Snows Lake's Red Hills winegrapes have won international awards. Courtesy photo.

LOWER LAKE – A local winery has garnered the highest honors given to a US winery in a prestigious international wine competition.

Snows Lake Vineyard has won a "great gold" and three gold awards at the 2008 Concours Mondial de Bruxelles International Wine Competition held in Bordeaux, France.

The local winery was among eight US wineries that received 14 awards, four of which went to Snows Lake.

Lake County Winegrape Commission Executive Director Shannon Gunier said the awards have gotten a lot of attention, especially among local winegrape growers.

"It's the big buzz," she said,

Snows Lake's two entries – limited production wines Snows Lake One and Snows Lake Two – were among 6,200 wines and spirits judged by a panel of 240 internationally renowned judges, according to a statement from the competition.

John Adriance, the winery's chief executive officer, said it was great to be recognized on an international level. This was the winery's first entry in the competition.

Snows Lake One's 2005 vintage, made from the winery's Cabernet Sauvignon grapes, won the great gold, and its 2004 vintage won a gold. In addition, Snows Lake Two's 2005 and 2004 won golds, said Adriance. That wine is a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc.

Adriance said he believes Lake County's wines are on par with the best in the world, which is why they entered the international competition.

The two award-winning wines are currently in limited production, with only about 250 cases of wine each year produced, said Adriance.

He added that they're planning to double production this year, and double it again this year. Both wines come from grapes grown in the county's Red Hills appellation.

The growing reputation of the county's Cabernet Sauvignon grapes is a vindication of sorts.

Gunier said wine magnate Jess Jackson, whose Kendall Jackson empire spent its early days in Lake County, once declared the county would never produce Cabernet Sauvignon, a statement that has stuck with the area for a long time.

Gunier said Snows Lake's performance in the competition proves what local winegrape growers have been saying all along. "This is good dirt for good wine.

"You're going to see more awards like this come out of Lake County," she said.

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The California Highway Patrol reported that at least one person has died in the crash, which took place near Walker Ridge Road, west of the Colusa County line.

The collision was reported at 2:25 p.m., CHP reported.

Officials have shut down the highway, with Caltrans also is on scene to help control traffic.

Updates and a full report will be posted on Lake County News as soon as they are available.

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The exercise begins at 3 p.m. Wednesday, May 28, and will conclude at 7 p.m., according to a report from Sgt. Gary Basor of the Lake County Sheriff's Emergency Services Branch.

The incident is being staged at the County Park on Highway 20 in Upper Lake.

The exercise will test Lake County's and the mutual aid partners' response to a hazardous materials / mass causality incident on a major artery of Lake County, where there may be a fire involved and multiple injuries and fatalities.

Although actual traffic on Highway 20 will not be affected, responders will coordinate the anticipated traffic congestion as if this were a real event. The fire, police and emergency medical service representatives will effectively carry out their simulated response. Agencies outside of Lake County will support the execution of this exercise.

The exercise will facilitate the training needed to insure that emergency responses for hazardous materials, mass decontamination, and medical services, are fully functional to protect the public, save lives, and property in the event of an actual incident.

Those planning on participating in the exercise include the following agencies and cooperators:

Kelseyville Fire Protection, Lakeport Fire Protection, Lake County Fire Protection District, South Lake Fire Protection District, Northshore Fire Association, Redbud Hospital, Sutter Lakeside Hospital, North Coast Emergency Medical Services, Lakeport Police Department, Lake County Sheriff’s Office, Lake County Health Services, Lake County Public Works, Lake County Parks and Recreation, Lake County Transit, Lake County Office of Education, Mendocino Public Health Services, Howard Hospital, Mendocino Coast Hospital, Ukiah Valley Medical Center, Ukiah City and Valley Fire Departments, Ukiah Ambulance, Redwood Valley Fire, Calpella Fire, Mendocino County Office of Emergency Services, local ham radio operators from both Lake and Mendocino County, Tribal Health, Hidden Valley Security, Ameri-Corps, American Red Cross, Last Mile Auto Salvage, REACH, CALSTAR, local multi-media organizations, Cal Fire, Caltrans, California Highway Patrol and the California Governor’s Office of Emergency Services.

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Northshore firefighters check out the area of the fire while mopping up Tuesday night. Photo by Elizabeth Larson.

NORTHSHORE – A vehicle's faulty catalytic converter is believed to have caused a small grass fire along Highway 20 that firefighters quickly contained Tuesday evening.

The fire, located near Kono Tayee, was out by about 8 p.m., according to Northshore Fire Chief Jim Robbins.

Three engines, Robbins and Battalion Chief Pat Brown were on scene, along with a Lake County Sheriff's deputy who directed traffic as firefighters dealt with the small blaze, which had burned a strip on the highway's lake side.

A large retinue of firefighters initially had been called but most were canceled after the fire quickly was placed under control, Robbins said.

Robbins and Brown had been concerned that the fire could have jumped the highway and started burning up the steep, dry hillsides – a serious possibility considering the high evening winds Tuesday.

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NORTH COAST, Calif. – Years after he left the military, Jack Alderson began asking questions about chemical testing he was involved in and its effects on his health and the health of others.

Those efforts led to the introduction of a bill earlier this month that would offer health benefits to veterans exposed to chemical agents during two classified government projects in the 1960s and 1970s.

North Coast Congressman Mike Thompson (D-St. Helena) and Republican Congressman Denny Rehberg of Montana introduced HR 5954 on May 1.

If passed, the bill will provide Veterans Affairs health benefits to veterans who were exposed to biological, chemical or other toxic agents as part of Project 112 and Project SHAD.

Rehberg said the legislation is loosely crafted after that which was written to address Agent Orange. A similar bill previously was introduced but it died in the Senate.

Project 112, which included Project SHAD, was a series of tests conducted between 1963 and 1973 by the Department of Defense and other federal agencies, according to Thompson and Rehberg. During these projects, a number of weapons containing chemical and biological agents such as VX nerve gas, Sarin nerve gas and E. coli were tested on unknowing military personnel.

According to the Force Health Protection and Readiness Program tests were conducted on the open sea in the North Atlantic, open water locations of the Pacific Ocean and near the Marshall Islands, Hawaii, Baker Island, Puerto Rico and the California coast. In addition, there were land-based tests in Alaska, Hawaii, Maryland, Florida, Utah, Georgia and in Panama, Canada and the United Kingdom.

Testing took place at the Deseret Test Center at Fort Douglas, Utah, according to a Department of Defense fact sheet. Project SHAD – which stands for “Shipboard Hazard and Defense” – took place offshore.

Its purpose was “to identify U.S. warships' vulnerabilities to attacks with chemical or biological warfare agents and to develop procedures to respond to such attacks while maintaining a war-fighting capability,” the Department of Defense fact sheet explained. The project sought to find out how chemical and biological agents behaved under different climatic, environmental and use conditions.

But the true nature of the classified projects was kept under wraps for decades, and is still only slowly being revealed, according to Thompson.

Bringing the truth to light

Shortly after he was elected to Congress in 1998, Thompson said he was approached by one of his constituents from Humboldt County, Ferndale resident Jack Alderson, who had been a tugboat commander during Project SHAD. Alderson had become ill and had cancer issues but couldn't get answers about the project from the government.

“For years they denied that this was ever happening,” said Thompson.

Similarly, Rehberg said he was approached by a constituent on the day he was sworn into Congress in 2001.

Alderson, 74, said he's been fighting to break the issue loose since 1993.

When President John F. Kennedy was elected, the US had a strong nuclear program, but lacked similar strength in biological and chemical weaponry, explained Alderson.

Kennedy directed his secretary of defense, Robert McNamara, to strengthen the nation's chemical program, and the result was Project 112 which included Project SHAD and gave rise to the development of chemical weapons such as Agent Orange, said Alderson.

In October of 1964, Alderson – at the time a 32-year-old lieutenant who had served in the Navy for 10 years – was assigned to Project SHAD, along with several hundred other experienced sailors and officers. The point was to see how a Navy warship could hold up under chemical attack.

“We were all ordered in,” Alderson said. “None of us were volunteers.”

The testing involved all branches of the military. Alderson commanded five Army tugboats, each of which had a Navy lieutenant as the officer in charge and a crew of 11 sailors, handpicked for their experience and secret clearances.

Alderson said they were trained how to decontaminate a ship after a test and conduct air sampling. After two months of training, he reported to his superiors that they were ready for their mission.

President Lyndon Johnson signed off on the tests, which Alderson said commenced in January of 1965.

The tugboats left Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, and went to Johnston Island, southwest of the Hawaiian islands, where Alderson said the tests took place. Accompanying the tugs was the laboratory ship, Granville S. Hall.

Alderson said the tugs would go out to sea for six days at a time, and would form a line as long as 100 miles. On their decks would be three caged Rhesus monkeys, although some tests didn't involve animals.

Two Marine jets would fly over and spray a chemical weapon – including E coli., Bacillus globigii, Coxiella burnetti, Pasteurella tularensis and fluorescent particles – as well as a trace element and simulants. Alderson said the tugs had small labs on board, where they would take air samples. All of the chemicals used were carcinogenic.

Some tests involved the tugs taking out barges of monkeys which were sprayed with the neurological agents Sarin and VX. Those agents weren't used directly on the tugs, said Alderson.

The tugs would then go to the laboratory ship in rotations, taking the sick monkeys and their air samples. “The monkeys were not in good shape,” he said.

The monkeys, if they survived, would be observed by lab technicians on the laboratory, who eventually would euthanize the animals and conduct necropsies on them.

Alderson and his fellow Navy men began to suffer health problems themselves, including respiratory issues. They also noticed their immune systems suffered after they were vaccinated against the chemical agents.

The operations in the Pacific were carried out through rehearsal and written instructions, said Alderson. They stayed off the radio, not wanting anyone to know they were there conducting tests.

Alderson was involved in the secret operations until 1967. He made trips back to the Deseret Testing Center in Ft. Douglas, Utah, and that's where he met Jack Barry, who had been in an Army chemical corps for five years but was a civilian working for the Department of Defense by the time he met Alderson.

Barry, who was the right-hand man to the Marine colonel overseeing a number of biological tests, would be in Oahu, Hawaii, during the late spring and early summer of 1965, when officials carried out “Big Tom,” a Navy test that focused on the vulnerability of island naval bases in the event of a biological or chemical attack from the sea.

The drift of that test – which used Zinc Cadmium Sulfide and liquid Bacillus globigii – came in from sea and went across parts of the island, said Barry.

Barry said that similar drift tests, using the same chemicals as well as nerve agents, were conducted near Fort Greeley, Alaska. A fact sheet on Project SHAD's “Shady Grove” operations said tests took place at Eglin Air Force Base in Florida.

Alderson said he doesn't think the Department of Defense wants it known just how many tests were done near civilians and on or near US soil.

When Alderson and Barry left their involvement with the tests, they said they were threatened with prosecution and prison time in Ft. Leavenworth if they disclosed anything about the operations.

Discovering troubling common threads

Alderson later went on to become chief executive officer of the Humboldt Bay Harbor District from 1975 to 1996. Barry left the Desert Testing Center in 1975 and joined the US Forest Service, moving to Davis to manage a technology development enterprise team.

In 1993, Alderson said he and some of the men who he served with decided to get together for a reunion.

It was a challenge, he said, to gather the men, who largely hadn't kept in touch. Most of the men wouldn't speak to their former Navy colleagues on the phone or answer anything in writing.

He said they did finally manage to get together for a small reunion in San Diego, where about 40 people came.

When they got together, they discovered many of them had suffered ongoing respiratory problems and various types of cancer. Alderson himself has had malignant melanoma, the most severe form of skin cancer. He also discovered that he has four pieces of asbestos in his lungs. In addition, he has had prostate cancer, and suffers from fatigue syndrome and severe allergies, the latter of which he said developed immediately after he was inoculated during the Project SHAD years.

When he discovered that he wasn't alone in his health concerns, he decided to start looking for answers.

The first politician he approached was US Sen. Dianne Feinstein, who had visited the harbor district to discuss a harbor dredging project. While she was in Alderson's office, he shared his story.

Feinstein asked him to write her a letter outlining the situation, which she in turn took to the Department of Defense, which responded that Alderson should contact them directly. That, he said, was their way of putting him off.

It wasn't just the government pushing back on Alderson's requests. He said he went to a veterans group with his story. Their response, he said, was that the government wouldn't do that to its servicemen.

Meanwhile, Thompson had gotten into Congress, and the two men knew each other from having worked together on local issues when Thompson was in the state Senate. Alderson took him the story and began working with Thompson and his staff, who Alderson credits with doing a lot of hard work and investigation to bring the issues to light.

The Department of Defense at first denied that the program had taken place. But in May 2000 Alderson said CBS began doing TV reports on the issue.

Following pressure by Thompson and further investigation by CBS, the Department of Defense released a fact sheet on Project SHAD, a copy of which was obtained by Lake County News.

The date of the release? Sept. 13, 2001.

“You saw it in the paper, didn't ya?” Alderson joked.

He said he believes the government's timing was calculated for release during a time of crisis so that the issue wouldn't draw attention.

While getting classified information on the testing hasn't been possible, Alderson said a lawsuit regarding Project SHAD resulted in the deposition in 2004 of the project's plans and operations officer and lead scientist, Dr. J. Clifton Spendlove.

While the Department of Defense had claimed that most of the records for Project SHAD were destroyed or had deteriorated, Spendlove said most of the records were still in Utah, and he additionally stated he had filmed some of the tests.

“We have enough evidence that we believe Dr. Spendlove was telling the truth,” said Alderson.

Spendlove also has testified publicly about the project before a special advisory panel convened by the Institute of Health.

Gradually, however, the issue began making its way into news reports, which is where Barry saw it.

He said he wrote to Thompson to tell him of the civilians who were exposed. Alderson found out about Barry's letter and the two men reconnected. At Alderson's invitation, Barry has since joined a special subcommittee set up by the Vietnam Veterans of America to work on issues related to Project SHAD.

Barry himself currently suffers from a rare form of cancer, but he says he's unsure if it's from the testing, his previous Army service or even time in the Forest Service, which also used toxic chemicals.

Thompson said that while the government eventually admitted the reports were correct, “We haven't had the level of cooperation from our government that we believe we should be getting.”

Finding the people exposed has been even more of a challenge, said Thompson.

Rehberg said preliminary estimates are that as many as 6,000 vets were exposed to the toxic agents, along with as many as 1,500 civilians. Thompson said Vietnam Veterans of America believes the numbers of vets exposed are actually much higher.

Alderson said that, just counting technical staff involved in the testing, between 500 and 600 people were affected. If you add in the many others on Navy ships exposed to the chemicals, the number climbs to 6,000. Add in “white coats” – people who were conscientious objectors and wouldn't fight but who volunteered for chemical tests – and that brings the number up to 18,000.

About 50 to 60 percent of the men he worked with on the light tugs are now dead, Alderson said, including six of the operation's 10 officers.

“We have some vets that are long dead because of the exposure they received, and that's just wrong,” Thompson said.

Government won't make effort to reach affected vets

The two congressmen faulted the government for a shoddy attempt to notify those who were exposed once they were identified.

Rehberg said he found it appalling that the government did the tests, then shirked its responsibility to help veterans.

In February, a US Government Accountability Office report stated that the Department of Defense and the Veterans Affairs needed to improve efforts to identify and notify individuals exposed to chemical and biological tests.

The report added that tens of thousands of military personnel and civilians have been exposed to such tests by the Department of Defense.

“Since 2003, DOD (Department of Defense) has stopped actively searching for individuals who were potentially exposed to chemical or biological substances during Project 112 tests, but did not provide a sound and documented basis for that decision,” the report stated. “In 2003, DOD reported it had identified 5,842 service members and estimated 350 civilians as having been potentially exposed during Project 112, and indicated that DOD would cease actively searching for additional individuals.”

The following year, the Department of Defense ruled that the recommendation to continue an active search for those exposed “had reached the point of diminishing returns, and reaffirmed its decision to cease active searches,” a decision that the Government Accountability Office said “was not supported by an objective analysis of the potential costs and benefits of continuing the effort.”

From 2003 on, other organizations, such as the Institute of Medicine, identified an additional 600 people who could have been exposed. “Until DOD provides a more objective analysis of the costs and benefits of actively searching for Project 112 participants, DOD’s efforts may continue to be questioned,” the report stated.

The Lake County Veterans Service Office confirmed to Lake County News that they have received inquiries about Project SHAD from local veterans who think they may have been affected.

For the vets involved, it's tough for them to get treatment once they confirm their involvement in the tests, because the Veterans Administration has refused to provide them with health benefits or compensation for their diseases, which is a reason for the bill, said Thompson.

Alderson said he and others involved in the testing have had problems with their medical records, portions of which have been known to disappear.

The bill instructs the Secretary of Veterans Affairs within 180 days of enactment to notify all veterans of potential exposure to the biological or chemical weapons used in Project 112 and Project SHAD.

HR 5954 would “establish a presumption of service connection,” said Thompson, which would mean that once a vet was identified, any health issues would be presumed service-related.

“It's our hope that once this happens we can get them that health care they need,” Thompson said. “They should not be denied and neglected any more”

Although the bill's previous version died in the Senate, Thompson and Rehberg said they have assurances from Congressman Bob Filner, chair of the House Committee on Veterans Affairs, that he'll get a hearing for the bill quickly.

“I'm feeling cautiously optimistic that we'll be able to have some success this time,” Thompson said.

Vietnam Veterans of America has endorsed the legislation, the congressman noted.

Rehberg credited Thompson for taking the lead on the matter. “When Mike gets his teeth in your ankles, he's not going to let go.”

Thompson said the government's denial and refusal to take care of the affected veterans has gone on far too long – more than 40 years in some cases.

Alderson, who previously has testified on Project SHAD before the Senate Armed Services Committee – said Thompson has asked him to come and testify before Congress during the bill's first hearing, scheduled for June 12, before the House Committee on Veterans' Affairs Subcommittee on Disability Assistance and Memorial Affairs.

Barry credited Alderson for working to bring the project to light. “He's not in it for personal gain. He's looking after his people.”

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Scott Fergusson wants to bring a revitalized economy to the county. Courtesy photo.

MIDDLETOWN – After traveling around the world as a Marine, Scott Fergusson made his home in Lake County, and he says that what he learned along the way will make him a good supervisor. {sidebar id=74}

Fergusson is one of six candidates seeking the District 1 supervisorial seat that Ed Robey will retire from at year's end.

Right after high school, Fergusson – who grew up in Occidental – enlisted in the Marine Corps, spending 10 years traveling around the world to places including Japan, Central America, Korea, Denmark, the Philippines and Guam.

“I believe in serving my country and my community,” he said.

After 10 years in the Marines Fergusson left the service. He came to Lake County nine years ago with wife, Linda. They fell in love with the area and decided to make their home here.

Time in the military prepared him for a leadership position like a supervisorial post, he said. He also learned to relate to people from diverse backgrounds.

A local businessman who owns a cutlery shop, Fergusson said he's always been interested in politics, which – along with his interest in community issues – led to his decision to run.

He'd also heard many local business owners complain about their lack of representation in local government. District 1, he said, is “pretty much treated like the stepchild of the county.”

Fergusson said he believes decisions should be made from the ground up, not from the top down. If elected, he said he would reach out more to community members through one-on-one meetings and open forums.

Lake County is a bedroom community with more housing than jobs, which Fergusson said he'd like to help change. He believes that programs like Mt. Konocti Facilitation can help build local business, but he said many people still don't know about those resources.

On the much-discussed topic of growth, Fergusson said the focus needs to be on creating jobs, with new home construction put on the back burner for now. “We have an awful lot of empty houses right now,” he said, adding that there are about 150 foreclosure in Hidden Valley alone.

When growth happens, Fergusson said he wants it to be well planned, and not see a lot of malls scattered around the area.

Not enough jobs forces more commuters over the hill to Sonoma County, he said, so creating jobs here needs to be a focus. “How we do that is going to be a struggle.”

One way of making the area more viable is rebuilding the county's tourism industry, starting with Middletown, he said.

Another issue for him is road safety. He pointed to a “ridiculous” amount of accidents on the Highway 29 corridor that cuts through the south county. Without proper planning for future growth, accidents will increase in number.

He also would like to see more programs for seniors and things for young people to do in the south county, and is concerned that programs for youth and at-risk teens are being affected by the state's budget crunch. Both seniors and children are close to his heart, he added.

Fergusson is interested in the county's water situation, and cited the county's lakes as among its best assets.

Robey has played an important part in negotiations with neighboring Yolo County over water rights, a role Fergusson said he would “absolutely” take on.

Why is he the best choice for supervisor amidst a crowded field?

He said he has the majority of local business owners endorsing him, and once again cited his military experience and leadership skills.

Fergusson added that he's easy going and gets along with everybody, is hardworking, loyal, a great listener and trustworthy. He added that he's received “outstanding, positive feedback” from community members during his campaign.

He's clear that he's a different candidate from Robey.

“I don't see any similarities, and I would hope nobody else would, either,” said Fergusson, who criticized Robey for not being in the community very much.

“I definitely want to be more involved,” he said.

Ultimately, running isn't about him, but about what he can do for District 1, Fergusson said. Whoever elected, he said, is just the middle person between the government and local residents.

Besides seeking elected office, Fergusson has another life-changing event to look forward to later this year. He and wife, Linda, are expecting their first child together on Nov. 26 after 11 years of marriage.

Between them, they have five children from previous marriages, but this will be their only little one at home.

How does he plan to balance a new baby, a business and the possibility of elected office?

“A very organized day planner,” he said.

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Judith Tilt, 72, was pronounced dead at the scene of the collision, which took place on Highway 20 east of Walker Ridge Road at about 2:20 p.m. Monday, according to California Highway Patrol Officer Adam Garcia.

Tilt was riding in a 2002 Lexus RX300 driven by 78-year-old Delores Zeni of Santa Rosa which was hit by a 2001 Ford Escape driven by Debra Curtis, 49, of Suisun City, Garcia said.

Curtis, who was driving eastbound, lost control of her vehicle during a short rain shower, according to Garcia.

Her vehicle spun out around and entered the westbound lane, hitting Zeni's Lexus.

Both Delores Zeni and 79-year-old Robert Zeni, also of Santa Rosa, sustained major injuries and were

flown to Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital by REACH air ambulance, Garcia said.

Curtis was flown by CALSTAR air ambulance to Chico's Enloe Hospital where she was treated for major injuries, according to Garcia's report.

The accident shut the highway down for several hours as emergency officials cared for the injured, cleared the roadway and investigated the crash, according to reports from the scene.

Garcia said CHP Officer Dallas Richey is investigating the collision.

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Nelson Hopper and his wife, Earlene. He'll offer a prayer to open the ceremony and dinner to honor local native veterans this Tuesday. Photo by Elizabeth Larson.

LAKE COUNTY – A special event to honor the contributions of local tribal members in the armed forces will take place this week.

The California Tribal TANF Partnership will sponsor a Lake County Native American Veterans Ceremony and Dinner on Tuesday, May 27, from 4 p.m. to 7.m. at the Robinson Rancheria Resort and Casino Conference Center.

A group of local native veterans organized the gathering, which will include a spiritual ceremony, which they say is needed to honor and remember native “warrior” veterans who fought in World War I, World War II, Korea, Vietnam, Desert Storm, and who are currently in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Offering the event's opening prayer will be Nelson Hopper. At age 91, the Big Valley Rancheria elder is one of Lake County's oldest native veterans, and one of the last speakers of his tribe's language.

Hopper served in the U.S. Army during World War II, where he was wounded during the Battle of the Bulge. A highly decorated soldier, Hopper is a member of Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 2015.

He will be joined at the ceremony by other Pomo veterans who served in different conflicts, including Vietnam.

The presence of Native Americans in the U.S. military ranks has a long tradition.

James P. Collins of the National Archives and Records Administration wrote in a 2007 article that a unit of Delaware Indians was found among Revolutionary War service records. In addition, Collins reported that more than 1,000 Native Americans served during the War of 1812, and native units also appeared during the Mexican War of 1846 to 1848.

During World War I, an estimated 12,000 native soldiers enlisted, according to “Way of the Warrior,” A Public Broadcasting Documentary.

The Department of Defense reported that 44,500 Native Americans – more than 10 percent of the native population at the time – served in World War II.

Their valor and contributions to the war effort caused Maj. Lee Gilstrop to declare, “The Indian is the best damn soldier in the Army,” according to a Department of Defense history.

Estimates from military historians put as many as 15,000 natives serving during the Korean War, and numbers range widely – from 40,000 to 80,000 – for tribal members in Vietnam. Today, Native American soldiers are serving in the Iraq War as well as in Afghanistan.

The ceremony and dinner is limited and free to Native American veterans and their guest only.

For more information, contact Cecilia Dawson at 274-2313.

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The Summit Fire, which is burning in Santa Clara and Santa Cruz counties, began early Thursday morning and has since scorched 3,200 acres and caused thousands of people to evacuate. Cal Fire reported that the blaze has burned 17 residences and 11 businesses and is only 25-percent contained.

Lake Fire Chief Ken Wells said he received a call at about 12:30 a.m. Friday requesting firefighters.

Wells explained that Cal Fire put in a request for assistance with the state Office of Emergency Services which, in turn, contacted the local dispatch center.

In all, Lakeport Fire Protection District sent one engine and four personnel, Kelseyville Fire provided a strike team leader trainee, an engine and three personnel came from Northshore Fire's Upper Lake station, and South Lake County Fire sent an engine and three firefighters, said Wells.

In addition, the Redwood Valley and Anderson Valley fire districts sent an engine and three personnel each to make up a full strike team, Wells said.

Everyone got on the road quickly, as they were needed by about 7 a.m., Wells said. The firefighters arrived a few minutes after 7 a.m. at a staging area in a Gilroy park.

They're among a reported 2,683 firefighters now on scene, according to Cal fire.

On Thursday, Cal Fire sent an engine strike team, three strike team crews, two bulldozer strike teams and additional personnel from the Sonoma-Lake-Napa Unit to the fire, as Lake County News reported.

Cal Fire spokesman Eric Hoffman said on Friday that the local unit has since sent another strike team of bulldozers and a strike team of crews from Konocti Camp. A strike team from Humboldt County that was helping cover the local Cal Fire unit also was sent to Santa Cruz, he added.

Last year local firefighters were sent to battle big fires in Morgan Hill and Southern California. Wells said that with dry conditions the year has the potential for a bad fire season.

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The questions included in the questionnaires came from community residents and those who attended the District 5 debate at the Lake County Courthouse on May 7.

Find them here:

District 5 candidates questionnaires: Robert Stark

District 5 candidates questionnaires: Rob Brown

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And it probably comes as no surprise that she enjoys cooking, too. I probably encourage this by having a very well-stocked pantry. But this well-stocked pantry has spoiled my little girl to the point of it being absurd.

One evening my daughter said she wanted to cook dinner. Great, go ahead. After a few minutes of preparation time she comes out of the kitchen and asks if we can go to the grocery store. I asked why, and she said, “To get a kind of vinegar that we don’t have.”

I snapped back, half laughing, half screaming, “WE HAVE TWELVE DIFFERENT TYPES OF VINEGAR IN THE PANTRY! JUST USE WHAT WE HAVE!”

Oh my gosh, 12 isn’t a sufficient variety? But how many kids do you know who can even name three different kinds of vinegar, let alone think that “they’re just not the right one”?

Vinegar is usually reported as being made in one of two ways. The first and most desirable is the Orleans method, and is the method used in high-quality vinegars. A wine is exposed to a “Mother” that then proceeds to eat the alcohol and acidify the wine. This process takes weeks, months or even years.

The second way of making vinegar is aerating wine to cause oxidation, which produces a vinegar-tasting product (think of it as leaving a glass of wine out overnight and tasting it the next day – that’s basically the action happening in this process).

Actually, there are many ways of making vinegar but it’s easier to mention the two biggest methods rather than nit pick all of the many ways.

In my opinion, every kitchen should have at least three types of vinegar. I won’t say which three because that’s a personal preference, but here are some ideas.

Rice wine vinegar is a staple in my kitchen just because of its versatility. It has a mellow, smoothness to it that can enhance salad dressings, pickles or sauces. Apple cider vinegar doesn’t have many gourmet varieties, and personally I think it’s because the mass-produced type you find in the grocery stores is great. It provides a sweet, apple taste to whatever you add it to. The third type of vinegar I would recommend is balsamic.

Balsamic vinegar has the unique trait that the older it is, the thicker and sweeter it becomes. Even young balsamic vinegars have a sweet molasses kind of taste to them and as they age they mellow, thicken, mature and become pretty complex. When you are in the mood for a really good balsamic, be ready to pay for it. There is a joke that if you have a very good bottle of balsamic vinegar in the kitchen and the house is on fire, what do you rescue first, family pictures or the balsamic?

Some Italian restaurants offer a dessert of small blocks of aged parmesan with a couple of drops of aged balsamic. It sounds a little odd, but it’s surprisingly very good. Good quality balsamic can be found all around the county, but my favorite I found at a local farmers market.

There are several other varieties of vinegar which I also enjoy. Again, I have about 12 in my cupboard at any given time.

When it comes to red wine vinegar, I like to have a little more depth of flavor so I reach for red raspberry vinegar. You don’t notice the raspberry notes when making a salad dressing but it’s still great to have on hand for many other uses.

Malt vinegar is a must for fish and chips and its unique flavor is something that I love but I don’t end up using it very often. And of course, the ubiquitous white distilled vinegar is on hand. It’s good for cleaning, but I don’t consider it a cooking ingredient.

Vinegar has been scientifically proven to be good for the heart, assists in losing weight, and has many other – if only anecdotal – treatments. It’s also been used for cleaning household surfaces, removing red lipstick from clothing (um, so I’ve heard), adds shine to hair, even soothes sore muscles. Some people like to treat jellyfish stings with vinegar as a way of neutralizing the stinging cells, but if you don’t know the species of jellyfish you could actually make the injury worse so I would avoid attempting this. Samurai used to drink a special concoction made with vinegar for strength and stamina. I have the recipe but, trust me, you don’t want it.

I’ve included a recipe for Pork Adobo, sometimes jokingly called “Vinegar soup.” Some of its instructions are a little odd, but the final product is well worth the wait. Some recipes call for several pans to be used in making, starting with broiling, then boiling, then searing ... Uff da!

I simplified the recipe, so I can’t really call it “authentic Philippine style,” but I prefer to use one pan so you don’t lose any flavor in all of the cooking. This recipe also works with chicken (dark meat only, white meat can’t handle the long cooking time) or beef (pot roast, oxtail, or shanks work best). Salt shouldn’t be necessary due to the use of soy sauce, which contains quite a lot of salt.

The finished dish is pronouncedly but not overly sour, full of garlic and pepper flavor.

Pork Adobo

Ingredients:

1 ¼ pound boneless pork shoulder, cubed about 2 inches by 2 inches

1 cup water

½ cup vinegar (I like apple cider vinegar for this)

2 Tablespoons soy sauce

6 to 8 garlic cloves, peeled, minced or pressed through a garlic press

¼ teaspoon black pepper (if not freshly ground then increase to 1/3 teaspoon)

Your favorite cooking oil.

Brown/sear the pork cubes in your largest frying pan or sauce pan over high heat, in several batches if necessary; use a little bit of oil to prevent sticking. You are just searing the meat at this point, not cooking through; the meat should still be rare when you are done.

When you’ve seared the last portion of meat, return all the pork to the pan and add the water, vinegar, soy sauce, garlic and pepper, and stir, being sure to scrape any bits off of the bottom of the pan as you stir. Continue on high heat until it comes to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer for 40 minutes or until the pork is tender.

Remove the pork from the pot/pan, and set aside. Increase the heat to a boil again and reduce the liquid by half (some recipes call for browning the meat again at this point but I feel it’s redundant). When the liquid is finished reducing, put the meat back in and return to a boil, long enough just to reheat the meat. Serve.

Ross A. Christensen is an award-winning gardener and gourmet cook. He is the author of "Sushi A to Z, The Ultimate Guide" and is currently working on a new book. He has been a public speaker for many years and enjoys being involved in the community.

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LAKE COUNTY – Local veterans groups will hold commemorations this weekend in honor of service men and women who have served the United States during peace time or in war.

Memorial ceremonies will begin with a 9 a.m. event on Saturday at Kelseyville Cemetery. Also on Saturday, the United Veterans Council's Military Funeral Honors Team will participate in the Lakeport Memorial Day Parade, according to firing party commander Rich Feiro.

On Monday, Feiro reported that ceremonies will take place at all the county's cemeteries. At 7:45 a.m. the flag will be raised at Lakeport's Hartley Cemetery; and a 9 a.m. ceremony will take place at Lower Lake Cemetery followed by another ceremony at Veterans Bridge, also in Lower Lake.

An annual Memorial Day Wreath Ceremony with prayers and taps will be held at 9 a.m. at the Middletown Cemetery at 16357 Butts Canyon Road. David Neft will supply the music. Call 987-0511 for more information.

The Upper Lake Cemetery's services will start at 11 a.m. Monday, and the Hartley ceremony will take place at 1:30 p.m., according to Feiro. The day's final service, a retreat ceremony, will begin at 4:15 p.m. at Veterans Circle at Hartley Cemetery.

As part of the county's commemoration of its veterans, the Avenue of Flags will be flown at Hartley, Lower Lake and Upper Lake cemeteries on Memorial Day, according to Frank Parker of the United Veterans Council.

The Avenue of Flags Association officially formed in May 1976, according to information furnished by Parker. Its first flying took place on May 30, 1976, at Hartley Cemetery.

Parker said among the three participating cemeteries a total of 800 flags – which once decorated the caskets of veterans – will be flown. The avenue is flown twice a year – Memorial Day and Veterans Day – with veterans' families loaning the flags to the Avenue of Flags Association for the display.

The flags will go up at 7 a.m. and be taken down at 4 p.m., said Parker. Community members and groups are invited to take part.

“We'd like to have the public come out and give us a hand putting the flags up,” he said. “It's a lot of fun.”

An honor guard will stand by during the day to keep watch on the three avenues, Parker explained.

For more information or to volunteer contact the following Avenue of Flags organizers: Frank Parker, Upper Lake Cemetery, 274-9512; Dean Gotham, Hartley Cemetery, 350-1159; Joel Moore, Lower Lake Cemetery, 994-5342.

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

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