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Early Tuesday fire damages Lucerne home, displaces residents
LUCERNE, Calif. – An early morning wind-driven structure fire displaced a couple from their home on Hendricks in Lucerne on Tuesday.
Northshore Fire Protection District Deputy Chief Pat Brown said Lake County Central Dispatch received multiple 911 calls about the fire, which was first reported at approximately 5:19 a.m.
In response to the calls the dispatch was increased to include equipment from Northshore Fire's Lucerne, Nice and Clearlake Oaks fire stations, according to Brown.
Five minutes into the call, based on reports from the first arriving engine from Lucerne, Brown said the duty chief called a second alarm, with additional equipment from Upper Lake and Clearlake Oaks Stations dispatched.
Northshore units that responded included four engines, two medic ambulances, two chief officers and two support units, he said.
A very aggressive fire attack by first arriving units included roof ventilation on the multi level roof, and ceilings pulled in the garage area, living room and the cathedral ceiling in the master bedroom, Brown said.
The fire started on the exterior of the home near the recycle plastic container and the investigation continues, Brown said.
Red Cross was called to the scene and provided aid to the couple, including temporary housing, Brown said.
Fire loss to the home is estimated at around $80,000, Brown said.
Salvage covers were placed throughout the house, and Brown said high priority items of the residence were recovered.
A local contractor was contacted to provide board up and plastic covering for the home before the heavy rain fall started, he said.
Investigation under way into weekend burglary at Clearlake Club
LAKEPORT, Calif. – The Lakeport Police Department is investigating a weekend burglary to a downtown business.
Sgt. Kevin Odom said the Clearlake Club Bar, located at 210 N. Main St., was burglarized some time after 2 a.m. Sunday, March 25.
Odom said forced entry was made to a door at the rear of the business and cash was taken.
The break in was discovered at 10 a.m. Sunday, he said.
An unknown type pry tool appeared to have been used to gain entry, according to Odom.
He said the suspect, or suspects, cut power and phone lines to the business in an apparent attempt to defeat the alarm system.
A surveillance system for the business captured images of a suspicious subject who appeared to be lurking around the front doors of the business around 5:30 a.m. The image is shown above.
Anyone with information about this crime is encouraged to contact Lakeport Police Officer Destry Henderson at 707-263-5491.
Flood advisory issued for portions of Lake County
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – The National Weather Service has issued a flood advisory for parts of Lake County following several hours of steady rainfall.
The agency issued the urban and small stream flood advisory shortly before 2 p.m. Tuesday for areas including Upper Lake, Middletown and Lakeport.
Just before the advisory was issued National Weather Service radar, spotter and gauge reports indicated that between one and three inches of rainfall had fallen over parts of the county in the previous six hours.
Clear Lake was reported to be at 4.08 feet Rumsey shortly before 3 p.m. – a full lake is 7.56 feet Rumsey – and U.S. Geological Survey stream gauges showed the flow in local creeks have spiked over the past day.
With the ground saturated and moderate to heavy rainfall expected to continue for several more hours – with snow in the higher elevations possible – the National Weather Service placed the advisory in effect until 7:45 p.m.
Winds also are possible into the evening, according to the agency.
The winter storm that's bringing the rain to Lake County is forecast to leave the region by Wednesday afternoon.
The National Weather Service said another, stronger storm system is predicted to arrive over Northern California on Saturday.
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New bill seeks to repeal fire fee for homeowners in State Responsibility Area
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LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – Concerns over a new state fee to be assessed on properties in the State Responsibility Area has led to the introduction of a new bill to repeal the fee and its authorizing legislation.
ABX1 29, signed into law last year despite opposition from fire officials and rural communities around the state, is anticipated to raise almost $85 million annually for Cal Fire.
It implements an annual fee of $150 for each “habitable” structure within the State Responsibility Area, or SRA, which is covered by Cal Fire, as Lake County News has reported. For structures also covered by local responsibility areas, there will be a $35 reduction, for a total annual bill of $115.
The legislation requires that residents pay the fee beginning this fiscal year. The California Board of Equalization, which is in charge of collecting the fee, told Lake County News that the first bills are to go out this summer, with the 2012-13 fiscal year bill to go out early in 2013.
Assemblyman Kevin Jeffries (R-Riverside) has introduced AB 1506, which would repeal ABX1 29 and the resulting fire fee.
The Assembly Natural Resources Committee, chaired by Assemblyman Wes Chesbro (D-Arcata) – who represents Lake County – heard the bill Monday afternoon.
The bill passed the committee, although the precise vote will not be available until Tuesday. That’s due to a legislative rule that allows certain members not in attendance at a hearing to add their votes later as long as it doesn’t change the outcome, according to Paul Smith, senior legislative advocate for the Regional Council of Rural Counties, or RCRC.
Smith attended the hearing in Sacramento, along with Napa County Supervisor Diane Dillon – immediate past RCRC chair – and RCRC Legislative Advocate Cyndi Hillery, who is working on the SRA fire fee issue.
They said that all of the Assembly members present voted for the bill except for Assemblyman Roger Dickinson (D-Sacramento), who was concerned about the weakening of Cal Fire because of the $50 million that the state carved out of Cal Fire’s budget in response to the passage of ABX1 29. He was one of the only committee members who do not have the SRA in their area of representation.
RCRC has a longstanding policy of opposition against SRA fees, according to a letter Hillery sent Jeffries on March 16.
The organization also has taken the position that with rural counties already paying for fire service, the new SRA fire fee is inequitable, provides no additional benefit and results in double and sometimes triple taxation. RCRC also argues that the fee puts an unfair financial burden on the disproportionate number of people living in rural areas on fixed and low incomes.
“Moreover, it makes the likelihood of passage of any additional local assessments for fire protection services in the SRA very difficult,” Hillery wrote, echoing a critical concern of Lake County’s fire chiefs.
The organization also believes the fee will jeopardize fire and disaster management responses between the state, emergency responders and local governments.
Dillon, Smith and Hillery spoke to a small group of Northern California reporters via phone conference following the hearing.
“The good news is that the committee passed the bill out of committee,” Dillon said.
Chesbro spoke to the problems with the fire fee, Dillon said, adding, “He also identified the fact that there are issues with the state budget that need to be addressed.”
Chesbro is working on his own legislation to address Cal Fire’s budget and the SRA fees. His spokesman, Andrew Bird, said the bill already has been introduced, but the language is still being refined.
Hillery said there are many additional legislative steps before Jeffries’ bill could become law, and it’s likely headed to the Assembly Appropriations Committee next.
Cal Fire, Hillery pointed out, is the main responder in all California disasters, not just wildland fires in the SRA.
Dillon said the SRA was never intended or designed as a taxing area.
The SRA fire fee collected by ABX1 29 is going for fire prevention, not firefighting activities in the SRA, Dillon said.
“The bottom line is RCRC remains opposed to SRA fees,” she said.
The state is now working on implementing the bill. Dillon said the state Department of Finance has estimated it will cost $15.7 million to implement the fee.
That $15.7 million, Dillon added, is actually what it will cost to pay for 86 new positions for the Board of Equalization and Cal Fire to implement the new legislation.
“The money is not going to go to fire prevention, it’s going to go to this elaborate new bureaucracy,” Dillon said.
She added, “They’re spending money before it’s come in.”
In addition to the effort to repeal the fee, Smith said there are organizations planning to file suit to stop the Board of Equalization from collecting the fee from residents in the SRA.
“Whether or not you get a bill will greatly depend on the lawsuit and how it’s filed,” Smith said.
Jeffries’ bill, if it passes the Legislature, isn’t expected to reach Gov. Jerry Brown’s desk before next August, said Smith.
Even then, “It’s almost certain that he would veto it,” said Hillery, explaining that the idea for the SRA fee came from the California Department of Finance.
While Brown originally did not want to go down the SRA fee path, now that it’s done, “I think it would be extremely difficult for him to back out of it at this point,” Hillery said.
Dillon said RCRC is dedicated to pursuing the issue, which they believe is very important to all members counties.
“We are committed to fighting this fight,” she said.
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