TSPN has received reports of a serious accident that occurred yesterday afternoon west of Toyon Road in Pine Grove. There was a car fire and serious injury. We will keep you updated as we gather the details from our reporters in the field. Stay tuned to our noon broadcast to get the complete story…

 

An accident involving a school bus in Calaveras County injured 5 people on Tuesday. A 23-year old Arnold man in a Toyota Tacoma pick-up was driving on Murphy’s Grade Rd in the opposite direction of travel as the school bus.MarkTwain Hospital complaining of pain to their heads and were released.  The driver of the pick-up suffered a fractured wrist and was taken to Mark Twain Hospital. According to San Andreas CHP, the truck’s driver was unable to stay on his side of the road due to inattentive driving and excessive speed for the wet conditions. The bus driver took corrective action but was unable to avoid being struck by the pick-up. Two students from Michelson school and 2 adults riding on the bus at the time received minor injuries. They were taken to Mark Twain Hospital complaining of pain to their heads and were released.  The driver of the pick-up suffered a fractured wrist and was taken to Mark Twain Hospital.

 

The California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation announced earlier this month that two Division of Juvenile Justice facilities will close by July 2008 as a result of a trend of declining ward populations and recently enacted legislation. The two facilities scheduled to close are the El Paso de Robles Youth Correctional Facility, in Paso Robles, and the Dewitt Nelson Youth Correctional Facility in Stockton, which includes youth offenders from Amador County. The approximate population at DeWitt Nelson is 259 youth from 18 to 25 years of age.

A 39-year old Pioneer woman suffered minor injuries in an accident on Hwy 88 Tuesday. According to the California Highway Patrol, the Pioneer woman was eastbound near Lodge Rd when she allowed her 1989 Toyota pick-up to run off the road where it then hit a tree. The driver was taken to Sutter Amador Hospital for treatment.

Wednesday evening a Ford pickup truck went off Ridge Road just East of New York Ranch road and wound up upside down in a ditch. The California Highway Patrol reported that the driver was distracted by his vibrating cell phone.  When the driver looked up from his cell phone, he noticed his vehicle was going off the south roadway edge of Ridge Road. The vehicle struck several small trees and went down the embankment, rolling over onto its roof. Fortunately the driver was unhurt.

Wet roads apparently contributed to two accidents Monday and kept CHP and medical first responders busy. At a little after 8 am, a 72-year old Paradise, CA man was northbound on Tiger Creek Road south of Black Prince Road. The CHP report says he allowed his car to drift onto the right shoulder where he lost control and struck a tree, blocking the roadway. According to a witness, the driver said he was forced off the road by another car. Either way, the driver was uninjured, most likely thanks to his seatbelt and airbag, and refused medical treatment at the scene. Later that morning, two teenage girls were driving on Camanche Road, at a high rate of speed for the wet roadway, according to the California Highway Patrol. The driver failed to negotiate a curve in the road, left the roadway and ran into a PG&E power pole, shearing the pole off at its base. Both the driver and her passenger had to be extracted from the car. They were both taken by helicopter to San Joaquin General Hospital with minor and moderate injuries.

Learn how to control Yellow star thistle and other invasive weeds at a workshop on Friday, January 11, 2008 1:30 p.m. – 5:00 p.m. at the El Dorado County Government Center, Building C in Placerville. The workshop is sponsored by the El Dorado County Invasive Weeds Management Group and UC Cooperative Extension. A variety of techniques can be successful in controlling Yellow star thistle, including several methods that are most effective during the winter months when the plants are first developing. Cost for the workshop is $10 per person. Space is limited and registration is encouraged; walk-in registration is available if space permits. To register contact Nancy Starr at (530) 621-5552 or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .

Amador County came up short when state prison officials announced their distribution priorities for new jail funding on Thursday, May 8. According to the Amador County Sheriff’s Office, it was a “great disappointment” to hear that in the small county category, Amador placed seventh on a priority list of ten behind Yolo, Kings, Madera, Calaveras, Tuolumne and Shasta.In other words, any counties ranking below fourth were not recommended to receive funding. Fourth place Calaveras County scraped the bottom of the funding list and received the remaining ten million after the lion’s share was distributed amongst the top three. The top three qualifying counties were recommended to receive 30 million each. “This was a huge disappointment,” said Sheriff Martin Ryan.

The two counties had partnered up with San Joaquin County to provide a regional re-entry facility for returning inmates, a key component of the prison-reform legislation that authorized state funds to expand county jails. In a TSPN interview exclusive, Sheriff Ryan described the current local jail as “chronically overcrowded.” Amador County’s request includes plans to expand the current 75 bed jail to 165. On the day of our interview, Ryan said they were currently holding 21 females in an 11 bed space, and that the jail typically runs 10 to 15 percent over capacity. Amador County has seen a 118% increase in inmates since 2002, most of whom are parole violators. Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation Secretary James Tilton made it clear at the meeting that this would not be the final grant decision. During the next 90 days, the Corrections Department will review all applicant counties that have complied with grant approval requirements. Sheriff Ryan says the fight for funding is far from over.

The New Year will usher in new rules for the road designed to help eliminate distractions and reinforce safety. One new law makes it illegal to operate an Electric Personal Assistive Mobility Device (such as Segways) at an unsafe speed for conditions, in a reckless manner or at a speed that endangers the safety of others. Not that many of us would actually be driving one of these……..but on a more serious note – Put down that cell phone while you’re driving! A new law makes it illegal to use cell phones while driving unless the phone allows hands-free listening and talking operations. A hands free headset may make an ideal gift this Christmas. Anyone under 18 will not be allowed to use any wireless phone or other mobile devices while operating a vehicle – headset or not.