A Cal Fire helicopters makes a water drop on the Lakeshore fire in Clearlake Park on Thursday, August 11, 2011. Photo by Gary McAuley.

CLEARLAKE PARK, Calif. – Dozens of state and local firefighters responded to a late afternoon fire in Clearlake Park on Thursday that swept through several structures.

The fire was reported shortly after 4:15 p.m. in the area of Lakeshore Drive and Lower Lakeshore, with an area of Arrowhead Road later reported to be involved, according to reports from the scene.

Fire officials on scene reported four structures were burned, along with between five and 10 acres of vegetation.

More specific details weren't immediately available Thursday night, as mop up efforts continued late into the evening.

Initially burning vegetation, firefighters arriving at the scene found the fire quickly moving into nearby homes, with Lake County Fire Protection District calling for assistance from Cal Fire and a strike team from agencies around the county.

Cal Fire and Konocti Conservation crews, Lake County Fire Protection District, Northshore Fire, Lakeport Fire, Kelseyville Fire and South Lake County Fire reportedly responded to the site, with Clearlake Police and Lake County Sheriff's deputies helping to stop traffic and handle crowd control in the area. One witness reported the intersection at Arrowhead and Golf was blocked to through traffic.

Estimates from the scene put the number of emergency vehicles at the scene at approximately 24.

Karla Vogel submitted this shot that captured a Cal Fire helicopter at work on the Lakeshore fire in Clearlake Park on Thursday, August 11, 2011.

A Cal Fire helicopter arrived to begin dropping water from nearby Clear Lake onto the fire, while an air attack circled overhead. Two air tankers also were summoned from Sonoma County.

Clearlake resident Elizabeth Hoskins, who was about three blocks from the fire, reported that she could hear snapping and crackling, and people screaming. “It looks bad,” she said Thursday evening.

Numerous live wires were down in the area, with Pacific Gas & Electric company staff requested to come to the scene. At one point radio traffic indicated power to the area might have to be cut off. Golden State Water, which serves the area, also was called out.

Red Cross was called to come and set up a shelter to assist displaced families, according to radio traffic.

Fire officials on the scene reported over the radio that they had “shaky containment” at 5:38 p.m., with all resources being kept on scene.

The air tankers were released about five minutes later, but the Cal Fire helicopter was retained later in case there were flare ups, according to radio traffic.

Over the next half-hour more resources were released as, in the words of one firefighter over the radio, “significant, long-term, heavy mop up” continued.

Units remained on scene for several hours as mop up and investigation continued.

Shortly after 11 p.m. dispatch began receiving calls of possible flare ups in the area, with firefighters responding to the scene to find some debris piles continuing to steam.

Radio traffic indicated firefighters would return to the scene Friday morning to check things over.

E-mail Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Follow Lake County News on Twitter at http://twitter.com/LakeCoNews, on Tumblr at www.lakeconews.tumblr.com, on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/pages/Lake-County-News/143156775604?ref=mf and on YouTube at http://www.youtube.com/user/LakeCoNews.

The fire in Clearlake Park on Thursday, August 11, 2011, burned several homes and threatened many more. Photo by Gary McAuley.

In addition to lost homes, the fire in Clearlake Park on Thursday, August 11, 2011, burned this vehicle. Photo by Gary McAuley.

Arlene Green photographed this home that was destroyed by the Lakeshore fire in Clearlake Park on Thursday, August 11, 2011.

Rick Gunier captured this picture of the Lakeshore fire incident in Clearlake Park on Thursday, August 11, 2011.

A Cal Fire helicopter circles over Clearlake Park as it assists with dropping water on a fire that burned several structures on Thursday, August 11, 2011. Photo by Elizabeth Hoskins.

Firefighters work to know down the fire, which quickly moved from vegetation to nearby homes in a Clearlake Park, Calif., neighborhood on Thursday, August 11, 2011. Photo by Gary McAuley.

Early on in the incident Marni Johnson photographed a fire in Clearlake Park on Thursday, August 11, 2011, that burned several structures.

PER ONE OF THE LOCAL RESIDENTS INVOLVED, THE AGE OF KAYLA WARD HAS BEEN CORRECTED.

LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – Several Lake County residents escaped unharmed from a multi-vehicle pile up on Interstate 5 on Monday that claimed the lives of three people.

The crash – which closed the highway until late Monday night – occurred at 12:43 p.m. on southbound Interstate 5 south of Highway 113 near Woodland, according to the California Highway Patrol.

Two residents from Monmouth, Ore. – a 49-year-old woman and a 53-year-old man whose names were not released – who were riding in a 2004 Chevy Tahoe died, as did a 2-year-old girl from Tacoma, Wash., who was riding in a 1996 Acura Integra driven by 61-year-old Tedd J. Laylock of Riverside, Calif.

Yolo County Chief Deputy Coroner Robert LaBrash said Tuesday that the names of the fatal crash victims were not yet available for release. Causes of death for the three victims also hadn't been finalized, he said.

Six vehicles were involved, including a 2010 Ford van driven by 51-year-old Laurene K. Ward of Lower Lake, the CHP reported.

Ward had riding as her passengers six young people – Lower Lake residents Kayla Ward, 21, and Dylan Ward, 17, along with Daniel Barrio and Max Scandell, both aged 20; and Clearlake residents Derick Grace and Austin Layne, both age 17, the report explained.

Ward and the six young people all were unhurt, according to the report.

The CHP reported that Carlos A. Hernandez, 38, of Elk Grove, Calif., was driving a 2006 Mits box bobtail truck southbound on I-5 south of Highway 113 in the No. 2 lane at an undetermined rate of speed approaching slower moving traffic when he changed into the No. 1 lane.

Due to road construction in the area, traffic was slowing and stopping to safely travel through the construction zone, according to the report.

The CHP said that because of Hernandez's “unsafe speed,” the front of his truck struck several southbound-traveling vehicles that were moving at a slower rate or already stopped in the No. 1 lane.

The truck's collision with the other vehicles resulted in five of the six vehicles becoming engulfed in flames, the CHP said.

Hernandez suffered major injuries, with a broken left wrist, cuts to his head and burns. The CHP said he was transported to UC Davis Medical Center.

Laylock suffered moderate injuries, including cuts to his knees and a chest bruise, while his second passenger, 21-year-old Brianna M. DeMillo of Tacoma, also suffered moderate injuries, with cuts to her elbows and burns to her hands and legs. Both were transported to Mercy San Juan Hospital.

Frances C. Allen, 59, of Livermore, who was driving a 2010 Jeep Wrangler, escaped uninjured, the CHP said.

Arturo R. Carrera, 41, of Bellflower, Calif., was driving a 1998 Ford Expedition with three passengers – 39-year Guadulupe M. Carrera, 13-year-old Adrian Carrera and 4-year-old Destiny Gonzales, all of Bellflower.

Arturo Carrera suffered minor injuries, with burns on both arms, his face and head, and Guadulupe Carrera had moderate injuries, including burns on the right side of her body, her right leg and right arm, the CHP said.

Adrian Carrera and Destiny Gonzales both suffered minor injuries, with the CHP stating that the older girl received burns to her right wrist and the young child sustaining cuts to her left ankle.

The CHP said the Carreras and Gonzales all were taken to UC Davis Medical Center for care.

All of the people involved in the crash were wearing their seat belts, according to the report.

Neither alcohol nor drugs appear to be a factor in this collision, the CHP said.

The Valley Division Multidisciplinary Accident Investigation Team (MAIT) will handle the investigation's conclusion.

Anyone who witnessed the collision or who has any other information regarding the investigation is encouraged to contact Valley Division MAIT at 916-464-2080.

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Firefighters from Lakeport Fire Protection District, Kelseyville Fire Protection District and Cal Fire responded to a structure fire on Crystal Lake Way in Lakeport, Calif., on Saturday, August 6, 2011. The fire claimed the life of Wilna Neher, who lived there with her husband, George. Photo by Elizabeth Larson.

LAKEPORT, Calif. – The cause of a late-night home fire that claimed the life of a Lakeport woman on Saturday has been ruled accidental.

The fire, reported at approximately 11:43 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 6, destroyed the home at 1128 Crystal Lake Way of 86-year-old George "Ed" Neher and his wife, Wilna, 83.

Wilna Neher died as she was trying to escape, with firefighters finding her body just inside the home's front door, as Lake County News has reported.

Lakeport Fire Chief Ken Wells said Monday that fire investigators were able to trace the cause of the fire to rags that had been used to apply a treatment to the home's deck.

Wells said the rags had been stored in the home's garage, where George Neher had first witnessed the fire late Saturday night.

In an interview given on the scene early Sunday morning Wells had said that the couple had already gone to bed for the night when they heard crackling coming from the garage. When George Neher got up to see what was happening, he saw the garage filled with smoke.

Both Wells and the Lake County Sheriff's Office reported that George Neher told his wife to call 911 and leave the house before he went back to try to fight the fire in the garage.

However, Central Dispatch had told Wells early Sunday that the 911 call came from George Neher, not his wife.

In an e-mail to Lake County News Jessica Chernoh, the Nehers' granddaughter, said her grandfather did tell her grandmother to call 911. Wilna Neher dialed the phone and handed it to her husband so she could get dressed to leave the home.

According to Chernoh, at that point, George Neher ran outside before quickly trying to return to his wife. The fire spread so he ran to the front door, yelling for his wife to get out of the house.

Wilna Neher opened the front door and that's the last time her husband saw her, as he was turning to run from the burning home, according to Chernoh.

“At that point he said she was behind him and then the next thing he said she was gone,” Chernoh said in her e-mail.

Chernoh suggested that her grandmother may have gone back inside the house for something.

“He did everything he could to get her out,” Chernoh said of her grandfather.

Part of the burned home of George and Wilna Neher of Lakeport, Calif. The fire occurred late on Saturday, August 6, 2011. Photo by Elizabeth Larson.

Wells said early Sunday that Wilna Neher's body was found at 1:45 a.m. by firefighters after the fire was finally put out.

Lakeport Fire received assistance in fighting the blaze from Kelseyville Fire and Cal Fire, with a total of 18 firefighters responding.

The California Highway Patrol and a sheriff's deputy also were on scene. Wells said firefighters had been able to run large hoses to a fire hydrant about 400 feet away from the home.

The responding sheriff's deputy secured the home site after the fire was extinguished. By that point Wells said his district's two fire investigators were working the case, with additional investigators called to assist.

The sheriff's office said the body found in the home were removed by morning and a coroner's investigation began. The agency said the body was presumed to be Wilna Neher's, but was pending positive identification.

The home and garage were a total loss, according to Wells.

Chernoh said her grandparents would have celebrated their 64^th anniversary later this month.

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On Sunday morning Heidi Anton, Joseph Enlow, Silas Keys and Jennifer Thacker of Willits; Robert Nappi of Cotati and Carrie Viarnes of Sacramento; and Nicholas Thomas of Ukiah all were located and transported to the Trout Creek Campground in the Mendocino National Forest, according to Lake County Sheriff's Office public information officer Michelle Gonzalez.

Gonzalez said the seven had been reported missing the previous evening after beginning a rafting trip.

At about 10:50 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 6, the Lake County Sheriff’s Office received a call for assistance. seven river rafters on float tubes had entered the Eel River at the Soda Creek Bridge at about 4 p.m., according to the report.

Gonzalez said the rafters had planned to raft approximately nine miles to the Trout Creek Campground where they were camping. They believed the trip would take three to four hours and had only swim wear and no supplies to spend the night.

Because the area on the Eel River is near the Lake/Mendocino county line in the Mendocino National Forest, Lake County Sheriff’s deputies requested the assistance of the Mendocino County Sheriff’s Office, Gonzalez said. Deputies checked the area, but did not locate the missing rafters.

The Lake County Sheriff’s Office called out Search and Rescue and K-Corps, which responded to the area about 1:30 a.m. Sunday, according to Gonzalez.

She said that Enlow had left the group at a small beach area and continued on, in the dark, to an area where he climbed up a steep embankment to a logging road. A local resident picked him up and drove him down to the Trout Creek Campground where he met with the Lake County Sheriff’s team.

The resident told them that the group was most likely in a steep cavernous area of the Eel River. Gonzalez said the Lake County Search and Rescue and K-Corps proceeded to the area and rappelled down approximately 500 feet, but were unable to reach the rafters on the beach.

The rafters were told that they could not be rescued from that particular location, and that they would need to wait for daylight and float to another area to be picked up, Gonzalez said.

She said sheriff’s deputies requested a California Highway Patrol helicopter to locate the rafters and provide possible routes of travel for rescue.

On Sunday at about 9:30 a.m. the missing rafters arrived at the designated meeting point, in good condition and good spirits, and were transported back to the Trout Creek Campground, Gonzalez said.

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Robert Lee Hayes, 31, of Clearlake, Calif., was arrested on Sunday, August 7, 2011, for vehicle burglary. Lake County Jail photo.

CLEARLAKE, Calif. – A Clearlake man has been arrested on several charges in connection to an early morning vehicle burglary earlier this week.

Robert Lee Hayes, 31, was arrested Sunday, Aug. 7, for vehicle burglary, possession of stolen property and vandalism, according to a report from Clearlake Police Sgt. Rodd Joseph.

Joseph said that at 4:30 a.m. Sunday an attentive Clearlake resident called Clearlake Police Department to report two suspicious male subjects looking into the windows of several parked vehicles in the area of Silk's Bar and Grill at 14825 Lakeshore Drive.

He said several Clearlake police officers responded to the area. There, the witness directed officers to Flyer’s gas station where one of the subjects was last seen.

Officers located Hayes, who matched the description given by a witness of one of the subjects at Flyer’s gas station, Joseph said.

Police officers questioned Hayes, who Joseph said was found to be in possession of an identification card in the name of another person.

Joseph said a cellular phone also was found in close proximity to Hayes. During a check of the phone, the same name was located in the phone contact list as was on the identification card found on Hayes’ person.

During further questioning by officers, Hayes allegedly admitted to smashing the window of a parked vehicle at Redbud Park moments earlier and stealing several items from inside the vehicle, Joseph said.

Joseph said the stolen property included the identification card in the victim’s name, the victims’ cellular phone and a few dollars in change. The victim vehicle described by Hayes was ultimately located in the Redbud Park parking lot with a smashed window.

Hayes also has been linked to several other recent vehicle burglaries in the area of Silk's Bar and Grill and Redbud Park, Joseph said. The stolen property was later returned to the owner.

Hayes was booked into the Lake County Jail, with bail set at $30,000. Jail records indicated that Hayes remained in custody on Tuesday.

Anyone with information about a crime occurring in the community can call the Clearlake Police Department at 707-994-8251. Callers may remain anonymous.

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The compact funds programs in local communities that mitigate the impact of gaming activities and address gambling addiction, Brown's office said.

According to the governor's office, the compact includes provisions to protect employees and patrons, and measures that the tribe must take to protect the environment during the construction and operation of gaming facilities.

The compact allows the operation of a maximum of 900 slot machines.

Up to 15 percent of the casino's net win from them will go to local communities and gambling mitigation and regulation provisions.

The compact requires regular audits of gaming operations, and supersedes the 2009 compact between the tribe and the state of California.

Pinoleville's compact is the second Brown has signed since taking office in January. The first was with the Habematolel Pomo of Upper Lake in March, as Lake County News has reported.

Late last month the Department of the Interior gave final approval to Habematolel's compact, which Tribal Chair Sherry Treppa said will gave the Habematolel the green light to get back to work on their project. Treppa said the goal is to open the new Running Creek Casino outside of Upper Lake next year.

To view the Pinoleville compact and related appendix please visit http://gov.ca.gov/docs/Pinoleville_Compact.pdf or see the documents below.

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080811 Pinoleville Compact

Juan Rodriguez-Sandoval, 34, of Clearlake, Calif., was arrested on Friday, Aug. 5, 2011, on drug and immigration charges. Lake County Jail photo.

CLEARLAKE, Calif. – A Clearlake man was arrested by Lake County Sheriff’s Narcotic Task Force detectives last week on drug and immigration charges.

Juan Rodriguez-Sandoval, 34, was arrested on Friday, Aug. 5, according to Lake County Sheriff's public information officer Michelle Gonzalez.

Gonzalez said the arrest warrant for Rodriguez-Sandoval stemmed from a May 19 undercover drug operation in the city of Clearlake.

That operation had involved, according to Gonzalez, a half-ounce sale of methamphetamine and another subject, Michael Tremell Mitchell, 26.

Mitchell had been taken into custody by undercover drug agents, as Lake County News has reported.

Clearlake Police, in whose jurisdiction the operation was taking place, wasn't notified of it and after receiving a report of a potential hostage situation sent four officers. They arrived with weapons drawn, with one of the detectives finally telling them they were undercover sheriff's deputies.

From that operation Gonzalez said narcotics officers secured a search warrant for Rodriguez-Sandoval’s person, residence and vehicle, which resulted in the seizure of approximately 531 marijuana plants and two firearms.

One of the firearms, a .45 caliber semi-automatic pistol, was reported stolen during a burglary in Clearlake, Gonzalez said.

During the ongoing investigation, Gonzalez said Rodriguez-Sandoval was identified as being responsible for the illegal marijuana grow and possession of the stolen firearm.

On the afternoon of Aug. 5 the Narcotics Task Force located Rodriguez-Sandoval as he drove northbound on Highway 53 in Clearlake. Gonzalez said narcotics detectives arrested Rodriguez-Sandoval and executed the search warrant.

Detectives located a half pound of nonmedical marijuana and $7,321 in cash, Gonzalez said.

Rodriguez-Sandoval was arrested for the illegal possession of marijuana for sale and the warrant of arrest in the previous case. Gonzalez said the $7,321 was seized for asset forfeiture.

Rodriguez-Sandoval remains in the Lake County Jail on charges of possession of marijuana for sale and cultivation of marijuana.

His bail amount is $20,000, but he is being held on a separate no-bail illegal entry immigration hold.

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Approximately 531 marijuana plants allegedly were found at the Clearlake, Calif., home of Juan Rodriguez-Sandoval, 34. Photo courtesy of the Lake County Sheriff's Office.

Two firearms, one of them a .45 caliber semi-automatic pistol allegedly stolen during a burglary, were allegedly found at the Clearlake, Calif., home of Juan Rodriguez-Sandoval, 34. Photo courtesy of the Lake County Sheriff's Office.

Monica Rose Smith, 52, and Jennifer Louise Burton, 34, were ordered by Superior Court Judge Richard Henderson to serve 20 days in county jail for orchestrating the 2009 incident involving seven patients at Valley View Skilled Nursing facility on Dora Street.

Henderson also placed the two Ukiah residents on two years probation after finding them guilty of misdemeanor charges of elder abuse, the District Attorney's Office reported.

Deputy District Attorney Douglas Parker said Tuesday the elder abuse convictions “will ensure that the ringleaders of this shameful prank will not be able to work in a position of trust at a skilled nursing facility in the future.”

The nursing assistants were accused of coating seven elderly patients from head to foot in ointment so they would be “slippery” for the next shift of workers, authorities said.

The patients were not injured but they were unable to object to their treatment because of their medical and mental conditions, according to authorities.

Smith, Burton and three others defendants have had their nursing assistant licenses revoked by the state, said Parker.

Parker said defendant Jared Buckley also was found guilty by Henderson of misdemeanor elder abuse, and ordered to serve 150 hours of community service and placed on two years probation.

Two other defendants – Jennie Bido and Christine Boyd-Guerrero – were found guilty of failure to report elder abuse and received two years probation and ordered to perform 100 hours of community service each.

The Valley View case, which stems from an incident in November 2009, was called “cruel and shocking” by then-Attorney General Jerry Brown, who launched an investigation after being alerted by nursing home operator Horizon West Healthcare.

The company immediately fired the six employees originally cited.

Prosecutors later dismissed charges against one of them, nursing assistant Kathleen Phillips.

Parker said Tuesday that prosecutors are satisfied the plea agreement underscores a message that “Elder abuse in any form, including the lack of dignity and respect for elders, will not be tolerated.”

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California Highway Patrol officers investigate a two-vehicle crash in Nice, Calif., on Sunday, August 7, 2011. Photo by Gary McAuley.

NICE, Calif. – A two-vehicle crash on Sunday evening sent one person to the hospital with minor injuries.

The collision occurred on Highway 20 near the Marina Market in Nice, at around 9 p.m. Sunday, according to the California Highway Patrol.

Initial reports indicated that a pickup headed westbound had pulled out from the south shoulder and into the path of a car traveling eastbound.

The car's driver was not wearing a seat belt and suffered head and facial trauma. He was transported to Sutter Lakeside Hospital by a Northshore Fire Protection District ambulance, according to reports from the scene.

The CHP indicated that the driver suffered minor injuries.

In addition to two Northshore Fire ambulances, a district engine also responded and helped deal with scene cleanup. Reports from the scene indicated both vehicles were hauled away from the crash site.

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Initial reports from the scene of a two-vehicle crash in Nice, Calif., on Sunday, August 7, 2011, indicated a pickup pulled out in front of a car, leading to the collision. Photo by Gary McAuley.

California Highway Patrol officers take a close look at a vehicle involved in a collision in Nice, Calif., on Sunday, August 7, 2011. Photo by Gary McAuley.

On Wednesday the Board of Forestry and Fire Protection directed its staff to move forward with drafting emergency regulations to impose a fee on residences in the State Responsibility Area (SRA).

The board took the actions in accordance with Assembly Bill AB X 1 29, by Assemblyman Bob Blumenfield (D-Van Nuys).

The new state law, adopted as part of the state budget package in and later signed by Gov. Jerry Brown on July 7, requires the board to adopt emergency regulations to establish a fire prevention fee of up to $150 to be charged on each “habitable” structure within the over 31 million acres of SRA on or before Sept. 1, 2011.

The bill's purpose, according to the governor's signing statement, is “to make the necessary statutory changes to realize $50 million of General Fund savings” by allocating the revenue generated to Cal Fire.

AB X 1 29 was opposed by groups including the California State Association of Counties, which called the legislation “a flawed approach to address Cal Fire's funding needs,” citing concerns with potential impact on community support for local funding of fire needs as well as possible impacts on California's mutual aid system.

The group also asserted that similar proposals had previously tried and failed, with a similar bill in 2003 repeated by the Legislature “due to a number of administrative and legal issues.”

At the Wednesday Board of Forestry and Fire Protection meeting, Executive Officer George Gentry presented the board with a comprehensive overview of the new law.

The full board will hold a special public meeting on the new rules in Sacramento on Monday, Aug. 22, in the first floor auditorium of the Resources Building, located at 1416 Ninth St. in downtown Sacramento.

Among the items the regulations need to address are refining the definition of “habitable structure” as it relates to the law and a determination of the scalability of the fee based on prevention measures already in place, according to a Wednesday Cal Fire statement.

Board Chairman Stan Dixon noted, “The law requires the board to act and we will continue to move ahead with this task.”

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The graduation ceremony in Butte County will mark the start of their careers as game wardens, tasked with preserving and protecting the natural resources and wildlife of California.

The class of 39 features 28 DFG warden cadets – those sponsored by DFG and already hired as wardens pending their passing the academy – and 11 cadets who are “self-sponsored,” individuals who paid their way through the academy with the hope of becoming game wardens once their training is complete.

The graduation ceremonies begin at 10 a.m. at the Paradise Performing Arts Center in Paradise.

“I am personally very proud of every one of these cadets, they represent the department to the hunting and fishing community while protecting valuable natural resources,” said DFG Chief of Enforcement Nancy Foley. “They will work alongside some of the most dedicated and highly trained law enforcement officers in the state.”

Annually, wardens make contact with more than 295,000 people and issue more than 15,000 citations. They often work alone and in remote areas that do not allow for immediate backup protection.

In California, with 159,000 square miles of area that offers habitat and wildlife diversity unequaled by any other state, the average warden has a patrol district of more than 600 square miles.

The state has more than 1,100 miles of coastline, 30,000 miles of rivers and streams, 4,800 lakes and reservoirs, three desert habitat areas and scores of high mountain peaks.

The warden often acts as arbitrator for issues involving conflicts between wildlife and people. They recommend recreational activities and serve as educators to the public by speaking to schools, service groups and media.

The following are the graduating cadets and their hometowns. Those who are self-sponsored have asterisks after their names.

Thomas Anderson, Arroyo Grande

Timothy Bolla, Winters

Jennifer Bretney*, Corning

Christopher Cahill, Elk Grove

Eric Craig, Bakersfield

Steven Crowl, Cottonwood

Kevin DeRose, Visalia

Zachary Gibson*, Cottonwood

Chris Giertych*, San Jose

Michael Harris, Del Rey Oaks

Michael Higgins*, Atascadero

Rodger Holscher*, McArthur

Travis Jarrett*, Palo Cedro

Jacob Juarez, Monterey

Ryan Keylock, Sacramento

Kevin Kintz, Port Hueneme

Benjamin Matias, Huntington Beach

Mike McCain, Escondido

Atilano Morales, Los Angeles

Scott Moss, Merced

Bert Olson, San Clemente

Alan Oratovsky, Los Angeles

Jerry Prater, Sacramento

John Pritting, San Diego

Mark Ratley, Roseville

Matthew Renner, Ferndale

Andrew Ross, Rocklin

Russo Anthony, Sacramento

Kenneth Snyder, Escondido

Nicholas Spiess*, Chico

Cory Stewart, Sacramento

Jared Strouss, Atascadero

Kevin Sullivan*, Morgan Hill

Todd VanEpps, San Diego

Robert Wardlow, Torrance

Donald White*, Willits

Martin Willis, San Luis Obispo

William Witzel, Elk Grove

Paul Zurawski, Hawthorne

DFG teamed with Butte College in 2007 to provide peace officer training for prospective wardens.

This new partnership secured an academy facility and a California Commission on Peace Officer Standards and Training (POST)-certified training program for warden cadets on the college’s Oroville campus.

Butte College has a 39-year history of police recruit training and has trained more than 5,000 students through its law enforcement academy.

The 928-acre campus, the largest in California, also is a designated wildlife refuge.

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Clay Shannon, owner of Shannon Ridge and Vigilance wineries in Lake County, Calif., takes part in a virtual wine tasting event on Thursday, July 14, 2011. Photo courtesy of Shannon Gunier.

LOWER LAKE, Calif. – Wine tasting with the vintage’s winemaker is a treat for most wine lovers. But how can such a personal experience take place when the wine tasters are approximately 2,800 miles from the winemakers?

Technology – and a little ingenuity by organizers of a recent event – allowed American Wine Society (AWS) members in Scranton, Penn., to meet with Lake County winemakers while tasting their wines last month.

Clay Shannon, owner of Shannon Ridge and Vigilance wineries, and Gregory Graham of Gregory Graham Winery were special guests of a program entitled “Virtual Tasting: Lake County Whites” presented by the Electric City Chapter of the AWS on July 14.

In the chapter’s promotion of the event, organizers wrote, “Through the magic of Skype, a MacBook and a projector, winemakers from Gregory Graham and Shannon Ridge will conduct a tasting of their wines remotely from the comfort of their California wineries. Just north of Napa Valley, Lake County is one of the undiscovered quality wine regions in the state.”

“This was history in the making,” said Lake County Winegrape Commission President Shannon Gunier, referring to the first virtual wine tasting with Lake County vintners. “Clay and Greg did a terrific job of sharing the virtues of our region’s fine wines. I think everyone had a great time and learned a little about the quality of wine we are producing out here on the West Coast.”

The “virtual wine tasting” event came about as a result of conversations between Rick Gunier of North Coast Winegrape Brokers and David Falchek, an AWS board member, when they met at a Midwest trade show.

The Lake County Winegrape Commission sent wine, along with technical sheets and tasting notes, to the AWS chapter in Scranton ahead of the scheduled tasting date.

Rick Gunier and Falchek practiced the Skype connection several times to make sure the equipment was working correctly.

Falchek noted that several other AWS chapters were interested in participating; however, the technology requirements were not quite perfected to allow simultaneous multi-Skypecasts.

Gregory Graham, owner of Gregory Graham Winery near Lower Lake, Calif., takes part in the American Wine Society's virtual tasting of Lake County white wines on Thursday, July 14, 2011. Photo courtesy of Shannon Gunier.

More than 40 people attended the tasting event in Scranton, Falchek reported to Rick and Shannon Gunier.

While the winemakers could see some of the room via computer from where they were in Lake County, the tasters were able to see Graham and Shannon on a big screen in the conference room where the AWS chapter was holding its meeting.

In addition, as attendees enjoyed the tasting, the Electric City Chapter members were sending questions via text messages to the winemakers who were then able to provide answers to the entire audience.

“I think it went great,” said Falchek following the Skype-assisted tasting. “I know it was tough to tell from your end, but one member said, ‘We were able to connect with them better than some speakers who talk with us in person,’” Falchek wrote in an email to Rick Gunier.

“Everyone will have a warm spot for Lake County, Clay and Greg,” Falchek said about the AWS Electric City Chapter. He added that AWS will work on making the multiple, simultaneous chapter experience happen with future virtual tasting events.

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