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Michael Collins Sr., 49, was found lying in the road in the hills above Lucerne Monday, according to a Tuesday report from Sgt. Brian Martin of the Lake County Sheriff's Office Investigations Division.
Martin reported that sheriff's deputies and Northshore Fire personnel responded to a call at 9:38 a.m. Monday from a Lucerne woman who had found Collins lying next to a truck on Robinson Road, a dirt road in the hills above Lucerne.
The woman had been walking her dogs in the area when she found Collins, Martin reported. The woman notified the sheriff’s Central Dispatch and fire and law enforcement personnel immediately responded to investigate.
Upon their arrival, medics determined that the man was unresponsive and he was determined to be deceased by the deputy coroner, according to Martin.
The man was subsequently identified as Collins, said Martin. The truck he was found by was determined to belong to Collins, according to Department of Motor Vehicle records.
Martin said the area of Robinson Road where Collins was found has been the subject of numerous complaints of illegal dumping.
Deputies found Collins’ truck stopped in the middle of the road with the tailgate down, said Martin, with garbage in the back of the truck and on the ground directly behind the tailgate.
A shovel also was found on the ground next to Collins, said Martin. A light dusting of snow was on top of the garbage on the ground and the garbage in the back of the truck.
The investigation into the matter suggested that Collins may have been in that area since the previous evening, said Martin.
Collins’ next of kin were notified of his death shortly after he was discovered, according to Martin.
The investigation found no signs of foul play associated with Collins' death, Martin reported.
An autopsy on Collins has been scheduled, said Martin, with the official cause of death his still pending.
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- Written by: Elizabeth Larson
LAKE COUNTY – After listening to President George W. Bush's last State of the Union Address Monday night, Congressman Mike Thompson headed back to his office, riding in an elevator with some Republican colleagues.
The Democrat from St. Helena said the bipartisan consensus in the elevator ride up was that Bush's address was “one of the more, if not the most, lackluster State of the Union speeches that we had heard.”
In the hour-long Monday night address, the president outlined his goals for his final year in office. He touched on a wide variety of issues, from the economy and national security, the war in Iraq to education, energy and immigration, and his plan to “advance an agenda of compassion worldwide.”
But Thompson, speaking with reporters following the address, said Bush offered nothing new, and few actual details of how he planned to accomplish his ambitious set of plans.
On important issues like health care and the environment, Thompson said, “I don't think he left anybody with much hope or direction.”
Rather than focusing on green energy – geothermal, wind and solar – Bush is calling for more oil drilling, including a push to drill on the outer continental shelf, said Thompson. “These are things that don't lead to reducing our carbon imprint.”
Bush outlined many important issues, said Thompson, but offered no specifics. To address the country's major challenges, the congressman said it's going to take everyone working together.
He remained highly critical of Bush's strategy in Iraq, saying the surge isn't working, and pointed to the deaths of eight U.S. soldiers that same day.
Thompson said all of the major issues Bush addressed touched the First Congressional District, which includes Lake County.
He turned to immigration, one issue he and the president agree on. “I think he's been on the right track on immigration,” said Thompson, but he added that Bush hasn't done anything about it.
Last year the opportunity to push for immigration reform in Congress was “ripe” – pun intended, said Thompson, referring to the pears left on county trees for lack of workers to harvest in recent years. Yet, nothing happened.
He said he would have loved to hear Bush say he would bring the troops home, but there again Thompson was disappointed.
The president promised greater support for returning veterans, including better health care for wounded service members.
Thompson, a Vietnam veteran, said that was the most “disingenuous” part of the president's speech. A regular visitor to the Walter Reed and Bethesda military hospitals, Thompson said he's seen firsthand the system's failure to help veterans.
He said that when Congress tried last year to give members of the military a 3.5-percent cost of living increase, Bush “fought that every inch of the way.”
There are a whole series of problems with returning vets, said Thompson – from a high number of suicides to brain injuries. “It's more horrendous than past wars.”
Thompson suggested that those problems could be handled, in part, by properly funding veterans facilities, but the president so far hasn't been willing to do that.
When reporters asked him who he's voting for in the presidential primary, Thompson was forthright in saying he chose Sen. Hillary Clinton.
However, he said of Clinton and her opponent, Sen. Barack Obama, “I think either one of them would be a great president.”
Thompson said he chose Clinton because he's worked with her on issues important to the First District and Lake County. “She's strong on agriculture issues, she's strong on environmental issues and does a good job representing rural interests in her state.”
He added, “Those issues and understanding those issues are important in our district.”
E-mail Elizabeth Larson at
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- Written by: Lake County News Reports
LAKE COUNTY – Snow levels dropped overnight on Sunday, bringing snow down to Clear Lake Monday morning and leaving area roadways hazardous.
Snow fell in lower elevations around the lake, with some areas along the Northshore melting off early.
In Kelseyville, area resident Ginny Craven reported finding her yard under a thick blanket of snow Monday morning.
In Cobb, resident Roger Kinney said two inches of snow fell overnight.
Weather Underground reported little precipitation around the county Monday in areas other than Cobb, which the service does not track.
Precipitation and runoff continued to fill Clear Lake, with a Monday measurement showing the lake at 4.30 Rumsey, the measurement used for Clear Lake. Zero Rumsey – Clear Lake's natural low water level – is 1318.256 feet, according to Lake County's Water Resources Division. A full lake is 7.56 Rumsey.
Lake County Department of Public Works reported late Monday that all county roads are experiencing snow and ice, with all the department's plow and sand trucks out and at work to clear the way for traffic.
Public Works reported that chains are still required on Elk Mountain Road, but chain restrictions on Bartlett Springs Road and in the Cobb area had been lifted.
A landslide on Lakeview Drive from Hillside to Mesa Drive in Clearlake Oaks has closed the roadway to all traffic, Public Works reported.
The National Weather Service in Sacramento reports that Lake County could experience snow down to 1,500 feet Tuesday, with a snow and blowing snow advisory in effect until 10 p.m.
E-mail Terre Logsdon at
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- Written by: Elizabeth Larson
Captain Dave Emmel of Northshore Fire Protection District said firefighters were dispatched to the scene of the explosion, which took place on Eighth Avenue, at 6:43 p.m.
Northshore Fire reported that two men were in the garage working on a car, when fuel from the gas line was ignited by a propane heater.
The result was an explosion which blew one of the men into the shut garage door. One of the men also received second-degree burns, said Robbins.
Four engines responded to the scene, said Emmel. “The fire was pretty much out when we got there.”
Emmel said firefighters stayed on scene to do some mopping up. They also ventilated smoke from the structure, which was left largely undamaged.
Neighbors a few blocks away reported hearing – and feeling – the explosion.
E-mail Elizabeth Larson at
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