On January 21, 2024, Christina Freitas and Nevaeh Beyer, a mother and her daughter, were taken from our lives far sooner than ever imagined. Passing as one, in a single instant, they take with them the light of two bright futures that can never be renewed. We survive this sorrow knowing that those who pass from our sight will never pass from our lives so long as we hold them in our hearts.

Christina (42), born in Arcata on October 16, 1981, grew up in Rio Dell after moving from Smith River. She attended Rio Dell Elementary School and graduated from Fortuna High School. Having a kind and caring personality, and a spirit filled with fun and love, she made friends easily. She was able to see, and even enhance, the best qualities in those around her. Hers was a love and a heart that will be forever missed by all who knew her.

Nevaeh Beyer (9), born in Fortuna on November 11, 2014, lived in Rio Dell with her mother Christina and attended Rio Dell Elementary School. She was a happy and friendly third-grade student enjoying nothing more than being with her friends and making her parents and grandparents laugh. She was smart, independent, funny, and loved by all who knew her. Her infectious smile lit more hearts than she could ever have known. Playing with her dog, riding horses, and enjoying her family are only a few of the things she enjoyed during her short but full life.

Christina is survived by Linda Freitas (mother), Joe Freitas and Mericia Melo (father & girlfriend), Cliff, Liz, Logan, and Cameron Freitas (brother & family), Jason Freitas and Sidney Melendy (brother & girlfriend), Joe Enes (uncle), Natal Mendes (aunt), Helio Mendes (uncle), and numerous other aunts, uncles, cousins, and friends.

Nevaeh is survived by Jacob P. Beyer (father), siblings: Jacob, Brody, and Brooklyn Beyer, Tena Beyer (grandmother), Robert Beyer (grandfather), Linda Freitas (grandmother), Joe Freitas (grandfather), Cliff Freitas (uncle), Jason Freitas (uncle), Liz Freitas (aunt), Jessica Beyer (aunt), Chace Pancoast (uncle), Joseph Beyer (uncle), Nadie Roop (aunt), and cousins: Logan and Cameron Freitas, Kaiden Martin, Dylan Barmlett, Aries Korbly, and Bryce Pancoast.

Funeral services will be held at Ferndale Catholic Church on Saturday, February 3, 2024 at 10am, with a private interment to follow at Sunrise Cemetery in Fortuna.

A celebration of Christina’s and Nevaeh’s life will be held after at Fortuna Fire Department.

The tears we shed in remembering lives lost
Remind the living of loves true cost
Though I know this is not the end
Until I see you again, my heart cannot mend.

Keith Evan Downing was born on December 7, 1953 to Darlene and Robert Downing. He passed away on January 13, 2024 at the age of 70. Keith was a lifelong resident of Willow Creek. He was the proud father of three children and grandfather to three grandsons.

Keith was born in Garberville, as a toddler he and his family relocated to Burnt Ranch, then to Willow Creek following the 1964 flood. He attended elementary school in Burnt Ranch and went on to graduate from Hoopa High School in 1972. Keith excelled on and off the court, earning honors on student council, was named to the principal’s honor roll list all four years and was a star athlete in football, basketball, baseball, and track. Keith became known by his classmates as “Goose,” a name that would stick with him into his adult life.

Keith married Debra Cooley of Eureka, in 1976. The couple started a family and had three children; Brian Keith, Jennifer Lee, and Rhonda Lynn, where they resided in Willow Creek.

Keith was the second oldest of five siblings, all of whom enjoyed life on the river and in the beautiful mountains of the Klamath-Trinity region. Keith was a true mountain man and embodied all of the characteristics of what that possessed; from working in the woods, to living off the land and most recently-transforming scrap wood into beautiful pieces of art. His wood work, including his benches, walking sticks, face carving and vases were sold at some of the local shops.

Keith loved being outdoors and enjoyed hunting and fishing. He, his father and older brother Kevin, along with several cousins made many trips to the Trinity Alps where countless memories were made. One trip in particular, Keith killed two bucks in two days; a memory that was forever cherished and a story that was told for decades to come! He was a true storyteller and always loved to emphasis his stories to make for a better tale and an even better laugh! Not only did his stories invoke a lot of laughs, but Keith had a way about him that always brought out the humor in every situation. He knew how to make people laugh and once he got you going, that loud belly aching laugh would take over and the entire room would follow suit!

Keith had a lot of friends and close family whom he shared a lot of good memories with, however none closer to his heart than his children and grandchildren. His three grandsons were the light of his life and he enjoyed attending their sporting events, birthdays and family gatherings. He also thoroughly enjoyed family get-togethers, whether it was a birthday, holiday, camping trips, an outing at Horse Linto Creek Campground, he truly enjoyed those moments with his siblings and cousins.

He was preceded in death by his grandparents; Bill & Marion Brown, Chet & Katherine Downing, as well as his parents; Robert Downing (Barbara) and Darlene Downing. Keith is survived by his children; Brian Downing (Heather Maddox), Jennifer (JR) Larkins, and Rhonda Downing (Shawn Washington), his grandchildren; Jayce Larkins, Evan Larkins and Lavell Washington, as well as his siblings; Kevin Downing (Sandra), Karen Middleton (Ron), Kim Downing and Kelly Downing, his aunt DeAnne Morrow, and many nieces and nephews, cousins and friends.

A Celebration of Life will be held at the VFW Hall in Willow Creek on Saturday, February 17 from 1 to 3 p.m. The family would like to invite Keith’s friends and all whom loved him to attend. This is a potluck, so we welcome you all to bring one of your favorite dishes.

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Local photographer Matt Filar, a champion of both the Humboldt Crabs and Humboldt’s crabbers, captured these images of ships departing Trinidad Harbor this morning ahead of the tempestuous atmospheric river headed our way. 

They headed to the more protected marinas in Eureka to wait out the storm, which promises heavy rain and gusts up to 65 mph.

“They expect to return on Sunday,” Filar reports. “Don’t expect to see crab in the markets for a few days.”

Press release from the Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office:

The Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office needs the public’s help to locate a missing person, Mark Charles Burleigh, age 39, of Humboldt County. Mark was reported missing by his family on 02/18/2018. He was last seen in September of 2017 in the Alderpoint area. He has not reached out to family or friends since that time.

 Mark is a white male, 39 years-old, blonde hair, blue eyes, 5 feet 11 inches tall and 150 pounds.

 Anyone with information for the Sheriff’s Office regarding Mark’s possible whereabouts should call the Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office at (707) 445-7251.

UPDATE, Jan. 31: 

Michael James Martin has been located safe in Eureka, CA, by the Eureka Police Department. 

The Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office would like to thank the public for their assistance. 

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Press release from the Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office:

Michael James Martin

The Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office needs the public’s help to locate missing person Michael James Martin, age 34. The last communication with his family was in September of 2023 and last known to be in the Humboldt County area.

Michael was reported missing by his family on November 22, 2023, at about 12:24 p.m., Michael is a white male, 5 feet 9 inches tall, 170 pounds, with blonde hair, hazel eyes and possibly a full beard and mustache.  He is living a transient lifestyle with his female mixed breed dog named Maisey.

Maisey

Anyone with information for the Sheriff’s Office regarding Michael’s possible whereabouts is requested to contact Mike Fridley at (707) 441-3024.

Press release from the Office of Gov. Gavin Newsom:

Governor Gavin Newsom today announced new actions and efforts already underway that California is taking to help restore California’s salmon populations.

After 10 years of rapidly intensifying drought and more extreme weather, salmon are not doing well. Last year, with projections showing Chinook salmon population at historic lows, the salmon season was closed and the Newsom Administration requested a Federal Fishery Disaster to support impacted communities. Additionally, due to crashing salmon populations in 2023, some tribes canceled their religious and cultural harvests for the first time ever.

Yesterday, the Governor visited salmon restoration sites in Humboldt County to see how the Salmon Strategy will support communities across the state.

THE STRATEGY: California is working to reverse these trends and save salmon. The state’s Salmon Strategy specifies the six priorities and 71 actions to build healthier, thriving salmon populations in California.

Read the Salmon Strategy.

Get the fact sheet.

The strategy’s six priorities call for:

1. Removing barriers and modernizing infrastructure for salmon migration
2. Restoring habitat
3. Protecting water flows in key rivers at the right times
4. Modernizing hatcheries
5. Transforming technology and management systems
6. Strengthening partnerships

WHY IT MATTERS: Salmon are central to religions, creation stories, the health and subsistence of California Native Tribes, and a multi-million-dollar fishing industry. A multitude of factors have led to a decline in salmon populations, from ocean temperatures to drastic alteration of river habitat and flows by dams and water diversions.

PARTNERING WITH TRIBES: The Salmon Strategy relies on strong partnerships with tribal nations. Tribes and Native communities are driving policy and science critical to rebuilding California’s salmon populations. This strategy builds on existing partnerships in tribally-led restoration work, beaver reintroductions, and returning salmon to their ancestral homes.

ACTIONS & INVESTMENTS UNDERWAY: California is not waiting. The Newsom Administration and Legislature have already spent $796.4 million in state investments over the last three years to protect and restore salmon populations.

Recent actions include:

• Largest Dam Removal in History: Restoring the Klamath River, which was once a prodigious producer of salmon, by removing four obsolete hydroelectric dams. One dam was taken down last September and the rest are slated for removal by November 2024, restoring nearly 400 miles of once-blocked river to salmon, steelhead, lamprey and other native fish species.
• Bringing Fish Back to Historical Habitat: Moving endangered adult winter-run and threatened spring-run Chinook salmon to the upper reaches of Sacramento River tributaries at the height of the 2020-2022 drought, where colder water temperatures better support spawning and help salmon eggs survive. This effort returned adult winter-run to the North Fork of Battle Creek for the first time in more than 110 years
• Doing the Science: Boosting the resilience of hatchery-raised salmon with injections of thiamine (Vitamin B) to counter a deficiency that researchers believe has depressed survival of their offspring in recent years. The deficiency has been tied to shifting ocean conditions and salmon feeding primarily on anchovies compared to a more diverse diet of forage fish, krill and other species.
• Fixing the Landscape: Restoring approximately 3,000 acres of tidal wetland where the Sacramento River drains to San Francisco Bay, creating habitat beneficial to native fish and wildlife, including salmon.
• Flows for Fish: In the Scott and Shasta rivers in the Klamath Basin and Mill Creek in the Sacramento Valley, beginning efforts to establish minimum instream flows while working with local partners and tribes on locally driven solutions.
• Expanding Partnerships with Tribes: From signing a co-management agreement with the Winnemem Wintu Tribe to bring salmon back to the McCloud River for the first time since construction of Shasta Dam, to investing in tribally led restoration like the Oregon Gulch, Farmers’ Ditch, and post-McKinney fire projects with the Yurok and Karuk Tribes, to beaver reintroductions.
• Modernizing and Removing Infrastructure: Reaching agreement with local and federal partners on a framework to reopen miles of Yuba River habitat to multiple native fish species. The agreement sets the stage for the return of imperiled spring-run Chinook salmon to their native habitat in the North Yuba River for the first time in more than 100 years. And, taking the next big step with a coalition of counties, tribes, and fish conservation groups to create California’s longest free-flowing river – the Eel River – through the decommissioning of outdated infrastructure.

You ready for this? Our friends at the National Weather Service Eureka HQ, out there on Woodley Island, are sounding all the alarms about the torrential atmospheric river that is just about ready to batter the North Coast. Indications are that it’ll hit this afternoon or evening.

We’re talking strong, strong wind:

And après le vent, le déluge. Big rain is coming Wednesday. This is especially concerning, forecasters say, because most of our soil is already saturated. They’re expecting plenty of flooding and landslides.

Of course, you’re going to want to strap down anything that might flap away in the coming storm, especially if you’re up on an exposed ridgetop, and you’re probably going to want to put off any big trips out of town for the next couple of days, if you can. Make sure your flashlight batteries and such are all charged. 

Stay safe and dry, everyone!