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- Written by: Lake County News reports
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – Distracted driving is a serious safety concern for all drivers throughout California, especially teen drivers.
Eighty percent of vehicle crashes involve some kind of driver distraction. Talking on the cell phone or texting is the main source of driver distraction.
The California Highway Patrol (CHP) is urging teenage drivers to stop texting, put away cell phones, and focus on driving.
In an effort save lives, CHP along with Impact Teen Drivers will be conducting a year-long teen distracted driving traffic safety campaign through September 2013.
“The California Office of Traffic Safety grant is an exciting opportunity for Impact Teen Drivers and the CHP to continue to be at the forefront of decreasing the number of collisions and deaths associated with distracted teen drivers,” said Kelly Browning, executive director of Impact Teen Drivers. “It will take a strong combination of education and enforcement to have a fundamental and sustained behavior shift toward driving distraction free.”
California drivers age 20 years or older were involved in nearly 22,000 collisions from Oct. 1, 2009, through Sept. 30, 2010, in which a distraction was documented as a factor in the cause of the crash.
As new drivers, teens are at an even greater risk of being involved in collisions due to distracted driving because of the peer pressures to stay immediately connected to their friends via text and cell phone.
Teenage distracted driving is one of the leading contributors to collisions and near collisions.
“The CHP is urging teen drivers to focus on driving. Eliminate the urge to text or call by putting away the distractions,” said Commissioner Joe Farrow. “Through education, enforcement, and the continued partnership between the CHP and Impact Teen Drivers, we can change this dangerous behavior.”
The 12-month, grant-funded Teen Distracted Drivers Education and Enforcement II campaign consists of an education component, as well as distracted driver enforcement operations to be conducted throughout the state.
Funding for this program was provided by a grant from the California Office of Traffic Safety through the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
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- Written by: Elizabeth Larson
KELSEYVILLE, Calif. – A control burn that escaped and raced up Mt. Konocti on Tuesday scorched several hundred acres by the afternoon.
The “Becks” fire was first reported at about 11 a.m., according to state and local officials.
Initially a control burn at a vineyard in the area of 7900 S. Highway 29, the fire escaped and started up the mountain, getting onto county park property and damaging a bathroom facility, according to the Lake County Public Services Department.
Just before 5 p.m., Cal Fire reported that the Becks fire was at 300 acres with 50 percent containment. Full containment is expected Wednesday.
The terrain where the fire is burning is very steep, and fire officials said work on the fire will continue into the night.
Konocti Road above Mt. Vista Middle School in Kelseyville was closed due to the fire, according to Lake County Public Works.
Smoke from the fire blanketed a portion of the county, with residents in different areas reporting ash falling at various times.
Additional details will be posted as they become available.
Email Elizabeth Larson at
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- Written by: Lake County News reports
LOWER LAKE, Calif. – The California Highway Patrol on Tuesday identified the man who died in an early morning crash last Saturday.
Daniel Paul Gray, 29, of Clearlake was the crash victim, according to CHP Officer Kory Reynolds.
Gray's Chevrolet Malibu went off of Highway 29 north of Marsh View Way shortly after midnight and hit a tree, according to the CHP report.
Gray was pronounced dead at the scene, the CHP said.
Reynolds said there were no updates on the crash investigation, which is ongoing.
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- Written by: Elizabeth Larson
COBB, Calif. – On Tuesday morning a 3.0-magnitude earthquake was reported near The Geysers geothermal steamfield in Cobb.
The quake took place at 9:58 a.m., according to a preliminary report from the US Geological Survey.
It occurred at a depth of 2.3 miles and was centered two miles east of The Geysers, four miles southwest of Cobb and four miles west northwest of Anderson Springs, the report said.
Four shake reports were filed from Middletown, Redding and Redwood City.
A 3.0-magnitude earthquake one mile east of They Geysers had been reported on Monday afternoon, as Lake County News has reported.
Email Elizabeth Larson at