Local News
03/23/2011
Thousands Remain Without Power Tonight
Twain Harte, CA-- There has been little change in the number of power outages in the Mother Lode this evening. Just under 5,000 Mother Lode PG&E customers still remain without power.
According to PG&E Spokesperson JD Guidi, Tuolumne County has the most reported outages with 4,580 mainly in the Twain Harte and Mi Wuk Village areas. There are 1,783 customers in Twain Harte without electricity, 1,350 in Mi Wuk Village, 390 in Sonora, and the remaining outages are scattered throughout the county.
In Calaveras County there are less than 500 customers without power mainly in the Arnold area.
"There's a lot of access issues and with current weather conditions, crews are having variables that are preventing restoration, said Guidi.
There are still no estimated restoration times available. To report an outage or to receive information on a specific neighborhood, call 1-800-PGE-5000.
Written by tina.falco@mlode.com
Prompt Care Opening In Angels Camp
Angels Camp, CA-- A new Prompt Care facility is opening in Angels Camp this weekend.
According to Sonora Regional Medical Center Spokesperson Gail Witzlesteiner, Angels Camp Prompt Care located at 23 North Main Street on the corner of Highway 4 in the Jumping Frog Plaza, will open this Sunday.
"I think the residents will be very happy to have such a wonderful service provided in their own backyard, right there in Angels Camp," said Witzlesteiner.
This is the third Prompt Care operating under the Sonora Regional Medical Center Adventist Health brand. Indian Rock Prompt Care in East Sonora opened in 1992 and Forest Road Prompt Care opened in 2007 in response to the closure of the county hospital in Sonora.
As with the Indian Rock and Forest Road Prompt Care, the Angels Camp Prompt Care will be staffed by physicians from the Sierra Emergency Medical Group, who also staff the emergency department at Sonora Regional Medical Center.
Angels Camp Prompt Care will be open seven days per week from 8:00 am to 6:00 pm providing urgent care for walk-in patients with no appointment necessary.
Sonora Regional Medical Center and the Calaveras County Chamber of Commerce hosted an open house and ribbon cutting ceremony Tuesday afternoon. It was attended by SRMC administrators and staff, chamber members and the general public.
Written by tina.falco@mlode.com
Motherlode Winter Storm Warning Issued
The National Weather Service has issued a Winter Storm Warning for the Motherlode from Thursday 3 PM to Friday 11 AM.
The Winter Storm Warning now in effect for the Sierra Nevada, also continues until 11 AM Friday.
Half a foot to a foot of snow is possible above 2000 feet. One to four feet of snow foot is likely above 3000 through 4000 feet. Three to five feet of snow is expected above 7000 feet.
Additionally, a High Wind Warning has been issued for the Motherlode on through 5 PM Thursday.
Winds of twenty to forty mph are expected with strong gusts from forty-five to seventy mph.
This could lead to more downed trees and power outages. This will also create difficult driving conditions, especially for small cars and high profile vehicles.
In the Sierra, winds of twenty-five to thirty-five mph are expected with gusts up to sixty mph.
Thunderstorms are also possible Thursday afternoon and evening. Funnel clouds will be possible along with weak tornadoes. These storms will most likely contain a lot of hail mixed with heavy rainfall.
A Flood Watch remains in effect for the Motherlode now through late Thursday night.
Periods of moderate to heavy rain will lead to rapid rises of small rivers and streams. Smaller creeks could overflow their banks.
Flooding of low-lying areas in both urban and rural locations should be expected. Rock, dirt and mud slides are also likely.
More wet weather is possible late Friday night and Saturday, as another storm system approaches the region.
For road conditions, click http://www.mymotherlode.com/traffic
Written by mark@mlode.com
Suspicious Death Of Don Pedro Man
The Mariposa County Sheriff's Department is investigating the death of a Don Pedro man.
54-year-old Brian Ciuffo was found dead in the roadway in the area of Ranchito Drive in Mariposa County. The body was located in an area near some mailboxes. The Sheriff's Department believes that Ciuffo may have been struck by a vehicle, so the CHP has been asked to join the investigation. An autopsy is scheduled for this week.
Anyone with information regarding the case is encouraged to contact Sgt. Jeremy Briese with the Mariposa County Sheriff's Department at 1-800-774-8314. The body was located at around 1pm on Monday.
Twain Harte, CA-- Over 5,000 Mother Lode residents continue to be without power this afternoon.
According to PG&E, Tuolumne County has the most reported outages mainly in the Twain Harte and Mi Wuk Village areas. There are 1,800 customers in Twain Harte without electricity, 1,500 in Mi Wuk Village and the remaining outages are scattered throughout the county.
In Calaveras County there are only 150 remaining customers without power. They are mainly in the Arnold area.
While crews continue to work around the clock, they have been hampered by snow, rain and gusty winds. There are still no estimated restoration times available.
Written by tina.falco@mlode.com
San Andreas, CA -- A Superior Court Judge has dismissed charges against a Mountain Ranch woman related to the death of Jerry Yates.
Yates, 69, was killed last August after two dogs owned by Sheryl Sellers attacked him on his property. Yates had given Sellers a job and allowed her to live on his property. The Calaveras District Attorney's Office argued that Sellers had the dogs enclosed behind inadequate fencing, which allowed them to attack Yates. The Judge ruled that since there was no evidence of exactly why the attack happened or what the actions were of Yates, the case was dismissed.
To read an earlier article on this case, click here.
Twain Harte, CA -- T.U.D. is working to repair a flume that is damaged along its Eureka Ditch.
A very large cedar tree smashed through the flume on Sunday. The flume flows water to Ponderosa Hills and Tuolumne. Currently there are no requests for emergency water conservation. T.U.D. is monitoring the storage tanks carefully and has generators going in areas where the power has not been restored.
Twain Harte, CA -- Travel is not advised this morning in the Lakewood Park Subdivision in Twain Harte.
The subdivision has been without power for three days, and county roads crews have not been able to complete any snowplow efforts due to power lines and trees in the roadway. PG&E crews are pulling their vehicles far enough to the side this morning so that the snowplows can now pass through. The County Roads Department is requesting that residents stay off the roads in the subdivision while the plowing is taking place. It should take a couple of hours to complete.
Sonora, CA -- The number of remaining power outages in the Mother Lode is shrinking.
In Tuolumne County there are 5,965 PG&E customers without electricity. There are nearly 1,700 in Twain Harte, 1,500 in East Sonora and close to 1,500 in Mi Wuk Village. In Calaveras County there are only 260 remaining customers without power. They are mainly in the Arnold area.
Crews continue to work around the clock, and there is still not an estimated restoration time.
Lack Of Water Closes Warming Station
Mi Wuk Village, CA -- The Mi Wuk Village Warming Station at the Word of Life Fellowship Center is now closed.
Unfortunately they have lost water at the location. Those in the high country without power are encouraged to go to the Moose Lodge on Longeway Road in the Soulsbyville area. A second warming station is open in South Tuolumne County at the Groveland Community Hall.
The Winter Storm Warning for the Sierra Nevada continues through 11 AM Friday.
In addition, the National Weather Service has issued a Winter Storm Watch for the Motherlode from Thursday afternoon through Friday morning.
Half a foot to a foot of snow is possible above 2000 feet. One to four feet of snow foot is likely above 3000 through 4000 feet.
Wind gusts of forty to sixty mph are possible near the Sierra crest.
A High Wind Watch has been issued for the Motherlode from late tonight through Thursday afternoon.
Winds of fifteen to thirty mph are expected with gusts from forty-five to sixty-five mph.
This could lead to more downed tree limbs and difficult driving conditions, especially for small cars and high profile vehicles.
Thunderstorms may be a possibility this afternoon. Any local thunderstorm would most likely contain a lot of small hail mixed with heavy rainfall.
A Flood Watch remains in effect for the Motherlode through late Thursday night.
Periods of moderate to heavy rain will lead to rapid rises of small rivers and streams. Smaller creeks could overflow their banks.
Flooding of low-lying areas in both urban and rural locations should be expected. Rock, dirt and mud slides are also likely.
For road conditions, click http://www.mymotherlode.com/traffic
Written by mark@mlode.com
Sonora, CA-- A special tribute to Vietnam Veterans is coming to the Mother Lode.
Veterans activist, Frank Smart, was Wednesday's KVML "Newsmaker of the Day".
In celebration of Welcome Home Vietnam Veterans Day, a replica of the Vietnam Memorial Wall in Washington DC will be displayed at the Mother Lode fairgrounds this week. The American Veterans Traveling Tribute will be on display Thursday, March 24th through Monday, March 27th.
"This is an 80% version, said George Eldridge, Tuolumne County Vietnam Veteran and Event Chairman. "It's like 372 feet long and 8 feet high in the middle. Also at this event will be tributes to World War II, Korea, and all wars since Vietnam. It will be on display 24 hours a day with no fee."
Eldridge says that although the traveling wall has been displayed in California before, this is the first time it will be seen in the Mother Lode.
"We especially want people that have relatives that died in Vietnam to come out," said Eldridge. "We welcome naturally any veteran to come and see it or any family to come and see it. We're going to have a reading of the names of veterans from Calaveras and Tuolumne County."
According to Eldridge, the traveling wall will be arriving in Sonora Wednesday afternoon. In addition to Sheriff and CHP officers, motorcyclists from the Tuolumne County Chapter 391 of the Vietnam Veterans of America will also participate in the escort. Eldridge says the wall will be assembled Thursday morning and will be open to the public for viewing at noon until Monday, March 27th.
There will also be an Opening Ceremony on Friday, March 25th at 1 pm at the Mother Lode Fairgrounds. The California Department of Veterans Affairs Acting Secretary Rocky Chavez will be the keynote speaker. Other speakers include Representative Jeff Denham, Assemblywoman Kristin Olsen, Calaveras County Board of Supervisors member Merita Callaway, Tuolumne County Board of Supervisors Chair John Gray, and Sonora Mayor Bill Canning.
Eldridge says he's excited about all of the planned events and especially the traveling veterans wall.
"It's a symbol of what all of us, both living and the ones on the wall gave to this country. It's really special. I'm very happy to bring it here so that other people who know Vietnam veterans on the wall can visit it and see the names."
For more information on the American Veterans Traveling Tribute call (209) 984-1378.
The "Newsmaker of the Day" is heard each weekday on AM 1450 KVML at 6:47, 7:47 and 8:47 a.m.
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