OBITUARY: Patricia Marie Lancaster-Guidry, 1960-2026

LoCO Staff / Thursday, March 26 @ 6:56 a.m. / Obits

Patricia Marie Lancaster-Guidry
Aug. 11, 1960 – Feb. 4, 2026

Patricia Marie Lancaster, the only daughter of Russell Parr Lancaster and Lois Marie Pritchard-Lancaster, passed away peacefully in the arms of her beloved husband, Glen, on February 4 at 8:45 a.m.

Anyone who knew Patty knew she was deeply passionate and wore her heart on her sleeve. She had a gift for laughter, more in a single day than most experience in a year. And when she was surrounded by family and friends, that laughter was constant. She loved life, her family, and adventure. She especially cherished life’s milestones, particularly those of her grandchildren. Her garden was her pride and joy; one visitor once called it “an oasis,” a compliment that lit up her face.

Patty held a special place in her heart for her grandmother, Betty Edgar, who taught her how to love and cherish life and others. She spoke of her often and with great affection. Her childhood on Kenmar Road in Fortuna was filled with animals of every kind, sparking a lifelong love for them. One of her happiest memories was receiving her own horse, which she proudly rode all over town. That love never faded. In recent years, her home was filled with chickens, cats, dogs, birds, fish, geese, and even a turtle. Given the chance, she would have added a llama to the mix as well.

At just 16, Patty began building her own life, welcoming her daughter Ryanne in 1979. Several years later, in 1985, she welcomed her son Gabriel. Her children were truly her life. She spoke with Ryanne every day, often multiple times, sharing everything from the smallest moments to the biggest milestones, a constant and unbreakable bond between them. With Gabriel, she carried his life forward through stories, photos, music, and videos, keeping his spirit close in every way she could. The loss of Gabriel on January 21, 2021, was a heartbreak she always carried.

When Gabriel was here, the two of them were inseparable, two peas in a pod. They shared a quick wit, a playful sense of humor, and a connection filled with laughter and the purest kind of love.

Despite a challenging childhood, Patty later completed her high school education in Arkansas. She went on to earn a certificate in Early Childhood Development from College of the Redwoods, graduating with a 4.0 GPA, a source of great pride.

Her four grandchildren — Heaven, Trinity, Emilia and Caine — became the center of her world and brought her immense joy. Heaven, her first grandchild, was the root that grew into a beautiful family tree. Next came Trinity, another bright light and source of joy, followed by Emilia, Gabriel’s firstborn. Lastly came Caine, Patty’s one and only grandson, a spitting image of his late father.

Emilia and Caine shared special time with their Gma and PopPop (Patty and Glen), alternating weekends and filling their home with laughter, love, and lasting memories. One of Patty’s last road trips was traveling north to visit Ryanne. Caine was blessed to be her road trip buddy one last time, a beautiful memory that will be held close forever. There could not have been a more perfect partner to share that final ride in her new red Camaro.

Patty loved to travel, camp, and explore new places. She especially enjoyed fishing at Ruth Lake and the South Jetty. Humboldt County held a special place in her heart, so much so that she even used “Humboldt hippie chick” as her email, a reflection of how deeply she identified with the place she loved. She cherished time spent at Fern Canyon, Moonstone Beach, and a quiet redwood grove near Jordan Creek. Together with her husband, she traveled to Hawaii, Costa Rica, Canada, and Mexico, and had been looking forward to an upcoming Alaska cruise and future travels abroad.

The past 20 years with her husband, Glen, were a beautiful, wild journey filled with love and unforgettable memories. There was only ever one Patty, and she will never be forgotten.

She is survived by her husband Glen Guidry; daughter Ryanne Tucker; her son-in-law Damon Tucker; her daughter-in-law Rebeca Urbina; her brother Glen; her niece Megeara Noland; and her nephew Zach Lancaster; and her four beautiful grandkids — Heaven, Trinity, Emilia and Caine. She was preceded in death by her son, Gabriel Irah LeRoy, and her brothers Michael and Steven Lancaster.

A celebration of life was held on February 22, and the family is deeply grateful to everyone who came to honor Patty and share in remembering her. Special thanks go to Caryl, Glen’s sister and Patty’s sister-in-law; Jovita Urbina for her delicious Mexican food — one of Patty’s favorites, especially her tamales; Matthew LeRoy, Gabriel’s father, for his presence and support; Rebeca Urbina for her love, support, and all she has done for the family, especially in helping with arrangements and being there for Glen during Patty’s passing, holding a truly special place in their hearts; and to Goble’s Fortuna Mortuary for their care and services.

The family would also like to extend a very special and heartfelt thank you to Debbie Chisum of Double D Steakhouse in Fortuna for generously allowing the family to hold Patty’s celebration of life there, as well as Gabriel’s celebration of life five years earlier on February 21st. Words cannot express the depth of their gratitude for her kindness and support.

May Patty’s laughter echo in the hearts of all who knew her, and may her love continue to guide those she cherished.

“This is the day the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.” — Psalm 118:24

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The obituary above was submitted on behalf of Patricia Lancaster-Guidry’s family. The Lost Coast Outpost runs obituaries of Humboldt County residents at no charge. See guidelines here. Email news@lostcoastoutpost.com.


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(CORRECTION) RCEA Employees May Receive Very Large Potential Salary Increases — And Work Fewer Hours

Dezmond Remington / Wednesday, March 25 @ 4:45 p.m. / Energy

RCEA’s office in Old Town Eureka.

CORRECTION: Following comment from RCEA Executive Director Beth Burks, the Outpost would like to correct a few points made in the original article.

Burks and deputy director Eileen Verbeck currently earn a smaller salary than the Outpost originally reported. In short, we had confused actual salary with potential salary – what a person in each of those positions may earn after years of service. Burks’ base salary, for example, is currently $212,000, not $246,000 as we had originally reported.

If the higher salary ranges are approved at Thursday’s meeting, it may take employees several years to work their way to the top of the scale at their particular job. Burks says that no employee will be getting more than a five percent increase in their actual salary if the proposal is approved.

But the Outpost notes that the proposal would institute the potential for large raises over the current maximum salaries, in some positions, as employees move up the pay scale. The maximum the the deputy executive director could earn, for example, would be 34.7% higher than it is now.

In addition, the article misidentified the mid-year budget projection’s net income for the organization as RCEA’s reserve balance.

The Outpost regrets the errors.

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Original article:

The Redwood Coast Energy Authority, the agency responsible for purchasing electricity for residents in Humboldt County, is attempting to grant its employees massive salary increases — many of them more than 20% — and switch to a four-day workweek.

Everyone at RCEA stands to benefit if the board of directors decides to raise their salaries and implement a four-day workweek at their meeting tomorrow.

According to the staff report, a number of unfilled positions at RCEA gives it a $600,000 surplus, some of which they can use by handing out the raises, which will total about $104,000 annually. The raise suggestions come courtesy of consulting firm Gallagher, who took a look at their staffs’ salaries, compared them to positions elsewhere they considered roughly equivalent, and recommended the pay bumps.

Screenshot of Gallagher’s report.


RCEA wants to move to a four-day, 34-hour-a-week working schedule to “to support employee recruitment and retention, promote work-life balance, and maintain service levels to the public, while remaining fiscally responsible.” 

“Like many public agencies, RCEA continues to experience budget constraints combined with competitive labor market conditions, increased workload complexity, and heightened employee burnout,” the staff report reads. “In response, staff have evaluated alternative work schedules that maintain operational effectiveness while improving organizational sustainability.”

Their staff’s productivity goals would remain unchanged.

Merritt Perry, Arcata’s city manager, declined to comment on RCEA directly, but said that when it came to Arcata’s budget — considering rising costs across the board — he urged caution.

Eureka City Manager Miles Slattery told the Outpost that the proposals for an increased salary were unjustifiable, and that their timing, coming near the middle of the fiscal year, was concerning as well.

“I am amazed at the compensation level being proposed,” Slattery said. “I don’t know where they came up with that salary schedule and how it was achieved, but just based on our region I find it not equitable with other positions of similar description and responsibility…Whether they’re financially doing well, I still don’t believe there’s justification for such salary proposals.”

The Outpost left several voicemails for RCEA’s media spokesperson; she could not be reached for comment.

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CORRECTION, 5:58 p.m.: A previous version of this article misidentified mid-year budget projection net income as RCEA’s reserve balance. The Outpost apologizes for the error.



Witnesses Testify in Hearing on Murder Case for Shooting at Abandoned Grow

Sage Alexander / Wednesday, March 25 @ 4:29 p.m. / Courts

File photo.


Details of a case involving a man accused of murdering a former associate on a remote, abandoned cannabis farm along State Route 299 came to light during a preliminary examination this week.

Testimony linked the shooting to a love triangle conflict — made up of the victim, defendant and a woman who partially testified this week on the shooting in exchange for immunity.

Christopher Diven, a 38-year-old Willow Creek man, is accused of fatally shooting Vincent McKenney with a sawed-off 20 gauge shotgun.

The court heard testimony from a Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office investigator, a Sheriff’s deputy and a woman enmeshed in the conflict between the two men who was nearby during the shooting.

Diven is accused of shooting McKenney at a property known as “Three Story Grow.” He has pleaded not guilty and remains on a no-bail hold.

Christopher James Diven | 2023 booking photo via Humboldt County.

Police heard in January from the mother of McKenney, then a missing person. She told officers her son’s last known car was spotted, a white Chevy Tahoe, and believed Diven killed her son in a “shootout,” according to testimony by HCSO officer Shane Steele, who was called to the stand by Deputy District Attorney Carolyn Schaffer.

Police searched Three Story Grow, a property with a massive, stripped building where the car was found.

“It’s a trash dump, basically,” said Steele. 

Using cadaver dogs, police found scattered, skeletal human remains in two sets near a creek, estimating about 30 and 50 yards away from where the Tahoe was found. The bones were recovered via in-depth sorting through leaf litter, and later the victim’s skull was reassembled with tape.

HCSO Investigator Brian Buihner testified police found BBs consistent with bird shot on a fragment of skull, as well as in dirt near the skull fragments. He testified a portion missing of the skull “appeared to be caused by the shotgun.”

Deputy Public Defender Ryan McClurg questioned if the victim’s injuries on his torso were consistent with him being shot while holding a gun. A witness testified McKenny had taken a .308 from a property the three squatted on when he left and had previously brought it to confrontations with the defendant. But this question was overruled due to speculation.

Deputies found yellow shotgun shells at the scene and Romex wire tied to the victim’s ankle, which police believe was used to drag McKenny’s body.

Steele testified police searched another abandoned grow nearby — 242 Cedar Creek — where Diven and others were squatting. 

While executing a search warrant at the property they found yellow shotgun casings. Police found items belonging to McKenney, including a car owned by the victim and his debit card.

Of note, said Steele, was that McKenney’s belongings ended up with Diven after his death. This was met with sounds of frustration from women attending the hearing and an objection from the defense attorney.

McKenney had formerly lived there after Diven invited him to move in, according to witness testimony. He lived there for a period before leaving the property with Diven’s romantic partner, Jordan Schafer Burgisso Burdisso causing more conflict between the two men.

Steele testified that, during interviews with Diven’s friends, police learned that Diven had borrowed a shotgun while citing disputes between him and McKenney.

His friends loaned him a 20 gauge shotgun and a box of shells in October.

Steele testified Diven had texted the friend on Oct. 28 looking for a ride around 4 .a.m., because he believed that McKenney was holding Burdisso hostage.

He told his friend via text he was walking to Three Story Grow.

She responded telling him she was out of gas , and woke up later seeing a text message from Diven stating he was “just kidding” and was at home the whole time, Steele testified.

He returned the gun in November. The friend told police the two thought nothing of it at the time, then later “put two and two together,” and hid the weapon, months later.

According to later testimony from Investigator Buihner, police went with the friends to Forest Service land where the shotgun was stashed in a tree trunk. 

The friend informed police the victim and defendant had problems. One dispute related to a dump truck being stolen and stripped of valuables off the property, and for Burdisso temporarily leaving Diven for McKenney.

Burdisso was also brought to the witness stand, and was offered immunity in exchange for testifying.

She had an undisclosed medical emergency preventing her from completing her testimony Friday, and her statements would be struck from the record if she does not appear Friday, Judge Christopher Wilson said.

Burdisso, often distraught and suffering from the condition while on the stand, testified she chose to tell police everything due to guilt over McKenney’s death — she said she couldn’t stop thinking about him.

“Vincent didn’t belong out there,” she said. She said she blamed herself at points for his death, and both she and Diven were emotional during the hearing.

She had texted Diven telling him to “bring protection” (a gun) while she was meeting McKenney at Three Story Grow. She wanted to get some of her possessions back that McKenney had packed into a trailer with the intention of moving down river. He was attempting to convince her to come with him, she testified.

She spoke with Diven briefly after he arrived on foot while she waited in her car, said she fell asleep, and testified she later was awoken when hearing McKenney say “You’ve got to be kid-” followed by two gunshots she identified as coming from a shotgun.

She testified Diven and McKenney had been arguing and tensions were reaching a head.

DA Schaffer showed the court video evidence Burdisso recorded of the pair arguing about a week before the shooting, which included Diven threatening to shoot McKenney if he returned to the property Diven was squatting on. McKenney was armed when he arrived, said Burdissio, and she had gone with him to the property to retrieve something.

Later, Burdisso testified her and Diven crafted text messages and deleted messages to make it seem like she never met up with McKenney.

Judge Christopher Wilson continued the hearing to Friday. Diven’s attorney did not finish cross examination of Burdisso, who did not appear on the second day of the hearing due to a medical emergency.

The preliminary hearing is set to continue Friday. Judge Wilson was adamant the hearing would conclude then, with the aim to establish whether enough evidence exists to hold Diven to the charges he is accused of. If Burdisso doesn’t show Friday, Wilson said he will strike the testimony.

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RISING FROM THE ASHES: Northtown Books and Dandar’s Will Soon Reopen Side-by-Side in Renovated Hatchet House Building

Ryan Burns / Wednesday, March 25 @ 3:59 p.m. / Business

Coming soon to this building at 737 G Street: books and games galore. | Google Street View.

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Great news for local book readers, game players and practitioners of meaningful browsing: Northtown Books and Dandar’s Boardgames and Books have secured a place to reopen side-by-side in downtown Arcata, mere months after their neighboring stores burned to the ground in the city’s catastrophic January 2 fire.

Northtown Books owner Dante DiGenova called the Outpost this afternoon to report that he and Dandar’s owners Dan Gilkey and Doranna Benker Gilkey will soon sign leases to share the building at 737 G Street. That location most recently held the Hatchet House, which closed at the end of 2024.

“We’re going to divide it in half,” DiGenova said. “Same orientation, with Northtown on the south [side of the building] and Dandar’s on the north.”

The Gilkeys are currently out of town and thus unavailable for comment, but DiGenova said he got their permission to announce this double-dose of business news.

Like their previous storefronts, the new location is just steps away from the Plaza. The Hatchet House building has a new owner, though DiGenova said it’s not his place to disclose their identity.

When will Northtown reopen?

“That’s the hard question,” DiGenova replied. He expects to start moving stuff into the building in May, and while he was initially hopeful about opening as soon as June, he’s now predicting it will be July or August. He’s working with a local contractor to build all the required shelving, and he’s trying to figure out the new space should be oriented.

“There’s so many questions right now, it’s kind of blowing my mind,” DiGenova said.

Many of those questions surround insurance. Negotiations with the store’s policy holders have been predictably complex and prolonged. 

“I don’t have the funds to renovate yet; we’re still in negotiations,” he said, adding, “I will make it work somehow.”

Since burning down, Northtown Books and its employees have benefited from community support via an online fundraiser that was set up right after the fire and through customer orders placed through the business’s website. (Books ordered online are sent directly to customers’ homes, like Amazon minus the billionaire owner.)

Plus, one insurance policy has been covering lost income, which means Northtown has retained treasured employees Monika, Jay, Jon and Sarah.

“They all want to come back,” DiGenova said.

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Welfare Check on Armed Man in Rio Dell Results in Arrest and Seizure of Guns and White Powders, Police Say

LoCO Staff / Wednesday, March 25 @ 1:50 p.m. / Crime

Photos: RDPD.

Press release from the Eureka Police Department:

On March 21, 2026, at approximately 7:00 PM, Rio Dell Police officers conducted a welfare check on a reportedly armed male, identified as 43 year old Rio Dell resident, David Bourland. Officers located Bourland in the Shively Road area and detained him without injury following a brief struggle.

A subsequent investigation and search of his vehicle resulted in the seizure of:

  • A loaded semi-automatic handgun
  • A non-serialized disassembled AR-15 style rifle
  • High-capacity magazines and ammunition
  • Suspected methamphetamine
  • Multiple individually packaged baggies of suspected cocaine consistent with sales
  • Digital scales and packaging materials

Bourland, who is prohibited from possessing firearms, was arrested and booked on the following charges:

HS 11370.1(a) – Possession of a controlled substance while armed with a loaded firearm

  • HS 11351 – Possession of a controlled substance for sale
  • HS 11377(a) – Possession of a controlled substance
  • HS 11378 – Possession of methamphetamine for sale
  • HS 11379(a) – Transportation of a controlled substance
  • PC 30305(a)(1) – Prohibited person in possession of ammunition
  • PC 29800(a)(1) – Felon in possession of a firearm
  • PC 25400(a)(1) – Carrying a concealed firearm in a vehicle
  • PC 25850(a) – Carrying a loaded firearm in a vehicle
  • PC 29180(c) – Possession of an unserialized firearm

Anyone with additional information relevant to this case is encouraged to contact Sergeant Beauchaine with the Rio Dell Police Department at (707) 764-5642 or Beauchainej@cityofriodell.ca.gov.



Water District Completes Emergency Repairs to Dam Gate at Ruth Lake Following Hydraulic Fluid Leak

Ryan Burns / Wednesday, March 25 @ 11:20 a.m. / Infrastructure

Ruth Dam — a.k.a. R.W. Matthews Dam — in 2014. Outpost file photo.

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The Humboldt Bay Municipal Water District has completed emergency repairs to a hydraulic gate at the R.W. Mathews Dam on Ruth Lake, according to a press release issued today. 

Environmental containment and cleanup operations have also been wrapped up following a March 3 failure in the dam gate’s hydraulic operating system. The subsequent discovery of a hydraulic fluid leak triggered “an all-hands emergency that demanded immediate action to protect our community’s water supply,” District General Manager Michiko Mares says in the press release.

No oil was observed in the Mad River at any point during the incident or repair operations, according to the district.

When we reached Mares on the phone this morning, she said while the total cost of the multi-agency repair effort yet to be fully calculated, the district’s expenses will likely be “several hundred thousand dollars.” At its March 12 meeting, the district’s Board of Directors approved an initial expenditure of up to $350,000 from the capital reserve fund, and that amount didn’t factor in the as-yet-undetermined costs of environmental disposal.

These costs could result in a rate increase for customers, though Mares said, “[W]e are hopeful that this [incident] will fall under our insurance claim and we can recoup the majority of costs incurred.”

She went on to highlight the community-wide repair efforts, saying she’s thankful that local residents and agencies come together to solve hard problems.

Here’s the district’s press release:

EUREKA, CA — Humboldt Bay Municipal Water District (District) has completed emergency repairs to the hydraulic operating system for the slide gate at the R.W. Matthews Dam intake structure on Ruth Lake in Trinity County. The slide gate — which releases the primary water supply for approximately 90,000 Humboldt County residents — is fully operational, and environmental containment and cleanup operations at the reservoir have been concluded. No oil was observed in the Mad River at any point during the incident or repair operations.

“This was an all-hands emergency that demanded immediate action to protect our community’s water supply,” said Michiko Mares, General Manager of Humboldt Bay Municipal Water District. “From the moment the hydraulic operating system failed on March 3, our team and our partners worked around the clock — diagnosing the problem, mobilizing a dive crew to a remote reservoir, and executing repairs while protecting the lake environment. I could not be prouder and more appreciative of the people who made this happen.”

The Incident

On March 3, 2026, during a routine Division of Safety of Dams (DSOD) field inspection, the hydraulic operating system for the slide gate at the Ruth Dam intake structure failed while being operated resulting in a loss of the District’s ability to control releases from Ruth Lake.

The District immediately activated its Emergency Action Plan and Situation Evaluation Committee, and notified state and federal dam safety regulators. Over the following week, District staff conducted extensive diagnostic testing to determine the cause of the failure.

On March 11, a sheen of hydraulic oil was observed on the lake surface near the intake structure. The oil — Clarion® Green BIO 32, a plant-based, readily biodegradable hydraulic fluid specifically selected by the District for use in a public water supply reservoir — had leaked from the hydraulic system into a flooded equipment room inside the intake structure. The District immediately deployed containment booms and notified the National Response Center, Cal OES, the North Coast Regional Water Quality Control Board, the California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW), and Trinity County Environmental Health, among other agencies.

The Response

The District’s Board of Directors convened on March 12 to declare an emergency and authorize emergency procurement under Public Contract Code §20645 and 22050. Within days, the District had mobilized an 8-person commercial dive team from Associated Underwater Services, Inc. (AUS) of Spokane, Washington, along with a specialized environmental contractor, Patriot Environmental Services, Inc., to manage containment and cleanup on the lake.

Dive operations began March 17 at the intake structure. Over the course of four days, divers entered the intake structure and the hydraulic cylinder room, identified a disconnected hydraulic line as the primary cause of the hydraulic operating system failure, and restored the gate to operation via a temporary hydraulic line.

Following closure of the gate, District staff dewatered the penstock and entered the cylinder room to perform additional inspections and hydraulic system repairs with support from Daveco Hydraulics and Welding. Permanent repairs to the hydraulic operating system were completed on Sunday, March 22, 2026, restoring full operational capability. All environmental controls were removed on March 24, 2026.

Environmental Protection

Throughout the response, the District maintained an extensive containment and monitoring program in coordination with the California Department of Fish and Wildlife, Office of Spill Prevention and Response (CDFW OSPR), which directed the environmental response. Environmental controls included:

  • Oil-only containment booms around the intake structure and dive area
  • Secondary containment booms between the spillway walls
  • Absorbent booms upstream and downstream of the dam
  • Boats equipped with absorbent materials for immediate deployment
  • Continuous visual monitoring during all dive and repair operations
  • Water quality sampling at multiple locations on Ruth Lake and the Mad River at the direction of the North Coast Regional Water Quality Control Board

Toluene testing requested by the Regional Water Quality Control Board returned non-detect results at all sampling locations, confirming no contamination of the lake or river.

The total volume of hydraulic oil released and recovered during the incident and repair operations was approximately 44 gallons. All recovered oil and contaminated absorbent materials were collected and disposed of by Patriot Environmental Services through licensed waste disposal in accordance with applicable regulations. Containment booms were removed on March 24, 2026, following post-work monitoring that confirmed no additional oil was surfacing. No oil was observed in the Mad River at any point during the response. No impacts to fish, wildlife, or water quality were observed.

Acknowledgments

The District extends its gratitude to the many partners whose rapid response and sustained commitment made this emergency repair possible.

The District’s operations and maintenance team, led by Director of Operations and Maintenance Dale Davidsen, provided on-site coordination throughout the emergency, from initial diagnostics through final repairs. District staff maintained environmental controls, operated the hydraulic power unit during dive testing, completed the final repair, and ensured continuous communication with regulators and contractors.

Associated Underwater Services, Inc. (AUS) of Spokane, Washington, mobilized an 8-person dive crew and equipment to a remote mountain reservoir on short notice and executed a complex, multi-phase inspection and repair at 110 feet of depth under challenging conditions.

Patriot Environmental Services, Inc. of Sacramento, California, provided on-water and onshore containment, cleanup, and waste disposal support throughout the operation.

Daveco Hydraulics and Welding of Eureka, California, provided specialized hydraulic repair expertise during the penstock-access phase of repairs.

GR Sundberg, Inc. of Arcata, California stood ready with siphon installation materials and a work plan as a contingency to ensure continued water supply downstream of the reservoir.

Humboldt Sawmill Company provided necessary parts on short notice so we could complete the critical repair.

The California Department of Fish and Wildlife, Office of Spill Prevention and Response (OSPR) provided on-site oversight during dive operations and directed environmental containment, monitoring, and cleanup operations on the lake.

The Division of Safety of Dams (DSOD) and the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) maintained close coordination with the District throughout the emergency, receiving daily progress updates during active dive operations.

The North Coast Regional Water Quality Control Board directed water quality sampling and provided regulatory oversight of the District’s environmental controls.

Trinity County Environmental Health coordinated local response efforts and maintained communication with the public.

The District’s Board of Directors acted swiftly to declare the emergency and authorize the resources necessary to protect the community’s water supply.

Looking Ahead

The District will incorporate findings from this emergency into its long-term inspection, maintenance, and emergency preparedness programs for R.W. Matthews Dam. The incident has underscored the importance of maintaining emergency response capabilities for critical submerged infrastructure and the value of pre-positioning relationships with specialized contractors who can mobilize on short notice. The District will continue to work closely with DSOD, FERC, and other regulatory partners to ensure the ongoing safety and reliability of R.W. Matthews Dam and the community’s water supply.

“Ruth Lake is approximately 75 river miles upstream of where we divert water to serve Humboldt Bay communities,” said Mares.

“Protecting this reservoir is not just our job — it is our mission. The response to this emergency reflects the strength of the partnerships between our District, our contractors, and the regulatory agencies that oversee dam safety and environmental protection in California. These are our #WaterHeroes.”



District Attorney Not Seeking Death Penalty for Hoopa Shooting

Sage Alexander / Wednesday, March 25 @ 11:07 a.m. / Courts

File photo.


The Humboldt County District Attorney’s office announced in court Wednesday the prosecution will not be seeking the death penalty in a case involving two teenagers accused of fatally shooting a 17-year-old in Hoopa.

During a hearing to confirm one defendant’s attorney, Deputy District Attorney Roger Rees said the People are “not going to be seeking death as a penalty,” in the case.

He said the office had discussed the matter with the victim’s mother.

Codefendants Tse-Lin Lincoln, 19, and William Randolph Billy Warren, 18, each previously pleaded not guilty to murder and assault charges, and denied gang-related enhancements. They are being charged with murder for the death of Dylan Moon.

Previously, Warren’s attorney Rebecca Linkous called for the DA’s office to state on the record whether prosecutors would seek capital punishment during an appointment hearing. She cited concern the attorney appointed to Lincoln wouldn’t be qualified for a death penalty case. A different attorney was appointed to represent Lincoln.

Judge Steven Steward ordered the defendants to appear on April 28. Linkous said she did not anticipate being prepared on the date set for a preliminary hearing. Lincoln’s attorney, Andrea Sullivan, similarly pointed to the volume of discovery in the case as a concern.

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