Wal-Mart, Longs Drug Stores, Raley's, Kroger and CVS are among the big chains that sold a popular painkiller that is now being recalled.  Nationwide, 11 million bottles of acetaminophen which is the generic version of Tylenol is being recalled, although officials stress the brand-name version is fine. The pills were made by Perrigo for dozens of retailers. CVS stores are pulling the pills from their shelves. 

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and Democratic candidate Phil Angelides began their final push before Election Day over the weekend with campaign swings throughout the state. The goal; to rally supporters and encourage volunteers on last-minute get-out-the-vote drives. Angelides, who is trailing in the polls and has found it difficult to break free of Schwarzenegger's shadow, was received like a celebrity Saturday by hundreds of union members who were preparing to walk precincts. The state treasurer urged supporters not to get discouraged despite two recent public opinion polls that show him trailing the Republican incumbent by 16 and 18 percentage points. 

This week an accident occurred on Hwy. 49 near Martell Road and Jackson Gate Road. According to Officer Mike Lemaster’s report Theresa Bartlett, 50 of San Andreas and 35 year old Krista Carver of Ceres were both stopped at the intersection’s four way stop. Bartlett was west bound on Jackson Gate Road to south bound Hwy. 49. Carver was south bound on Hwy. 49 through intersection. Both Carver and Bartlett proceeded into the intersection simultaneously. The right front of Bartlett’s 2005 Ford Pickup impacted the left rear of Carver’s 2000 Chevy. According to LeMaster’s report the investigation is still ongoing. Later that night a more serious accident occurred on Ostrom Road just south of Shenandoah Road.

Local Firefighters from the Amador Fire Protection District Battalion 10 and CDF performed a delicate rescue operation for a Pioneer family Tuesday evening. They saved the family’s horse. The early evening call came into CDF Camino Dispatch around 6pm after members of a Pioneer family returned home from their day to discover their older horse had somehow stopped, dropped, and rolled himself underneath the rails of his corral, only to become irreversibly lodged. Rescue personnel from Battalion 10 and CDF arrived at the Dusty Way home with rescue equipment built for the job.

The weather was warm, the crowds large and the chili was hot at the annual Fireman’s Chili Cook Off in Downtown Volcano this last Saturday. In fact- the cook off was so popular this year that chili was in short supply- yes they ran out of chili. The annual event for fire departments countywide raises thousands of dollars per year to assist our local volunteer fire departments with their financial needs for gear and equipment.

A small fire broke out this morning near Grape Vine Gulch Rd and the Camanche Hills Gun Club in the Camanche area. The fire, reported around 9:30 am, had a slow rate of spread and was quickly contained by members of the Jackson Valley Fire Department, Ione Fire, Mule Creek Fire responders, CDF and EBMUD. The fire burned at less than an acre and the cause at this time is still to be determined. Another small fire of around two acres burned late yesterday afternoon at Hwy 16 and Murrieta . The fire was caused by equipment and was also contained quickly. These two fires, although small, do serve as a reminder that we are still in fire season and the small amount of rain that has fallen has not lessened the ability of wildland fires to burn. Please be cautious with both fire and equipment during this time.

Back in August rumors surfaced regarding the Buena Vista Band of Miwok Indians beginning construction on their proposed casino on Coal Mine Rd in the Jackson Valley. The casino project, the Flying Cloud Casino, has been proposed by the tribe and currently the tribe is redoing the Tribal Environmental Impact Report after the county and the Governor found their original report to be inadequate.

A Salinas Valley lettuce processor is now recalling its lettuce products over concerns that they may have been contaminated with E.coli bacteria. The Nunes Company in Salinas states the green leaf lettuce does not appear to have caused any illnesses but the company has decided to make a voluntary callback of lettuce sold under the Foxy brand name as a precaution. Foxy is one of the nation's largest suppliers of lettuce, celery, broccoli, vegetable platters and stir-fry mixes. The recall is for lettuce purchased in grocery stores October 3 - 6 in California, Arizona, Nevada, Oregon, Washington, Idaho and Montana. Nunes officials did not indicate what sparked the recall. The decision comes on the heels of a nationwide recall of fresh bagged spinach following an E.coli outbreak in September. The bacteria are blamed for sickening nearly 200 people and causing three deaths. The Food and Drug Administration gave consumers the okay to start eating fresh spinach a week ago Friday, with the exception of spinach grown and packaged in Monterey, San Benito and Santa Clara counties. State and federal health inspectors have yet to pinpoint the source of the contamination. The FBI served search warrants on California processors but the results of what they found, if anything, have not been made public.

The El Dorado Irrigation District has recommended a personal water craft ban for Silver Lake recreation enthusiasts- however the Amador County Board of Supervisors will have the ultimate say in the controversial move.

The Amador County Unified School District not only has a new Transportation Facility slated to open at Christmas break, but now the organization has a new leader. Andrew Peters has been selected as the new Director of transportation for the district. Peters comes to the county from the Mother Lode Union Elementary School District in Placerville. According to as press release from Superintendent of Schools Dr Mike Carey, Peters is a dynamic, energetic person who bleeds “yellow” because he is committed to excellent school transportation. Andrews has many years of practical experience in transportation from his tenure in El Dorado County as well as a bachelor’s degree in Business Management. He is also involved in the Civil Air Patrol and the Lions Club.