- Elizabeth Larson
- Posted On
Supervisors ratify storm emergency declaration; county plans to close down additional services Wednesday
On Friday, Sheriff Rob Howe declared the local emergency due to low elevation snow and the extreme cold that has occurred over the past week.
The snow — the likes of which even longtime residents said they hadn’t seen before — knocked out power across nearly all of Lake County.
At one point, Pacific Gas and Electric Co. said 33,600 Lake County customers lost power due to the weather.
On Tuesday, hundreds still remained out of power in scattered outages across Lake County, PG&E reported.
“This was a pretty unprecedented event here in Lake County,” Howe told the board during the brief discussion of the declaration.
Howe said the amount of damage from the storms likely won’t be clear until the snow starts to melt off.
And that may not take place immediately, given that portions of Cobb remain snowed in, with more snow falling on Tuesday afternoon.
Supervisor Bruno Sabatier said he hoped there will be a debriefing on the emergency to review how it has been handled, and what went well and what didn’t.
“Of course, I’d welcome that,” said Howe.
Howe added, “This event probably isn’t completely over. We don’t anticipate anything like we saw a few days ago but we’re still in the middle of this winter storm.”
Board members joined Howe in offering thanks to the many first responders and front line workers, including county staff.
Howe said he’s been trying to thank everyone but there are so many people that he knew he was missing some.
“There’s just too many to thank. There's a lot of people working a lot of hours, trying to keep our community safe, and I appreciate all of them. I’m glad you do, too,” Howe said.
Board Chair Jessica Pyska said she appreciated Howe’s leadership and the work of everyone involved in the storm response.
“It was pretty incredible to see everybody mobilize,” she said.
Howe, in turn, thanked the board for its support.
There was no public comment before Sabatier moved to ratify Howe’s emergency proclamation, with Vice Chair Moke Simon seconding and the board voting unanimously to approve it.
Snow continues to impact schools; additional county services to be suspended Wednesday
Due to the continuing challenge from weather conditions, on Tuesday Middletown Unified schools, the Lake County International Charter School and the Middletown Preschool were closed.
The rest of Lake County’s public schools reopened on Tuesday after having Friday and Monday snow days.
Despite there being reports on Tuesday afternoon of more snow falling steadily in Cobb, shortly after 6 p.m. Tuesday, Middletown Unified Superintendent Thad Owens posted on the district’s Facebook page that all of the district’s schools will be open on Wednesday at normal times.
Owens said the district will be running the modified snow and ice routes for Cobb buses, with all other routes to be normal.
The county of Lake also reported a return to more normal operations after having opened warming centers in the county and a hotline for homebound residents.
On Tuesday afternoon, the county said that, based on the National Weather Service’s report that storm activity is slowing, some of its enhanced services will be suspended as of 7 a.m. Wednesday.
That includes the closure of warming centers at the Lower Lake Town Hall and the Middletown Senior Center on Wednesday. Both facilities will remain open overnight on Tuesday. For more information on these warming centers, call 707-533-3599.
Sunrise Services Foundation’s warming center at 1111 Whalen Way in Lakeport will remain open around the clock for the short term. Call 707-349-5022 for more information.
The county’s 24/7 community Hotline for Homebound Individuals — available at 707-262-4421 — also will no longer be available as of 7 a.m. Wednesday.
After that hotline ends, all non-emergency concerns that require Lake County Sheriff/Office of Emergency Services support, including those resulting from winter weather, should be routed to Central Dispatch at 707-263-2690. Please use 911 for emergency calls.
Meantime, Lake County Public Works staff continue to plow and clear roads countywide both of snow and downed trees.
Public Works said Tuesday morning that primary roads have been plowed and crews were working to clear secondary roads.
Lake County residents are urged to remain vigilant as continued winter weather is expected.
The National Weather Service has issued a freeze warning for Lake County, with temperatures expected to drop into the 20s during the early morning hours on Wednesday and Thursday.
Drivers should use extreme caution when traveling in the morning hours as icy conditions are likely to exist on the roadways and sidewalks, officials said.
Forecasters also said additional rain and sleet is expected Saturday through Sunday, with further snowfall possible, especially at higher elevations in Lake County and across the region.
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