On Saturday, the College of the Redwoods Board of Trustees approved Resolution 782 authorizing the President/Superintendent to implement a mandatory vaccination policy for the College of the Redwoods community.
“We have tried different ways to encourage our employees and students to get vaccinated. However, with the rapid and alarming rise of local infections, hospitalization and deaths, and with the number of people in our area who have refused to get vaccinated, regardless of the science underlying the vaccines, it was clearly time for the college to institute a mandate,” said CR President Keith Flamer.
The policy requires all employees and student workers to show proof of vaccination by September 30 2021, Additionally, all students will be required to be vaccinated by the beginning of the Spring 2022 semester, unless they are attending CR remotely and will not be on campus for any face-to-face instruction or student services. CR will also allow exceptions for medical reasons, disability, or sincerely held religious beliefs.
The Board’s action was taken at the recommendation of President Flamer and was guided by recommendations from the Humboldt County Department of Public Health, California Department of Public Health and the CDC, stating that vaccination is the most effective way available to prevent and mitigate transmission, and limit COVID-19 hospitalizations and deaths.
“The Board of Trustees does not take this decision lightly,” said Danny Kelly, president of the CR Board. “Unfortunately, given the alarming rate of COVID surge and breakthrough cases in our region we must take decisive action immediately to maintain a safe and healthy learning environment for our students.”
The College is aware that some individuals may be reluctant to receive the vaccine. To help dispel some myths and to explain the science behind the COVID-19 mRNA vaccine and the FDA approval process, listen to the latest episode of the CR Podcast, “What’s the Issue with…Vaccines” with CR microbiology professor Dr. Diqui LaPenta and nursing professor Melody Pope. It is available on our website at redwoods.edu/Podcast, on Spotify, and wherever else you get your podcasts.
The Monument Fire burning along Highway 299 in Trinity County between Burnt Ranch and Weaverville has surpassed 150,000 acres.
A team of 1,725 firefighters is currently working on the fire and has increased overall containment to 20 percent.
“Today, crews will continue prepping the communities of Hawkins Bar and Trinity Village in the event the fire spots across the New River,” the fire’s incident management team stated this morning. “The fire is slowly backing down Ironside Mountain east of the river and crews are monitoring the Bell Flat area for any spot fires that may pop up west of the river. Firefighters are working with the local fire department to help homeowners Firewise their properties while also opening up historic dozer lines that have been put in over the years for other fires.”
The Trinity County Office of Emergency Services is urging people to sign up with the CodeRed emergency alert system for the latest evacuation information.
Evacuation Orders: In effect for Hayfork, Sky Ranch Road, Red Hill, Canyon Creek, Coopers Bar, Big Bar, Del Loma, Bell Flat, Helena, Cedar Flat, Burnt Ranch and Barker Mountain. Junction City’s evacuation order has been reduced to an evacuation warning.
Evacuation Warnings: In effect for Junction City, Weaverville, Douglas City, areas south from Barker Mountain to Haystack, the north side of Hyampom Road from Hayfork to 9-mile bridge, Denny, Hawkins Bar and Trinity Village.
Evacuation Centers: American Red Cross Shelters have been set up at Shasta College, 11555 Old Oregon Trail, Building 1900, Redding CA; Willow Creek Bible Church, 39 Brannan Mountain Road, Willow Creek, CA; and Fireman’s Hall Pavilion, 9 Park Street in Fortuna.
Animal Evacuation: (Domestic animals) Trinity County Animal Shelter, 563 Mountain View St, Weaverville, CA (530- 623-1370). (Domestic + Large Animals) Hoopa Rodeo Grounds on Pine Creek Rd, Hoopa, CA. (Large Animals with the exception of Swine): Redding Rodeo Grounds, located at 715 Auditorium Dr., Redding, CA (Sandy Ekman 530-739-8469)
A damage assessment team confirmed that 32 structures have been destroyed by the fire. For information regarding property damages, contract the Trinity County Office of Emergency Services at (530) 623-1116.
The latest map of the McFarland Fire. | InciWeb
McFarland Fire
The McFarland Fire burning along Highway 36 in Trinity County has grown to 118,090 acres and is now 68 percent contained.
A damage assessment team has confirmed that 20 residences and 18 other structures have been destroyed by the fire. Damage assessments are ongoing. A map of the destroyed structures and images of the properties can be found by clicking this link: visit:https://arcg.is/1Pu8GW
“As fire activity slows and containment increases, crews are taking opportunities to start working on interior areas of the fire, opening roads that were compromised, snagging dead trees, and beginning the process of suppression repair,” the fire’s incident management team stated this morning. “During suppression repair, roads and culverts that were damaged during the fire fight are repaired, and water bars are added to help prevent erosion during winter rain.”
A team of 813 firefighters are currently working to contain the blaze, including 13 hand crews, 73 engines, 7 helicopters, 14 dozers, 20 water tenders and 3 masticators.
Evacuation Orders and Warnings:
Shasta County
ORDERS: The Shasta County Sheriff’s Office has issued a mandatory evacuation order for all residents within the township of Platina. The evacuation order includes all residences and roadways from the Trinity/Shasta County line east to the Shasta/Tehama County line. Residents are encouraged to use Platina Road as an evacuation route. There will be a temporary evacuation site at the Igo/Ono Elementary School. https://www.facebook.com/ShastaSheriff
Tehama County
ORDERS: The area west of Vestal and Weemasoul Roads to the Shasta/Tehama County line and south of Highway 36 in the fire area.
WARNINGS: Highway 36 from Bowman Road west to the county line and north to the Shasta County line (Zone 157). The area south of Highway 36, east of Vestal and Weemasoul Roads, north of Pettyjohn, and west of Cottonwood Creek and Vestal Roads in the 4 corners area (Zones 158 and 169). Please click here to view the map for Tehama County: https://tinyurl.com/Evacuation-and-Road-Closure
Highway 36 remains closed between Harrison Gulch to Vestal Road.
The McCash Fire. | InciWeb
McCash Fire
The McCash Fire burning in the Klamath and Six Rivers National Forests east of Highway 96 is now 19,707 acres in size and 0 percent contained.
“Fire growth continues to threaten communities along the Highway 96 corridor between Independence and Rogers Creek,” the fire’s incident management team stated this morning. “Fire continues to grow on all sides, but the majority of the McCash fire resources are engaged in structure protection activities in these areas. Night operations continue to take advantage of opportunities to slow fire spread west towards Highway 96. Fire growth is expected to continue in the Marble Mountain Wilderness.”
A team of 364 firefighters is currently working to contain the blaze, including one hotshot crew, two Type 2 IA crews, two type 2 hand crews, nine engines, three Helicopters, five dozers, four water tenders and 10 masticators.
A story published in The Guardian today takes a closer look at how Northern California law enforcement agencies, including the Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office, got duped by baseless social media posts into launching a wild goose chase for a nonexistent “Antifa bus” last summer.
As readers may remember, back in June 2020, as Black Lives Matter protests were taking place across the country in the wake of the murder of George Floyd, Sheriff William Honsal addressed the alleged threat posed by alleged antifa busses during a media availability video. In response to a question from the Outpost aboutsuch “wild, unsubstantiated theories,” he said:
We did have reports — substantiated, law enforcement reports — that said antifa did have people in buses that were in southern Oregon and in the Central Valley … . These aren’t unsubstantiated stories. This is the reality, and we have to deal with that.
Except it wasn’t reality, and the stories had not been substantiated.
The Guardian story reveals that the evidence for these claims amounted to a pair of screenshots of social media posts. The unsubstantiated posts were rooted in conspiracy theories, but the images were enough for the Redding office of the California Highway Patrol to launch an aircraft search and notify allied law enforcement agencies, including the Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office.
Public records obtained by the Guardian show that Honsal emailed his staff on June 2 saying he had “confirmed with CHP that the bus is currently in Redding” and that CHP had a “surveillance team” monitoring.
Despite the lack of evidence, Honsal stood by his statements, telling the Outpostthat the CHP had “confirmed the reports of a Antifa bus or busses.”
A CHP spokesperson, however, told the Guardian that the agency had received no evidence beyond the two screenshots.
Ryan Shapiro, the executive director of the government transparency nonprofit Property of the People, tells the Guardian that the NorCal law enforcement agencies lacked “basic news and social media information literacy.”
Another revelation:
On 1 September last year, the Humboldt undersheriff, Justin Braud, sent an email to staff, saying, “We are in trying times for sure, and we must prepare accordingly.” He encouraged officers to read an attached document, which he said contained “good material on preparedness for the unknown, mentally and physically”.
The document was a police newsletter called “Nor Cal Sheepdog” about “off-duty safety” in the “era of Anonymous, Antifa, and BLM”. Written by law enforcement consultants, the authors said these groups should not be “underestimated” and that their “tactics include attacks on officers”. The letter advised officers to “maintain vigilant watch for threats while off duty”, always be “armed and ready”, “train with your off-duty weapon”, “prepare for the possibility of being a victim” and be “paranoid”.
It warned officers that they could face attacks anywhere, including in their homes, adding, “Indecision is fatal. You must switch to the on-duty mindset.”
Get your motor runnin’ and head out to … the bay! Your President of Positivity was born to be wild and, as such, she’s a big fan of the United Bikers of Northern California (UNBC) who happen to be holding their annual outdoor Bikes by the Bay event this coming Saturday, Aug. 28 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. down at Halvorsen Park in Eureka. There’ll be food, fun and games and, of course, motorcycles. Gimme a “vroom vroom.”
A few dozen sign-wielding, anti-mask, anti-vaccine types gathered in front of St. Joseph Hospital this afternoon to proudly declare that they’re not gonna take it. No, they ain’t gonna take it.
The rally was held in unison with similar protest across the country under the group America’s Healthcare Workers for Medical Freedom.
A social media flyer for the event encouraged healthcare workers to attend the rally wearing their hospital scrubs. However, it’s unclear if any of the protesters were local hospital employees.
“Join us to advocate for our bodily autonomy and our right to say no,” the flyer stated.
Former Arcata City Councilmember Paul Pitino was among those in attendance and was wearing a T-shirt with the words “unmasked, unmuzzled, unvaccinated, unafraid.”
The most recent map of the Monument Fire. | InciWeb
The Monument Fire burning along Highway 299 in Trinity County between Burnt Ranch and Weaverville has grown to 147,323 acres and is 16 percent contained.
A team of 1,715 firefighters is currently working to contain the blaze, including 23 hand crews, 135 engines, 13 helicopters, 50 dozers, 46 water tenders, 19 skidgines and 2 excavators.
“Smoke will continue to smother the fire area today, choking off fire behavior until late afternoon when northwest winds could bring some clearing,” the fire’s incident management team stated this morning. “The blanket of smoke blocks the sun from hitting the fire and keeps temperatures cooler. Based on the forecast, that trend will continue through much of the week. Firefighters will take advantage of the passive conditions to continue work on primary, alternate and contingency fire lines around the fire while also mopping up existing containment lines farther into the burn area.”
Highway 299 at Burnt Ranch | Photo by public information officer Chris Noel.
The Trinity County Office of Emergency Services is urging people to sign up with the CodeRed emergency alert system for the latest evacuation information.
Evacuation Orders: In effect for Hayfork, Sky Ranch Road, Junction City, Red Hill, Canyon Creek, Coopers Bar, Big Bar, Del Loma, Bell Flat, Helena, Cedar Flat, Burnt Ranch and Barker Mountain.
Evacuation Warnings: In effect for Weaverville, Douglas City, areas south from Barker Mountain to Haystack, the north side of Hyampom Road from Hayfork to 9-mile bridge, Denny, Hawkins Bar and Trinity Village. For detailed evacuation information, visit the Trinity County Office Sheriff Facebook page at Trinity County Sheriff’s Office | Facebook
Evacuation Centers: American Red Cross Shelters have been set up at Shasta College, 11555 Old Oregon Trail, Building 1900, Redding CA; Willow Creek Bible Church, 39 Brannan Mountain Road, Willow Creek, CA; and Fireman’s Hall Pavilion, 9 Park Street in Fortuna.
Animal Evacuation: (Domestic animals) Trinity County Animal Shelter, 563 Mountain View St, Weaverville, CA (530- 623-1370), (Domestic + Large Animals) Hoopa Rodeo Grounds on Pine Creek Rd, Hoopa, CA, or (Large Animals) Redding Rodeo Grounds, 715 Auditorium Dr., Redding, CA (Sandy Ekman 530-739-8469).
A damage assessment team confirmed that 32 structures have been destroyed by the fire. For information regarding property damages, contract the Trinity County Office of Emergency Services at (530) 623-1116.
The Fairbanks 1 hand crew walks towards the setting sun along FSR 60 in the Shasta-Trinity National Forest on August 19, 2021. | Photo by public information officer Andy Lyon.
The McFarland Fire burning along Highway 36 in Trinity County has grown to 117,985 acres and is now 66 percent contained.
A damage assessment team has confirmed that 11 residential structures and 14 other structures have been destroyed by the fire. Damage assessments are ongoing. A map of the destroyed structures and images of the properties can be found by clicking this link: visit:https://arcg.is/1Pu8GW
A team of 819 firefighters are currently working to contain the blaze, including 13 hand crews, 73 engines, 6 helicopters, 14 dozers, 22 water tenders and 3 masticators.
Air quality conditions are good to moderate across Humboldt County today.
“Air quality remains good at the surface in many areas as the smoke remains aloft,” Eureka’s National Weather Service office stated this morning.
Evacuation Orders:
Shasta County
The Shasta County Sheriff’s Office has issued a mandatory evacuation order for all residents within the township of Platina. The evacuation order includes all residences and roadways from the Trinity/Shasta County line east to the Shasta/Tehama County line. Residents are encouraged to use Platina Road as an evacuation route. There will be a temporary evacuation site at the Igo/Ono Elementary School. https://www.facebook.com/ShastaSheriff
Tehama County
The area west of Vestal and Weemasoul Roads to the Shasta/Tehama County line and south of Highway 36 in the fire area. EVACUATION WARNINGS: Highway 36 from Bowman Road west to the county line and north to the Shasta County line (Zone 157).
The area south of Highway 36, east of Vestal and Weemasoul Roads, north of Pettyjohn, and west of Cottonwood Creek and Vestal Roads in the 4 corners area (Zones 158 and 169). Click here to view the map for Tehama County: https://tinyurl.com/Evacuation-and-Road-Closure
Highway 36 remains completely closed between the Highway 3 junction and Vestal Road.
