LAKEPORT, Calif. – The Board of Supervisors this week approved several Valley fire-related items of business, including extending emergency declarations and the concept for a grant to assist Behavioral Health offer services to those impacted by the disaster.

At the Tuesday meeting, county Health Officer Dr. Karen Tait took to the board the extension of a proclamation of a local health emergency due to the fire.

She said the board needs to revisit the proclamation every two weeks.

Tait suggested the board continue the proclamation throughout the debris removal process, “which is really the basis for proclaiming the health emergency.” The supervisors unanimously approved Tait's request.

County Administrative Officer Matt Perry also requested the board continue emergency declarations for the ongoing drought and wildfire conditions.

Regarding the drought, the board first approved that emergency proclamation in March 2014, while the board ratified the emergency proclamation for wildfire conditions on Aug. 4 after the Rocky fire broke out. That fire followed by the Jerusalem and the Valley fires.

Perry said the board needed to continue the wildfire state of emergency to allow the state-led debris removal program to continue.

Perry also received the board's unanimous approval of a memorandum of understanding with CalRecycle for management and coordination of the Rocky and Jerusalem fires' debris cleanup. He said the formal agreement was necessary due to certain state regulations.

As a followup on the CalRecycle agreement item, Lake County Environmental Health Director Ray Ruminski gave the supervisors a quick progress report on the Rocky and Jerusalem fire debris cleanup.

As of Tuesday, 41 property owners signed up for the cleanup program and cleanup was completed on 15 of those properties, he said.

Ruminski said that work was done by two crews that had been working since the middle of September.

Those two crews have since been moved to the Valley fire cleanup, with another contractor mobilizing six crews as of Monday, Ruminski said.

The remaining properties that need to be cleaned up after the Rocky and Jerusalem fires are expected to be done within two weeks, he said.

Ruminski added that he is allowing people to continue to sign up for the program through the end of next week. Those interested can contact Lake County Environmental Health at 707-263-1164.

The board also approved, in concept, Behavioral Health's proposal to enter into a contract with the state Department of Health Care Services in order to fund a crisis counseling assistance and training program. The matter is expected to be brought back for final approval at the board's Oct. 27 meeting.

Behavioral Health Director Linda Lovejoy said they are currently working in the Middletown schools to screen students to identify those who need assistance in coping with the impacts of the fire.

Other steps in the process include coping, skill and resilience building, and treatment in cases where intervention is needed, she said.

In the Middletown Unified School District, the majority of children having more serious emotional trauma type symptoms are those who already were under stress before the fire, Lovejoy said.

Considering the community as a whole, Lovejoy noted, “We are looking at the whole broad picture of what people might actually end up needing.”

The board also voted to offer a letter of support for a Valley fire survivor benefit concert that is proposed to be held at Konocti Harbor Resort and Spa in Kelseyville.

In other news, the board approved Sheriff Brian Martin's request to submit the Emergency Management Performance Grant application for fiscal year 2015. The $138,552 grant has a 100-percent county match. 

Martin additionally received approval from the board for an application for a $140,489 State Homeland Security Grant.

Also on Tuesday, Martin and District Attorney Don Anderson presented donation checks of $10,000 each to the Animal Coalition of Lake County and the SPCA of Clear Lake from an asset forfeiture case.

Agricultural Commissioner Steve Hajik gave the 2014 crop report and the board approved a policy allowing Juvenile Hall employees who are terminated to buy back vacation and sick leave to avoid a break in service.

Juvenile Hall employees are being laid off, as the county is entering into an agreement with Mendocino County to house juvenile inmates at a lower overall cost – and with better services – than the local facility has been able to offer, according to county officials.

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.