Fire fighters from Battalion 10 and CDF responded quickly to a house fire off of Ridge Road near Ponderosa Way Monday night, averting a total disaster at that residence. When the Battalion 10 commander arrived they had a “working fire” which could have become a “fully involved” structure very quickly. Fire fighters knocked down the fire quickly and determined the area of the source of the fire to be around a computer system in an…

The historic Kennedy Meadow Resort lodge near Dodge Ridge Ski Resort burned down early Monday morning. Seven cabins and several other buildings were destroyed in a fire that began around 1 a.m. The resort is located near Strawberry in the Stanislaus National Forest on Highway 108. According to CalFire officials, the fire was first reported just after 2 a.m. The owners, Matt and Leslie Bloom, said the lodge, including the restaurant and store are destroyed…

Mark your calendar for a one-stop health services opportunity -- This year’s Sutter Amador Hospital’s annual Health Festival on Friday, October 12, 2007 from 4 – 7 pm. The hospital is partnering with Amador County Public Health, and the festival will focus on free and low cost services and screenings, plus fun and healthy activities -- all held in the parking lot of the hospital’s new Outpatient Services Center. The event will also serve as…

As furnaces start firing up for the colder weather and other seasonal fire dangers approach, the Jackson Fire Department is holding Jackson Fire Safety Night on Monday, October 8, 7 pm at the Jackson Civic Center. This will be an informal presentation of Fire Safety information by Jackson Volunteer Fire Department Chief, Mark Morton. Information on the following topics will be available: • Get Out Safely! Fire Escape Planning • On the Safety Circuit -…

The state has banned widely used indoor ozone air purifiers, saying the devices aggravate many of the problems their advertisements claim to relieve. The California Air Resources Board called the ban, enacted Thursday, the first of its kind in the nation. According to the air board, some manufacturers of ozone generators have argued that ozone has the ability to reduce levels of indoor air pollutants, and recent research has shown that the opposite is true.…

A Mother Lode Community blood drive will be held on Thursday, October 4 from 11 a.m. –  6 p.m. at the Jackson Civic Center, 33 Broadway, Jackson. Blood Source, a not-for-profit community blood bank is holding the blood drive to meet the community’s need for blood and blood products. Thanks to the generosity of local donors when you receive care at a hospital in our region, the blood you receive comes from BloodSource blood donors.…

A fire on Hwy 124 near Buena Vista Road kept firefighters busy for a few hours on Saturday. 10 volunteers from the Ione Fire Department worked with Jackson Valley Fire Protection District and  CalFire crews on the 2-acre fire in grass and heavy brush. 2 air tankers and 2 helicopters worked the fire that began about 3:20 in the afternoon. According to Ione Fire Department, no firefighters were injured during the fire fight and juveniles…

Sutter Creek now has a visitors center right on Main Street. Nearly 200 people came to celebrate and share in the Grand Opening of the new Sutter Creek Visitors Center on Friday evening. Hors d’oeuvres and libations were served to local town folks, dignitaries, Main Street shopkeepers  and other Amador County guests and popular local musician Herb Boxhorn entertained the gathering. The visitors center, at 71 Main Street, is part of the venerable Brignole Building…

The first of an innovative workshop series on Amador County government was held last week and TSPN was there to tape the full session of Amador Government 101. The workshops are being offered, right here in the county, by decision and policy makers to help the general public better understand how our local government works directly from the mouths of the folks who run it. The workshop locations are at the County Government Center with…

Amador County put its best paws forward Saturday at the annual A-Pal Humane Society fundraiser to benefit homeless animals in the county – at the pooch-packed Paws in the Park. Margaret Blair of Twin Cedar K-9 was on hand to describe some of the action: Contests, games, the classic Strut Your Mutt Dog Walk, snacks for humans and canines, Vincent Van Dogh dog painting booth, even a live band – to quote Dr. Suess, it…