CLEARLAKE OAKS, Calif. – County officials on Sunday issued an update on plans to temporarily close New Long Valley Road for emergency road repairs.

The Lake County Department of Public Works reported that the road, the main access into the community of Spring Valley east of Clearlake Oaks, will be closed from 9 a.m. Monday, Feb. 20, until the evening of Tuesday, Feb. 21.

The agency is planning to install a temporary Bailey bridge due to concerns about the road’s instability and the possibility of another landslide like the one that caused the road to be closed temporarily last week.

Once the construction begins on Monday, residents will not be allowed to leave and no residents will be allowed to return, according to the Lake County Sheriff’s Office.

The sheriff’s office said that, currently, New Long Valley Road is the only way in or out of Spring Valley. Other roads that are used to access Spring Valley are not passable because of erosion and other weather-related issues.

Residents in Spring Valley are encouraged to evacuate or be prepared to be on their own until Wednesday or Thursday, officials said.

The Lake County Sheriff’s Office and Northshore Fire will have personnel assigned to work in Spring Valley and there will be no disruption to emergency services.

For those who decide to evacuate and need assistance with a place to stay, the sheriff’s office said they should call the American Red Cross at 866-272-2237.

Officials urge those who plan to evacuate to put together a "go bag" with important items like medications and hard-to-replace documents.

Residents who plan to evacuate also are urged to remember to plan for pets, livestock and other animals, officials said.

LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – Lake County Animal Care and Control has a group of mostly larger dogs waiting this week for their new homes.

Dogs available this week include basset hound, border collie, Chihuahua, dachshund, German Shepherd, Labrador Retriever, mastiff shepherd and wirehaired terrier mix.

Dogs that are adopted from Lake County Animal Care and Control are either neutered or spayed, microchipped and, if old enough, given a rabies shot and county license 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 hoping you'll choose them.

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

Female pit bull terrier

This female pit bull terrier mix has a short black and brown coat.

Shelter staff said she has no food aggression, allows for handling and gets along well with other male dogs her size. She would do best in a home with children ages 10 and up, and no small dogs or cats.

She is in kennel No. 9, ID No. 6884.

Female pit bull terrier

This female pit bull terrier has a short tan and white coat.

She’s in kennel No. 10, ID No. 6988.

Pit bull terrier-basset hound mix

This male pit bull terrier-basset hound mix has a short black and white coat.

Shelter staff said he is extremely submissive and fearful of other dogs, and needs a home with an experienced dog owner willing to teach him confidence. He allows handling of mouth, ears, tail and paws, and gently takes treats.

He’s in kennel No. 11, ID No. 6967.

‘Betsy’

“Betsy” is a border collie mix with a long black and white coat.

Shelter staff said she’s good with other dogs.

She’s in kennel No. 12, ID No. 6952.

Pit bull terrier-basset hound mix

This female pit bull terrier-basset hound mix has a short black and white coat.

Shelter staff said she is very submissive with other dogs, and needs a loving owner to teach her confidence and how to walk on a leash, as now she just lays down and crawls. She would do best with an experienced dog owner and children over age 10.

She’s in kennel No. 13, ID No. 6966.

Chihuahua-dachshund mix

This female Chihuahua-dachshund mix has a short black coat.

She’s in kennel No. 15, ID No. 6977.

Male pit bull terrier

This male pit bull terrier has a short brown and tan coat.

He’s in kennel No. 16, ID No. 6978.

German Shepherd

This female German Shepherd has a long back and tan coat.

She’s in kennel No. 17, ID No. 6987.

'Miles'

“Miles” is a young male pit bull terrier mix with a short brindle coat and gold eyes.

Shelter staff said he is great with other dogs and a little shy of people, but show him some kindness and he will learn to trust you. He would do great in a home with children ages 10 years old and up. They also believe he would be OK with cats. He’s looking for a calm, quiet home.

She's in kennel No. 19, ID No. 6875.

Male pit bull

This male pit bull terrier has a short brindle and white coat.

Shelter staff said he is very sweet with people. He would do best in a home with no cats and no other dogs, although shelter staff said they plan to reassess him on sociability.

He’s in kennel No. 21, ID No. 6968.

‘Teddy’

“Teddy” is a male mastiff-pit bull terrier with a short brown coat.

His adoption fees have been sponsored so he is free to an approved applicant.

Shelter staff said he is a mellow boy who has been waiting at the shelter for awhile for his new home.

He is great with other dogs, male or female, and is more interested in people than playing with other dog. Teddy is described as  “big cuddle bug” who is very gentle when taking treats and eager to learn. He would do best with children ages 5 and older.

“The family that gets this boy is very lucky,” shelter staff said.

He's in kennel No. 22, ID No. 6835.

‘Ralph’

“Ralph” is a Labrador Retriever-wirehaired terrier mix with a medium-length brown coat.

He already has been neutered.

He’s in kennel No. 30, ID No. 6787.

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, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., and 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., Saturday. The shelter is open from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday and on Saturday from 11 a.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. . Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.

Save

CLEARLAKE OAKS, Calif. – County officials said Saturday that New Long Valley Road in Spring Valley has become increasingly unstable and it is anticipated that a landslide may occur.

Lake County Public Works has plans to install a temporary bridge on New Long Valley Road starting on Monday Feb. 20.

Once the construction begins, residents will not be allowed to leave and no residents will be allowed to return, officials said.

Currently, New Long Valley Road is the only way in or out of Spring Valley. Other roads that are used to access Spring Valley are not passable because of erosion and other weather-related issues, according to the county.

The county urged residents in Spring Valley to evacuate or be prepared to be on their own until Wednesday or Thursday.

There will be a community meeting on Sunday, Feb. 19, at 9 a.m. in the Spring Valley Community Center, located at 3000 Wolf Creek Road.

The purpose of this meeting is to provide further information on this situation.

Members of the Lake County Sheriff’s Office/County Office of Emergency Services, County Administrative Office, Public Works, Northshore Fire Protection District, Social Services and the American Red Cross will be present.

NORTHERN CALIFORNIA – A week after its condition led to a evacuation order for nearly 200,000 Sacramento Valley residents, repair work on the Oroville Dam’s emergency spillway continues.

The California Department of Water Resources said the dam’s outflows on Saturday were reduced from 70,000 cubic feet per second to 55,000 cubic feet per second to allow assessment teams to view debris buildup and dredge debris piles below the flood control spillway.

Even with the recent storms, officials said the reduced outflow continued to outpace the inflow into the reservoir.

Lake elevations continue trending downward and had fallen to 854 feet by 4 p.m. Saturday, officials said.

As runoff flows into the reservoir, officials said water levels will likely fluctuate but will remain within acceptable and typical depths during times of storm activity.

Despite current inclement weather, work continues on the area below the spillway, the monoliths, access roads and various eroded areas created by emergency spillway runoff, the Department of Water Resources reported.

Rock, aggregate, and cement slurry continue to be placed into areas affected by erosion. Officials said this work will continue 24 hours a day.

On Saturday crews also worked to construct a barge to carry excavation equipment that will dredge debris and sediment that has built up below the flood control spillway, the agency said.

This week in history features an executive order with a lasting impact.

Feb. 19, 1942

On this day in history, President Franklin Delano Roosevelt signed Executive Order 9066.

It was just months following the Japanese attack on the naval port at Pearl Harbor in Hawaii and Americans were justifiably anxious about foreign invasion. After all, the long coast stretching from San Diego in the south to the Aleutian Islands in the north gave the Japanese plenty of options for amphibious assault and practically unfettered access to American airspace.

To be sure, the military had long since identified this coast as the soft underbelly of the nation and had taken steps to gird it in concrete artillery bunkers, in sunken anti-aircraft posts and in hilltop observation stations.

Our very own Lake County featured several such observation stations, which were manned by watchful citizens around the clock.

Locals from the Cobb area still remember the observation post that was stationed on Seigler Mountain, and some even remember taking their turns inside the wooden shed watching the passing clouds for signs of Japanese bombers.

As thorough as these precautions seemed, they were deemed insufficient to actually prevent major invasions.

Sure, a well-stocked artillery could help defend against a frontal assault and the observation posts could notify the nearest air force base of the need to scramble the fighters in defense, but none of these actually prevented a thing. Moreover, none of these precautions were effective against the single most feared enemy action: sabotage.

No matter how thick the concrete bunker, how far-ranged the artillery, or how keen the eye of the observer, a single subvert action on the part of a Japanese spy could undo all this work.

A single saboteur could guide the incoming thrust of the enemy blade past these precautions and deep into the belly of the nation.

Our nation’s security was at stake; the lives of our women and children were at stake. Something had to be done. Steps had to be taken to effectively counter the use of Japanese spies along the coast. The only sure-fire way to defend our nation under these circumstances was to contain those among us with ties to the Empire of Japan, those who posed a threat to our national security: the Japanese immigrants.

Of course, steps also had to be taken to actually protect these same immigrants. After all, by 1942 the Pacific coast states had already had a century-long history of vigilante violence against people of Asian descent.

The prejudice against Chinese immigrants working in local mines in Lake County is a well-established fact. So, too, is the fact that this prejudice occasionally translated into acts of violence, like that one time a small riot in Lakeport resulted in the broken windows and scarred door of a Chinese laundromat.

However, this prejudice was not just saved for the Chinese. In a 1913 advertisement that ran in newspapers in Sacramento, Lake County boosters tried to convince people of the benefits of buying land around Clear Lake. One of their selling points was that not a single Japanese person owned land within the boundary of Lake County.

To make matters worse, the bodies of those killed during the attack on Pearl Harbor were still making their way back to their families and ultimate burial. Passions were high against Japanese-Americans. It would be best for all parties involved to separate those of Japanese descent from the rest of the population.

These, at least, were the arguments used to justify Executive Order 9066.

In what later went down in infamy as one of the greatest injustices perpetrated against American citizens by the American government, Executive Order 9066 legalized the detention of all Japanese-Americans who lived within the Pacific military zone, a somewhat arbitrary line that stretched from the rim of the Cascade Mountains in Washington and Oregon directly south through California.

Americans with Japanese heritage and Japanese aliens living within the military zone were forcibly removed from their homes and gathered within the walls of detention facilities.

Within a month, 110,000 people in California, Oregon and Washington had been moved to internment camps. They remained there until Dec. 17, 1944.

Later, when told that he had been interned for his own safety, one internee famously retorted, “If we were put there for our own protection, why were the guns at the guard towers pointed inward, instead of outward?”

It would take decades before the American government acknowledged the immorality of Executive Order 9066.

Certainly, there did exist a viable threat from Japanese spies and anger over the attack on Pearl Harbor resulted in vigilante assaults on people of Japanese descent.

Nevertheless, the basic tenets of American freedom were violated that February day in 1942 – a fact that President Ronald Reagan acknowledged when he signed the Civil Liberties Act of 1988. In this show of regret and sincere apology, the American government granted reparations to the families who lost so much during their internment.

For many it was too little, too late.

Some of the detention facilities remain to this day, haunting ghost towns of an embarrassing chapter in our history.

If you are curious, and the mood ever strikes you, go visit Manzanar Relocation Center due east of Visalia. As a national historic site, it preserves the stories of those internees who lived two years in the detention facility.

A museum onsite chronicles the daily lives and struggles they experienced and a guided tour with a ranger will bring to life the now ruined barracks where internees once slept.

Our history is full of the beautiful, the heroic and the patriotic. But hidden in the dark corners of American history books can be found accounts like Executive Order 9066.

The full scope of our collective past – warts and all – have made this country what it is today. So if you hope to visit the memorial site of Pearl Harbor someday, consider also planning a trip down south to a memorial far less gratifying, but no less important.

For details about Manzanar National Historic Site, visit https://www.nps.gov/manz/index.htm .

Antone Pierucci is the former curator of the Lake County Museums in Lake County, Calif.

NASA’s Juno mission to Jupiter, which has been in orbit around the gas giant since July 4, 2016, will remain in its current 53-day orbit for the remainder of the mission.

This will allow Juno to accomplish its science goals, while avoiding the risk of a previously-planned engine firing that would have reduced the spacecraft’s orbital period to 14 days.

“Juno is healthy, its science instruments are fully operational, and the data and images we’ve received are nothing short of amazing,” said Thomas Zurbuchen, associate administrator for NASA’s Science Mission Directorate in Washington. “The decision to forego the burn is the right thing to do – preserving a valuable asset so that Juno can continue its exciting journey of discovery.”

Juno has successfully orbited Jupiter four times since arriving at the giant planet, with the most recent orbit completed on Feb. 2. Its next close flyby of Jupiter will be March 27.

The orbital period does not affect the quality of the science collected by Juno on each flyby, since the altitude over Jupiter will be the same at the time of closest approach.

In fact, the longer orbit provides new opportunities that allow further exploration of the far reaches of space dominated by Jupiter’s magnetic field, increasing the value of Juno’s research.

During each orbit, Juno soars low over Jupiter’s cloud tops – as close as about 2,600 miles (4,100 kilometers). During these flybys, Juno probes beneath the obscuring cloud cover and studies Jupiter’s auroras to learn more about the planet's origins, structure, atmosphere and magnetosphere.

The original Juno flight plan envisioned the spacecraft looping around Jupiter twice in 53-day orbits, then reducing its orbital period to 14 days for the remainder of the mission.

However, two helium check valves that are part of the plumbing for the spacecraft’s main engine did not operate as expected when the propulsion system was pressurized in October.

Telemetry from the spacecraft indicated that it took several minutes for the valves to open, while it took only a few seconds during past main engine firings.

“During a thorough review, we looked at multiple scenarios that would place Juno in a shorter-period orbit, but there was concern that another main engine burn could result in a less-than-desirable orbit,” said Rick Nybakken, Juno project manager at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in Pasadena, California. “The bottom line is a burn represented a risk to completion of Juno’s science objectives.”

Juno’s larger 53-day orbit allows for “bonus science” that wasn’t part of the original mission design. Juno will further explore the far reaches of the Jovian magnetosphere – the region of space dominated by Jupiter’s magnetic field – including the far magnetotail, the southern magnetosphere, and the magnetospheric boundary region called the magnetopause.

Understanding magnetospheres and how they interact with the solar wind are key science goals of NASA’s Heliophysics Science Division.

"Another key advantage of the longer orbit is that Juno will spend less time within the strong radiation belts on each orbit,” said Scott Bolton, Juno principal investigator from Southwest Research Institute in San Antonio. “This is significant because radiation has been the main life-limiting factor for Juno.”

Juno will continue to operate within the current budget plan through July 2018, for a total of 12 science orbits. The team can then propose to extend the mission during the next science review cycle.

The review process evaluates proposed mission extensions on the merit and value of previous and anticipated science returns.

The Juno science team continues to analyze returns from previous flybys. Revelations include that Jupiter's magnetic fields and aurora are bigger and more powerful than originally thought and that the belts and zones that give the gas giant’s cloud top its distinctive look extend deep into the planet’s interior.

Peer-reviewed papers with more in-depth science results from Juno’s first three flybys are expected to be published within the next few months.

In addition, the mission's JunoCam – the first interplanetary outreach camera – is now being guided with assistance from the public. People can participate by voting on which features on Jupiter should be imaged during each flyby.

“Juno is providing spectacular results, and we are rewriting our ideas of how giant planets work,” said Bolton. “The science will be just as spectacular as with our original plan.”

More information on the Juno mission is available at http://www.nasa.gov/juno and http://missionjuno.org . Follow the mission on Facebook and Twitter at http://www.facebook.com/NASAJuno or http://www.twitter.com/NASAJuno .

“Water is the driving force of all nature.” – Leonardo DaVinci

LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – In 1866 a San Francisco-based water company called the Clear Lake Water Works Co. erected a dam across Cache Creek in what is now Lower Lake.

The dam caused the waters in Clear Lake to rise 13 feet over normal and flooded thousands of acres of prime farmland in the county.

Many, many people were adversely affected by the construction of the dam. Among those affected by the flooding were the Grigsbys of Anderson Marsh.

After two extremely rainy years, the Grigsbys and others owning property repeatedly flooded by the dam brought suit against the water company.

Some of the lawsuits were settled out of court or dropped, but none were prosecuted to judgment.

Grigsby won the original case, but later the California State Supreme Court rescinded the decision on a technicality.

The dam housed a large flour mill, and plans for its future included a wool mill and the transportation of Clear Lake waters to San Francisco.

On Oct. 14, 1868, 300 armed vigilantes came to Cache Creek seeking justice for the flooding of their fertile agricultural lands and homes.

The disgruntled residents disassembled the millworks and, piece by piece, took apart the dam. They went about their jobs in an orderly, almost methodical manner, not even allowing so much as a sip of liquor within the work area.

One old-timer named "Pap" Way tried to smuggle a bottle of whiskey in by stashing it in the lining of his pants. His secret was soon found out, and the whiskey was poured out right in front of him.

During this time messages were sent and intercepted by “Uncle George Tucker,” who was dispatched to Guenoc. At that time, Guenoc was a small town in Coyote Valley along the way to Calistoga.

While some of the men were taking down the dam with block and tackle, another body of organized men held the superintendent  of the water company, county officers and the sheriff at bay.

One of the men being held, Sarshel Bynum, the county clerk, wasn't going to stand for the outrageous situation, so he made an attempt to move off the wagon full of officials.

The book entitled “History of Lake County 1881” recalls how Bynum was deterred by an old hunter named Mr. Welty:

"Mr. Welty was upwards of eighty at that time, and as gray as a badger. He was very diminutive in stature, and had a very long-barreled gun – one of the old-fashioned muzzle-loading flint-locks that were common a century or more ago. Mr. Bynum proceeded to make good his words, that he 'would not stand it any longer', and started to move off. Old Mountaineer was not to be trifled with in that manner; so, backing off till he could get the entire length of his gun barrel in a horizontal between him and Mr. Bynum, he leveled his old piece on him, and shouted on in stentorian tones: 'STAND, Sarshel, I say, STAND!' And Sarshel stood. For many years that was a 'catch phrase' all over the county, but it was always very repulsive to Mr. Bynum's ears, although he was forced to hear it very often in after years."

The Cache Creek Dam buildings were mysteriously destroyed by fire later that same night.

As a result of the damages, the water company brought suit against the county of Lake for $200,000. Tragically, The Clear Lake Water Works bought the Grigsby ranch in 1870, forcing the Grigsby family to move on.

The Cache Creek Dam of yesteryear may no longer exist, but in 1915 another dam was built by the Yolo County Flood Control and Water Conservation District.

This Cache Creek Dam releases up to 21,000 cubic feet of water per second, but the five-mile channel running from Clear Lake to the dam includes a naturally occurring rock barrier called the Grigsby Riffle. This gives the channel a limited capacity of just 2,500 cubic feet per second.

Yolo County and Lake County have fought in court over this dam throughout the years. For example, in 1920 a decree by resort owners on the lakeshore was set forth directing dam officials to keep Clear Lake at a level between zero and 7.56 feet on the Rumsey Gauge, a special device made to measure Clear Lake's level. This was done to maintain high recreational lake levels.

To meet the rules of the decree the lake may rise between 7.56 and 9 feet. The Rumsey Gauge is kept under careful watch.

In 1940 another decree was issued which prohibits the expansion of the Grigsby Riffle area.

The area around the Grigsby Riffle was expanded in the 1930s to allow for heavier water flow and caused soil erosion to landowners.

The U.S Army Corps of Engineers recommended enlarging the outflow channel to increase the dam's output in 1983, but fortunately for the sensitive Anderson Marsh wetlands area, the idea ran into opposition by environmentalists, with the costs outweighing the benefits.

Kathleen Scavone, M.A., is a retired educator, potter, writer and author of “Anderson Marsh State Historic Park: A Walking History, Prehistory, Flora, and Fauna Tour of a California State Park” and “Native Americans of Lake County.” She also writes for NASA and JPL as one of their “Solar System Ambassadors.” She was selected “Lake County Teacher of the Year, 1998-99” by the Lake County Office of Education, and chosen as one of 10 state finalists the same year by the California Department of Education.

LAKEPORT, Calif. – Middletown High School once again took top honors at this year’s Mock Trial event.

The fifth annual competition took place on Monday in the Lake County Superior Court in Lakeport.

Middletown High and Upper Lake High squared off in the competition, which had the two teams arguing the fictional court case “People v. Awbrey,” which involves human trafficking and false imprisonment.

Judge Stephen Hedstrom presided over the first round, while Judge Richard Martin presided over round two.

Melissa Perry, the information systems manager for the Lake County Superior Court, once again coordinated the entire event from the court side, arranging and training judges and attorneys as well as the facility. Tammy Serpa was the event organizer from the Lake County Office of Education.

Following the competition, awards were given out to winning students. Outstanding awards went to:

• Outstanding Defense Attorney: Gary Pickrell IV, Middletown High.
• Outstanding Defense Witness: Jared Thornberry, Upper Lake High.
• Outstanding Clerk/Bailiff: Lyndsay Wade, Upper Lake High.
• Outstanding Prosecution Attorney: Abigail Elder, Middletown High.
• Outstanding Artist: Rhianna Eby, Upper Lake High.

Middletown High’s team included Jillian Anderson, Abigail Elder, Donald Elder, Aiden Isaia, Emily Gallagher, Moyra Horrell, Journey Nystrom, Gary Pickrell IV, Kyle Pryor-Landman, Jacquelyn Pyzer, Natalie Rodriguez, Audrey Showen, Jack Shrive, Summer Solis, Megan Talbert, Jon Thomas, Mylie Turney and Jessica Zell. Kevin Palotti was the team’s coach, with Jon Hopkins, Lake County’s former district attorney, the attorney coach.

Upper Lake High’s team included Laisha Altamirano, Angelica Ayala, Dante Bassignani, Rhianna Eby, Chris Fecht, Hunter Ford, Hasmine Haro, Austin Hill, Lantana Kimbler, Benat Love, Amanda Maxwell, Eduardo Mendoza, Jasmine Myers, Cheyanne Obedoza, Valeria Robles, Alana Sanchez, Jasmine Serafin, Sergio Serafin, Emily Stith, Jared Thornberry, Jasmin Velasco, Lyndsay Wade and Kaila Willard. Alex Stabiner was the coach and Judy Conard the attorney coach.

Middletown High will now travel to the state Mock Trial competition in Riverside March 24 to 26.