A NASA satellite image of Lake County, California, and portions of neighboring counties under a haze of wildland fire smoke on Tuesday, September 29, 2020. The orange dots signify the Glass fire in Napa and Sonoma counties. Photo courtesy of EOSDIS/NASA WorldView. LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – The Lake County Air Quality Management District has issued an air quality alert for unhealthy conditions due to increased smoke from the Glass fire, August Complex and other fires around the region.
The air quality alert is in effect until 5 p.m. Wednesday.
Due to the significant fire activity this week, all areas of Lake County are forecast to have unhealthy for sensitive groups to unhealthy air quality as smoke settles into the area.
Early forecast information indicates a wind shift starting Thursday that should push the smoke out of the Lake County Basin.
Current air quality conditions for Lake County can be found at the PurpleAir website.
Smoke from wildfires and structure fires contain harmful chemicals that can affect your health. Smoke can cause eye and throat irritation, coughing and difficulty breathing.
People who are at greatest risk of experiencing symptoms due to smoke include those with respiratory disease such as asthma, those with heart disease, young children and older adults. These sensitive populations should stay indoors and avoid prolonged activity.
All others should limit prolonged or heavy activity and time spent outdoors. Even healthy adults can be affected by smoke. Seek medical help if you have symptoms that worsen or become severe.
If you have lung disease, including asthma or heart disease, closely monitor your health and contact your doctor if you have symptoms that worsen. The air quality management suggests people consider leaving the area until smoke conditions improve if you have repeated coughing, shortness of breath, difficulty breathing, wheezing, chest tightness or pain, palpitations, nausea, unusual fatigue or light-headedness.
On Tuesday, Chairman of the House Ways and Means Subcommittee on Select Revenue Measures Mike Thompson (CA-05), along with Rep. Earl Blumenauer (OR-03) and Rep. Abby Finkenauer (IA-01) announced the introduction of the Disaster Tax Relief Act of 2020.
The bill would extend tax relief to survivors of natural disasters, other than the coronavirus pandemic, such as the recent LNU Lightning Complex fires that hit Thompson’s district.
“Our district is in the middle of a devastating fire, destroying homes and businesses, and leaving communities hit with another round of anxiety and grief about when and if they can go home. Disaster survivors deserve every piece of federal assistance we can deliver for them, including an extension of tax credits that will help them rebuild and recover,” said Thompson. “This bill will help people who lost their homes, individuals worried about losing income, and businesses that were forced to close or that burned down. We need this bill passed right away and I will continue working to bring back every Federal dollar and resource to help our district recover.”
“Oregonians have suffered unprecedented destruction from the wildfires, and this disaster is far from over,” said Blumenauer, a senior member of the House Ways and Means Committee. “With one million acres burned and more than 1,000 homes destroyed, Congress must enact comprehensive tax relief to ensure Oregon families and businesses get the necessary aid to overcome this crisis and achieve a strong recovery.”
“As Iowa’s First Congressional District continues recovering from August’s derecho, we need to do all we can to help,” Finkenauer said. “That’s why we introduced the Disaster RELIEF Act last week to help families whose lives were turned upside down and help employers take care of employees during this difficult time. I want to thank Chairman Thompson and Chairman Blumenauer for working with us to include our critical legislation in this important comprehensive disaster tax relief package.”
Natural disasters continue to be a sadly unavoidable part of daily life for so many Americans – since the expiration of the 2019 disaster tax relief package there have been 37 major natural disaster declarations.
This Disaster Tax Relief Act of 2020 extends tax relief provisions for disaster survivors, including the following provisions:
– Special disaster-related rules for use of retirement funds. This provision provides an exception to the 10 percent early retirement plan withdrawal penalty for certain qualified disaster relief distributions (not to exceed $100,000 in qualified distributions cumulatively). It allows for the re-contribution of retirement plan withdrawals for home purchases cancelled due to eligible disasters and provides flexibility for loans from retirement plans for certain qualified disaster relief.
– Employee retention credit for employers affected by qualified disasters. This provision provides a tax credit for 40 percent of wages (up to $6,000 per employee) paid by certain disaster-affected employers to employees from a core disaster area. The credit applies to wages paid without regard to whether services associated with those wages were performed.
– Special rules for qualified disaster-related personal casualty losses. This provision eliminates the current law requirements that personal casualty losses must exceed 10 percent of adjusted gross income to qualify for deduction with respect to uncompensated losses arising in certain disaster areas. The provision would also eliminate the current law requirement that taxpayers must itemize deductions to access this tax relief.
– Special Rule for Determining Earned Income for Taxpayers whose 2020 income was disaster-impacted. This provision allows taxpayers in disaster areas to refer to earned income from the immediately preceding year for purposes of determining the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) and Child Tax Credit (CTC) in tax year 2020.
– Temporary suspension of limitations on charitable contributions. This provision temporarily suspends limitations on the deduction for charitable contributions from corporations associated with certain qualified disaster relief. The CARES Act already provided this relief for individuals.
You can click here to read the full text of the bill.
Thompson represents California’s Fifth Congressional District, which includes all or part of Contra Costa, Lake, Napa, Solano and Sonoma counties.
NORTHERN CALIFORNIA – Firefighters on Tuesday made gains in attempting to stop the rapid growth of the Glass fire across Napa and Sonoma counties, with the first containment reported.
Cal Fire said Tuesday night that the Glass fire, burning since early Sunday, had reached 46,600 acres, with containment at 2 percent.
Tens of thousands of North Coast residents remain under evacuation on Tuesday as 22,310 structures are threatened, but officials said some evacuations were downgraded in the city of Santa Rosa due to improving conditions.
As of Tuesday night, Cal Fire had confirmed 43 structures had been destroyed in Sonoma County, 28 of them residences and 15 minor structures. In Napa County, the fire has destroyed 72 structures, including 52 residences, two commercial buildings, 17 minor structures and one classified as “other.”
Cal Fire said firefighters continued to focus on structure defense on Tuesday while also building and reinforcing containment lines.
Firefighters have been using fire lines from the 2017 North Bay fires to help control the movement of the Glass fire, officials said Tuesday.
Changing winds led to some areas of increased fire activity. Aircraft operations also were inhibited by smoky conditions and poor visibility, although Cal Fire officials said on Tuesday morning that aircraft were working around the community of Angwin.
The fire has been burning in Trione-Annadel State Park, and Cal Fire said a fire operation was conducted there on Monday night. Officials said the fire also has become established in Sugarloaf Ridge State Park, which is an area of concern.
Cal Fire said firefighters will continue to aggressively fight the fire overnight.
Hot dry weather is anticipated over the next several days, with the National Weather Service issuing a heat advisory for Thursday for parts of the fire area, where temperatures are forecast to pass the century mark.
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.
The Glass fire burns near Silverado Trail and Highway 29 in Napa County, California, at 9 p.m. Monday, September 28, 2020. Photo by Gemini Garcia. NORTHERN CALIFORNIA – As the Glass and Zogg fires continued to tear through parts of Northern California on Monday, Gov. Gavin Newsom declared a state of emergency for three counties.
The Glass fire, which began early Sunday morning, more than tripled in size on Monday, with Cal Fire reporting by nightfall that it had burned 36,236 acres across neighboring Napa and Sonoma counties, with zero containment.
The fire, which has prompted tens of thousands of North Coast residents to leave their homes under mandatory evacuation orders, is threatening 8,543 structures. Cal Fire said Monday night that it has destroyed 113 buildings and damaged two others.
Farther to the north, the Zogg fire in Shasta County, which began Sunday afternoon, was up to 31,237 acres and no containment on Monday night, Cal Fire said. It has killed three civilians, is threatening 1,538 structures and has so far destroyed 146 buildings.
Pacific Gas and Electric Co., which concluded on Monday a public safety power shutoff to 65,000 customers across 15 counties due to the red flag warning in effect through the weekend, said it’s continuing to closely monitor the Glass and Zogg fires and is working closely with first responders and Cal Fire.
On Monday night, the company said approximately 24,000 of its customers in Napa, Sonoma, Shasta and Tehama counties impacted by wildfires are without power. In some instances, power was turned off in partnership with Cal Fire and for the safety of firefighters in active fire areas or due to damage caused from wildfire-related impacts to equipment.
Also on Monday night, Gov. Newsom issued his state of emergency declaration for Napa and Sonoma counties due to the Glass fire and for Shasta County due to the Zogg fire.
Downtown Calistoga, California, appeared abandoned on Monday, September 28, 2020, after residents were forced to evacuate from the path of the Glass fire. Photo by Gemini Garcia. The governor on Monday also sent a letter to President Donald Trump requesting a presidential major disaster declaration to assist state and local wildfire response and recovery efforts in the counties of Fresno, Los Angeles, Madera, Mendocino, San Bernardino, San Diego and Siskiyou.
California previously secured a presidential major disaster declaration to bolster the state’s emergency response to the Northern California wildfires as well as Fire Management Assistance Grants from the Federal Emergency Management Agency to support the state’s ongoing response to fires burning across the state.
In addition, Gov. Newsom has declared a statewide emergency due to the widespread fires and extreme weather conditions, activated the State Operations Center to its highest level and signed an executive order to streamline recovery efforts in communities impacted by the devastating fires.
Through the night on Monday and into early Tuesday, scanner traffic indicated the struggle firefighters are facing with the Glass fire, as it makes runs over ridges, spot fires develop and some residents who refused to evacuate called in for help as the fire approached their homes.
Calistoga, which was placed under evacuation on Monday evening, appeared abandoned later in the night, according to Lake County News correspondent Gemini Garcia.
Garcia said the fire was burning along Silverado Trail at Highway 29. She said dozers were headed up Palisades Road near Calistoga. “It’s the only sound you can hear from any viewpoint.”
A view of the Palisades taken from St. Helena, California, as the Glass fire burns nearby on Monday, September 28, 2020. Photo by Gemini Garcia. Fires burning now among state’s largest
In a briefing on Monday morning, Gov. Gavin Newsom said 27 major wildland incidents were burning across the state.
Separately, Cal Fire reported that there have been more than 8,100 wildfires that have burned more than 3.7 million acres in California since the start of the year.
Since Aug. 15, when California’s fire activity elevated, there have been 26 fatalities and over 7,000 structures destroyed, Cal Fire said.
Five of the six largest wildland fires in recorded California history are now burning.
They include the August Complex in the Mendocino, Shasta-Trinity and Six Rivers National Forests, an area that includes northern Lake County, the largest fire in state history at more than 902,463 acres; the SCU Lightning Complex, the third-largest in history, which has burned 396,624 acres in Alameda, Contra Costa, Merced, San Joaquin, Santa Clara and Stanislaus counties; the LNU Lightning Complex, No. 4, at 363,220 acres, burning in Colusa, Lake, Napa, Sonoma, Solano and Yolo counties; the North Complex, No. 5, which has burned 306,135 acres in Butte and Plumas counties; and the Creek fire, at 304,640 acres, burning in Fresno and Madera counties, is No. 6.
The 2018 Mendocino Complex, which burned 459,123 acres in Colusa, Glenn, Lake and Mendocino counties, is the second-largest fire in state history.
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.
A Cal Fire map of fires burning across the state of California on Monday, September 28, 2020.
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – Lake County’s Public Health officer said Monday that the state has delayed by one week moving the county into the most restrictive tier in its Blueprint for a Safer Economy following a spike in local COVID-19 cases and several more deaths in recent weeks.
Dr. Gary Pace said last week that, based on information from the state, Lake County was set to be moved fully into the purple tier, the highest when assessing COVID-19 transmission risk, as early as Tuesday, as Lake County News has reported.
For the weeks of Sept. 6 to 12 and Sept. 13 to 19 Lake County’s case and positivity rates put it in line for greater restrictions.
However, Pace said many of those cases were associated with a single outbreak, referring to the situation at a skilled nursing facility, Lakeport Post Acute.
The California Department of Public Health reported the outbreak has resulted in 37 residents and 22 staffers testing positive, with Lake County Public Health confirming seven residents have died.
Pace said Monday that the state agreed to grant Lake County another week – Sept. 20 to 26 – to observe whether the case rate in the general population stays high.
“Data for Sept. 20 to 26 is still coming in, but it is probable we will move to the purple tier Tuesday, Oct. 6, with businesses having three additional days to comply. Business owners are encouraged to plan for this,” Pace said.
If the county is moved into that higher tier, Pace said businesses and enterprises considered high-risk must move all services outdoors. That includes restaurants, movie theaters, worship services and gyms/fitness centers, etc.
Select a purple tier county (such as Butte) to see all restrictions on the state website.
Pace said schools that have opened for on-site learning prior to the county joining the purple tier can stay open.
Schools offering remote learning only will have to wait until the county returns to the red tier – which has to be sustained over two consecutive seven-day reporting periods – to offer on-site instruction, Pace said.
“We are all tired and frustrated by how long the COVID-19 pandemic has endured, but rising cases mean we all must observe recommended and mandated precautions. COVID-19 can be serious, even fatal. If it continues to spread, we will be forced to further limit activities. The state will get increasingly involved in local affairs,” Pace said.
“We all want to be free to live our lives. Right now, we promote that when we wear a mask, keep a safe distance and avoid gatherings, particularly indoors, with people outside of our households,” as well as by taking special care if working with vulnerable people, Pace said.
“Our actions make a difference,” he said.
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.
NORTHERN CALIFORNIA – Pacific Gas and Electric Co. said Monday night that it had restored power to nearly all of the 65,000 customers whose power it turned off on Sunday in response to a red flag warning.
The company said it reduced the scope of its public safety power shutoff from 89,000 customers in 16 counties to 65,000 customers in 15 counties: Alpine, Amador, Butte, Calaveras, El Dorado, Lake, Napa, Nevada, Placer, Plumas, Shasta, Sierra, Tehama and Yuba counties.
As of Monday night, 1,300 customers were awaiting restoration, PG&E said.
In Lake County, PG&E said 55 customers, two of them in the medical baseline program, were impacted, along with two customers within Sonoma County. A few customers in Kern County had initially been included, but due to improved weather conditions, were removed from the scope.
The shutoffs began early Sunday morning and continued into the evening, when Lake County’s customers – in an area near the Lake and Napa County line south of Middletown – were reported to have had their power shut off.
On Monday morning, PG&E said meteorologists in its Emergency Operations Center issued a weather all-clear for most – but not all – areas impacted by the shutoff.
PG&E crews – consisting of nearly 1,700 ground personnel and 50 helicopters – then began inspecting nearly 3,915 miles of transmission and distribution lines for damage or hazards.
They began to restore powers to customers in areas where no damage or hazards to the company’s electrical equipment was found.
However, PG&E said preliminary data from the inspections revealed 13 instances of weather-related damage and hazards in the PSPS-affected areas. Examples include downed lines and vegetation on power lines.
The company said that, had it not deenergized power lines, those types of damage could have caused potential wildfire ignitions.
During the wind event, PG&E said top wind speeds throughout the power shutoff area included 61 miles per hour sustained and 73-mile-per-hour gusts on the Mt. St. Helena West weather station in Sonoma County; 44-mile-per-hour sustained winds and gusts of 72 miles per hour at Jarbo Gap in Butte County; and at Mt. Diablo in Contra Costa County, sustained winds were recorded at 52 miles per hour, with gusts of 66 miles per hour.
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.
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – Voters in Lake County will have numerous local offices to decide on when they vote for the Nov. 3 election.
School and special districts boards are among the seats up for election this fall.
That’s in addition to District 5 supervisorial runoff between Bill Kearney and Jessica Pyska.
The Lakeport and Clearlake city councils also have elections this November.
In Clearlake, on the ballot will be David Claffey and Joyce Overton, while in Lakeport candidates are Michael Froio, Michael Green, Nathan Maxman and Kenny Parlet.
While many positions will be on the ballot, in several cases where there are not enough candidates for seats or the same number of candidates as seats, those will not go on the ballot.
The following are the lists of seats for fire, school and special districts that will be filled by the fall election as well as those that have been filled and will not be on the ballot.
More information about the general election is available on the Lake County Registrar of Voters Office website.
The August Complex as mapped on Monday, September 28, 2020. Map courtesy of the US Forest Service.
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – Thanks to the work of firefighters protecting communities around Lake Pillsbury against the approach of the August Complex, evacuation orders in the area have been reduced to warnings.
The US Forest Service said Monday that the August Complex had grown to 878,470 acres – up about 8,000 acres since Sunday – with containment up two percentage points to 45 percent.
The complex, which began due to lightning on Aug. 17, is burning on the Mendocino, Shasta-Trinity and Six Rivers National Forests. Fire officials continue to anticipate it will be fully contained on Nov. 15.
Firefighters have been on high alert across the complex’s vast acreage due to an ongoing red flag warning that the National Weather Service issued last week because of high winds from an offshore wind event.
Critical fire weather conditions continue, officials said, with winds on Monday expected to be sustained at 12 to 18 miles per hour with gusts to 25 miles per hour on ridges and high areas, and 6 to 12 miles per hour in valleys.
Officials said temperatures will be close to 100 degrees and the humidity will be in the single digits. Relative humidity values did not increase much overnight, so fuels will start out dry this morning. As a result of these conditions, there will be significant potential for rapid fire growth for most of the day.
Despite the high winds and critical fire weather Sunday, crews successfully defended control lines in the Lake Pillsbury area and the east side of the South Zone is still fully contained, the US Forest Service reported.
On Monday, fire crews are continuing their work to secure firelines in the Pillsbury Lake and Rice Fork areas, the Forest Service said.
The Lake County Sheriff’s Office said Monday that the evacuation orders have been reduced to warnings for all residents and areas south of fire’s edge, north of North Ridge and West Crockett Camp, east of the Lake-Mendocino County line and west of the Lake-Glenn County line.
Also, evacuation orders have been lifted for all areas south of North Ridge and West Crockett Camp, east of the Lake-Glenn-Colusa County line and north of Pack Saddle Creek, the sheriff’s office reported.
Evacuation orders remain in effect for all areas north of the fire’s edge, south and west of the Lake-Glenn County line, and east of the Lake-Mendocino County line, the sheriff’s office reported.
The Forest Service said the last remaining elements of the 14th Brigade Engineering Battalion from Joint Base Lewis-McChord departed the August Complex on Sunday after fighting the fire for 30 days.
“The hard work by these dedicated soldiers made a significant impact on the South Zone of the August Complex,” said Mike Quesinberry, incident commander of the National Incident Management Organization. “This unit provided additional capacity when national resources were critically low and played an important role in increasing containment and protecting structures.”
On the east side of the complex, the Burned Area Emergency Response team, or BAER, is mobilized and prepared to start their analyses of the burned area, the Forest Service said.
After a fire, officials said the priority is emergency stabilization in order to prevent further damage to life, property or natural resources on Forest Service lands.
The stabilization work begins before the fire is out and may continue for up to a year. Rehabilitation focuses on the lands unlikely to recover naturally from wildland fire damage, officials said.
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.
The Glass fire as mapped by Cal Fire on Monday, September 28, 2020.
NORTHERN CALIFORNIA – Thousands of people across Napa and Sonoma counties are once again under evacuation due to a fast-moving wildland fire incident that includes three fires that began on Sunday.
The Glass fire began shortly before 4 a.m. Sunday in the Deer Park area of Napa County. Cal Fire said the first units on scene found a fast-moving 20-acre vegetation fire. By 1 p.m. Sunday, it had grown to 1,200 acres and had doubled again to 2,500 acres by nightfall.
The fire has had a dangerous rate of spread and has expanded into Sonoma County, officials said.
On Sunday night, two additional fires – the Shady and Boysen – began in Sonoma County. The Sonoma County Sheriff’s Office said those fires were in the area of St. Helena Road and Los Alamos Road.
Cal Fire said those fires have merged with the Glass fire.
Overnight the incident as a whole burned several thousand more acres, with officials reporting on Monday morning that it had burned 11,000 acres, with no containment.
The Glass fire evacuation area in Sonoma County, California, as of Monday, September 28, 2020. Map courtesy of the county of Sonoma.
Cal Fire said crews have reported the Glass fire has had short-range spotting with wind-driven runs.
Early Monday, firefighters reported over the radio that the fire was jumping Highway 29 in Napa County and also had crossed over in the 4400 block of Silverado Trail.
Resources have been thin due to so many other fires around the state – Gov. Gavin Newsom said 27 incidents are burning across California – and early Monday crews were being moved around to priority areas as the fire moved closer to homes.
Cal Fire said that the fire is threatening 8,543 structures. There was no report from Cal Fire on Monday about how many structures have been damaged or destroyed, but there were multiple reports Sunday night and into early Monday about losses to vineyards and wineries, including photographs and video footage of burning homes.
The Shady fire portion of the incident was reported to be burning in and around Trione-Annadel State Park on Monday morning.
The Glass fire evacuation area in Napa County, California, as of Monday, September 28, 2020. Map courtesy of the county of Napa.
The fire has led to evacuations across Napa and Sonoma counties. The maps below show the evacuation areas as of Monday morning for both counties.
On Sunday night, thousands of residents were on the highways attempting to leave the areas of the Shady and Boysen fires, with the Sonoma County Sheriff’s Office directing evacuees to head east on Highway 12 toward Sonoma because westbound traffic toward Santa Rosa was gridlocked.
By Monday morning, Cal Fire had 1,070 firefighters assigned to the incident, along with 133 engines, 22 water tenders, five helicopters, 26 hand crews and 35 dozers.
Cal Fire said it has activated two new incident management teams. One is being sent to the Glass fire and the other to the 15,000-acre Zogg fire in Shasta County.
A red flag warning remains in effect through Monday for strong and gusty offshore winds, low humidity and dry fuels.
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.
On Tuesday, September 22, 2020, Lake County Tribal Health Consortium leaders presented a $5,000 check to the Westside Community Park Committee and members of the Lakeport Lions Club to help fund a new playground at the park in Lakeport, California. Photo courtesy of Lake County Tribal Health. LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – The Lake County Tribal Health Consortium is partnering with Westside Community Park and the Lakeport Lions Club to bring a new playground to the park.
On Tuesday, Tribal Health Chief Executive Officer Ernesto Padillo presented a $5,000 check to Westside Community Park Committee members.
They were joined by Lakeport Lions Club board members, who previously donated $100,000 to construct a playground at Westside Community Park.
“Lake County Tribal Health Consortium is happy to help reach the fundraising goal at Westside Community Park,” Padilla said. “Parks like Westside don’t only promote physical activity time but family time as well, which is equally important. Any opportunity LCTHC has to give back to the community that has helped us grow and promotes health is an opportunity we don’t pass up.”
Westside Community Park Committee Chair Dennis Rollins said the donation came about after the committee sent out a fundraising letter in an attempt to raise $5,000 to supplement the Lakeport Lions Club's playground donation.
“The current budget requirement is $110,000 with the cost of grading still to be added when the engineering is complete,” he said. “Ruzicka Associates is donating the engineering services.”
Rollins said Lake County Tribal Health received that letter and offered the entire $5,000 to meet the goal the committee’s letter described.
In addition, so far more than $4,000 more has come in from community donations in response to the letter, Rollins said.
“This playground will become a reality thanks to the Lions Club, Lake County Tribal Health and members of our community,” Rollins said.
Earlier this month, during Tribal Health’s groundbreaking of its new Clearlake clinic, Padilla presented a $25,000 to the city of Clearlake to go toward improvements at Austin Park, as Lake County News has reported.
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.
Retiring Lake County Planning Commissioner Bob Malley, foreground, with Clearlake Mayor Russ Cremer, left, and retired District 2 Supervisor Jeff Smith, right, at the Clearlake City Council chambers at Clearlake City Hall on Tuesday, September 22, 2020. Photo via screen capture of Board of Supervisors meeting. LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – The Board of Supervisors last week offered honors to a longtime county planning commissioner as he retires from his position.
Supervisor Bruno Sabatier presented a proclamation of commendation to Lake County Planning Commissioner Bob Malley at Clearlake City Hall on Tuesday morning, appearing via Zoom as part of the board’s meeting.
Joining Sabatier and Malley in the Clearlake City Council chambers were Mayor Russ Cremer and Sabatier’s predecessor on the board, retired District 2 Supervisor Jeff Smith.
Sabatier said Malley retired effective Sept. 24.
The Board of Supervisors voted to confirm Malley as Smith’s pick for the planning commission on Feb. 23, 2010.
In his time on the commission, Malley has considered key – and sometimes controversial – development projects around the county, including Dollar General’s various store proposals around Lake County, Valley Oaks and the Guenoc Valley Project in the south county, as well as cell towers and numerous cannabis projects.
The board commendation also credited him with helping to make decisions on important land use ordinances that will change Lake County’s future.
By the time he joined the commission, Malley already had a lengthy record of public service, from his time as a Lake County Sheriff’s deputy to serving on the Clearlake City Council, including holding the mayor’s job.
The proclamation credited Malley for bringing “intelligence, integrity, understanding, hard work, and a passion for community to the Planning Commission,” thus setting the bar for all other commissioners to meet.
Sabatier said Malley has done a lot for the city of Clearlake and the county as a whole. “He is part of Lake County.”
Smith said Malley has served the community in outstanding ways, including the sometimes thankless task of being a planning commissioner.
“I don’t know how to thank him enough,” other than to take him golfing, Smith said.
Smith told Malley, “You retired once, you need to retire again.”
Cremer said he’s known Malley going back to the time when he wore a badge.
“You’ve done a fantastic job in helping to make Lake County and the city of Clearlake a clearer and a safer place,” said Cremer.
He added in jest, “Did I mention that we have an opening on our planning commission?”
Supervisor Rob Brown said he was a teenager when he met Malley, then a sheriff’s deputy, known for treating people fairly.
Brown said Malley has been a great planning commissioner and wondered if in his retirement Malley will stop sending him text messages during the board meetings, suggesting how to vote on topics.
He also recognized Malley’s wife, Debi, for her support. “It’s a team effort on your part,” said Brown. “I appreciate both of you very much.”
Supervisor EJ Crandell served on the planning commission with Malley, and at Tuesday’s meeting recalled how Malley encouraged him to take on the vice chair job after his first year.
He said Malley may not have agreed with some projects, but he went by the book.
“We leaned on him a lot for his experience and he did a great job as a planning commissioner,” Crandell said.
“It’s been fun. It’s been a labor of love,” Malley said, adding, “This county has been very close to my heart.”
He said his parents moved him – kicking and screaming – to Lake County from San Francisco in 1966 when he was 16 years old. It wasn’t easy transitioning from his big high school in the city to the smaller school at Lower Lake.
He said his job with the Lake County Sheriff’s Office was the one he enjoyed the most, but he had to leave it early after being injured.
“We found other ways to help out,” he said, referring to his service on the Clearlake City Council and then the planning commission.
He said that as a commissioner he made his choices based on the laws laid out in front of him.
Malley thanked the board for the recognition. He said his wife retires on Oct. 1 – she works as Konocti Unified School District’s manager of student and family services – and they’re looking forward to camping trips in the near future and a cross-country trip next year.
“Bob is a shining example of what we’re always looking for in our community,” Sabatier said. “The best thing you could ever do for yourself and your community is to give back.”
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.
NORTH COAST, Calif. – The Mendocino County Sheriff’s Office said its detectives are continuing to investigate a reported robbery and kidnapping on Sunday that led to a manhunt and shelter in place order.
Just after 10 a.m. Sunday, authorities said a Cal Fire law enforcement prevention officer on Highway 162 approximately half a mile from the intersection of Highway 101 contacted an adult male who reported being the victim of an armed robbery which had occurred approximately 20 minutes prior.
The adult male told the officer that three to four subjects armed with assault weapon-style rifles and dressed in body armor had fled, possibly southbound, on Highway 101 in a black Chevrolet Tahoe and gray Toyota Tacoma, officials said.
This information was broadcast by radio to on-duty personnel with the Mendocino County Sheriff's Office, California Highway Patrol and Ukiah Police Department.
A Mendocino County Sheriff's Office sergeant was on routine patrol on Highway 20 east of Potter Valley when he saw two vehicles matching the suspect vehicle descriptions, the sheriff’s office said.
He attempted a traffic stop on the black Chevrolet Tahoe, which failed to stop and instead accelerated to speeds over 100 miles per hour. Authorities said a vehicle pursuit was initiated with the assistance of the California Highway Patrol.
The Chevrolet Tahoe continued several miles eastbound on Highway 20 before making a U-turn and heading westbound on Highway 20 for a short time before turning onto a rural parcel of property near Mile Post Marker 41, which was on the east side of the highway, officials said.
The Chevrolet Tahoe continued along a dirt road in poor condition which led up into the wooded hillside. Fearing an ambush, the patrol sergeant discontinued the pursuit and began to establish a search perimeter, the sheriff’s office said.
During the Chevrolet Tahoe pursuit, officials said a deputy responding to assist the sergeant was able to conduct a traffic stop on the Toyota Tacoma.
Authorities said the deputy identified the driver as Jesus Estevan Vargas Jr., 41, of Moreno Valley, and a subsequent investigation resulted in his arrest in connection with the reported armed robbery.
During the establishment of the search perimeter, authorities said the sergeant learned of a possible exit point to the east along Highway 101. The sergeant took a position at this eastern location to intercept the Chevrolet Tahoe.
A short time later a few gunshots were heard and then a person was heard screaming. Sometime thereafter, law enforcement personnel on the search perimeter were contacted by two adult males. The sheriff’s office said the deputies learned the adult males had been kidnapped during the armed robbery and had been bound by zip-ties and their heads covered by some type of material.
They reported the Chevrolet Tahoe had become disabled on the dirt road and one of the adult male victims was shot in the back while trying to escape. The sheriff’s office said the adult victims reported the two subjects fled on foot, were armed with assault-style rifles and clothed in body armor.
The adult male victim with the gunshot wound to the back of his shoulder was transported by air ambulance to an ouT-of-county hospital for medical treatment, the sheriff’s office said.
Based upon the circumstances of the situation, officials said a request was made for the Mendocino County Multi-Agency SWAT team who later arrived on the scene.
The SWAT team utilized the armored citizen rescue vehicle and drove to the area of the disabled Chevrolet Tahoe. At the same time, H-14, a CHP Helicopter, began providing aerial assistance to the SWAT team.
As H-14 conducted overflight operations its crew was able to locate one of the armed subjects in the wooden terrain uphill from the disabled Chevrolet Tahoe. The sheriff’s office said this subject disarmed himself and surrendered to the SWAT team by walking downhill to their position.
The sheriff’s office said H-14 continued overflight operations and located the second subject nearby to where the first subject initially was observed. H-14 was able to see that the second subject was armed with a handgun and rifle.
Sometime thereafter, several gunshots were heard which were attributed to the second subject and H-14 continued to observe his location, officials said.
During this time H-14 radioed to the SWAT team that the suspect had possibly suffered a self-inflicted gunshot wound but was still making body movements which showed he was alive and still a potential danger as he was still armed, the sheriff’s office said.
As H-14 began to exhaust its fuel, a mutual aid request was sent to the Sonoma County Sheriff's Office for its helicopter Henry-1, which subsequently arrived on the scene. The sheriff’s office said that when H-14 left for refueling, Henry-1 assumed overflight operations and assisted SWAT team members in safely approaching the second subject.
At this time, H-14 was able to return to the scene to provide further assistance as Henry-1 was exhausting its fuel, officials said.
The sheriff’s office said the SWAT team was able to take the second subject into custody and noticed he needed immediate medical treatment due to a self-inflicted gunshot wound to his head.
A SWAT team medic began life-saving treatment and the second subject was immediately transported by sheriff's office vehicle to the staging area near Highway 101 where an ambulance and H-14 were waiting. Authorities said the second subject was prepped for flight and H-14 transported him to an out-of-county hospital for medical treatment.
Sheriff's detectives are conducting ongoing investigations at this time into the reported robbery and kidnapping, the sheriff’s office said.
At the time of the sheriff’s office’s Sunday report, it appeared that the robbery and kidnapping were connected to a marijuana sale/purchase transaction between the involved individuals.
One law enforcement member experienced a heat-related emergency at the conclusion of the several-hour-long event and had to be transported to Adventist Health-Ukiah Valley by ambulance where he was treated/released, the sheriff’s office said.
Authorities said there were no other law enforcement injuries and no shots were fired by law enforcement personnel during the incident/operation.
The Mendocino County Sheriff's Office thanked Cal Fire, CHP, the Sonoma County Sheriff’s Office, Ukiah Police Department, MedStar Ambulance and Potter Valley Fire Department for their assistance during this incident/operation.
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