KELSEYVILLE, Calif. – The California Highway Patrol will offer a free “Start Smart” traffic safety class for soon to-be-licensed, newly licensed, and teenage drivers and their parents or guardians on Wednesday, May 16.

The class will take place from 6 to 8 p.m. at the Clear Lake Area CHP office, located at 5700 Live Oak Drive in Kelseyville.

The CHP said a teenager is killed in a traffic collision every four hours nationwide. That equates to more than 1,870 teenagers killed each year. Another 184,000 teenagers are injured in traffic collisions.

These deaths and injuries can be substantially reduced or prevented by eliminating high-risk driving behaviors through education, and the CHP said its “Start Smart” program can help prevent these tragedies.

The Start Smart program focuses on providing comprehensive traffic safety education classes for teenagers and their parents.

Start Smart employs innovative techniques to capture the attention of teenagers and parents, providing a lasting experience.

The curriculum includes information on collision statistics, teen driver and passenger behaviors, graduated driver’s license laws, cultural changes in today’s society and the need for stronger parental involvement in a teenager’s driving experience.

Space is limited for this class. For more information or reservations, call Officer Kory Reynolds at the CHP office, 707-279-0103, or email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

NORTH COAST, Calif. – Sonoma County authorities are investigating several burglaries reported in the wildland fire burn zone.

Sgt. Spencer Crum of the Sonoma County Sheriff’s Office reported that on Thursday morning the sheriff’s office and the Windsor Police Department took several burglary reports of constructions sites.

In the 100 block of Willowgeen Place in the Larkfield burn zone there three storage trailers reportedly broken into and tools removed, Crum said.

In the 80 block of Dorchester Lane in the Larkfield burn zone Crum said there was a single storage trailer broken into and construction tools removed.

In Windsor at a construction site near Hembree and Victory Lane, there was another construction trailer broken into with tools removed, according to Crum.

Crum said these crimes happened last night or in the early morning hours.

In all three of these locations, Crum said the trailers were locked tight and some were blocked by heavy equipment that had to be moved to gain entry. The thieves took some time to gain entry and had to make a lot of noise according to the investigating deputy.

“Victimizing people who are trying to rebuild their homes in the face of the worst disaster in Sonoma County history is completely unacceptable,” said Sheriff Rob Giordano.

He added that the Sonoma County Sheriff’s Office will be investigating these crimes to the full extent and will be providing extra patrols of all construction areas.

Area residents are also asked to take extra vigilant efforts to watch out for suspicious people that don’t belong in the construction areas at night and to call Sonoma County Sheriff’s Dispatch at 707-565-2121 if anything suspicious is observed.

ACCUWEATHER GLOBAL WEATHER CENTER – AccuWeather reports this weekend will feature the last meteor shower until late July with meteors streaking across the night sky all around the globe.

The Eta Aquarid meteors favors the Southern Hemisphere. It's considered one of the best meteor showers of the year for South America, Australia and parts of Africa, with up to 60 meteors an hour.

Some meteors will still be visible across the Northern Hemisphere, although in fewer numbers with 10 to 30 meteors an hour at the shower's peak.

Despite the lower rates in places such as North America, AccuWeather Astronomy Blogger Dave Samuhel said that this could be more active than the recent Lyrid meteor shower, which peaked in late April.

When the best time will be to look for meteors

Unlike most other meteor showers, the Eta Aquarids' peak lasts for several days.

"The Eta Aquarids are sparked by Haley's comet. This shower has a gradual peak that will span the entire weekend into Monday," Samuhel said.

"Sunday night may prove to be the most active night," Samuhel added.

The broad peak means that people will have several opportunities to look for meteors if the weather does not cooperate on a particular night.

Regardless what night people head outside to look for a few meteors, the best time to view the shower will be after midnight, although some meteors should be visible late in the evening.



The best viewing conditions for onlookers on Friday night and early Saturday morning are expected to be across the central and southwestern United States as cloud-free skies lead to uninterrupted viewing.

"Unfortunately, widespread clouds will plague the East Coast this weekend," Samuhel said.

However, there may be enough breaks in the clouds on Friday night for some across the Northeast to see a few meteors, especially later in the night.

Clouds will also obscure the sky for many across the northwestern U.S.

Similar sky conditions are in the forecast across North America for Saturday night and early Sunday morning with the best conditions expected from Indiana to Texas and into Southern California.

Tips for seeing meteors this weekend

No special equipment is needed for viewing the shower, but being in an area with little light pollution will help to maximize the number of meteors that can be seen.

It may be difficult to spot some of the darker meteors during this year's Eta Aquarids as the moon will be shining brightly in the sky most of the night.

Because of this, Samuhel suggests picking an area of the sky opposite the moon to look for meteors.

"Let your eyes adjust to the darkness for at least 20 minutes. Do not look at the moon and stay off your phone. This will ruin your night vision," Samuhel said.

Even if the weather cooperates and onlookers are in an area far away from city lights, people may not see quite as many meteors as they expect.

"Meteor watching is a lot like fishing. Sometimes you catch a good number of them and sometimes you don't," EarthSky said.

The next major meteor shower will not be until the Southern Delta Aquariids reaches its peak at end of July.

Editor's note: The International Meteor Organization spells this meteor shower Eta Aquariids. Eta Aquariids are named for Eta Aquarii, the seventh star in the constellation, Aquarius.

Brian Lada is a meteorologist for www.AccuWeather.com.

LAKEPORT, Calif. – Police are continuing the effort to reduce the prevailing speed in a residential area of Lakeport, the city’s police chief told the Lakeport City Council on Tuesday night.

Lakeport Police Chief Brad Rasmussen gave the Lakeport City Council the update on the traffic situation on 20th Street.

Rasmussen explained that speed surveys are done every five years due to the use of radar for traffic enforcement.

The last one was completed in the fall of 2016, he said. That led to the traffic engineer’s proposal to increase speed in the neighborhood from 25 to 30 miles per hour, based on state rules. The city had little latitude to keep the speed lower under the requirements set by the state.

Rasmussen said he ultimately had asked the council to accept the survey; otherwise, his departments’ hands would have been tied for enforcement.

The council did approve the survey, raising the speed to 30 miles per hour with the recommendation that city staff do what they could to lower the speeds, which at that time were averaging 36 miles per hour, he said.

City departments started working on solutions, which included a striping plan to create a narrowing effect and cause traffic to naturally reduce speed. Rasmussen said he also had to train his new officers on the use of radar.

With his department’s other duties, it’s not always possible to have an officer parked somewhere for speed enforcement, Rasmussen said. However, he reported that officers made numerous stops and wrote two citations on 20th Street on Friday.

He said he’s also borrowed a speed trailer from another agency for a few weeks in order to try to get speeds slowed on 20th Street.

At the end of March more speed survey data was collected by the traffic engineer, and Rasmussen said the result showed that prevailing speeds hadn’t been reduced. Instead, they had risen slightly – up to 37 miles per hour.

He said 20th Street is wide with good pavement, which always leads to faster driving.

Councilman George Spurr asked about education. Rasmussen said that effort is continuing both with neighborhood residents and the public at large.

Rasmussen said he didn’t know what else to recommend, adding that he had believed the narrowing and striping would have led to reduced speed.

Councilman Kenny Parlet, who pointed out that the city already had spent about $17,000 on the striping project, said he believed it was a matter of neighborhood residents not being fooled and continuing to speed.

Councilwoman Stacey Mattina agreed. “You guys have done everything that you can,” she told Rasmussen.

Rasmussen said he wanted the council to know that he’s not going to abandon the effort, and that police will continue to do what they can.

He said one of the big complaints he gets is the stop sign at 20th and Hartley streets. In the previous two days his officers had written 10 tickets.

“It’s proved to be a lot more difficult than I actually thought it would be to accomplish the reduction of the speed in a very short amount of time ,” said Rasmussen.

Councilwoman Mireya Turner said she was glad it’s still a high priority.

“We’re obviously not giving up on it,” said Rasmussen.

In other business, the council approved a request from Clearlake Motor Sport Enterprises LLC for use of city streets, Library Park, the boat ramps and city personnel for the second annual Lakeport Sprint Boat Grand Prix event set for June 1 through 3.

Council members also approved a memorandum of understanding with the Lakeport Unified School District as well as a budget adjustment not to exceed $60,000 to fund a sewer main project, and heard a presentation by Dan Peterson of Sutter Lakeside Hospital on the hospital’s operations.

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.

LAKEPORT, Calif. – The two veteran educators seeking to win the superintendent of schools race participated in a candidates’ forum on Monday in Lakeport.

Incumbent Brock Falkenberg and challenger Patrick Iaccino answered numerous questions about Lake County’s educational needs during the forum, held in the Board of Supervisors’ chambers at the Lake County Courthouse.

Video of the full event is shown above.

The forum was sponsored by the Lake County Bar Association, Lake County Economic Development Corp. and Lake County News.

More candidates’ forums are scheduled:

– District 3 supervisorial candidates EJ Crandell and Denise Loustalot will be featured in a forum on Wednesday, May 9, in the Board of Supervisors chambers on the first floor of the Lake County Courthouse, 255 N. Forbes St., Lakeport; and
– District attorney candidates Steven Brown and Susan Krones will take part in a forum on Monday, May 14, also in the Board of Supervisors chambers.

LOWER LAKE, Calif. – The NorCal Cycling League will be holding its championship race, the Six Sigma Slinger, this Saturday and Sunday at Six Sigma Ranch and Winery in Lower Lake.

Six Sigma opened up its property for the three local high school mountain bike teams (Clear Lake, Kelseyville and Middletown High Schools) to ride on after the Valley fire consumed much of the Boggs Demonstration Forest on Cobb in 2015. Boggs was the main riding area for the teams and also the location each year for a NorCal race prior to the fire.

This is the second year that the winery has hosted the event. In the spring of 2016, the coaches of the local teams pitched the idea of hosting a race to the winery owners and they were super enthusiastic about.

Coaches and riders from the three local teams, along with the assistance of the league and volunteers from the community and other NorCal Cycling teams, designed and hand-built the 5-mile-long race course, finishing just in time to host the first race last spring.

As part of the North Conference – which covers the Bay Area and north – all the local teams will be racing on Saturday. The Southern Conference (South Bay to Monterey area) race takes place on Sunday.

Races begin with the girls at 9 a.m., freshman/sophomore boys at 10:40 a.m. and JV/varsity boys at 12:20 p.m.

Each lap is just under 5 miles with around 450 feet of climbing. Riders will race between two to four laps depending on their category.

All races are open and free for the public to come and watch. With 900-plus riders slated to race over the course of the weekend, it is quite an impressive event to see. Volunteers are always needed.

For more information on viewing and/or volunteering, visit www.norcalmtb.org .

Six Sigma Ranch and Winery is located at 13372 Spruce Grove in Lower Lake.

Tami Cramer is coach of the Kelseyville and Clear Lake High School mountain biking teams.

CLEARLAKE, Calif. – Clearlake Animal Control has implemented new shelter hours beginning this week.

The new hours of operation will be Tuesday through Saturday from noon to 3 p.m., according to Det. Ryan Peterson of the Clearlake Police Department, which oversees Clearlake Animal Control operations.

The shelter facility is located at the public works yard at 15466 Warner St. in Clearlake.

Peterson said it’s hoped that Animal Control’s expanded hours of operation will provide the community with more opportunity to view the adoptable animals.

Clearlake Animal Control reminds pet owners to be up-to-date on appropriate licensing, rabies vaccinations as well as spay and neutering of pets.

For more information on adoption and licensing fees you can visit the city of Clearlake Web site at www.clearlake.ca.us or by contacting the Clearlake Animal Control Officers at 707-994-8251 or come to the Clearlake City Hall at 14050 Olympic Drive.

NORTH COAST, Calif. – A crash on Highway 20 in Mendocino County temporarily shut down the roadway on Wednesday and left both drivers with injuries, one of them major.

The collision occurred just before 11:45 a.m. Wednesday on Highway 20 west of Potter Valley Road, according to the California Highway Patrol’s Ukiah Area office.

The CHP said Andrew H. Guridi, 31, of Rohnert Park was driving a 2015 Toyota Prius westbound on Highway 20 west of Potter Valley Road at an unknown speed while Patrick D. Lorenzi, 54, of Stockton was driving a 2010 white freight truck eastbound at approximately 50 to 55 miles per hour.

For an unknown reason, Guridi made what the CHP said was an “unsafe turning movement” and entered the eastbound lane, directly in the path of the truck.

The CHP said the front of the Prius collided with the front left side of the truck.

Guridi’s Prius sustained major front end damage and came to rest blocking the westbound lane of Highway 20, while the freight truck left the roadway and traveled 15 to 20 feet down the embankment, the CHP said.

The report said Guridi suffered major injuries, including a bone fracture in his lower right leg and lip lacerations, and was flown to Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital. Lorenzi had minor injuries, mainly a bump to the forehead.

The highway was temporarily shut down for a short time after the wreck and traffic control was in effect for several hours before the road completely reopened at about 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, according to the CHP.

The CHP said the cause of the collision 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.

CLEARLAKE, Calif. – A Clearlake resident shot a man who police said was trying to get into his home on Monday night.

Clearlake Police Sgt. Rodd Joseph said 21-year-old Clearlake resident Mayfield Herbert Montes was shot during the late-night incident. Montes survived and has been hospitalized.

Just after 11:50 p.m. Monday Clearlake Police Officers responded to a mobile home unit inside of Southshore Mobile Home Park, located at 5725 Old Highway 53, on a report that an unknown male suspect was banging on the home’s windows, was trying to get inside the home and claiming to own property inside, Joseph said.

While en route to the call, dispatch received updated information that an unnamed adult male resident of the home claimed to have shot at the suspect and that the suspect had since fled the residence on foot, according to Joseph.

Joseph said that the suspect, identified as Montes, walked to a residence in the 5500 block of Cottage Avenue, where he was contacted by police and medical personnel.

Montes, who Joseph said was suffering from a single gunshot wound to his lower abdomen, was transported by ambulance to Adventist Health Clear Lake before he was taken by helicopter to an out-of-county trauma center.

In a late Tuesday night update Joseph said Montes was still hospitalized in stable condition and is expected to survive his injuries.

The resident who shot Montes, whose name is being withheld, was in lawful possession of the firearm which has been seized pursuant to this investigation, Joseph said.

Joseph said physical evidence located and uninvolved witness statements tend to support the resident’s claim that he fired in self defense to protect the lives of he and his wife, who was also at home at the time of the incident.

The resident was not arrested at this time and neither he nor his wife suffered any injuries during the incident, Joseph reported.

Joseph said the case has been forwarded to the Lake County District Attorney’s Office for review of charges against both the resident and Montes.

Anyone with information on this case is urged to contact Officer Michael Perreault at 707-994-8251, Extension 519.

LAKEPORT, Calif. – Deputy Robert Rumfelt will be memorialized during the annual Lake County Safety Officers Memorial Ceremony on Friday, May 4.

The candle light event will be held at the Lake County Museum Park, located at 255 N. Main St. in Lakeport.

The ceremony will begin at 6 p.m. It is hosted by the Lake County Sheriff’s chaplains and is open to the public.

Along with honoring Deputy Rumfelt, the ceremony will remember five others who gave their lives while on duty: Sheriff George Kemp, Deputy William Hoyt and Sgt. Richard Helbush, and firefighters Michael Mattioda and Matthew Black.

In addition, all of the names of the California law enforcement officers and firefighters who died in 2017 will be read aloud.

Deputy Sheriff Rumfelt suffered a fatal medical emergency following a violent confrontation with a suspect on Aug. 22.

Rumfelt had served with the Lake County Sheriff's Office for three years and had previously served with the Lakeport Police Department for nine years. He is survived by his wife, two daughters, four sisters, a brother, his mother and father.

The U.S. Fire Administration reports that 93 firefighters died in the line of duty in 2017. Twelve were from California. Four came from the Cal Fire ranks. The California firefighters’ deaths were the result of vehicle accidents, medical emergencies and tree fall.

According to the Officer Down Web site, 134 law enforcement officers were killed in 2017, along with 29 police dogs, or K9s, that died in public service. Eleven officers were from California.

Nationwide, 52 law enforcement officers died as a result of a deadly assault, which includes physical assaults, stabbing and gunfire.

Honor these fallen safety officers, and the men and women that put their lives on the line every day in Lake County with your attendance. The public is encouraged to bring a small candle and holder or small flashlight for the ceremony.

CLEARLAKE, Calif. – The three candidates in the race for Lake County Superior Court judge will take part in a forum in Clearlake on Wednesday, May 2.

The event will be held at 6 p.m. at the Clearlake Senior Community Center at 3245 Bowers Ave.

Don Anderson, Shanda Harry and Andre Ross are running to succeed Judge Stephen Hedstrom, who did not seek reelection this year.

The three candidates will answer a round of at least 10 questions in a timed, rotational format.

Community members may submit questions at the event or by emailing moderator Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

The forum also will be recorded and posted online.

This year’s forums are sponsored by the Lake County Bar Association, Lake County Economic Development Corp. and Lake County News.

UPPER LAKE, Calif. – The Lake County Land Trust will host its second annual “Art & Nature Day” on Saturday, May 5.

The event, which is free to the public, will be held at the Rodman Preserve & Nature Center, located 6350 Westlake Road, Upper Lake.

The festivities will kick off with a photography walk along the Rodman Preserve’s nature trail, open to serious photographers of any age and starting at 9 a.m.

Throughout the day, family friendly activities will be going on, from a family hike at 10 a.m. to art exhibits featuring local artists starting at 11 a.m. Yoga for children, hand-painted tattoos, live music, scavenger hunts, nature journaling and educational nature booths also will be featured.

A noteworthy addition to this year’s festivities will be the display of photographs entered into the Lake County Rural Arts Initiative photography contest, open to students of all grades.

Winners of cash prizes will be announced at 1 p.m. during Art & Nature Day. Visit www.LCRAI.org/contest for more information about the contest.

While there is no charge for admission or any of the activities, art and snacks will be available for purchase, and temporary tattoos will be donation-based. A portion of proceeds from the art sales will help support the Land Trust.

Rodman Preserve is the Land Trust’s keystone property, located on 131 acres of oak woodlands surrounded by wetland. It protects the natural habitat of many nesting, breeding and feeding areas for many species of native Lake County wildlife, whose wetland habitats are also vital for the health of Clear Lake.

The Land Trust instituted Art & Nature Day as a way to participate in and support “Take it Outside California,” a statewide initiative designed to connect Californians with outdoor spaces due to the powerful health benefits of spending time in nature.

Learn more or sign the pledge to get outdoors on May 5 at www.TakeItOutsideCA.com .

Visit www.lakecountylandtrust.org for more information about the Lake County Land Trust or Art & Nature Day.

For more details, please contact Melissa Kinsel via email at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or via phone at 707-262-0707.