NORTHERN CALIFORNIA – A gray wolf that crossed the Oregon border into California late last year has traveled farther down the state, arriving in Butte County.

Known as OR7, the 3-year-old wolf was first tracked by satellite in Butte County on June 28, according to an update from the California Department of Fish and Game.

The agency said it intentionally delays updating maps on OR7’s movements to protect his current location.

A Monday update said the wolf was in northeastern Butte County.

OR7 was born in spring 2009 in northeastern Oregon, the Department of Fish and Game reported.

He grew up as part of the state’s Imnaha pack, which was first documented the year he was born in the Imnaha River drainage, east of the communities of Enterprise and Joseph in Wallowa County. Officials reported that the pack’s founding members migrated to Oregon from Idaho.

OR7 was collared with a radio transmitter by Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife (ODFW) in February 2011, about nine months before officials said he dispersed from the Imnaha pack.

He headed south, traveling hundreds of miles and crossing Interstate 84 and several highways before passing into California near Dorris in Siskiyou County on Dec. 28, according to the California and Oregon wildlife agencies.

His appearance in California is the first of any wild wolf since 1924. That year, the last gray wolf was killed in Lassen County, the state reported.

Since then, tracking has shown he’s traveled an average of 15 miles a day through a variety of habitats and predominantly on public lands.

He was spotted in May in Modoc County by state and federal wildlife officials.

Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .

NORTHERN CALIFORNIA – As federal and state firefighters worked on a fire inside the Colusa County area of the Mendocino National Forest on Sunday, resources were sent to several more fires reported around the region.

The Mill Fire – near the Mill Creek Campground in the national forest – was sparked on Saturday afternoon, and remained the focus of an aggressive firefighting effort on Sunday.

Air resources continued to hit the fire from above due to the steep terrain, according to reports from the scene.

Mendocino National Forest officials reported Sunday evening that the Mill Fire had reached approximately 1,200 acres, more than tripling in size since the morning. There was no containment estimate given.

In the midst of that effort, on Sunday afternoon the Sites Complex along Sites Lodoga Road west of Maxwell was reported.

On Sunday night, Cal Fire reported that the Sites Complex’s five fires had blown up to an estimated 2,500 acres over the course of about five hours. A report on that incident can be found at http://bit.ly/ONjOS7 .

In the video posted below and submitted by Steve and Sara Marks of Woodland, both the Mill Fire and the Sites Complex can be seen from the Marks' family ranch near Stonyford.

Smoke from the fires – all in Colusa County – mushroomed up over the Lake County horizon, casting a reddish-brown cloud along the hilltops.

On Saturday officials had set a Friday containment date for the Mill Fire, but forest spokesperson Tamara Schmidt said Sunday night that there was no current estimate for a containment time on the incident, the cause of which remains under investigation.

Schmidt reported that the Mill Fire on Sunday continued to move to the north and east toward the Fouts Springs area in Colusa County.

She said terrain and wind dominated the active fire behavior exhibited on Sunday, with spotting a half mile ahead of the fire and running crown fire. The fire is burning in heavy mixed brush and timber.

The incident is expected to transition to a Type 2 Incident Team on Monday at 6 a.m., with the team’s operations to be based in Stonyford, Schmidt said.

According to the U.S. Forest Service, a Type 2 team includes members from a wide variety of federal, state, county and local agencies. The team manages large wildland fire incidents and addresses safety, fiscal, planning, operational and logistical issues.

As of Sunday night, Schmidt said evacuations were in effect for the Fouts Springs Off-Highway Vehicle (OHV) Area, as well as in the Happy Valley area.  

Mill Valley, Mill Creek and Letts Lake campgrounds and the Board Camp summer home tract were evacuated on Saturday, she said.

Approximately 25 structures are threatened, including the campgrounds, according to Schmidt.

She said the M10 Road between Letts Lake and Fouts Springs, leading to Stonyford, is currently inaccessible.  

The Mendocino National Forest is preparing a formal closure order restricting access to the entire area, including roads and the OHV trail system, she said.

Also on Sunday, Cal Fire sent air and ground resources to the Jelly Fire, a small incident near Jellystone Park Campground, located at 14117 Bottle Rock Road in Cobb.

The fire, reported shortly before 3 p.m., was contained at approximately 3:38 p.m., reports from the scene indicated.

Burn piles were located in the middle of the fire, and heavy mop up was required, according to radio reports.

Cal Fire said the Jelly Fire burned a total of nine acres. No cause was immediately reported.

In other fire news around the state, Cal Fire reported that the Oregon Fire, west of Lake Oroville in Butte County, was fully contained at 60 acres Sunday night.

The Fish Fire, located in Inyo County, had reached 1,103 acres Sunday night, and was 85 percent contained, Cal Fire said.

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NORTHERN CALIFORNIA – A new complex of wildland fires reported outside of Maxwell Sunday afternoon rapidly scorched thousands of acres.

The Sites Complex includes five fires burning in the area of Sites Lodoga Road west of Maxwell in neighboring Colusa County, according to Cal Fire.

Shortly after 7 p.m. Sunday Cal Fire reported that the complex – first reported at 3:45 p.m. – had grown to an estimated 350 acres, with 10 percent containment.

Less than an hour later, the size of the fire was put at 2,500 acres, with the same containment level.

Cal Fire’s Sonoma-Lake-Napa Unit responded with ground and air crews throughout the afternoon.

Reports from the scene indicated the fire was burning in brush and moving up hillsides, with structures threatened.

Cal Fire said Sunday evening that 150 personnel and 28 engines were involved in the firefighting effort on the Sites Complex, along with six fire crews, six air tankers, two helicopters and five dozers.

Smoke from the fire could be seen along the hilltops separating Lake County from Colusa County, where firefighters were still at work on the Mill Fire, which had begun the previous day in the Mendocino National Forest.

More information on the Sites Complex will be posted as it becomes available.

Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .

NORTHERN CALIFORNIA – A fire burning since Saturday on the Colusa County side of the Mendocino National Forest has continued to grow, reaching an estimated 2,500 acres by Monday.

The Mill Fire – burning near the Mill Creek Campground, north and east of Upper Letts Lake – showed significant growth on Sunday, according to a Mendocino National Forest report.

On Monday morning, Northern California Team 2, a Type 2 Interagency Incident Management Team, assumed command of the Mill Fire. The team is based in Stonyford.

The fire was 10 percent contained on Monday, according to the forest officials.

The cause remains under investigation.

Forest officials reported that the fire's growth has been driven by hot, dry conditions, with growth taking place predominately to the east and north. It's burning in timber and brush.

The Mill Fire's behavior has shown active torching, crown runs and spotting up to one half mile in advance of the main fire, according to the report.

With the weather conditions forecast for the rest of this week temperatures between 90 and 95 degrees and low relative humidity between 9 and 16 percent – officials are concerned that firefighters will be met with additional challenges.

On scene Monday were nine Type 1 crews, three Type 2 crews, eight helicopters, 17 engines, four dozers, two water tenders and a total of 360 personnel, according to the incident management team's report.

The communities of Fouts Springs, Bonnie View and Board Camp Springs and campgrounds within the Upper Letts Lake area remain under evacuation order, incident command reported.

Portions of the community of Stonyford are under voluntary evacuation, and officials reported that an advisory has been issued to residents west of the Stonyford Lodoga Road between Stonyford and Goat Mountain Road to be prepared for a possible evacuation

Road closures include Fouts Spring Road (The M10 Road) at Stonyford and Goat Mountain Road at Stonyford Lodoga Road, officials reported.

The incident management team will hold a meeting at the Stonyford Grange at 7 p.m. Monday, at which time the team and Mendocino National Forest officials will provide updates and new information on the incident.

Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .

COBB, Calif. – Two moderate-sized earthquakes hit the Cobb area within a minute of each other early Sunday evening.

The quakes, which occurred at 5 p.m. and 5:01 p.m., measured 3.1 and 3.9, respectively, according to the US Geological Survey.

The 3.1-magnitude quake was recorded at a depth of just under two miles, and was centered two miles north northeast of The Geysers geothermal steamfield, four miles west southwest of Cobb and six miles west northwest of Anderson Springs, the survey reported.

By 9 p.m. Sunday four shake reports from three zip codes – Calistoga, Cloverdale and Rohnert Park – had been submitted to the survey.

The second, 3.9-magnitude quake happened just under the earth’s surface. The US Geological Survey said the second quake’s epicenter was three miles north northeast of The Geysers, four miles west of Cobb and seven miles northwest of Anderson Springs.

The survey by 9 p.m. Sunday had received 29 shake reports from 15 zip codes, most of them in Lake, Napa and Sonoma counties, but some coming in from as far away as San Francisco.

Numerous Lake County residents posted on Lake County News’ Facebook page that they felt the second quake – dubbed by one “a good little shaker” – even as far down as the Kelseyville/Lakeport area.

One area resident said it was the largest quake he’s felt in Cobb so far, another person said they noted cars shaking as a result.

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UPPER LAKE, Calif. – Lake County Sheriff’s officials are searching for an inmate worker who walked away from a work crew on Saturday.

Alden Vincent Miller, 50, of Upper Lake was reported missing from the crew Saturday afternoon, according to a Sunday report from Capt. Chris Macedo.

At approximately 3:52 p.m. Saturday Lake County Sheriff’s deputies were dispatched to the Lake County Department of Public Services yard located on Mendenhall Drive in Upper Lake to take a report of an inmate worker who had walked away, Macedo said.

He reported that deputies were able to confirm that Miller had walked away from his work detail.

Miller was a sentenced inmate at the Hill Road Correctional Facility and had been in custody on a drug related charge, according to Macedo.

Macedo said Miller and several other inmates were assigned to work at the Department of Public Services yard as part of their sentence.  

Miller and the other inmates were picked up by Department of Public Services personnel and transported to the Public Services Yard to perform various duties assigned by the department’s staff, Macedo said.

At approximately 3:20 p.m. Saturday, a Department of Public Services employee was unloading a truck and noticed that Miller was missing, Macedo said.

The department staffer gathered the rest of the inmate workers in an attempt to find out where Miller was before calling the Lake County Sheriff’s Office to report Miller as missing, according to Macedo.

Macedo said the Public Services employee found Miller’s inmate work shirt and hat near the corner of First and Sabini streets in Upper Lake, which is near the county yard where Miller was assigned to work.  

Deputies immediately responded to the area and searched for Miller. Macedo said deputies searched Upper Lake and the surrounding area with negative results. Lake County Sheriff’s Office Central Dispatch broadcast a “be on the lookout” for Miller.

Deputies interviewed the rest of the inmate crew and none of them were able to provide any information as to the whereabouts or reasons Miller walked away, Macedo said.

If anybody observes Miller or has information as to his whereabouts, they are encouraged to call the Lake County Sheriff’s Office at 707-263-2690.

LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – It’s tabby time at the county’s animal shelter.

Lots of the striped felines are ready for adoption, hoping to jump into a spot in your heart.

Cats that are adopted from Lake County Animal Care and Control are either neutered or spayed and microchipped before being released to their new owner. License fees do not apply to residents of the cities of Lakeport or Clearlake .

If you're looking for a new companion, visit the shelter. There are many great pets there, hoping you'll choose them.

The following cats at the Lake County Animal Care and Control shelter have been cleared for adoption (other cats pictured on the animal control Web site that are not listed here are still “on hold”).

Orange male tabby

This orange male tabby is 5 years old.

He has a short coat and gold eyes, and has been neutered.

Find him in cat room kennel No. 20, ID No. 33143.

Domestic short hair calico

This female calico is 2 years and 3 months old.

She has a short coat and gold eyes, and has not been spayed.

She is in cat room kennel No. 23, ID No. 32321.

Brown male tabby

This brown and white male tabby is a domestic medium hair mix.

Shelter staff have not provided an estimated age for him.

He has been neutered.

He’s in cat room kennel No. 29, ID No. 32484.

Green eyed girl

This female kitten is 13 weeks old.

She has a long black coat and green eyes. She has not yet been spayed.

She’s in cat room kennel No. 53b, ID No. 33249.

Gray tabby kitten

This female gray tabby kitten is 15 weeks old.

She has green eyes, a short coat and has been spayed.

Find her in cat room kennel No. 65a, ID No. 32839.

Gray tabby kitten

This male gray tabby kitten is 15 weeks old.

He has a short coat and green eyes, and has been neutered.

Find him in cat room kennel No. 65b, ID No. 32840.

Male domestic short hair mix

This male domestic short hair mix kitten is 15 weeks old.

He has gray and black coloring and green eyes, and has been neutered.

He's in cat room kennel No. 65c, ID No. 32841.

Brown tabby kitten

This male brown tabby kitten is 15 weeks old.

He has a short coat and green eyes, and has been neutered.

Find him in cat room kennel No. 65d, ID No. 32842.

Domestic short hair mix kitten

This male domestic short hair mix kitten is 16 weeks old.

He has a distinctive black and white coat, and has not yet been altered.

He’s in cat room Kennel No. 106A , ID No. 33309.

Domestic short hair mix kitten

This male domestic short hair mix kitten is 16 weeks old.

He has a black and white coat, and has not yet been neutered.

Find him in cat room kennel No. 106B, ID No. 33310.

Adoptable cats also can be seen at http://www.co.lake.ca.us/Government/Directory/Animal_Care_And_Control/Adopt/Cats_and_Kittens.htm or at www.petfinder.com .

Please note: Cats listed at the shelter's Web page that are said to be “on hold” are not yet cleared for adoption.

To fill out an adoption application online visit http://www.co.lake.ca.us/Government/Directory/Animal_Care_And_Control/Adopt/Dog___Cat_Adoption_Application.htm .

Lake County Animal Care and Control is located at 4949 Helbush in Lakeport, next to the Hill Road Correctional Facility.

Office hours are Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., and 1 p.m. to 3 p.m., Saturday. The shelter is open from 10:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday and on Saturday from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m.

Visit the shelter online at http://www.co.lake.ca.us/Government/Directory/Animal_Care_And_Control.htm .

For more information call Lake County Animal Care and Control at 707-263-0278.

Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .

MENDOCINO NATIONAL FOREST, Calif. – A fire that began burning Saturday on the Mendocino National Forest was reported to have reached approximately 350 acres by Sunday morning.

The Mill Fire was spotted at 3 p.m. Saturday near Mill Valley Campground in Colusa County, forest officials reported.

By Sunday morning firefighters had reached 40 percent containment on the fire, according to forest spokesperson Tamara Schmidt.

Schmidt said full containment is expected by Friday, July 13.

A Type 3 Incident Team is currently working on the fire with more resources coming in Sunday, Schmidt said.

The cause of the fire is currently under investigation.  Forest officials are not currently aware of any injuries associated with this fire.

Mill Valley, Mill Creek and Letts Lake campgrounds have been evacuated, as well as the Board Camp summer home tract. Approximately 25 structures are threatened, including the campgrounds, according to Schmidt.

Evacuees with recreational equipment remaining at the campgrounds should contact the Stonyford Work Center at 530-963-3128 to make arrangements to reclaim their gear.

The M10 Road between Letts Lake and Fouts Springs, leading to Stonyford, is currently inaccessible.  Visitors are being asked to avoid the Fouts Springs and Davis Flat area due to increased fire traffic.  This includes off-highway vehicle (OHV) trail systems in the area.

For more information, please contact the Mendocino National Forest at 530-934-3316, the Stonyford Work Center at 530-963-3128, or visit www.fs.usda.gov/mendocino .

NORTHERN CALIFORNIA – A wildland fire complex that began burning in neighboring Colusa County on Sunday had burned an estimated 3,700 acres by Monday morning.

The five-fire Sites Complex – reported at about 4 p.m. Sunday – is burning between the town of Sites and East Park Road, according to a Cal Fire update.

Cal Fire said the fires are burning in grass, brush and grassy oak woodland.

Five structures – outbuildings on rural properties – are threatened, according to Cal Fire.

On Monday morning firefighters had achieved 40 percent containment on the complex, with Cal Fire estimating full containment will be reached at some point on Thursday, July 12.

Approximately 1,145 firefighter personnel were working the complex on Monday, along with 42 engines, 16 dozers, 144 overhead or command positions, 10 water tenders, three helicopters, four air tankers and one air tactical.

The cause of the fires so far has not been reported.

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LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – Lake County marked the recent July 4 holiday over the course of last week, and in the process several local residents captured great images of the celebrations.

Above is a compilation of photos shared with Lake County News by county residents.

Thanks to local photographers Russell Bishop, Trett Bishop, Sawyer Braden, Cheryl Johns, Gary McAuley, Jodi Norris-Farres, Ed Oswalt and Michael Stroud for sharing their great photos of this year’s festivities.

NORTHERN CALIFORNIA – A 4.3-magnitude quake was reported near the coastal town of Fort Bragg in Mendocino County early Sunday morning.

The US Geological Survey said the quake occurred at 5:05 a.m. two miles north northwest of Fort Bragg and 40 miles northwest of Ukiah. It was recorded at the earth’s surface.

A survey shake map showed the quake’s intensity at its center was rated as “strong.”

By 11:30 a.m. Sunday the US Geological Survey had received 322 shake reports from 21 zip codes from around Mendocino and Humboldt counties, and other parts of the Northern California.

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