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Kerry Smith, education specialist and resource teacher at Mountain Vista Middle School in Kelseyville, Calif., has just been named Lake County Teacher of the Year. Photo courtesy of the Lake County Office of Education.

KELSEYVILLE, Calif. – Kerry Smith, education specialist and resource teacher at Mountain Vista Middle School of Kelseyville Unified School District, is the new Lake County Teacher of the Year.

“Positive, funny, kind, exciting, friendly and helpful are all words that students use to describe Ms. Kerry Smith,” said Mountain Vista Middle School Principal Nikki Thomas.

Smith is an alumna of Kelseyville High School, Sonoma State University and Dominican University.

“Kerry is outstanding in many ways. She has the instructional skills required to be a highly effective teacher, but also holds those intangible qualities that are the heart of a successful educator,” Thomas said.

The daughter of a math teacher, Smith attributes much of her success in the classroom to things she learned during her early child development education and experience as a preschool teacher during college.

“My background in child development has been the foundation for establishing positive relationships with students, regardless of their age. Always frame your expectation in the positive,” explained Smith.

As a resource teacher for grades 6 through 8 at Mountain Vista Middle School, it’s Smith’s responsibility to provide additional support to students with independent education plans.

Smith spearheaded a co-teaching model of instruction for general education math in the seventh and eighth grades. She and the general education math teachers collaborate and co-teach a section of math together that allows resource students to receive grade level instruction with resource support. Smith also works with general education students who are struggling with math.

“This approach has been so successful that almost all of our resource students are now in the general education taught math classes and all students that Kerry works with are performing well in math,” said Thomas.

Cynthia Lenners, the deputy superintendent of schools with the Lake County Office of Education, coordinates the Lake County Teacher of the Year program.

“What really stands out about Kerry is her ability to provide access to quality curriculum for all Lake County students,” said Lenners.

After being selected as District Teachers of the Year through their site administrators, six Lake County District Teachers of the Year competed through an application and interview process for the distinction of Lake County Teacher this spring.

They are:

• Kerry Smith, Kelseyville Unified School District;
• Zane Jensen, Lakeport Unified School District;
• Deb Lipari, Middletown Unified School District;
• Charlene Norwood, Upper Lake Unified School District;
• Robert Reil, Konocti Unified School District;
• Jennifer Wangberg, Lucerne Elementary School District.

During their interviews, all six candidates spoke passionately about the interesting and innovative programs they are implementing in their classrooms for their students. It’s Smith though, who will be moving forward to contend for the title of California Teacher of the Year 2020.

Smith’s state application is due at the end of July. The State Selection Committee will review applications and make site visits in early fall. The California Department of Education will announce the California Teachers of the Year in October.

“Working among so many talented and dedicated professionals has shaped me into the teacher I am today. I am just one small part of a larger team and am humbled by my nomination,” Smith said.

Erica Boomer, ag teacher and FFA advisor from Upper Lake High School was Lake County Teacher of the Year 2018-2019.

The California Department of Education named Boomer as one of five California Teachers of the Year in October 2018.

As part of her outreach responsibilities as California Teacher of the Year, Boomer will be joining a delegation of California teachers visiting China this fall.

“It’s always fantastic when Lake County students come home to give back to their community, and affect so many in such a positive way,” adds Brock Falkenberg, Lake County superintendent of schools. “For two years in a row, local high school alumni who have returned to Lake County are being honored for their hard work in our schools and making our community a better place.”

Smith, the district Teachers of the Year, and the district Classified Employees of the year, will be honored on Oct. 20, 2019 at the Excellence in Education Awards Dinner being hosted at O'Meara Bros. Brewing Co. in Lakeport.

The Lake County Teacher of the Year is a program administered through the Lake County Office of Education and the California Department of Education.
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NORTH COAST, Calif. – The California Highway Patrol is investigating a solo-vehicle wreck on Tuesday evening in Mendocino County that killed a Potter Valley man.

The crash occurred at 5:28 p.m. Tuesday on Highway 101, nearly two miles north of the Sonoma County line, the CHP’s Ukiah Area office reported.

The CHP’s early Wednesday morning report on the wreck did not identify the 46-year-old man who died.

The CHP said the man was traveling alone in a silver 2006 Toyota pickup, heading northbound on Highway 101 at approximately 80 miles per hour.

For unknown reasons, the pickup began to skid out of control. The CHP said it traveled west of the west roadway edge and then continued skidding in a northeasterly direction across both lanes and onto the right-hand shoulder. There, the Toyota’s front end hit a rock, causing the pickup to overturn.

The Toyota came to rest on all four wheels, in the northbound No. 2 lane, facing an easterly direction, the CHP said.

The driver was not wearing his seat belt at the time of the crash and he sustained fatal injuries as a result, according to the CHP report.

The CHP said the wreck remains 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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LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – The National Weather Service has issued a heat advisory for Lake County for Tuesday due to hotter-than-normal temperatures.

The agency said the heat advisory is in effect from 9 a.m. to 10 p.m. Tuesday.

A heat advisory means that a prolonged period of hot temperatures is expected and will create a situation in which heat illnesses are possible, the National Weather Service said.

The high temperatures expected on Tuesday are the result of a strong ridge of high pressure that forecasters said will bring temperatures up to around 10 to 15 degrees above average.

Conditions are forecast to remain hot through the middle of the week, but Tuesday is expected to be this week’s hottest day.

While the National Weather Service’s regional forecast expects temperatures between 100 and 105 degrees, the specific Lake County forecast shows temperatures ranging from the low to high 90s.

County residents are urged to use particular caution, including getting plenty of fluids and rescheduling strenuous activities to early morning or evening in order to avoid heat exhaustion and heat stroke.

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. – On Tuesday, nine counties and cities – among them, the county of Lake and the city of Clearlake – confirmed that they have accepted a mediator’s proposal of $415 million to resolve their collective North Bay fires claims against Pacific Gas and Electric.

“Clearlake was significantly negatively impacted by the Sulphur fire of October 2017, and this settlement will help rebuild the infrastructure which was damaged by the fire.” said Clearlake Mayor Russ Cremer. “One of the city’s main goals is to repair the roads that were impacted by the fire and its subsequent cleanup efforts.”

In addition to Lake County and the city of Clearlake, the other governments included in the North Bay fires settlement include Mendocino County, the city of Napa, Napa County, Nevada County, the city of Santa Rosa, Sonoma County and Yuba County.

"Our primary concern in this legal matter has been to recover local public losses as a result of the 2017 wildfires,” said Ryan Gregory, chair of the Napa County Board of Supervisors. “This agreement, if approved, will allow Napa County to make necessary repairs to damaged county infrastructure and recover the county’s financial losses as a result of the fires.”

“The city is pleased that PG&E has agreed to this settlement, and that taxpayers will not bear the burden of the city’s fire-related expenses and losses,” said Napa City Manager Steve Potter. “The city will continue to serve, and support recovery for, the individuals, families and businesses devastated by the North Bay fires.”

Officials said the mediator’s proposal is exclusive of – and does not affect – the claims of any residents, individuals or businesses filed against PG&E due to wildland fires.

“We remain focused on supporting our customers and communities impacted by wildfires and helping them recover and rebuild,” PG&E spokesperson Ari Vanrenen told Lake County News. “This is an important first step toward an orderly, fair and expeditious resolution of wildfire claims and a demonstration of our willingness to work collaboratively with stakeholders to achieve mutually acceptable resolutions. We hope to continue making progress with other stakeholders.”

So far, there have been no details about how much each of the governments will receive from the $415 million, which officials said will be allocated among the nine public entities in a specific process.

The payment to those regional governments is to be incorporated into a plan of reorganization to be filed by PG&E in its pending Chapter 11 case, subject to confirmation by the bankruptcy court.

JAMS mediator Jay Gandhi, a retired judge, presided over several days of in-person mediation sessions held in San Francisco, local county and city officials reported.

Participants in the mediation included 14 public entities with various claims from the 2015 Butte fire, the 2017 North Bay fires and the 2018 Camp fire.

Judge Gandhi’s global proposals included a total payment of $1 billion to 14 public entities to be made pursuant to PG&E’s confirmed plan of reorganization. PG&E and all of the public entities accepted the proposals.

“Our goal throughout the Chapter 11 process is to work collaboratively to fairly balance the interests of our many stakeholders, as well as the customers and communities we serve, as we work towards a timely resolution of our case, while continuing to provide the safe and reliable natural gas and electric service that our customers expect and deserve,” PG&E’s Vanrenen said.

As part of that larger settlement, PG&E will pay Butte County, the town of Paradise and Yuba County for damages from the November Camp fire.

Local suits filed after Cal Fire issues findings on Sulphur fire cause

In June 2018, Cal Fire released its findings in the cause of the Sulphur fire – Lake County’s portion of the North Bay fires – and 11 other fires around Northern California, ruling that all of them were caused by power equipment.

The agency’s investigators determined that the 2,207-acre Sulphur fire – which destroyed 162 structures and burned for three weeks in October 2017 – was caused by the failure of a PG&E owned power pole near Clearlake Oaks, resulting in the power lines and equipment coming in contact with the ground.

The fire began late on the night of Oct. 8, 2017, in the area of Pomo and Sulphur Bank roads in Clearlake Oaks, quickly burning into the city of Clearlake, where thousands were evacuated from the fire’s path. Most of the fire’s damage was done in Clearlake.

On June 12, 2018, four days after Cal Fire released its determination, the county of Lake voted to initiate litigation against PG&E, hiring the law firm Baron & Budd, which also represented the counties of Mendocino, Napa and Sonoma, and the city of Santa Rosa in suits against PG&E.

In October, weeks after the one-year anniversary of the Sulphur fire, the Clearlake City Council also voted to sue PG&E.

The city of Clearlake reported that it was represented by City Attorney Ryan Jones, along with outside counsel John Fiske, Scott Summy and Britt Strottman of Baron & Budd.

When Lake County and Clearlake joined the other regional governments in the legal action, they joined what Fiske told Lake County News was a kind of “consolidated working group,” with locally filed cases transferred into a judicial council coordinated proceeding handled in the San Francisco County Superior Court.

In recent months, both the Clearlake City Council and the Board of Supervisors had held numerous closed sessions at their regular meetings to discuss the PG&E litigation, with no action reported after those discussions.

The council also called special closed session meetings on May 20 and June 11 just to discuss the lawsuit, and the Board of Supervisors was set to discuss its suit against PG&E in closed session on Tuesday, hours ahead of the announcement of the mediated settlement.

On Tuesday, the announcement about the settlement said that Clearlake’s and Lake County’s damages claim resulting from the Sulphur fire represent “only a small part of this collective amount.”

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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The East fire in the Yolla Bolly Wilderness on Tuesday, June 18, 2019. Photo courtesy of the Mendocino National Forest.

NORTHERN CALIFORNIA – Mendocino National Forest officials said recent lightning strikes sparked fires in the Yolla Bolly Wilderness.

The Anthony Peak Lookout on the Mendocino National Forest reported several possible fires in the Yolla Bolly Wilderness on Monday at 4 p.m.

The lightning-caused East fire was confirmed Monday night, approximately 43 miles west of Red Bluff. It is estimated at 40 acres.

Resources assigned to the East fire include 10 smokejumpers and one 20-person crew. The fire is burning in snags and brush from the 2008 Yellow fire scar.

Another fire is located southeast of the East fire. It is called the Haynes fire and placed in monitor status.

Forest officials are evaluating many factors including firefighter safety and access to the fire, its location, potential areas of concern, likely growth over time and current and forecast weather to determine the strategy for managing this incident.

The strategy will consist of resource and protection objectives that will help reduce exposure to firefighters, remove hazardous fuels and decrease the probability for high severity wildfires in the future, forest officials reported.
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MIDDLETOWN, Calif. – An event planned for this weekend will update south county residents on plans for potential power outages this summer.

The South Lake County Fire Protection District and Pacific Gas and Electric are hosting the community meeting from 10 a.m. to noon Saturday, June 22, at Middletown Fire Station 60, 21095 Highway 175.

Cal Fire Battalion Chief Mike Wink said PG&E will offer an informational talk on plans for public safety power shutoffs should weather conditions and fire danger necessitate them.

Wink said afterward, community members can visit with vendors offering items like solar power equipment and generators.

“Everybody’s going to have to decide what is right for them,” Wink said.

For those who can’t make the presentation in person, Wink said the Hidden Valley Lake Association will stream the meeting through Facebook.

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. – With Lake County's Water Resources director set to depart for another job, the Board of Supervisors on Tuesday appointed the county's longtime Public Works director to fill the position on an interim basis.

Following a Tuesday closed session, the board announced that Scott De Leon had agreed to serve as interim Water Resources director ahead of a full recruitment for the job.

“Our board is grateful that Scott has stepped forward and accepted this interim assignment,” said Board Chair and District 4 Supervisor Tina Scott. “The diversity and complexity of Lake County’s water resource management needs is unique, and Scott is a strong leader who appreciates the many facets of the role of Water Resources director.”

David Cowan, who has served as Water Resources director since last June, told Lake County News that he’s accepted a watershed manager position in his home state of Texas.

“It's a good opportunity professionally and closer to the grandkids,” he said.

Cowan has a Master of Science degree and aquatic biology, and more than two decades of experience in key areas such as aquatic biology and fishers, water program management and watershed protection.

During his tenure, he's made improvements to Highland Springs Park and last week he took to the board a revised agreement with the state for $15 million needed to advance the Middle Creek Restoration Project, which is critical to restoring Clear Lake.

De Leon has previous experience with Water Resources, as at one time it had been a division under the Public Works Department.

“Scott was appointed on an interim basis, to allow progress on critical priorities while a recruitment is undertaken,” county spokesman Matthew Rothstein told Lake County News.

In fiscal year 2016-17, the Board of Supervisors made Water Resources a freestanding department, later hiring Phil Moy as its first director in January 2017. Cowan, who had been working with Moy, succeeded him after his departure last year.

Rothstein said the details of the county's planned recruitment for a new Water Resources director are being worked on and should be determined soon, but a specific timeline isn't yet 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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Gov. Gavin Newsom on Tuesday issued an apology through executive order on behalf of California to California Native American Peoples for the many instances of violence, mistreatment and neglect inflicted upon California Native Americans throughout the state’s history.

The governor also announced the creation of a Truth and Healing Council to provide an avenue for California Native Americans to clarify the record – and provide their historical perspective – on the troubled relationship between tribes and the state.

This is the first time a state has taken dual action to correct the historical record and acknowledge wrongdoing through executive order mandate and a tribally-led, consultation-informed council.

“California must reckon with our dark history,” said Newsom. “California Native American peoples suffered violence, discrimination and exploitation sanctioned by state government throughout its history. We can never undo the wrongs inflicted on the peoples who have lived on this land that we now call California since time immemorial, but we can work together to build bridges, tell the truth about our past and begin to heal deep wounds.”

“As the first California Indian elected to the State Legislature, I applaud the executive order signed by Governor Newsom today to issue a formal apology from the state for past cruel treatment of Native Americans. This action will go a long way to start the healing process between the state and Native American communities throughout California," said Assemblymember James Ramos. "This historic acknowledgment by the governor marks the beginning of a new relationship between the state and the more than 700,000 Native Americans who make the State of California their home.”

In the early decades of California’s statehood, the relationship between the state and California Native Americans was fraught with violence, exploitation, dispossession and the attempted destruction of tribal communities.

In 1850, California passed a law called the "Act for the Government and Protection of Indians," which facilitated removing California Native Americans from their traditional lands, separating children and adults from their families, languages and culture, and creating a system of indentured servitude as punishment for minor crimes such as loitering.

Between 1850 and 1859, governors of California called for private and militia campaigns against Native peoples in the state.

In his 1851 State of the State Address, California’s first governor, Peter Hardeman Burnett, declared “[t]hat a war of extermination will continue to be waged between the two races until the Indian race becomes extinct must be expected.” Subsequently, the state authorized $1.29 million in 1850s dollars to subsidize these militia campaigns.

Despite these wrongs, California Native Americans resisted, survived and carried on cultural and linguistic traditions defying all odds.

Now, at the direction of Gov. Newsom and working in collaboration with California tribes, the state seeks to more closely explore the historical relationship between the state of California and California Native Americans in the spirit of truth and healing through the establishment of a Truth and Healing Council.

The council will be led and convened by the governor’s tribal advisor and will include representatives or delegates from California Native American tribes, relevant state and local agencies and other relevant non-governmental stakeholders.

The council will report draft findings to the governor’s tribal advisor on an annual basis beginning Jan. 1, 2020, and produce a final written report of findings regarding the historical relationship between the state and Native Americans on or before Jan. 1, 2025.

The state of California and California Native Americans have never jointly or formally examined or documented their relationship for the express purpose of acknowledging and accounting for historical wrongs committed by the state of California against California Native Americans – and the state has never formally apologized for these atrocious actions.

A copy of the Governor’s executive order is published below.

061819 Gov. Newsom executive order - apology to Native Americans by LakeCoNews on Scribd

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LAKEPORT, Calif. – Earlier this month the Lakeport City Council gave its approval to adding new position classifications and heard plans for an assistant city manager job to be added to the coming fiscal year budget.

City Clerk/Administrative Services Director Kelly Buendia went to the council June 4 with several items, including new classification series for police lieutenant, police chief and a city clerk position, and an update on plans for the assistant city manager position.

The salary and benefits changes to the police and clerk positions’ salaries, all of which are included in the 2019-20 budget, are estimated to cost $79,485 for the coming fiscal year, according to Buendia’s written report. Finance Director Nick Walker later clarified for Lake County News that the assistant city manager position was not included in the dollar amount cited in the staff report.

The discussion begins at the 58:44 mark in the video above.

Buendia said a statewide police shortage has made staffing police positions problematic. The city has raised salaries to remain competitive but has still had challenges.

Similar to a model implemented by the Clearlake Police Department, Buendia said that in order for Lakeport Police to be competitive with other agencies, Chief Brad Rasmussen wanted to establish a lieutenant/captain position.

With Lt. Jason Ferguson now being considered for a new job out of county, the goal is to move one person up into the lieutenant job and then recruit for another lieutenant/captain, Buendia said.

At the same time, she said staff proposed to increase the police chief salary to match that of the city of Clearlake.

The police lieutenant salary range will increase from $6,230 to $7,696 per month to $6,965 to $8,466 per month. The new police captain salary range is $7,679 to $9,334 monthly. The police chief’s job will go from $7,537 to $9,309 each month to $10,833 monthly, based on the staff report. The new salary ranges become effective July 2.

Councilman George Spurr asked if the department would need another officer if the lieutenant promotion from within occurred.

“There would be no additional bodies in our budget, so it would just be a restructuring,” said Rasmussen.

City Manager Margaret Silveira said that new position is part of succession planning.

Buendia said the city also wanted to add the deputy city clerk III/records supervisor position. The proposal provides a promotional opportunity for existing staff into a professional level position. Buendia said it’s a crucial staff member performing above the scope of their current position.

The person filling that new position would act in a leadership role, implementing a new management system, training other staff, assisting IT staff and helping consultants. Buendia said the position is on par with the police record supervisor and planning associate in the level of technical expertise required.

The last position, up for discussion only and not a vote, was the assistant city manager, included in the city’s goals for succession planning, with a stipend included, Buendia said.

Buendia said Silveira is now asking for a full-time assistant city manager for half of the new fiscal year. It’s budgeted but would need to be brought back for approval of the job classification.

Spurr asked if staff was planning to ask for a full-time assistant city manager “down the road.” Buendia said yes, explaining during the discussion that it would be an additional position added to the budget.

“This is all about succession planning,” said Silveira.

Councilman Kenny Parlet said he was starting to be concerned about Lakeport’s salary comparisons to other areas and its impact on the budget. “We need to keep our eye on the ball,” he said, pointing to a city budget deficit.

Councilwoman Stacey Mattina was supportive of the plan, explaining that if people can go “over the hill” and make $40,000 more a year, there is nothing the city can do.

“We've had such trouble over the years attracting new talent,” she said, adding that she was more nervous about adding new positions that increasing pay for existing positions.

Silveira said the new assistant city manager position would only be in effect for about a year and a half. When she’s ready to retire, the city will have an individual ready to assume the top job and that assistant city manager job would be eliminated.

Parlet said he supported succession planning but voiced concern about a “hodge podge” of salary increases. He said they needed to be good fiduciaries.

Silveira agreed, explaining that the new position had been brought up in the context of the council’s goal setting work. She said city staff always has been told that the city can’t compete with salaries paid in Mendocino, Napa or Sonoma counties, but that they can try to stay competitive within the county, noting that the city has lost employees to the county of Lake and the city of Clearlake.

She said the cost of bringing new talent in is more expensive than keeping it, and it’s also a “nightmare” looking at CalPERS retirement issues. If city revenues start changing, she said they will need to look at next steps, noting they should analyze that each year.

During public comment, Suzanne Lyons, a former city councilmember, said the council used to hire three staff members – city manager, city clerk and city attorney. Several years ago the council gave up the right to hire the city clerk.

She said the current council is now deciding for other city councils who will be the next city manager, and she said she wondered about that decision.

Mayor Time Barnes said the city would still post the city manager job and if a vastly more qualified candidate came in, that person would get it. But that didn’t mean the city can't have someone in the best possible position.

Lyons, pointing to a budget deficit, said they are telling another city council that they are hiring the future city manager. “Think about what you're saying.”

“Maybe we shouldn't be picking the city manager now at this time,” said Michael Froio, a city planning commissioner.

He said he was glad to hear Parlet being fiscally conservative, adding that the city has a lot of needs and he wouldn’t want the money to go into that new assistant city manager position now.

Councilwoman Mireya Turner moved to approve the new police lieutenant and captain classification series, with Mattina seconding and the council approving 5-0.

Spurr then moved to approve the deputy city clerk position, a motion seconded by Turner and also getting a unanimous vote.

Buendia said the matter of the assistant city manager position was only informational, with no vote required.

Walker told Lake County News that while the cost of the half-time assistant city manager position is not explicitly stated anywhere in the 2019-20 budget, the amount estimated for this added position is $77,490.

Editor’s note: Additional quotes from Finance Director Nick Walker have been added to explain the total costs for the positions.

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. – A doctor arrested last year and convicted this spring of sexual battery has had his medical license revoked.

The Medical Board of California took the action against Dr. Mohamad Moutaz Almawaldi, 57, in a decision made final on June 14.

Almawaldi is a nephrologist, or kidney specialist, who has been licensed as both a physician and surgeon since August 1991, according to the Medical Board.

In April, he entered a no contest plea and was convicted of misdemeanor sexual battery. Judge Shanda Harry sentenced him to three years' summary probation and required him to register as a sex offender, which triggered the revocation of his medical license.

The case against Almawaldi began after a woman said he forcefully kissed her and pulled down her shirt while she was working at his Lakeport office in August 2017.

He was arrested the following February, three months after an arrest warrant was issued for him, according to the Lake County Sheriff's Office.

Court records show a criminal grand jury indicted him for misdemeanor sexual battery in July.

Following his April conviction and sentencing, the case outcome was reported to the Medical Board of California.

The Medical Board's decision cited law requiring it to automatically revoke the medical license of any individual required to register as a sex offender.

The decision notes that Almawaldi is entitled to a hearing within 30 days of the Medical Board's decision.

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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Chickens shown at a youth poultry show at a previous Lake County Fair in Lakeport, Calif. Photo courtesy of Carrie Lauenroth.

LAKEPORT, Calif. – Due to concerns about a virulent Newcastle disease outbreak in Southern California and a confirmed case in the Bay Area, the Lake County Fair’s Junior Livestock Committee has decided that it will cancel the poultry show at this year’s fair.

Fair Chief Executive Officer Courtny Conkle and Katy Evans, the committee’s secretary, told Lake County News that the decision was made out of an abundance of caution.

“I think it’s a shame that they’ve canceled it,” said Kelseyville resident Carrie Lauenroth, who has overseen the fair poultry show for the past 10 years.

The United States Department of Agriculture said Newcastle disease is a contagious and fatal viral disease affecting the respiratory, nervous and digestive systems of birds and poultry.

“The disease is so virulent that many birds and poultry die without showing any clinical signs,” the agency reported.

The California Department of Food and Agriculture reported that wild birds are not believed to play a major role in the spread of the disease, however, they can become infected or mechanically carry the virus. Overall, the heaviest impact is seen in poultry.

While deadly for poultry and birds, virulent Newcastle disease is not a food safety concern; no human cases of Newcastle disease have ever occurred from eating poultry products, the USDA said.

Officials said that only in rare instances have humans who work with poultry become infected – with mild symptoms such as conjunctivitis – as it’s easy to avoid through wearing the proper protective equipment.

The USDA reported that, from May 18, 2018, through June 7, 2019, it has confirmed 445 cases of virulent Newcastle disease in California, including 141 in San Bernardino County, 259 in Riverside County, 44 in Los Angeles County, one in Ventura County and one in Alameda County.

Two additional cases also have been confirmed elsewhere in the southwest, including one in Utah and one in Arizona.

New cases have continued to be confirmed up through June 4, when more backyard exhibition birds in Riverside County were confirmed to be infected, according to USDA reports.

In January, State Veterinarian Dr. Annette Jones sent a letter to poultry exhibition organizers and managers recommending that state poultry exhibitions that include birds from the infected counties be canceled.

The following month, she issued a quarantine for poultry for all of Los Angeles County, and portions of San Bernardino and Riverside counties in response to the outbreak.

California’s virulent Newcastle disease outbreak has led to the euthanization of about 1.2 million birds, with 1.1 million of those being commercial, according to CDFA spokesman Steve Lyle. He said there have been no more recent commercial detections.

Jones reported that the last virulent Newcastle disease outbreak in the United States occurred in 2002 and also impacted Southern California, leading to the death of 3.2 million birds with a response cost of more than $160 million.

Jones’ letter to exhibit managers said the only way to stop the spread of the virus and eradicate Newcastle disease is to euthanize not just infected birds but all birds within highly infected areas, as the disease primarily moves and spreads through birds that appear healthy.

On March 13, one chicken taken to a veterinary office in Redwood City by a backyard bird owner that lived in Alameda County was confirmed positive for Newcastle disease and euthanized, which resulted in an investigation, according to the USDA and CDFA. So far, the disease hasn’t been reported elsewhere in Northern California.

Jones issued field biosecurity guidelines on May 8 urging all state, county and city personnel to suspend all on-farm poultry area visits.

A May 21 letter from CDFA and USDA to residents of the quarantine areas addressed the practice of euthanizing poultry that are either infected or at high risk of becoming infected, which has led to controversy among bird breeders and enthusiasts.

“We are all in this together, trying to accomplish the very unpleasant mission of humanely euthanizing poultry either infected with VND or at high risk of becoming infected,” the letter said, going on to add, “The diagnostic tests that are currently available do not always show detection of infected birds. If a bird has recently been infected, it may be too soon for the virus to show up in these tests. Therefore, using testing to decide which animals to euthanize in areas that are already highly infected could cause this virus to continue to spread.”

In order to stop the outbreak’s spread, the United States Postal Service is not allowing shipments of live birds or hatching eggs into or out of zip codes 90000 to 93599.

Youth poultry show ribbons at a previous Lake County Fair in Lakeport, Calif. Photo courtesy of Carrie Lauenroth.

Taking action

The state has urged poultry producers and exhibit managers to continue heightened biosecurity efforts through July 1, at which point CDFA will provide an updated risk evaluation.

However, with the need to make decisions for the fair months earlier than the anticipated July update, and with the Alameda case being only a few hours away – in Conkle’s words, “too close for comfort” – Conkle said they decided to take the safest approach and not hold the show, a decision made earlier this spring. Conkle informed the Fair Board about the decision at its April meeting.

A number of other fairs around the state – including the California Mid-State Fair, Del Norte County Fair, Santa Barbara County Fair and the Stanislaus County Fair – have made similar decisions to cancel their youth poultry shows due to concerns about the disease outbreak.

“I don’t know that this has ever happened at the Lake County Fair,” said Conkle, noting that they had gone back and forth on the decision for months.

“It’s just too risky,” she said, adding that the main priority is to keep the fair safe.

Evans, who also is community leaders for Anderson Marsh 4-H Club, said they had looked at a closed show and other options, but at the March meeting made the decision because families were going to be left up in the air.

It was too long of a wait to July 1, and rather than keeping everyone on edge, they decided to cancel the show, she said.

“If it’s got feathers, it’s not going anywhere,” Evans said.

Even for hobby birds, Evans said years of breeding are involved. “There’s a lot at stake.”

Evans said that, for a lot of children, poultry is their only show option.

Like Conkle, she didn’t know of a previous poultry show cancellation at the Lake County Fair.

Lauenroth said she was told earlier this year that the committee was thinking of canceling the show.

Then Conkle called her to tell her the disease was found in Redwood City, with the concern that it could be in Lake County in no time. At the committee’s meeting in March, the decision to cancel the show was made, Lauenroth said.

“I have really mixed emotions on it,” Lauenroth said, explaining that chickens and turkeys and other smaller animals are the show options for many children because they are less expensive, and provide an entry point into participating.

Her son got started in fair shows with turkeys, and her daughter started with show chickens before moving to market turkeys and then to pigs.

Lauenroth said her niece was going to have her first meat market chickens in this year’s fair before the cancellation. Her niece is now transitioning to cavies, or guinea pigs. Some other children are transitioning to rabbits.

She suggested the best way to stop the disease is through education about how the disease spreads, noting she sees a lot of people being given chickens for free.

Lauenroth said she is hoping that there will still be some kind of poultry-related events at the fair – such as an egg and spoon relay for children – to keep them involved and interested in 4-H and fair activities.

“Once you lose a kid you never get them back,” she 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.



Posted On

LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – Authorities are warning Lake County residents about another telephone scam now circulating in the community.

The Lake County Sheriff’s Office and the Lake County Superior Court have received reports from citizens who have received phone calls from an automated line requesting that the recipient remain on the line regarding outstanding arrest warrants.

They are then connected to a person who requests the recipients’ Social Security number.

Authorities said this is a scam. Neither the Lake County Sheriff’s Office nor the Lake County Superior Court are involved in this activity, and the calls should be treated as scams.

The sheriff’s office urges anyone who receives such a call to not respond to the caller. Do not provide the caller with any personally identifying information, including your name, date of birth,
address, Social Security card, bank information or credit card information.

The Lake County Sheriff’s Office is investigating these reports of fraud.

If you have any information concerning this, you may email your information to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .

If you have questions regarding criminal cases or warrants, you may call the Lake County Superior Court Clerk’s Office at 707-263-2374.

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