Jamesa Stokes' path to being an engineer at NASA started out on a completely different road.
While she loved and excelled at math and science, she was also passionate about studio art, her first major in college.
But knowing that science can also be a creative pursuit, she switched to physics and embarked on a journey to NASA when she reached grad school.
Stokes, who received her bachelor’s degree in Physics from Auburn University and a Ph.D. in materials science and engineering from the Pennsylvania State University, was awarded a graduate fellowship to conduct research at NASA Glenn.
She later became a NASA intern and converted to a full-time materials research engineer when she finished her Ph.D.
“Working at NASA means tackling the bigger problems we face for the benefit of society,” said Stokes. “My job is to develop and understand how advanced materials behave in the extreme environments of space. It will help protect not only the lives of astronauts but also flight vehicles.”
Are you considering a STEM career? Stokes says there are many ways to reach your goal.
“There is no required path to becoming a scientist or engineer nor is there one way a scientist or engineer is supposed to act or look,” she said. “Never let anyone discourage you from pursuing what you like and remember that you can always be more than whatever societal conventions envision your future to be. Participate in STEM clubs and activities to figure out what makes you passionate about science and engineering.”
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. — Heavy snow and downed trees contributed to numerous power outages across Lake County on Thursday night and early Friday.
Tens of thousands of Pacific Gas and Electric customers were out of power by early Friday morning as a result of the winter weather conditions, according to the company’s online outage map.
The majority of those outages did not have estimated restoration times or causes.
Late Thursday, the power went off briefly in Lucerne twice before going off and staying off for a third time shortly after midnight.
Radio traffic on Thursday night and early Friday recounted downed trees or trees into power lines across the county. One fallen tree on 11th Street in Lakeport blocked both lanes of traffic shortly at about 11:45 p.m.
PG&E is urging its customers to be prepared for outages. Tips for preparedness can be found here.
Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.
The California Department of Water Resources on Wednesday announced a modest increase in forecasted State Water Project deliveries this year due to early gains in the Sierra snowpack.
DWR now expects to deliver 35% of requested water supplies, up from 30% forecasted in January, to the 29 public water agencies that serve 27 million Californians. That would translate to an additional 210,000 acre-feet of water.
Record-breaking atmospheric rivers that pounded the state in January gave way to a mostly dry February that saw less than an inch of precipitation statewide to this point.
“We’re hopeful that more storms this week are a sign that the wet weather will return, but there remains a chance that 2023 will be a below average water year in the northern Sierra.” said DWR Director Karla Nemeth. “Careful planning and the use of advanced forecasting tools will enable the Department to balance the needs of our communities, agriculture, and the environment should dry conditions continue this spring and into next year.”
The State Water Project, or SWP, will continue to optimize water storage in Lake Oroville to support environmental needs in the summer and allow for carry-over storage for next year if the spring becomes extremely dry.
Additionally, the forecasted allocation could be adjusted back down if extreme dry conditions warrant.
The 35% allocation forecast announced Wednesday takes into account snowpack and reservoir storage from those storms, current hydrology conditions, spring runoff forecasts, and an anticipation of dry conditions ahead.
The updated SWP forecast is on par with the Central Valley Project, or CVP, initial allocations announced Wednesday by the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation.
In addition to optimizing water storage, California continues to accelerate investments in habitat restoration, including $52 million in grants announced last week to help restore and protect fish and wildlife habitat throughout California.
Wednesday’s updated SWP delivery forecast takes into account new snowmelt runoff data, known as Bulletin 120.
This report provides a forecast of snowmelt runoff and is a key tool for water managers across the state to understand how the melting snow in the Sierra Nevada will reach streams, rivers and eventually California reservoirs.
Bulletin 120 offers a range of possibilities to allow water managers to prepare for spring runoff and eventual summer water supply. The forecast is updated regularly throughout the winter and spring.
DWR uses advanced forecasting tools that include Airborne Snow Observatory surveys which are now underway to collect snow measurements farther upslope of the Sierra Nevada. The data from these flights, which use LiDAR and spectrometer technology to measure snowpack across broad swathes of key watersheds, is used by DWR to get a more accurate account of California’s snowpack and possible spring runoff.
More than a month still remains in the state’s wet season, but there’s uncertainty about a return to warm and dry conditions prior to April 1, typically when the state’s snowpack peaks and begins to melt.
DWR is scheduled to conduct the next two snow surveys at Phillips Station on March 1 and April 3. Dates are subject to change depending on weather conditions and DWR will provide updates as the date approaches.
Conditions in the Colorado River Basin and California’s groundwater basins continue to have an impact on available water supply. Californians should continue to use water wisely to help the state adapt to a hotter, drier future.
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. — A large part of Lake County remained without power on Friday in the wake of a winter storm that’s expected to be followed by freezing conditions on Friday and Saturday nights.
Pacific Gas and Electric Co. reported that 33,600 of its customers in Lake County remained without power on Friday morning due to 40 separate weather-related outages.
The company’s outage map showed that the outages remained in effect throughout the county on Friday afternoon. The outages were attributed to weather and many did not have estimated times for restoration.
That’s of particular concern due to the ongoing weather situation.
While the National Weather Service’s Eureka office said more snowfall isn’t expected until Saturday evening, that agency also is forecasting a hard freeze to take place on Friday and Saturday nights, with temperature falling into the mid- to low 20s around Lake County.
The snow and freezing temperatures are raising other challenges as well.
In the city of Lakeport, the police department said that the significant fresh snow is bringing a lot of pedestrians into the roadways as sidewalks are difficult to traverse and children have been found playing in the snow on side streets.
Police asked drivers to use caution, to drive slowly because of increased stopping distances and to be aware of pedestrians walking in the roadways.
The hard freeze, “coupled with melting snow during today will likely result in a large accumulation of ice in the roadways, parking lots and hard walking surfaces. Use great caution when driving and walking,” the police department reported.
Across the lake, the Clearlake Police Department urged community members to avoid travel unless absolutely necessary.
“Hazardous conditions throughout the city, including power lines down and trees blocking multiple roadways. PG&E and Public Works are working to clear hazards,” the agency reported.
Officials reported that the weather conditions also had led to limited county services, and they also urged people not to travel if they don’t need to.
The California Highway Patrol reported that Bottle Rock Road near Kelseyville is closed and there is a hard road closure in the area of Bradford Road and Highway 29 near Middletown.
Road conditions remain hazardous throughout the county due to the snowfall on Thursday and overnight.
The Lake County Public Works Department reported on its Facebook page Friday that opening roads is now their primary concern, with staff maxed out and running around the clock.
The department asked for patience, noting that every road in the Kelseyville Rivieras, Cobb and the hills around Clear Lake are experiencing large amounts of snow.
The Lake County Public Services Department said Friday there will be temporary facility and garbage service route closures due to weather conditions.
Facilities to be closed include the Eastlake Landfill in Clearlake, Lake County Waste Solutions Transfer Station and Recycle Yard in Lakeport; the South Lake Refuse and Recycle Yard and Quackenbush Mountain Resource Recovery Park in Clearlake.
Residential and commercial garbage service for both Lake County Waste Solutions and South Lake Refuse will not be running Friday. All facilities and service routes are tentatively planned to reopen or resume operations on Saturday.
If departments are managing unusually high call volume with limited staff, some delay in response may occur.
Solid waste/recycling
Public Services for the Eastlake Landfill: 707-262-1618 Lake County Waste Solutions: 707-234-6400 South Lake Refuse and Recycling: 707-994-8613
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.
CLEARLAKE, Calif. — If you’re looking for a new canine friend, Clearlake Animal Control has a full house of dogs ready to join your family.
There currently are 34 adoptable dogs at the shelter available to be adopted into new homes.
They include “Noah,” a male American pit bull terrier mix, and “Goliath,” a 6-year-old male Rottweiler mix.
The shelter is located at 6820 Old Highway 53. It’s open from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday.
For more information, call the shelter at 707-762-6227, email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., visit Clearlake Animal Control on Facebook or on the city’s website.
This week’s adoptable dogs are featured below.
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.
As tractors became more sophisticated over the past two decades, the big manufacturers allowed farmers fewer options for repairs. Rather than hiring independent repair shops, farmers have increasingly had to wait for company-authorized dealers to arrive. Getting repairs could take days, often leading to lost time and high costs.
A new memorandum of understanding between the country’s largest farm equipment maker, John Deere Corp., and the American Farm Bureau Federation is now raising hopes that U.S. farmers will finally regain the right to repair more of their own equipment.
However, supporters of right-to-repair laws suspect a more sinister purpose: to slow the momentum of efforts to secure right-to-repair laws around the country.
Under the agreement, John Deere promises to give farmers and independent repair shops access to manuals, diagnostics and parts. But there’s a catch – the agreement isn’t legally binding, and, as part of the deal, the influential Farm Bureau promised not to support any federal or state right-to-repair legislation.
You can listen to more articles from The Conversation narrated by Noa.
The right-to-repair movement has become the leading edge of a pushback against growing corporate power. Intellectual property protections, whether patents on farm equipment, crops, computers or cellphones, have become more intense in recent decades and cover more territory, giving companies more control over what farmers and other consumers can do with the products they buy.
For farmers, few examples of those corporate constraints are more frustrating than repair restrictions and patent rights that prevent them from saving seeds from their own crops for future planting.
How a few companies became so powerful
The United States’ market economy requires competition to function properly, which is why U.S. antitrust policies were strictly enforced in the post-World War II era.
During the 1970s and 1980s, however, political leaders began following the advice of a group of economists at the University of Chicago and relaxed enforcement of federal antitrust policies. That led to a concentration of economic power in many sectors.
This concentration has become especially pronounced in agriculture, with a few companies consolidating market share in numerous areas, including seeds, pesticides and machinery, as well as commodity processing and meatpacking. One study in 2014 estimated that Monsanto, now owned by Bayer, was responsible for approximately 80% of the corn and 90% of the soybeans grown in the U.S. In farm machinery, John Deere and Kubota account for about a third of the market.
Market power often translates into political power, which means that those large companies can influence regulatory oversight, legal decisions, and legislation that furthers their economic interests – including securing more expansive and stricter intellectual property policies.
Whether the product is an automobile, smartphone or seed, companies can extract more profits if they can force consumers to purchase the company’s replacement parts or use the company’s exclusive dealership to repair the product.
One of the first cases that challenged the right to repair equipment was in 1939, when a company that was reselling refurbished spark plugs was sued by the Champion Spark Plug Co. for violating its patent rights. The Supreme Court agreed that Champion’s trademark had been violated, but it allowed resale of the refurbished spark plugs if “used” or “repaired” was stamped on the product.
Although courts have often sided with the end users in right-to-repair cases, large companies have vast legal and lobbying resources to argue for stricter patent protections. Consumer advocates contend that these protections prevent people from repairing and modifying the products they rightfully purchased.
The ostensible justification for patents, whether for equipment or seeds, is that they provide an incentive for companies to invest time and money in developing products because they know that they will have exclusive rights to sell their inventions once patented.
However, some scholars claim that recent legal and legislative changes to patents are instead limiting innovation and social benefits.
The problem with seed patents
The extension of utility patents to agricultural seeds illustrates how intellectual property policies have expanded and become more restrictive.
Patents have been around since the founding of the U.S., but agricultural crops were initially considered natural processes that couldn’t be patented. That changed in 1980 with the U.S. Supreme Court decision Diamond v. Chakrabarty. The case involved genetically engineered bacteria that could break down crude oil. The court’s ruling allowed inventors to secure patents on living organisms.
Half a decade later, the U.S. Patent Office extended patents to agricultural crops generated through transgenic breeding techniques, which inserts a gene from one species into the genome of another. One prominent example is the insertion of a gene into corn and cotton that enables the plant to produce its own pesticide. In 2001, the Supreme Court included conventionally bred crops in the category eligible for patenting.
Historically, farmers would save seeds that their crops generated and replant them the following season. They could also sell those seeds to other farmers. They lost the right to sell their seeds in 1970, when Congress passed the Plant Variety Protection Act. Utility patents, which grant an inventor exclusive right to produce a new or improved product, are even more restrictive.
Under a utility patent, farmers can no longer save seed for replanting on their own farms. University scientists even face restrictions on the kind of research they can perform on patented crops.
Because of the clear changes in intellectual property protections on agricultural crops over the years, researchers are able to evaluate whether those changes correlate with crop innovations – the primary justification used for patents. The short answer is that they do not.
One study revealed that companies have used intellectual property to enhance their market power more than to enhance innovations. In fact, some vegetable crops with few patent protections had more varietal innovations than crops with more patent protections.
How much does this cost farmers?
It can be difficult to estimate how much patented crops cost farmers. For example, farmers might pay more for the seeds but save money on pesticides or labor, and they might have higher yields. If market prices for the crop are high one year, the farmer might come out ahead, but if prices are low, the farmer might lose money. Crop breeders, meanwhile, envision substantial profits.
Similarly, it is difficult to calculate the costs farmers face from not having a right to repair their machinery. A machine breakdown that takes weeks to repair during harvest time could be catastrophic.
The nonprofit U.S. Public Interest Research Group calculated that U.S. consumers could save US$40 billion per year if they could repair electronics and appliances – about $330 per family.
The memorandum of understanding between John Deere and the Farm Bureau may be a step in the right direction, but it is not a substitute for right-to-repair legislation or the enforcement of antitrust policies.
Leland Glenna, Professor of Rural Sociology and Science, Technology, and Society, Penn State
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. — As forecasters predicted, snow coated Lake County on Thursday, leading to numerous motorists stuck in snow or spinning out, power outages and closed schools.
While areas like Cobb often get snow throughout the winter, the snowfall taking place this week has been reported across all Lake County communities, and is the heaviest to occur countywide in years.
Light snowfall started in areas including the Northshore on Thursday morning, continuing on and off into the evening, when snow began to accumulate.
By nightfall, several inches of snow were coating the landscape, turning Lake County into a winter wonderland.
However, while lovely to look at, the snow created dangerous conditions for drivers that are still present on Friday.
Shortly before 4:30 a.m. Friday, the Clearlake Police Department issued a Nixle alert warning that there are hazardous conditions all over the city.
Be alert of snow covered roads, trees, and power lines down in roadway all over the city. Many roads may be blocked or partially blocked. We are working to get the roads cleared as soon as possible, until then avoid traveling unless necessary,” the agency said.
On Thursday, as the storm was strengthening over Lake County, the California Highway Patrol’s online incidents page recorded dozens of spinouts, strandings and some minor vehicle crashes from one end of the county to the other.
The CHP said chain control was put into effect on a portion of Highway 175 early Thursday evening due to the heavy snow there.
Cars, trucks and even big rigs were reported to be stuck due to the snow as the evening went on.
On Highway 20 at Blue Lakes, multiple vehicles were reported to be struck in the snow at around 6:45 p.m., the CHP said.
As many as eight vehicles were stuck in the snow at Robin Hill Drive and Lakeshore Boulevard in north Lakeport at about 7:45 p.m.
At about the same time, there also were vehicles stranded on Highway 20 at Red Rock Road and Highway 20 between Highway 53 and New Long Valley Road near Clearlake Oaks and on portions of Soda Bay Road in Kelseyville, according to the CHP.
Just before 8:45 p.m., the CHP reported that multiple vehicles were stranded in the snow at Highway 20 and Scotts Valley Road near Upper Lake.
Shortly after 9 p.m., about 20 cars were reported to be stuck on the Coyote Grade between Hofacker Lane and Hidden Valley Lake.
That also was the case in the area of Highway 53 and Highway 20 near Clearlake Oaks, where numerous vehicles were reported to be stuck in the roadway shortly before 10 p.m.
Just before midnight, the CHP said an unmanned hard closure was in effect for Highway 29 at Spruce Grove Road North near Lower Lake
Elsewhere around the county, snow caused downed trees and branches, resulting in trees going into power lines and causing numerous outages across the county, according to Pacific Gas and Electric.
Lori Price, a staffer with Lake County Public Works who oversees the agency’s Facebook page, posted online Thursday evening that plows in the Kelseyville area were working their way from Kelseyville proper out through Soda Bay towards the Riviera, with the hopes they would make it to Cobb.
“This isn't going to be a quick job,” she said. “Please plan on staying home.”
Price said crews are working in three staggered, overlapping shifts, with only two to three employees per shift to operate sanding trucks and trucks with blades, “and snow everywhere.”
She added, “It's going to be a very long night.”
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.
LAKEPORT, Calif. — The Lakeport City Council on Tuesday night gave its unanimous support to an agreement to form a new recreation agency.
City Manager Kevin Ingram presented to the council a resolution to approve a joint exercise of powers agreement, or JPA, that creates the Lake County Recreation Agency.
The Clearlake City Council approved the agreement at its meeting last Thursday and appointed members David Claffey and Dirk Slooten to be its two representatives on the JPA board. Ingram said the Board of Supervisors is expected to consider the JPA at a meeting in March.
A written report to the council from Ingram and Assistant City Manager Nick Walker explained that a group of interested parties began meeting regularly in 2019 to discuss the possibilities of improving recreational opportunities in Lakeport.
Interest expanded to include parties countywide, with the group becoming known as the Recreation Task Force. The city of Lakeport assisted the task force in October 2020 with issuing a request for proposal from qualified consulting firms to prepare a needs assessment and feasibility study so the task force “could determine whether to proceed with planning, funding and creating an indoor/outdoor multi-generational Recreation Center or Centers,” the report explained.
The task force worked with Studio W architects and their subconsultants for a year and a half to complete two phases of a feasibility study that were presented in 2021 and 2022 to local government bodies and the public.
“The feasibility work included public input, site selection, development scope, conceptual design, programmatic options, capital and operating cost estimates, management structures and partnership opportunities,” the report explained.
Following a meeting in October, representatives from the cities and the county reached consensus to hire bond counsel firm Jones Hall to form the JPA. A proposal review committee hired the firm FM3 to conduct polling. The report said the city of Lakeport has contracted Jones Hall and FM3 with cost sharing agreements with the city of Clearlake and the county of Lake.
Developing and maintaining recreation and aquatics centers is expected to cost tens of millions of dollars. The options presented by Studio W at public meetings in August 2021 put the cost of a new aquatic center at more than $21 million based on configurations.
Ingram and Walker’s report said that the task force members have discussed ways of covering those costs, which include contributions from local, state and federal governments, grants, donations and a JPA.
Even with those sources, the report noted there is likely to be a funding gap, which is why the JPA could form a community facility district and place a special tax on the ballot to pay for debt service on authorized bonds and operation costs associated with new recreation and aquatics facilities.
City and county officials are now looking at placing such a revenue measure before voters on the March 2024 ballot, which would be the presidential primary.
Ingram told the council on Tuesday that many groups — the cities, the county, school districts, hospitals and tribes — “seem to be on the same page that this needs to be a regional effort.”
It’s not just about financing and operations, but “what is the mission going to be?” Ingram said.
It wouldn’t just be a pool or recreation center but also could involve a trails system and other amenities. In that sense, there are a lot of options and it’s exciting, said Ingram, noting that the bad news also is that there are a lot of options.
Although Clearlake already has appointed its two members to sit on the seven-member JPA board — which will include two members each from the cities and the county, and one at-large member — Ingram said Lakeport’s appointments would take place at a future time and would be done by the mayor.
He expected the newly formed recreation agency will have more frequent meetings at first as it is getting off the ground. “This is very exciting,” Ingram said.
Ingram said they have seen exciting plans for facilities that include the “Ferrari model” — a reference to the extremely expensive options that have been presented previously. Decisions on just what models to pursue will have to be made, he added.
“Overall, moving together as a region is absolutely the right way of handling this,” Ingram said.
Councilmember Kim Costa asked what other public agencies might join the agency. Ingram said there is a lot of room for different entities, but that for now it’s starting with the cities and county.
City Attorney David Ruderman said any public entity can form a JPA. The way this new JPA’s formation documents are written, it’s up to the new recreation agency who gets to take part.
Councilmember Brandon Disney said most people would love to see the dream vision come about, but he noted that tax ballot measures aren’t always popular.
“Is there a fallback if the tax measure doesn’t come to fruition?” Disney asked.
Ingram said he thought that at this point it’s still completely in the exploration phase, with polling of the electorate to take place regarding their feelings about the financing mechanism.
There was no public comment on the new JPA’s formation.
Councilman Kenny Parlet recalled previously trying to work with the county to share costs of the city’s now-closed Westshore Pool, and the county refusing to do so.
He said he was very concerned about estimated maintenance costs of about $250,000.
Councilman Michael Froio said he and Mayor Stacey Mattina have met with the city of Clearlake and an ad hoc group appointed by the Board of Supervisors, there is enthusiasm all around.
“We have a different group of people,” he said in response to Parlet’s concerns.
Mattina said the tax measure would help with maintaining the centers.
Froio said bringing a pool to Lakeport is an outstanding idea.
Ingram said they have looked at their sister city of Fort Bragg, which built a beautiful pool but was forced by maintenance costs to eventually put a sales tax measure before voters.
“We’ve kept our eyes open all the way,” Ingram said.
Ingram said they are getting to the point where people will need to show what they are willing to put up in terms of support, noting they will need to “rap on the door” of Congressman Mike Thompson and state legislators.
“The maintenance plans need to be in place with any potential project,” Ingram said.
Disney moved to adopt the resolution, with Parlet seconding and the council voting 5-0.
During the hour-and-15-minute-long meeting, Ruderman also gave the council a presentation on ethics regulations and best practices, as well as recent law changes.
Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. — With forecasters issuing more firm predictions of snow around the North Coast over the next few days, the National weather Service has issued a winter storm warning for Lake County.
The warning will be in effect from 4 p.m. Thursday to 10 a.m. Friday due to concerns for heavy snowfall with accumulations of between 3 and 5 inches and up to 12 inches in higher altitudes around Lake County.
There were already reports of light snow falling in the Cobb and Whispering Pines areas on Tuesday, and local officials are gearing up for the response.
During Tuesday night’s Lakeport City Council meeting, Public Works Superintendent Ron Ladd said they are watching the weather, are loaded up with road sand, have staff on standby and are ready to respond to the predicted storm conditions.
The National Weather Service said heavy snow will be likely for elevations above the 1,000 foot elevation mark across Del Norte, Humboldt and Trinity counties through Thursday afternoon, followed by additional heavy mountain snow in Lake and Mendocino counties Thursday night through Friday morning.
The forecast calls for the heaviest precipitation rates to become focused over Lake, Trinity and Mendocino counties from Thursday evening until Friday morning, with snowfall ranging from 5 to 12 inches forecast to occur, with snow falling between 500 and 1,000 feet above sea level.
In addition to snow, the forecast expects numerous hail and occasional snow showers at sea level and very cold morning temperatures on Friday and Saturday.
The Lake County forecast calls for snow from Wednesday through Friday, and then chances of rain showers from Sunday through Tuesday.
Temperatures for the rest of the week are expected to be in the high 30s to high 40s during the daytime, dropping into the high 20s at night.
Winds with gusts of more than 20 miles per hour also are forecast through Friday.
Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. — Children across Lake County will get a snow day on Friday.
A day of snowfall on Thursday and expectations of more snow to come led to all public school districts canceling classes on Friday, according to a Thursday night announcement from the Lake County Office of Education.
Just after 10 p.m. Thursday, Rob Young, the Office of Education’s director of operations and emergency services, reported that, due to the inclement weather, all Lake County public schools will be closed on Friday.
“State preschools run by the Lake County Office of Education will also be closed to students,” Young reported.
The Kelseyville, Lakeport, Lucerne and Upper Lake districts were all in session this week, while Konocti Unified was in intercession, and Middletown Unified, the Office of Education’s Creativity and Hance schools already were off this week, Young said.
Young said private schools that will be closed include Konocti Christian Academy.
Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. — On Feb. 4, Habitat for Humanity Lake County was excited to celebrate with the Solorio family as they were welcomed into Habitat’s 40th home in Lake County.
Ana Solorio celebrated with family and friends and Habitat staff and volunteers as Father Marlon of Queen of Peace Catholic Church offered prayers, blessings and cleansing of the home.
“I still feel like I’m dreaming,” said Solorio, blinking away emotional tears. “I’m happy I didn’t give up … and so thankful for all of the work that went into this home and getting me into it. Having a place where my family can be safe and call ours is something I didn’t think would ever happen.”
If you are interested in Habitat’s Homeownership program or know someone you think would qualify, you are encouraged to contact the office at 707-994-1100, Extension 106, or stop by for an application at 15312 Lakeshore Dr. Clearlake, behind Foods, Etc.
LAKEPORT, Calif. — The Lakeport Police Department has identified the pedestrian who died after being hit by a vehicle on Sunday evening.
Lt. Dale Stoebe said the man who died was Craig Gunther, 71, of Lakeport.
Stoebe said Gunther was not homeless.
Gunther was hit by a beige 2002 Chevy Tahoe at about 7 p.m. Sunday while he was walking westbound in the roadway on 11th Street near North Street.
Police said Gunther was declared dead at the scene.
The Tahoe’s driver, who police have so far not identified publicly, was determined to not be under the influence of drugs or alcohol and was not driving in an unsafe manner, police reported.
Police said a coroner’s investigation is underway and will include toxicology testing of Gunther.
Police Chief Brad Rasmussen said the last fatal crash involving a vehicle and a pedestrian in Lakeport occurred in July on Main Street at Armstrong Street.
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.