for $86 for females and $76 for males, which covers wellness exam, rabies, FVRCP, microchip and altering.

Female dogs range between $131 to $146, depending on size, which affects spaying costs, with male dogs costing $121. All dog adoptions include a wellness exam, rabies, DHLPP, microchip, altering, heartworm test and dog license.

Lake County Animal Care and Control is located at 4949 Helbush in Lakeport, next to the Hill Road Correctional Facility.

Visit the shelter online at http://www.co.lake.ca.us/Government/Directory/Animal_Care_And_Control.htm .

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 .

For more information call Lake County Animal Care and Control at 707-263-0278.

Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. . Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.

LAKEPORT, Calif. – Firefighters were able to save a home in Scotts Valley where a fire broke out Wednesday afternoon.

The fire damaged a modular home located at 2292 Scotts Valley Road, according to Lakeport Fire Chief Ken Wells.

The fire was first dispatched just after 2 p.m., with Lakeport Fire sending two engines, a water tender and personnel, with Kelseyville Fire sending firefighters and an engine, Wells said.

When the fire was first dispatched Wells was at a meeting in Lakeport that included Northshore Fire Deputy Chief Pat Brown and a Northshore Fire captain, so they responded, too.

Wells said the man renting the home had emptied his ash tray in close proximity to some lawn furniture with padding on it.

The man was watering his flowers when he heard a small explosion on his deck, Wells said. He looked up and saw fire going up the wall, which had caused the porch light to explode.

Initial radio reports had stated a fire was burning on the home’s composition roof. When firefighters arrived they found smoke coming out of the attic, Wells said.

Everyone got out of the house safely, according to Wells.

He said firefighters had to pull down the home’s ceiling and cut some vent holes in the roof to stop the fire from progressing through the rest of the attic space.

Reports from the scene indicated the fire was contained just after 2:30 p.m., which Wells confirmed.

“I think the house is salvageable,” said Wells, adding it was hard to estimate total damages.

He said the residents will be displaced temporarily, with repairs set to start on the home.

Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. . Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.

Later this year, Comet ISON is expected to become a naked-eye object when it skims through the atmosphere of the sun.

The Hubble Space Telescope has just obtained a sneak preview.

Hubble photographed ISON on April 10. At the time, the comet was 386 million miles from the sun (394 million miles from Earth), just inside the orbit of Jupiter.

Even at that great distance the comet is already active as sunlight warms the surface and causes frozen gases to vaporize.

A detailed analysis of the image reveals a strong jet blasting dust particles off the sunward-facing side of the comet’s nucleus.

Astronomers are using Hubble images to measure the activity level of the comet and constrain the size of its icy nucleus. Preliminary measurements suggest that the ISON's nucleus is no larger than three or four miles across. This is remarkably small considering the high level of activity observed in the comet so far, said researchers.

The comet’s dusty atmosphere, or "coma", is approximately 3,100 miles across, or 1.2 times the width of Australia. A dust tail extends more than 57,000 miles, far beyond Hubble’s field of view.

A more careful analysis is underway to improve these measurements and to predict the comet’s activity when it skims 700,000 miles above the sun's roiling surface on November 28.

For updates, stay tuned to Science@NASA.

Dr. Tony Phillips works for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration.

NORTHERN CALIFORNIA – A Hidden Valley Lake man was arrested for driving under the influence this week after he wrecked his semi truck near Cottonwood.

Roger Anthony, 46, also suffered major injuries in the crash, which occurred on Tuesday morning on Interstate 5, according to the California Highway Patrol’s Red Bluff office.

The CHP said that just before 8:30 a.m. Anthony was driving a 2004 Peterbilt tractor trailer northbound on the Bowman Road off-ramp, pulling a tanker trailer loaded with propane and traveling at an undetermined speed, when the semi went off the west roadway edge and overturned.

When officers arrived on scene the odor of propane was apparent and smoke was coming from the cab of the semi, the CHP reported.

Both the northbound and southbound lanes of Interstate 5, as well as Lake California Drive and Bowman Road, were closed at 8:50 a.m. with traffic diverted to nearby roads, the CHP said.

The CHP said that at 10 a.m. the tanker was determined to be safe, no hazardous materials were released and no fire occurred, at which time all of the roadways – with the exception of the northbound I-5 off-ramp to Bowman Road – were reopened.

Anthony was extricated from the semi and flown by air ambulance to Mercy Medical Center in Redding, according to the report.

CHP officers later went to the hospital and placed him under arrest for DUI, but released him to the hospital’s care due to his injuries.

The northbound Bowman Road off-ramp wasn’t opened until just after 9:30 p.m. Tuesday after the propane was offloaded and the overturned semi was removed, the CHP said.

Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. . Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.

LOWER LAKE, Calif. – The California Department of Parks and Recreation announced that it has finalized an agreement with Anderson Marsh Interpretive Association that will keep Anderson Marsh State Historic Park open to the public.  

The park was one of 70 state parks that had been slated for closure in 2011.

It has been kept open until now through cooperation between AMIA and the State Parks Clear Lake Sector administration.

The new partnership financial contribution and matching fund agreement will take advantage of funds made available out of a special fund established by the state legislature to “match” donations made by nonprofit organizations that enter into agreements designed to keep state parks open.

The agreement allows the Anderson Marsh State Historic Park to be

maintained and operated by State Parks for the benefit and enjoyment of the public through June 30, 2016.

“We are thankful that we have been able to avoid the closure of our wonderful Park and very excited that we have finally been able to reach an agreement with State Parks that will keep our Park open and accessible to the public,” said AMIA President Roberta Lyons. “This would not have been possible without the generous support of our AMIA members and donors, and the cooperation and help of the State Parks Clear Lake Sector superintendent.”

The agreement calls for the park to be available for use by the public throughout the week, with the parking lot to be open on weekends.  

AMIA will pay for park utilities and other services, do

specified maintenance at the park and fund trail maintenance. Money raised by AMIA will also be used to restore the popular McVicar Trail, which has been closed due to unsafe conditions caused by land erosion and tree fall.  

Under the agreement, State Parks also will assign a maintenance worker to the park, who will be provided with a utility vehicle and the tools necessary to do groundskeeping, trail maintenance and other routine maintenance.  

AMIA will finance other maintenance that had to be deferred due to lack of funding. Responsibility for operating the park will remain with State Parks under the agreement.

"We are grateful to AMIA and to its members, volunteers and donors, who have stepped up to ensure that Anderson Marsh State Historic Park will remain open, and that the important historic, cultural and natural resources found at the Park will remain protected,” said Clear Lake Sector Superintendent Bill Salata.  

AMIA Treasurer Henry Bornstein said that the organization is in the process of raising the money it will need to finance its contributions under the agreement.  

“None of this would have been possible without the generosity of the people and organizations of Lake County, who understand the importance of preserving the wonders to be found at Anderson Marsh State Historic Park,” said Bornstein.  “We urge everyone to become part of this historic effort by joining AMIA.”

Anderson Marsh State Historic Park is located on Highway 53, between Lower Lake and Clearlake. 

For more information about AMIA, visit www.andersonmarsh.org . For more information about the park, visit http://www.parks.ca.gov/?page_id=483 .