Humboldt County Joint Information Center press release:

The California State Epidemiologist recommended to local health offices last night that they pause administration of a single lot of COVID-19 vaccines, after a disproportionate number of severe adverse reactions was reported at a vaccination clinic in San Diego.

The lot, Moderna 041L20A, consists of 330,000 doses, a week’s worth of vaccines for the state, and as much as 90% of the doses the Humboldt County Public Health has on hand for vaccinations at its clinics this week. 

Humboldt County Public Health officials have administered “hundreds” of doses from the lot, Health Officer Dr. Ian Hoffman said, with no severe or unusual reactions noted. 

The lot number is written on the COVID-19 Vaccination Record Card given to individuals at the time of their vaccination. Any adverse reaction would occur immediately, usually within the first few minutes and certainly within 24 hours. 

No vaccine from that lot has been administered by Public Health or its partners within the past 24 hours, and none from the lot will be administered until or unless the state determines the lot is safe to use. 

Humboldt County Public Health has 3,500 doses from Moderna 041L20A in its freezer, 1,600 designated for first doses and 1,900 intended for second doses. Local providers have additional doses, but with “no replacement options at this time,” Dr. Hoffman said. 

Public Health clinics scheduled for Wednesday, Thursday and Friday of this week may be impacted by the pause. People with appointments or invitations to be vaccinated will be contacted if appointments need to be canceled or rescheduled.  

Dr. Hoffman also said it was possible the state might conclude the vaccine is safe and release the rest of the lot. “Obviously the goal for all of us is keeping people safe,” Dr. Hoffman said. “We’re going to pause as recommended until we hear more from the state, but without replacement doses, we’re balancing one set of risks against another.” 

Investigation into the lot is led by the manufacturer, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Food and Drug Administration.  

To see the news release from the California Department of Public Health, please follow this link: https://www.cdph.ca.gov/Programs/OPA/Pages/NR21-021.aspx 

The Joint Information Center will have additional information about this tomorrow. 

For the most recent COVID-19 information, visit cdc.gov or cdph.ca.gov. Local information is available at humboldtgov.org or during business hours by contacting covidinfo@co.humboldt.ca.us or calling 707-441-5000.

Security camera footage of the burglary provided by Legend of Bigfoot.

UPDATE, Jan. 20: 

The Outpost spoke with Legend of Bigfoot manager Mike White this afternoon, who said that the Sheriff’s Office’s initial report on the burglary was somewhat inaccurate.

While the store is still counting its inventory, White said that the burglars stole and damaged about $20,000 worth of property, not $100,000 as initially reported.

White said that the burglars took about $1,200 in rolled coins from under the register, along with a carload of nicknacks.

While the thieves raided the store’s easy-to-reach shelves, White said they passed up on much of the store’s high-priced burl decor.

“They took a ton of little items, not really the high-dollar stuff,” he said. “They took $3,000 to $4,000 dollars worth of t-shirts and miscellaneous jewelry and they did a lot of damage to the inside.”

The burglars also smashed the store’s flatscreen TV that displayed its security camera footage, possibly thinking that this would stop the cameras from recording.

“They weren’t the smartest people in the world,” he said.

The HCSO is traveling to the store today to collect evidence for its investigation.

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Garberville’s flashy roadside gift shop Legend of Bigfoot was reportedly burglarized at 11:30 p.m. on Saturday.

Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office spokesperson Samantha Karges told the Outpost that three burglars reportedly broke into shop on the 2500 block of Highway 101 and stole approximately $100,000 worth of cash and merchandise.

Security cameras captured the burglars ransacking the business and walking out with the cash register. However, the HCSO is not releasing any suspect information at this time.

“This case is still under investigation,” Karges said. “Anyone with information about this case or related criminal activity is encouraged to call the Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office at (707) 445-7251 or the Sheriff’s Office Crime Tip line at (707) 268-2539.”

When life hands you a global pandemic, sometimes you have to produce a virtual wedding.cThis week, your President of Positivity celebrates the impending e-nuptials of Eureka Police Department Sergeant Eddie Wilson and North Coast News anchor Nazy Javid who are making the best of our current weird reality.

Because COVID-19 made Eddie and Nazy’s initial wedding plans impossible, the eager couple have decided to stage an online, socially distanced blessed event. They’ve rented the venue. They’ve got the rings and the dress. All they need is for you to tune in. So, if that’s your kind of thing, save the date — this Thursday, Jan. 21 at 3:30 p.m. — and head on over to Nazy’s Facebook page where they’ll be streaming the proceedings. 

For more info and to RSVP, head over to Nazy and Eddie’s official wedding site. Feel the love.

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Perhaps You’d Like to Explore Previous Mondays With Michaele For Some Reason!

Video by reader Lucinda Maier.

A crew of commercial crabbing fishermen were rescued by U.S. Coast Guard Sector Humboldt Bay today after their boat experienced engine failure in turbulent water off the coast of Agate Beach.

USCG Petty Officer Cerina Orocso told the Outpost that all three crew members were airlifted by helicopter to the California Redwood Coast-Humboldt County Airport after putting out a distress signal at approximately 2:40 p.m.

“The helo got on scene and was assessing their drift,” Orosco said. “[They] were heading into shore, so we sent a rescue swimmer, who retrieved all three persons.”

The California Department of Fish and Wildlife responded to the scene following the rescue and confirmed that the vessel sank off the coast a short time later.

Reader Lucinda Maier sent the Outpost footage (seen above) of the coast guard responding to the distressed vessel.

No crew members were injured as a result of the emergency.

Arcata business owner Esteban Gonzalez of Esteban’s Mexican Restaurant has reportedly died of pneumonia according to a GoFundMe page.

The Mad River Union reports that Gonzalez’s illness was caused by COVID-19.

“This week, downtown Arcata lost one of our wonderful restaurant owners and friends,” the GoFundMe page reads.

Gonzalez, a self-made businessman, got his start in Humboldt County by working three jobs: milking cows, working in a saw mill and washing dishes at the Eel River Brewing Company.

Jefferson Public Radio reported in 2015 that he was eventually able to open his first taco truck in 2000. From there, Gonzalez’s business grew, and in 2012 he opened his Arcata restaurant at 1021 I Street.

“This is a tragic loss for his beloved wife and family, and a shock to those who have loved visiting Esteban’s restaurant and food truck,” the GoFundMe page reads. “Friends and community are welcome to bring cards and flowers to the restaurant in Arcata, and Arcata Main Street is creating this fundraiser to invite anyone who would like to donate in support of Esteban’s family.”

The GoFundMe page, created 11 hours ago, has already surpassed its $5,000 goal.

(AUDIO) Jenny Metz is Holding Up

Subscribe to Humboldt Holding Up on iTunes!

Jenny Metz, joy creator

After spending the past few years establishing the Inn at 2nd and C and Phatsy Kline’s Parlor Lounge as some of Eureka’s most chic destinations for out-and-about revelry, 2020 was the year Eagle House owner Jennifer Metz had designated for “less stress and more success.” Well, you know how that went.

On the first episode of Humboldt Holding Up of 2021, Metz shares with LoCO how she and her staff switched up their game to try and make the most of the past pandemic-plagued year and assures us that Humboldt will party again (as soon as it’s safe to do so). Plus, we learn about her efforts to help reinvigorate Old Town by reimagining the historic Eagle House and she tells us about that time she ended up hiking through the redwoods with Bill Murray while he was a guest at the inn. Be jealous.

Click the player above to hear Metz’s chat with LoCO’s Stephanie McGeary and Andrew Goff and/or scroll our past guests below.

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PREVIOUS GUESTS:

• Absynth Quartet Drummer Mike “Tofu” Schwartz
• HACHR Executive Director Lasara Firefox Allen
• Alchemy Distiller Owner Amy Bohner
• Eureka City Councilmember Kati Moulton
• Eureka City Councilmember Scott Bauer
• Ungraceful Ager Barry Evans
• Arcata City Councilmember Sofia Pereira
• HumBrews Music Booker Laurel Weston
• Eureka City Councilmember Kim Bergel
• Film Commission’s Cassandra Hesseltine and Nate Adams
• Marble Maker Topher Reynolds
• Arcata Playhouse Director Jacqueline Dandeneau
• Humboldt Political Junkie Eric Kirk
• Rio Dell Mayor Debra Garnes
• Second District Supervisor Estelle Fennell
• Arcata Food Aficionado Jada Calypso Brotman
• Body Piercer Jackie Silva
• Dick Taylor Chocolate’s Adam Dick
• FUHS Teachers Mark Thom and Inma Thompson
• Eureka City Manager Miles Slattery
• Savage Henry Co-Founder Chris Durant
• Eureka Street Art Festival Organizer Jenna Catsos
• SCRAP Humboldt Founder Tibora Bea
• Gym Owner Tyler Parr
• Six Rivers Brewery Co-Owner Meredith Maier
• Multicultural Skincare Therapist Levia Love
• Annie’s Cambodian Server and Social Worker Joshua Coppock
• Eureka City Councilmember Austin Allison
• HSU Professor Deidre Pike 
• Pastor Bethany Cseh
• Singer/Songwriter Chris Parreira
• Eureka City Councilmember Leslie Castellano
• Arcata City Councilmember Paul Pitino

This column is prompted by a comment from last week’s riff on “Amen/A-women” (the “pun” that Rep. Emanuel Cleaver used to end the prayer that opened the current session of the US House of Representatives): “Mr. Evans has, in earlier articles, made it clear that he is possibly an agnostic, and probably an atheist.”

Look, we’re all agnostic regarding God, which was the original coinage of the term (a-gnosis, “without knowledge”) by “Darwin’s bulldog” Thomas Huxley in 1869. None of us—from the open-minded Unitarian to the most hard-headed evangelical Christian or devout Sunni—know shit about God, any more than we “know” anything for certain. We could be brains-in-vats/dreaming or hallucinating/pawns in a sim-type computer game/robots convinced we’re free-will agents (like Sean Young’s character in Blade Runner), etc. So of course I’m an agnostic: I have beliefs, not knowledge (including what I just wrote!). So do you.

As for “probably an atheist.” First, it’s a category error (i.e. apples and oranges) to compare agnosticism with atheism—one’s about knowledge, the other’s about belief. And as I’ve written in this column several years ago, my problem with defining something by what it’s not—i.e. an atheist being someone who doesn’t believe in God (or gods)—is that you need to have at least some sense what it is you’re saying you don’t believe in. And there’s the rub. As physicist-bongo player, the late Richard Feynman, explained, having called himself a non-believer: “You describe it, I don’t believe it.” Since I have no idea what the word God (or gods) means, I’d be dishonest to express either belief or disbelief. So no, I’m not an atheist. But neither am I not not-an-atheist.

Let’s look a bit closer at this “negative definition” idea. Dark is defined as the absence of light, death by the absence of life. Similarly chastity (no sex), bachelor (unmarried), vacation (break from work)—we all understand what it is we’re not referring to. But God? Ineffable! As the very readable theologian Karen Armstrong observed, “Some [eminent Jewish, Christian and Muslim theologians and mystics] went so far as to say that it was better to say that God did not exist, because our notion of existence was too limited to apply to God.”

Which brings us, naturally to “Pascal’s Wager.” The 17th century philosopher-mathematician Blaise Pascal wrote that a rational person should at least try to believe in God (use your imagination!) since you were giving up very little, while the up side (eternal life) was enormous. That is, it was a good bet to be a believer. (The ancient Greek philosopher Protagoras may have been the first to so reason.) Which, in the cold hard light of day, is a pretty silly argument. Suppose you end up believing in the wrong god? Suppose God doesn’t accept your “wager”? Or that God—who until that moment thought you were OK—was insulted by your self-serving, phony attempt to believe?

I think I’ll stick with not knowing.