LAKEPORT, Calif. – A fire that burned close to Sutter Lakeside Hospital on Tuesday afternoon was caused by equipment, according to the Lakeport Fire chief.

The fire, first reported over the radio shortly after 2 p.m., was located in the area of Hill Road and Hill Road East, just up the road from Sutter Lakeside Hospital.

The first units on scene found the blaze to be a quarter of an acre with a moderate rate of spread and low wind on it, radio reports indicated.

Lakeport Fire Chief Doug Hutchison said the fire's final size was mapped at approximately 16.1 acres by Cal Fire's Copter 104.

“The cause was, they were mowing for fire prevention,” Hutchison said.

It's believed that the mower – which was towed behind a tractor – ran into some old wire. “That's when they noticed smoke behind them,” Hutchison said.

Responding to the incident along with Lakeport Fire were Northshore Fire, Kelseyville Fire and Cal Fire, he said.

Hutchison said he responded, along with three engines from Lakeport Fire; Northshore Fire Chief Jay Beristianos brought two engines and a water tender; Kelseyville Fire sent an engine and a water tender; and Cal Fire had two engines, two crews, a dozers, a battalion chief and Copter 104 on scene.

The Lake County Sheriff's Office reported that Hill Road also was temporarily under traffic control as firefighters were working in the area.

Nearby Sutter Lakeside Hospital was on standby, and the outlying clinics had been notified and temporarily evacuated while firefighters were working to control the fire, according to hospital spokeswoman Morgan Wells.

Hutchison estimated it took a few hours to get good containment on the blaze due to the area's light, flashy fuels – specifically, grass. Thanks to this year's rain, there is an abundance of such vegetation.
At the same time, firefighters were negotiating around oak trees, he said.

Cal Fire kept some units on scene on Wednesday, when they cleared the scene at around 3:30 p.m., according to radio traffic. Hutchison confirmed that they had remained out on the site for monitoring.

Noting he's always on edge about fire, Hutchison said that his biggest concern this year is due to the rain and the resulting fuels.

While it's good for the groundwater supply, “The flip side of that is all that rain has given us an abundant grass crop,” and he said it's dried out very quickly with the recent mini heat wave.

“Unlike other fuel types, grass burns incredibly fast, incredibly aggressively and very erratically,” he said, adding that a grass fire will turn quicker than a fire in heavier fuels.

As an example, Hutchison explained that Tuesday's fire one minute would be spreading slowly, and then some wind would hit it and cause it to quickly move 200 feet.

He said that, in a lot of ways, grass fires can be more dangerous to people, who get lulled into a false sense of security. The danger, he said, is such fires can quickly change direction.

With the hot weather, mowing is a concern. “We appreciates everyone's efforts to try to knock the grass down. We don't want to discourage that,” Hutchison said.

However, he advised people to do the work early in the day. That means no mowing after 9 or 10 a.m. on a sunny day with little or no wind, and keeping a fire extinguisher on hand.

“It's just one spark. It's all it takes,” he added.

Tuesday's fire was the first big incident of the fire season in Lake County.

“We're hoping it's not an omen for the rest of the season,” Hutchison 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. – Caltrans will hold a meeting on Wednesday, June 8, to discuss plans to widen a section of Highway 29.

The open public forum on the Lake 29 Improvement Project will be held from 6 to 8 p.m. at the Lower Lake High School gymnasium, 9430 Lake St.

Caltrans, the Lake County Area Planning Council and the Federal Highway Administration are proposing to widen an eight-mile segment of Highway 29 between Lower Lake and Kelseyville to a four-lane expressway with access control.

The proposed project will start at the top of the Glasgow Grade – at Diener Drive – about 3.3 miles north of the town of Lower Lake. The proposed project will end just north of the Highway 29/175 intersection.

At the public hearing, attendees will be able to visit display stations to view project exhibits, discuss the revised partial draft environmental impact report/environmental assessment with Caltrans project staff and enter formal comments into the public record.

For more information visit http://www.dot.ca.gov/dist1/d1projects/lake29/index.htm .

NORTH COAST, Calif. – A control burn on Lake Mendocino's Coyote Valley Dam will take place early next week.

On the evening of Monday, June 13, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in cooperation with Cal Fire will conduct a control burn at the dam from 5 to 9 p.m.

Officials said the smoke will be visible throughout the entire Ukiah and Redwood Valley areas.

The purpose of the control burn is to assist the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in removing the vegetation from the face of the Coyote Valley Dam, allowing access and visibility for a required inspection, officials said.

As a result of the burn, officials said the Coyote Dam and the Fish Hatchery area near the base of the dam will be closed to the public.

The burn will be conducted under very tight restrictions for the personal safety of firefighters and area residents, Cal Fire said, noting that safety is of the utmost concern.

LOWER LAKE, Calif. – Two people were flown to trauma centers on Tuesday following a wreck that involved a car and a dump truck.

The California Highway Patrol said the crash occurred at 10:49 a.m. Tuesday on Highway 29 south of Doten Road near Lower Lake.

The CHP said Krista Deluna, 27, of Kelseyville, was driving a 2002 Honda Civic southbound on Highway 29 and was stopped, intending to turn left onto private property.

Behind Deluna was Matthew Gunn, 38, Clearlake Oaks, who was driving a 2007 Freightliner dump truck southbound on Highway 29 at an unknown speed, the CHP said.

For unknown reasons, Gunn failed to observe that Deluna’s car was stopped. The CHP said Gunn applied his brakes, and turned to the left and then to the right, but was unable to avoid hitting Deluna’s car. 

The force of the impact pushed Deluna’s car onto the south shoulder and caused Gunn’s truck to overturn onto its left side, spilling its load of gravel onto Highway 29, the CHP said.

The CHP said one-way traffic was in effect for approximately three hours while the scene was cleaned up.

Kelseyville Fire, Cal Fire, the CHP and Caltrans responded to the incident, along with air ambulances from REACH and Calstar, according to the report.

Both Gunn and Deluna were flown to out-of-county trauma centers. The CHP said Gunn, who had moderate injuries, was flown by Calstar to Santa Rosa Memorial. Deluna had major injuries – including broken ribs and a facial laceration – and was transported to Kaiser Vacaville.

Both drivers were wearing their seat belts at the time of the wreck, the CHP said.

The CHP had no update on the conditions of Deluna and Gunn as of Wednesday afternoon.

CHP officer Mark Crutcher is investigating the collision.  

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. – Two children sustained major injuries and were flown to an out-of-county trauma center and four others also were hurt as the result of a Sunday morning vehicle crash near Lakeport.

The crash occurred at approximately 9:26 a.m. Sunday on Big Valley Road north of Stone Drive, according to the California Highway Patrol's Clear Lake Area office.

Leora Hopper, 31, of Lakeport was driving a 2003 Chevy Tahoe southbound on Big Valley Road, with seven passengers riding with her, including 57-year-old Calvin Hopper Sr. of Lakeport, and six juveniles ranging in age between 3 and 11.

The CHP said Leora Hopper was driving approximately 40 to 45 miles per hour when, due to her speed – which the CHP said was unsafe – she was unable to negotiate a sharp lefthand turn in the roadway.

The CHP report said she went off the right side of the road, with the right side of her vehicle hitting an oak tree stump.

When it hit the stump, the Chevy spun around 180 degrees and came to rest in a grass field, the CHP said.

One of the six juveniles in the vehicle was ejected from the Chevy through the rear window, sustaining major injuries. She and the second girl who had major injuries were flown by a REACH air ambulance to UC Davis, the CHP said.

The CHP said the six juveniles who were involved included two females aged 11 and 5, who suffered major injuries; a 10-year-old female and a 9-year-old male had minor injuries, along with a 3-year-old and 5-year old, with the gender of the latter two not reported.

CHP Officer Kory Reynolds said the children who had minor injuries – specifically, complaints of pain – were taken to Sutter Lakeside. Neither Leora Hopper nor Calvin Hopper sustained injuries.

As of Tuesday Reynolds said he had no update on the condition of the children taken to UC Davis.

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.