How did we miss this? 

Evidently the top new program on primetime TV, CBS’s action-drama “Fire Country,” features Humboldt County’s own riverside city of Rio Dell!

Fast-forward to the 2:06 mark of the trailer above to see a wall of (thankfully fake) flames encroaching on the city from Bear River Ridge the bluffs northeast of town. You may also spot a couple aerial shots of the Eel River Valley and Wildwood Avenue sprinkled in there, though evidently the bulk of the series is being filmed in Vancouver.

Rio Dell City Manager Kyle Knopp also just found out about his burgh’s new stardom. He emailed the Outpost on Tuesday with a screenshot and a comment: “Here’s something kinda funny.”

Totally!

Humboldt-Del Norte Film Commissioner Cassandra Hesseltine was not immediately available to provide details, but some googling reveals that Rio Dell plays the fictional town of Edgewater, which serves as a stand-in for the Sonoma County community of Occidental. 

Co-creator and “SEAL Team” star Max Thieriot plays Bode Donovan, a prison inmate who volunteers to fight wildfires as part of California’s Conservation Camp Program. The L.A. Times describes the show as “a soap opera with pyrotechnics” and “sort of like ‘Dante’s Peak’ meets ‘Everwood.’”

Evidently the folks at CalFire aren’t among the show’s early fans. “This television series is a misrepresentation of the professional all-hazards fire department and resource protection agency that Cal Fire is,” agency Director Joe Tyler wrote in a staff email after seeing the trailer.

Is it any good? Who here has seen it? Let us know in the comments.

Nelida Mills
Aug. 15, 1938 – Oct. 10, 2022

Known to all who loved her as Nel. She was born to Emilio and Santina Valentino in Montecrestse, Italy. She was six months old when the family immigrated to Ferndale. Raised on the dairy farm with her brother, Johnny, and graduated from Ferndale High School. One of her best friends growing up was Judy Russ, who helped her learn English. Nel went to Humboldt State for two years, she was a song queen and a dairy queen. In 1956 she met the love of her life, Ben Mills, married him in 1958, and moved to Sunny Brae. She had two sons, Alan and Jeff Mills. She lived in Sunny Brae for the next 64 years. Nel was the bookkeeper for Mills Trucking, and enjoyed playing bridge with her friends.

She is survived by her husband, Ben Mills, and her two sons, Alan and Jeff Mills.

Church service will be held on November 17, 2022, 11 a.m. at St Mary’s in Arcata.

PREVIOUSLY:

• ELECTION NIGHT RESULTS! Follow Live! All the Vote Counts as They Happen, Plus Scene Reports From the Parties! The Thrill of Victory, the Agony of Defeat! 

###

Looks like it’s going to be a good long while before we find out for sure who won most of the high-profile local races.

That’s because the Elections Office only managed to get 16,998 votes counted on Election Night — it’s unknown, at this moment, how many votes are left to count, but it is likely tens of thousands more —and many of the most watched races are pretty close.

For instance: In the only countywide race on the ballot — the Clerk-Recorder/Registrar of Voters runoff — is on a knife’s edge:

Supporters of Juan Pablo Cervantes can take comfort, if they wish, in the well-known “blue shift” phenomenon, which shows that votes tabulated late tend to be more progressive than those counted on Election Night. (Lefties vote later.) That held up for Supervisor-Elect Natalie Arroyo in June, though who knows — the pandemic and universal vote-by-mail may still be scrambling our voting patterns.

The races for Eureka City Council are likewise too close to call:

In the Third Ward, Fullerton is the anti-Cervantes — a fairly solid lead for a conservative candidate, that, if traditional patterns hold, will erode over the coming weeks. How far will it erode? That’s unknown, but check those vote totals. The Elections Office has, so far, only counted 776 votes in the Third Ward. Four years ago, there were 2,747 ballots cast in that ward. So a lot of counting left to do.

Up in Arcata, at least, the results seem pretty conclusive — Meredith Matthews and Kimberley White each have more than 30 percent of the vote tallied so far for the two open seats on that board, and their closest runner-up, Raelina Krikston, is down at around 12 percent. Matthews and White should have no problem winning. 

Progressive candidate Julie Ryan still has a healthy lead over Alan Bongio in the fascinating race for the Humboldt Community Services District board. With two seats open, incumbent Gregg Gardiner has about 39.6 percent of the vote, with Ryan at 32.9 percent and Bongio at 27.6 percent

Likewise, in Fortuna there are three open seats and three candidates with clear leads — Mike Johnson, Christina Mobley and Kyle Conley.

(Full election night final results, in PDF form, at this link.)

What happens next? Sometime soon — perhaps today or tomorrow — the Elections Office will figure out how many ballots are left to process. Again: It will almost certainly be higher than the number of ballots that have been counted so far.

Then the office will start issuing weekly updates as those remaining ballots are checked and tallied. The county has about a month to certify its results, and it’s likely that it’ll use all that time. The picture will likely become clearer in some of the races before that, but settle in for a long period of uncertainty!

###

UPDATE, 10:23 p.m.: Relief at Septentrio

There seems to have been a palpable sense of relief up at Septentrio in Arcata, with disgraced councilmember Brett Watson a distant third in the first set of results.

Incumbent and candidate Meredith Matthews checks numbers with her council colleague, Sarah Schaefer. Photo: Andrew Goff.

Schaefer and city manager Karen Diemer put the numbers up on the big board. Photo: Andrew Goff.

Matthews and Diemer share a hug.

— Hank Sims

###

UPDATE, 9:55 p.m.: The Eureka Scene at North of Fourth

Candidate Ryan confers with her trivia team over the question “What field of science deals with materials at a very low temperature?” Photo: Andrew Goff.

Several Eureka candidates are celebrating election night by testing their wits with a wee bit of trivia between cocktails and enchiladas at North of Fourth in Old Town.

Julie Ryan, who is vying for a seat on the Humboldt Community Services District governing board, told the Outpost she’s feeling “cautiously optimistic” about the preliminary results.

“I’ve put the work in and have had a lot of support and I’m really grateful for that, she said. “I’ve been running into a lot of people who are really supportive of what I’m doing. I’m actually a little bit more stressed about about bigger elections across the country, because fuck fascism.”

Ryan said her campaign has been especially interesting “because it’s such an under the radar position” and has focused the last few months going door to door to get the word out and educate the public.

“I decided to run because community services districts deal with a lot more than just water, sewer and streetlights,” she said. “A big piece of the campaign has been educating people and saying, ‘Hey! Special districts across California do conservation work, parks and recreation, libraries, fire departments and other essential services for people who live outside city limits. … It’s a real privilege to be able to run for office and have the capacity to do board service.”

Eureka’s Third Ward council candidate G. Mario Fernandez is mingling with supporters at North of Fourth as well. Despite “a little bit of butterflies,” Fernandez said he’s optimistic.

“It would be nice to know one way or another before I go to bed tonight,” he laughed. “It’s been good. I’ve had a lot of great conversations with people, it feels like the vibe is there.”

Supervisor Mike Wilson confers with Ward 3 Eureka City Council candidate G. Mario Fernandez.

Juan Pablo Cervantes calls in to North of Fourth to express his gratitude to his supporters.

— Isabella Vanderheiden

###

###

###

###

###

UPDATE, 8:15 p.m.: Arcata Elex-Heads Gather at Septentrio Winery

From left: Humboldt County Film Commissioner Cassandra Hesseltine, Arcata City Councilmember Sarah Schaefer, Arcata City Councilmember (and current candidate) Meredith Matthews, former Humboldt County President of Positivity Michaele Whiteley, Septentrio owner Tynel Jael. Photo: Andrew Goff.

Candidate Raelina Krikston makes the Septentrio scene. Photo: Andrew Goff.

— Andrew Goff

###

###

UPDATE, 7:08 p.m.:

“Uncertainty is a really unfamiliar feeling for me. I’m used to having a pretty good idea of what’s next,” Kohl laughed. “It’s going to take aw hile to count the votes, and until then all of the possibilities are still rolling.”

This is the first time Kohl has run for local office. When asked about his time on the campaign trail, he said he really enjoyed meeting potential future constituents.

“I really liked canvassing, going door to door and meeting people in the Fifth Ward,” he said. “Going out for a couple of hours after work I got a really good idea of what’s impacting people. From homelessness to mental health to housing to people who are just really excited to be here.”

(If you hold your election party at your own restaurant you might instinctively find yourself clearing dishes.) Photo: Andrew Goff.

— Isabella Vanderheiden

###

UPDATE, 6:56 p.m.: Nicholas Kohl Serves Supporters at the Oberon

Public service. Photo: Andrew Goff.

As you might’ve guessed, Eureka City Council candidate Nicholas Kohl is awaiting election results with an intimate group of supporters in Oberon, the Old Town restaurant he’s owned for roughly a decade and a half.

Despite being the man of the hour, Kohl is nevertheless behind the bar mixing drinks for his guests but paused to give us his thoughts on the suspenseful evening ahead.

“I’m really nervous,” Kohl confessed, but he said he’s ultimately fine with either outcome.

Shish-Kohl-bobs! Photo: Andrew Goff.

— Andrew Goff

###

Election Night! Again! It’s the most wonderful night of the year!

We’re kicking things off early here on the LoCO Election Night Live Blog so’s as to get all this down in time to put some food in our bodies before the revelry begins.

You know the drill by now, right? LoCO staff will be fanning out over the various election night parties underway at various locations around the county, and we’ll be getting reactions and judging the catering choices as the results come in! The LoCOBot is — cross fingers — is going to automatically and instantly pull down the data from the Elections website in real time and print present it to you in somewhat less insane fashion. We’re gonna have a good time tonight!

All in all, it’s looking like a pretty good turnout kind of election, at least compared to June’s primary. Check out the hopping scene at the Jefferson School polling place earlier today.

Hopping!

What’s more, county elections manager Juan Pablo Cervantes tells the Outpost that the first Election Night report his office plans to release — the one that’ll contain all of the early-voting ballots received early enough for the Election Office to process before today — that first report is going to account for at least 20,997 ballots. That’s way, way up from the 12,197 ballots counted in June. 

So, like I said — given that jump, as well as the bustling activity at the polling sites we visited today — looking pretty good, turnout-wise!

So here’s how tonight will go. The first results — again, comprising those early, early voters — should go live sometime between 8 p.m. and 9 p.m. Then there will be a series of reports released throughout the night. Probably the last of them will be released sometime after midnight.

But at the end of the night, remember, there will still be tens of thousands of votes left to count. These will be the vote-by-mail ballots and provisional ballots and conditional ballots that got into the office later than, say, yesterday. Those ballots will still need processing before they’re counted, and so things will take a while.

So if any races are close, it’s likely that we won’t know a winner in them for some time. But tonight, at least, we’ll know what the blowout races are. Remember that the famous “blue shift” — where late-counted votes tend to break toward the more progressive candidate — held up in June, after the pandemic, when we weren’t originally sure that would be the case. But it was. For example, Supervisor-elect Natalie Arroyo’s lead increased between the Election Night final report and the final final report.

(NOTE TO TINFOIL HATTERS: This is completely normal behavior, by the way. Check out this big exhaustive study of the matter we did a few years ago.)

Anyway — that’s it! If you haven’t voted yet, you have about two hours to do so. Here is your guide. Keep checking in! The fun starts …

… soon!

Press release from the Yurok Tribe:

At 7:30 a.m. on Wednesday, November 9, the Northern California Condor Restoration Program (NCCRP) plans to release two more prey-go-neesh (California condors) into Yurok Country. The release attempt can be viewed live on the Yurok condor cam, which can be found here (link.

The birds include A6 and A7. A6, a male, was born on May 22, 2021, at the Oregon Zoo’s Jonsson Center for Wildlife Conservation. A7, a female was born on June 2, 2021, at the Peregrine Fund’s World Center for Birds of Prey.

“I can’t wait to see A6 and A7 join the six condors in the wild,” said NCCRP Manager and Yurok Wildlife Department Senior Biologist Chris West. “Condors are an extremely social species that learn from each other. The previously released birds are adapting well to their new environment and I expect they will teach A6 and A7 how to do the same.”

For the release, NCCRP biologists will implement a multistep procedure to ease the juvenile birds’ transition into the wild. The process will begin as dawn begins to lighten the area around the enclosure. Before full-light, NCCRP will open the door to a baited enclosure, or trap, attached to the flight pen. This door will remain open until one or both pre-release birds enter the enclosure and when one or more of the previously released prey-go-neesh are present at the facility or near it. The presence of free-flying birds signals to the captive condors that it is safe to exit the flight pen. Once the wild birds are present and one or more of the target birds are feeding on the bait in the trap, the door between the main flight pen and the trap will be closed. Then, a second door will be opened and the birds will have access to the outside world. If only one condor walks into the staging area and the other stays in the flight pen for a certain period of time, NCCRP will release one bird.

Depending on the time of day, there may be an attempt to release the second bird. If an initial release does not occur, or if only one bird is released on day one, a second attempt will be made the following day. The condors must voluntarily enter and exit the staging area. The timing of the release is wholly dependent upon the birds’ actions. Additionally, young, captive-raised prey-goneesh are incredibly cautious. The first release unfolded in a few hours. The second and third releases took multiple days. The six released condors are beginning to explore the redwood region. Within the last month, the birds greatly expanded their range from a fairly confined area within a few miles of the release site to more 30 miles away. The young condors have spent time near Horse Mountain in Six Rivers National Forest and soared above Big Lagoon and Stone Lagoon on the coast. They have also taken several trips to Bureau of Land Management property in Lacks Creek, which is approximately 20 miles northeast of Eureka.

On May 3, 2022, NCCRP released the first condors to fly over Yurok skies in more than a century. In the following months, the program released four more birds. Yurok Wildlife Department Director Tiana Williams-Claussen selected Yurok names for each condor, which include: A0, Neygem’ ‘Ne-chween-kah (She carries our prayers); A1, Hlow Hoo-let (Finally, I/we fly); A2, Nes-kwechokw’ (He returns/arrives); A3, Poy’-we-son (The one who goes ahead); A4, Cher-perhl So-nee-nepek’ (I feel strong); and A5, Neee’n (Watcher). A6 and A7 will receive Yurok names after their release. The staggered release is one component of a comprehensive plan to ensure the success of the young birds.

NCCRP, a partnership between the Yurok Tribe and Redwood National and State Parks, plans to reintroduce one cohort of prey-go-neesh every year for at least the next two decades. The tribe and park collaboratively manage the new population.

The Yurok Tribe and Prey-go-neesh

The Yurok Tribe initiated the condor reintroduction project in 2008. The restoration of this sacred species is an important component of the Tribe’s environmental and cultural restoration work. In addition to the reintroduction of the critically endangered condor, the Tribe is currently restoring fish and wildlife habitat on a large-scale in the Klamath River and Sacramento basins. The Tribe is also intimately involved in the pending removal of four Klamath River dams, which represents the largest river restoration project in US history. The removal of the dams will benefit a wide diversity of fish and wildlife species, including condors.

With funding support from the Yurok Tribe, Redwood National Park, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the Bureau of Indian Affairs, the Administration for Native Americans, as well as Pacific Gas and Electric Company, Global Conservation Fund, the Redwood National Park Foundation, and many more corporate, agency and private supporters and citizens, the Yurok Wildlife Department completed a vast volume of work to prepare for the reintroduction of this imperiled species. Working in cooperation with the Ventana Wildlife Society, Redwood National Park, California State Parks, and Pacific Gas and Electric Company, as well as volunteers, the Tribe designed and built the NCCRP release and management facility. The flight pen includes a simulated, shock-wired power pole (to teach the birds to avoid this threat after release), two four-foot diameter pools, and perches overlooking old-growth redwood forest. NCRRP staff monitor the birds from modified shipping containers which form a fire-resistant observation structure. The facility also allows biologists and technicians to conduct regular health assessments and provide medical treatment, if necessary.

Press release from the Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office:

On Nov. 5, 2022, at about 12:14 p.m., Humboldt County Sheriff’s deputies were dispatched to the Elk Camp Fire Station near Orick for the report of a gunshot victim.

At the station, deputies contacted a 21-year-old female victim who was being treated by emergency medical personnel for gunshot wounds to her lower legs. The victim was accompanied by an adult female and 37-year-old Troy Simon Fletcher Jr. According to the two, the group was reportedly driving along Bald Hills Road when their vehicle encountered a bump in the roadway. Immediately following the bump, a loaded firearm stored underneath the backseat of the vehicle reportedly discharged, injuring the victim.  

The victim was transported to a local hospital and is expected to survive her injuries.

During a search of the vehicle, deputies located two loose firearms and ammunition inside. Fletcher was found to be a convicted felon prohibited from possessing firearms. He was arrested and booked into the Humboldt County Correctional Facility on charges of felon in possession of a firearm (PC 29800(a)(1)) and prohibited person in possession of ammunition (PC 30305(a)).

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.

Adam Christopher Ahlstrom
June 29,1980-September 3, 2022

Adam Christopher Ahlstrom passed away on September 3, 2022 at home in Arcata. He is survived by his three children, Isabella Ahlstrom, Kael Ahlstrom and Evangeline Ahlstrom, his mother Deborah Ahlstrom, sister Andrea Baker and brother Anthony Young, as well as many aunts, uncles, cousins and nephews.

Adam was funny and kind and lived his life with a huge heart. He was hilarious and prone to good-natured pranks when the occasion called for it. He had a witty dry sense of humor with bouts of silliness. He loved cooking and had a chef’s palate when it came to trying interesting dishes or just spicing up a barbecue. Mostly he loved taking his kids camping and out in nature.

Adam was a gifted friend. He had a way of making his friends his family. When you were Adam’s friend it was for life. There is so much to say about him that it’s almost impossible to write. Like how he loved exploring and discovering new things and how as a child he was basically a one kid armada to distant lands. There wasn’t a tree climbed or rock discovered that wasn’t an amazing discovery. He took that curiosity into adulthood, never afraid to go far to see what was out there, but always returned home.

When he became a father, his world lit up. He was whole in a way that only his children could make him. As with any journey Adam had his ups and downs, but the core of who he was on this planet culminated in being a good father to Isabella, Kael and Evengeline. It informed every part of his journey in life.

We will miss Adam and his light in this world. It’s difficult to think of a world without him in it.

His celebration of life is planned for November 13 at the Humboldt Bay Social Club at 900 New Navy Base Rd, Samoa, CA 95564 from 4-7 p.m. Please join us to celebrate him.

###

The obituary above was submitted on behalf of Adam Ahlstrom’s loved ones. The Lost Coast Outpost runs obituaries of Humboldt County residents at no charge. See guidelines here. Email news@lostcoastoutpost.com.