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LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – Driver distractions have always presented challenges to roadway safety.

Over the years, it has increasingly become a more serious problem as in-vehicle technology has expanded.

To discourage this dangerous habit, the California Highway Patrol is launching the statewide Adult Distracted Drivers campaign in partnership with the California Office of Traffic Safety, or OTS.

The yearlong campaign, funded by a grant, will combine education and enforcement to combat distracted driving.

The focus of the education component is to help people understand anything that diverts a driver’s eyes or attention from the roadway, even for a second or two, can result in tragedy.

“For your safety and for the well-being of those around you, keep your eyes on the road and not on your phone,” CHP Acting Commissioner Warren Stanley said. “Nothing on that phone is worth endangering a life.”

The CHP reminds motorists that it is illegal to use a cell phone while driving unless it is hands-free.

The more technology a car has, the more distractions it may present to the driver. Multitasking increases the risk a driver will injure or kill themselves, their passengers, pedestrians, bicyclists, or people in other vehicles.

With this grant, the CHP will complete a minimum of 100 distracted driving enforcement operations and at least 600 traffic safety presentations statewide by the end of September 2018.

“Our goal with this grant is to further educate the public about the hazards associated with distracted driving and ultimately stop the potentially deadly behavior,” Acting Commissioner Stanley added.

Funding for this program was provided by a grant from OTS through the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
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LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – North Coast Opportunities said it is continuing to raise funds to assist Sulphur fire survivors, who can apply for assistance through the end of November.

The Sulphur fire in Clearlake and Clearlake Oaks, managed along with the Redwood fire as the Mendocino Lake Complex, was fully contained at 2,207 acres as of Oct. 26, as Lake County News has reported. It burned 168 structures, including 136 homes.

Within hours of the fires breaking out, North Coast Opportunities, or NCO, reopened its Fire Relief Fund.

This is the third year that NCO has stepped up to provide immediate financial relief for fire survivors, and it is using the same process to collect, review and approve applications that it developed in response to the 2015 Valley fire and fine-tuned during the 2016 Clayton fire.

As the ash settles and people begin to take stock of their lives, many survivors are facing financial hardship as they start the long process of replacing what was lost.

The fire relief fund will help with those immediate needs, as well as long-term needs that are only starting to take focus.

The fund has so far raised around $55,000 for the Sulphur fire, according to NCO spokeswoman Elizabeth Archer.

Business and private sponsorships are covering administrative fees, enabling 100 percent of the funds raised to go to those affected by the fires, NCO reported.

The agency said priority is given to those with total loss, after which applicants with partial loss and evacuation costs will be considered.

The deadline to apply to the fire relief fund is Thursday, Nov. 30.

Only as much money as is raised can be distributed, said NCO Executive Director Patty Bruder. “We are advocating for Lake County every day, in every conversation we have with potential funders and donors.”

Redwood Credit Union Community Foundation also is directing a sizable amount of money toward the Fire Relief Fund.

Applications are already being reviewed and approved, and the first checks for $1,000 will be sent to applicants with total loss using Redwood Credit Union Community Foundation funds next week.

Funds also will be used toward long-term relief, NCO reported.

After the Valley and Clayton fires, NCO partnered with other organizations to provide rental assistance and gap financing. Those partnerships continue today, and will last until the long process of recovery is complete.

“NCO will continue to do what we can to help our communities recover and rebuild,” Bruder said.

Please call NCO’s Fire Information line at 707-467-3236 for more information.
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LAKEPORT, Calif. – The Lakeport Police Department has issued a traffic safety advisory for several Halloween events scheduled for Tuesday, and also is offering tips for keeping children safe.

There will be a number of street closures on Tuesday to allow for holiday events taking place throughout the day, the department said.

From 12:15 to 1:15 p.m., Main Street between First and Ninth streets will be closed for the Lakeport Elementary School Halloween parade.

The parade starts at 12:30 p.m. and runs south on Main Street from Seventh to First streets, then turns around and goes back to the starting location.

Motorists are advised to be aware of the parade route and use caution when driving in the area. Lakeport Police and Lakeport Public Works units will be on site conducting traffic controls.

Between 2:30 and 5 p.m., heavy foot and vehicle traffic is expected in the downtown area for the Lakeport Main Street Association’s Trick or Treat Main Street event.

Between 4 and 9 p.m., 19th Street west of Hartley Street and Mellor Drive between 19th and 20th streets will be closed for the Harvest Revelation Halloween event.

Between 6:30 and 8:30 p.m. the Lakeport Kiwanis Kids Halloween Fair will be taking place at the MAC building on the Lakeport Unified School District campus. Police said more than 1,000 people are expected to attend and there will be very heavy foot and vehicle traffic adjacent to and on the school grounds.

Between 5 and 10 p.m. heavy foot traffic – of 1,000 people or more – and vehicle traffic is expected in the city’s residential neighborhoods, with the heaviest being mostly north of 11th Street, extending to areas around the Lakeport Unified School District campus due to regular trick or treat activity, police said.

Police are asking motorists to be extremely cautious when driving in these areas.

The department also is offering the following safety tips.

– Go trick-or-treating with a grown up.
– Make sure your costume lets you see and hear perfectly. You need to be able to watch and listen for cars.
– Make sure your costume fits. It’s easy to trip on costumes that are too big.
– Wear brightly colored clothing. Put “glow in the dark” patches or stripes on your costume so that drivers can see you.
– Carry a flashlight.
– Don’t eat treats until you show them to your parent or guardian.
– Visit only people you know.
– Make this and every Halloween a safe and happy one.
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LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – Firefighters and law enforcement responded to Halloween-night crashes that resulted in injuries.

The first of the incidents was reported shortly after 7:15 p.m. Tuesday on Highway 20 at Lucerne Harbor Park.

There, two cars collided, with one of them having been headed into a trunk or treat event at the park, according to statements at the scene.

The California Highway Patrol had one-way traffic control in effect around the crash scene while firefighters worked to extricate a victim from one of the vehicles.

Northshore Fire, Lakeport Fire, Cal Fire and the Lake County Sheriff’s Office all sent units to the crash, according to radio and scene reports.

A REACH air ambulance was dispatched to transport a patient who was reported to have suffered major injuries. The patient was transported to Sutter Lakeside Hospital, where the air ambulance was responding to land.

The second serious crash of the night was reported just after 10:20 p.m. on Highway 175 near Red Hills Road, where a vehicle hit a pole.

Arriving firefighters found utility lines and a pole down and blocking the roadway, based on radio and CHP reports.

A black Chevrolet Camaro was reported to have been involved, and was about 14 feet down a nearby embankment, the CHP reported.

Firefighters at the scene reported that one patient had minor injuries and was going to be transported.

The CHP reported that the roadway reopened just before 1:15 a.m. Wednesday.

Another crash was reported just before 10:30 p.m. on Highway 175 at Harrington Flat Road, according to the CHP.

The CHP incident logs said the vehicle went off the road and 50 feet down an embankment.

Radio traffic did not make clear if there was a patient or injury status.

At about the same time, CalStar 4 reported that it was responding to the Boggs Mountain Helitack.

The air ambulance reported lifting off at about 11:30 p.m. en route to Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital with a patient.

Additional details will be posted on the crashes as they become available.

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.
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LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – The California Transportation Commission has approved nearly $15 million in highway projects for Lake County.

At its meeting earlier this month, the commission approved 90 major “fix-it-first” transportation projects across California, worth nearly $3.4 billion, submitted by Caltrans.

Caltrans said it added nearly 1,200 lane miles of pavement repair and 66 bridges to its growing list of projects to be delivered sooner than planned thanks to the imminent influx of revenue from the Road Repair and Accountability Act of 2017, or SB 1, the transportation funding and reform package the State Legislature passed in April.

To date, Caltrans said it has now expedited nearly $5 billion in “fix-it-first” projects since the spring.

“Years of unfunded maintenance needs have plagued our roadways, so Caltrans is expediting projects with the expectation of SB 1 funds coming in November,” said Caltrans Director Malcolm Dougherty. “We are lining up projects that are going to deliver real results for all users of the state transportation system.”

The fuel tax increase that’s part of SB 1 begins on Wednesday. It will raise gas prices 12 cents per gallon. Still more tax increases and vehicle registration fee increases will roll over over the next two and a half years.

In addition to improving or replacing 66 bridges and rehabilitating nearly 1,200 lane miles of pavement on highways across the state, Caltrans said the projects include repairing more than 300 culverts and drainage systems, and installing nearly 2,400 elements that are part of traffic management systems that help manage traffic and reduce congestion.

The projects in Lake County total approximately $14,755,000.

They include a $5,245,000 project to replace the Bachelor Creek bridge culverts on Highway 20, according to Caltrans.

That project’s purpose is to address the deteriorating condition of the three existing culverts, and prevent further deterioration that would cause culvert failure and pavement failure, which would affect traffic safety and mobility through the corridor, according to information provided by Cori Reed, Caltrans spokesperson for Lake and Mendocino counties.

The work will include replacing the multi-plate steel pipes that were installed at Bachelor Creek in 1950 and which are deteriorating due to corrosion, rusting and sagging, Caltrans said.

Caltrans said the pipes no longer maintain their circular cross-section; further deterioration “will
significantly reduce their ability to carry the design flow capacity.”

Other aspects of the project are to repair roadway asphalt pavement surfacing that is cracking and addressing settlement above the culverts, Caltrans said.

Two other projects totaling $9.5 million are meant to improve traffic data transmission, Caltrans said.

They include a $4.6 million traffic management systems project that will upgrade various traffic monitoring elements on Highway 20 from west of Van Sleeper Road in Upper Lake to Schindler Street in Clearlake Oaks, on Highway 29 from Seigler Canyon Road near Lower Lake to east of Van Sleeper Road, Highway 175 north of Adobe Creek Road and on Highway 281/Soda Bay Road in Lake County, and on U.S. Highway 101 from north of Middle Ridge Ranch Road to south of La Franchi Road and Highway 175 from Old River Road to Hopland Road in Mendocino County to improve data transmission, Caltrans reported.

Caltrans said another traffic management systems project, which will cost $4.9 million, will upgrade various traffic monitoring elements on Highway 20 from Red Rock Road to east of the Highway 20 and Highway 53 intersection, on Highway 29 from north of Lake Street to Live Oak Drive, on Highway 53 from Dam Road to north of Ogulin Canyon Road, and Highway 175 from Red Hills Road to Dry Creek Cutoff in Lake County to improve data transmission.

The project is meant to ensure that Caltrans can provide accurate and timely data for traffic and travel conditions, which the agency that includes construction activities, collisions, and weather-related incidents.

Currently, Caltrans collects traffic information via dial-up telephone lines and DSL
connections, which it said are sometimes unreliable and can limit information transfer due to limited bandwidth.

Temporary traffic volume collection systems provide another way Caltrans collects information, but it reported that such installations expose field workers to traffic.

The project will include installing a wireless communication system backbone, upgrading existing traffic volume sensors to real-time traffic monitoring stations, and making related improvements to Intelligent Transportation System elements, Caltrans said.

Reed reported that construction is scheduled to begin on all of the projects in December 2020 and expected to be completed by November 2022.

At this month’s meeting, the commission also approved other work around the region including a $6.2 million drainage project on U.S. Highway 101 and Route 271 in Humboldt and Mendocino counties, and an $8.7 million drainage project on Route 299 in Humboldt County.

The projects the commission authorized this month follow more than $285 million in accelerated existing highway repair projects announced earlier in July and nearly $901 million in “fix-it-first” projects in August.

Caltrans said SB 1 provides an ongoing funding increase of approximately $1.8 billion annually for the maintenance and rehabilitation of the state highway system, including $400 million specifically for bridges and culverts.

SB 1 funds will enable Caltrans to fix more than 17,000 lane miles of pavement, 500 bridges and 55,000 culverts by 2027, the agency said.

Caltrans also reported that it will use SB 1 funding to fix 7,700 traffic operating systems, like ramp meters, traffic cameras and electronic highway message boards that help reduce highway congestion.

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.
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CLEARLAKE OAKS, Calif. – A blown transformer is believed to be the cause of a Monday night power outage in Clearlake Oaks.

The outage was first reported at about 9 p.m., with firefighters dispatched after residents in the Clearlake Keys reported hearing an explosion, according to radio reports.

Cal Fire and Northshore Fire units responded to the area, with firefighters reporting that there was a blown transformer, with no lines down.

Pacific Gas and Electric reported that 157 are impacted by the outage, which a crew was responding to assess.

The boundaries of the outage area, shown in the image above, are Butler Street from Highway 20 to Sixth Street, as well as most of First, Second, Third, Fourth and Fifth streets from Butler Street to just west of Keys Boulevard.

The company estimated that power would be restored by 12:15 a.m. Tuesday.

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.
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LAKEPORT, Calif. – Firefighters stopped a wildland fire near a county wastewater facility on Tuesday night.

The fire on Whalen Way in north Lakeport was first reported shortly after 9 p.m.

Lake County Central Dispatch sent firefighters to the incident after an individual called in to say they saw flames in the area.

Lakeport Fire, Kelseyville Fire, Northshore Fire and Cal Fire all responded, Lakeport Fire Chief Doug Hutchison told Lake County News.

When Hutchison arrived on scene, he found the fire burning at a slow rate of spread under high voltage lines which remained intact.

Forward progress was reported to be stopped just before 9:40 p.m.

Hutchison said the fire was contained to about an acre.

He explained that the fire was next to the Lake County Special Districts facility in the 1100 block of Whalen Way.

No structures – including a solar array at the facility – were threatened, Hutchison said.

Shortly before 10:30 p.m., Hutchison said Pacific Gas and Electric and Special Districts staff were on scene, checking to make sure equipment was OK.

He said it appeared that the fire may have been related to a power pole, but added that the cause wasn’t yet determined and remained under investigation.

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.
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LAKEPORT, Calif. – The Board of Supervisors last week gave staff direction to move, update and maintain a “wall of honor” for local members of the military that’s been on display in the courthouse lobby for more than a decade.

Family members of troops from Lake County had first approached the county in April 2003 about the wall of honor, which displays photos of men and women serving overseas in war zones, according to county documents.

The wall is in the lobby of the first floor of the courthouse, across from the Board of Supervisors’ office.

Last Tuesday, Health Services Director Denise Pomeroy and county Veterans Service Officer Saul Sanabria went to the board to ask for discussion and direction regarding the wall and maintaining it moving forward.

Pomeroy said the wall hasn’t been maintained in some time. It had only been meant to last the duration of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, and was not meant to be up forever.

She added that the group that originally requested the wall no longer exists.

Pomeroy said she spoke to Veterans Service Office staff and they were willing to move the wall to their office across the street and have it represent all veterans, not just troops currently serving.

Sanabria said they have the space and staff “focus on what the wall represents.”

Pomeroy said other options included leaving the wall where it’s at or to take it down altogether because the purpose has been met. She added that her preferred option was to move it to the Veterans Service Office, where they could extend its purpose and life.

“It was at my urging that we take a look at this,” County Administrative Officer Carol Huchingson told the board.

She said she was concerned that the wall had not been maintained, and she also recommended moving it to the Veterans Service Office, where it would receive the tender loving care it needed.

Board Chair Jeff Smith wanted some tribute to the troops to remain in the courthouse lobby.

“You don’t get the public traffic in your office over there that we get here,” he told Sanabria.

Supervisor Tina Scott agreed. “I see many people stopping and looking at that,” she said of the wall.

Supervisor Jim Steele said it belonged at the Veterans Service Office, suggesting a plaque could be placed in the courthouse lobby directing people to its location.

Supervisor Moke Simon also wanted to see it moved to the Veterans Service Office.

Smith wanted to see a larger version of the wall maintained by the Veterans Service Office, and a separate, smaller wall kept in the lobby.

Pomeroy said they could have those two separate walls, which will honor current troops and veterans, with a plaque in the lobby directing people to the main wall at the Veterans Service Office. That ultimately was the board’s consensus.

Huchingson said that with so many things going on with wildland fire recovery, there is a lot of lobby wall space they can be refreshing and using in other ways.

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.
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LUCERNE, Calif. – The Lucerne Alpine Senior Center proudly presents 'The Great Harvest Festival' Friday November third.

Musical guests will provide entertainment from 5pm-11pm, featuring Phil Hudson, 'Paris Bingo', 'Kurt At Work', 'Brown Bear', and 'Leon + The Fantastic'.

Dinner is included with the price of admission and will be served from 6pm-8pm, and a no host bar will be available during the event.

Proceeds from the benefit will go to support the Lucerne Alpine Senior Center's programs and services, such as 'Meals-On-Wheels' and 'Senior Lunches'.

Tickets are available for pre-sale and at the door on the day of the event, $25 for a single ticket, $40 for couples.

For more information and tickets please call 707-274-8779.
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NORTHERN CALIFORNIA – On Tuesday Cal Fire reported that the last of the region’s devastating wildland fires reached full containment.

The Central LNU Complex – consisting of the Tubbs, Pocket and Nuns fires – was fully contained at 110,720 acres, according to Cal Fire’s Tuesday evening report.

The complex began on Oct. 8 and burned in Sonoma and Napa counties. It started within hours of the beginning of the Sulphur fire in Lake County, the Redwood fire in Mendocino County, and the Southern LNU Complex in Napa and Solano counties.

All of those other fires were fully contained last week.

Altogether, the complex has claimed 23 lives, destroyed 6,957 structures and damaged 486 more, and resulted in one injury, Cal Fire reported.

The Tubbs fire is now listed by Cal Fire as the most destructive fire in California history, with 22 deaths, 36,807 acres and 5,643 structures destroyed.

The Pocket fire burned 17,357 acres and the Nuns fire 56,556 acres, according to Cal Fire.

Cal Fire said the causes of the fires in the complex remain under investigation.

In related news, on Tuesday California Insurance Commissioner Dave Jones said that the latest total of insured losses from the state's October wildfires now tops $3 billion – a threefold increase in just two weeks.

"As shocking as $3 billion in insured losses are, the number is sure to grow, as more claims are coming," said Jones.

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.
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KELSEYVILLE, Calif. – A Kelseyville home was destroyed by a Sunday afternoon fire.

The fire on Takelma Way in the Clear Lake Riviera was first reported at about 4 p.m., according to Kelseyville Fire Fire Captain Jim Dowdy.

Dowdy said that, in addition to Kelseyville Fire, Lake County Fire Protection District and Cal Fire responded to the incident.

The first engine to arrive on scene found the house on fire, he said.

“It involved a small amount of vegetation as well,” Dowdy added.

Dowdy said it took about an hour to contain the fire and a few more hours to mop up the scene.

The house was destroyed by the fire, Dowdy said, with a neighbor’s home sustaining some very minor heat damage to its siding.

He said there were no injuries.

“The fire is currently under investigation,” Dowdy 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.
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LAKEPORT, Calif. – The Board of Supervisors will hold a special meeting this week to discuss several items of business related to wildfire recovery.

The board will meet beginning at 9 a.m. Tuesday, Oct. 31, in the board chambers on the first floor of the Lake County Courthouse, 255 N. Forbes St., Lakeport.

The meeting can be watched live on Channel 8 and online at https://countyoflake.legistar.com/Calendar.aspx. Accompanying board documents, the agenda and archived board meeting videos also are available at that link.

The board normally does not hold meetings on the fifth Tuesday of the month, but county officials scheduled Tuesday’s meeting to deal with four time-sensitive items.

The first is consideration of an agreement between the county of Lake and the city of Clearlake for public health and environmental health assistance under an emergency management mutual aid plan for the Sulphur fire.

At its Thursday meeting, the Clearlake City Council approved the agreement, which will allow for Lake County Environmental Health to oversee the debris recovery process.

The board also will consider the potential use of the Eastlake Landfill as a final disposal location for debris generated from the 2017 wildfires located outside of Lake County.

The third item is a proposed resolution regarding reconstruction of nonconforming structures destroyed by the Sulphur fire.

The last matter the board will consider, also related to the Sulphur fire, is a proposed resolution pertaining to occupancy of temporary dwellings in the fire area.

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.

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