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Local News 04 27 28 · KMUD News

• 0:00
  Speaker A: Foreign.
• 0:06
  Speaker B: Welcome to your KMUD News. I'm your host, April Lewis, and I'm glad to be with you for this broadcast. Tonight, we'll have in depth coverage on proposed tax changes for Shelter Cove, a program bringing free and reduced cost mammograms to Humboldt county residents, and additional local topics. But first, a rundown of today's top stories and headlines. This is KMUD News. Starting off today's headlines, President Trump's return to the White House Correspondents Dinner on Saturday night did not go to plan. There was an incident causing the ballroom at the Washington Hilton to evacuate as well. Armed security took over the space. Video spread across social media showing multiple members of the administration and press corps as they made their exits from the event. Hosted by the White House Correspondents association, the dinner is meant to celebrate the free press and honor journalists. President Trump had not attended the dinner since 2015 as a private citizen. The event was reported as a shooting with Cole Thomas Allen, 31 years old, of Torrance, California, charged with terrorism offenses by a federal court today, April 27th. He had been captured on video storming into the venue and according to sources was carrying a shotgun, knives and other weapons. One officer was reported shot and was protected by a bulletproof vest. Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche told media that Allen was targeting high ranking administration officials. The three charges against Allen are attempting to assassinate the President of the United States, transportation of a firearm in her state to commit a felony, and discharge of a firearm in the crime of violence. The charges, specifically the assassination charge, could carry a term of up to life in federal prison. President Trump went on 60 Minutes the following day, Sunday, April 26, to speak on what happened at the dinner. He was asked about accusations coming from social media and elsewhere that the shooting event was staged.
• 2:16
  Speaker C: The so called manifesto is a stunning thing to read, Mr. President. He appears to reference a motive. In it he writes this, quote, administration officials, they are targets. And he also wrote this. I am no longer willing to permit a pedophile, rapist and traitor to coat my hands with his crimes.
• 2:36
  Speaker D: I'm not a pedophile. You read that crap from some sick person. I got associated with all stuff that has nothing to do with me. I was totally exonerated. Your friends on the other side of the plate are the ones that were involved with, let's say Epstein or other
• 2:56
  Speaker C: things, conspiracy theories out there on the left and the right. That the event was staged or that it didn't happen?
• 3:04
  Speaker D: What, last night didn't happen?
• 3:05
  Speaker C: That, yeah, that it was because it was your first time there or that butler didn't happen.
• 3:09
  Speaker D: These were seven didn't happen and World War II didn't happen and the Holocaust didn't happen and many things didn't happen. Yeah, no, I hear it. I don't know. I think they're more sick than they are con people. But there's a lot of con in it too.
• 3:25
  Speaker B: We will keep you updated as the shooter is charged and any further comments from the administration. In local news, According to reports, a woman was critically injured after falling from the upper floors of a building in Eureka on Sunday morning, April 26. She fell from the building at the corner of E and 4th Streets and may have struck a tree before ending up on the ground. She was found unconscious but breathing and quickly taken to the hospital by ambulance. The victim's condition is currently unknown. Also in Eureka in the Myrtletown area, on Monday morning, two occupants of a Volkswagen Jetta were reported as trapped inside during a vehicle fire. The crash was reported at the intersection of Mitchell Road and Cluck lane shortly after 9am by a bystander. One woman was reported as heavily burned and bleeding, with both occupants reported as injured. A 19 year old female was transported to a local hospital with a head laceration and back pain. The current condition of the two crash victims is unknown. The Humboldt County Sheriff's Office is alerting Humboldt county residents and businesses that a significant number of counterfeit $100 bills have been seized by deputies over the past several weeks. Residents and local businesses are encouraged to familiarize themselves with key security features to help identify fake currency. You can learn more about these security features@uscurrency.gov denominations if you believe you've received a counterfeit bill, contact the Humboldt County Sheriff's Office and provide as much information as possible about whom, where and how you received it. 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 707268, according to a press release last week, the Trinity County Board of Supervisors officially adopted an ordinance establishing Chapter 8.23 of the Trinity County Code implementing a comprehensive ban on the cultivation of industrial hemp within the county. The ordinance, which takes effect in 30 days, was passed to proactively protect the region's permitted commercial cannabis industry and local economy from severe agricultural threats posed by cross pollination. The ban is despite commercial cannabis and commercial hemp production originating from the same plant, Cannabis sativa, a ban on hemp cultivation has already existed in Trinity county in some form since 2019. However, supporters of hemp cultivation bans point to cross pollination, among other issues, when hemp cultivation is near cannabis farms, which can lead to issues for farmers of both crops. The ban also allows summary abatement of commercial hemp operations, stating in exigent circumstances where a violation constitutes an immediate and substantial threat to public health or safety, the county is authorized to summarily abate the nuisance to mitigate the threat. End quote Moving next to some news from the Yurok Tribe, the Bureau of Indian affairs and Noa Fisheries recently invested $6 million in a tribally led initiative to implement the first ever large scale reintroduction of critically imperiled spring run chinook salmon within the Klamath Tribe's ancestral territory. The funds will enable the Klamath Tribes to establish up to 40 remote incubation sites and cold water streams above Upper Klamath Lake, along with supporting installation of four additional raceways and increased water efficiency at the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife's Klamath Fish Hatchery near Chiloquin, Oregon. Once built the new raceways, concrete structures to rear salmon at the Klamath Fitch Hatchery will rear up to 600,000 fertilized salmon eggs and juvenile fish per year. The Klamath Tribe's Embodap Department will also provide personnel and expertise to raise thousands of the eggs in streamside incubation systems spread across spring fed tributaries above Upper Klamath Lake, including the Williams, Sprague and Wood rivers. The consistently cool water within these streams provides optimal conditions for baby salmon. The stream site incubation system will comprise secure tanks, spawning gravel and plumbing equipment. The highly effective remote site incubation systems enable thousands of salmon embryos to grow in natural stream water through early development, which allows the tiny fish to imprint on the unique scent and composition of the creek. Exposing baby fish to stream water at such a young age also increases survival rates because the incubation units protect fish from predators, increase resilience and inhibit domestication. As adults, the fish will rely on the specific odor and other cues to find their way back to these streams to spawn. Historically, the the Klamath river sustained several hundred thousand spring run chinook salmon. In addition to being abundant, the football shaped fish were distributed from the headwaters of Upper Klamath Lake to the Trinity river, the Klamath River's biggest tributary, the Klamath River Hatchery expansion is scheduled to occur next year with the first fish raised in 2028. The first run of adult spring salmon may return to the hatchery and remote incubation sites as early as 2030. The California Department of Public Health today announced the annual quarantine of sport harvested mussels. The quarantine begins May 1 and applies to all species of mussels that are recreationally harvested for human consumption along the California coast, including all bays and estuaries. During the quarantine, mussels may only be harvested for use as bait. The quarantine is in place to protect the public from poisoning that can lead to serious illnesses including coma and death. The quarantine is designed to prevent PSP and domoic acid poisoning. Both PSP and domoic acid poisoning are triggered by naturally occurring toxins produced by certain phytoplankton consumed by shellfish, including mussels, scallops, oysters and clams. Cooking alone does not destroy these toxins. We are again informing the public of a meeting concerning Amazon's proposed warehouse and in McKinleyville. The proposed project would operate as an Amazon distribution facility that spans across six parcels, all located within the airport business park. An informational community meeting to discuss the permit application and the county's permit review process will be held at 6pm on Wednesday, April 29. This in person meeting will take place at Azalea hall, located next to Pearson park at 1620 Pickett Road in McKinleyville. All interested community members are encouraged to attend to ask questions and share concerns about this proposed project. No final decisions regarding this project will be made at the meeting. Additional opportunities for public comment will be provided before a final decision is reached. Community members unable to attend the meeting in person may access the meeting on zoom. For more information about this public meeting, please call 707-268-3741. The North Coast Regional Land Trust has secured a grant from the California Natural Resources Agency's Environmental Enhancement and Mitigation Program to help conserve Black dog Woodlands, a 554 acre working forest and agricultural property in Neyland in the hills above Arcata. The funding will support the creation of a conservation easement on the property, ensuring the long term protection of its forests, meadows and wildlife habitat while keeping the land intact, productive and under local stewardship. Black Dog Woodlands represents years of effort by landowners Eric and Mary Albanquist, who reassembled the landscape from multiple smaller ownerships and restored it into a cohesive working property that supports diverse habitats and uses. The property shares a boundary with the Butler Valley Ranch Conservation Easement completed by the land Trust in 2024 and plays a key role in regional habitat Connectivity. Together, these conserved lands protect important salmon habitat along Black Creek, which flows through both properties, while also linking the forests of Jacoby Creek and Humboldt Bay to the Mad river watershed. The project is now underway with completion of the conservation easement targeted for next year. And now to our main stories. We'll begin in Shelter Cove in our interview with Resort Improvement District 1 General Manager Christopher Christensen on a proposed property tax increase. This is KMUD News. In Shelter Cove. The local improvement district has been operating at a loss for a number of years along with deferred maintenance. We spoke with District General Manager Christopher Christensen on what is being done to alleviate the issue.
• 12:47
  Speaker E: How has response been to the proposed tax increase so far?
• 12:52
  Speaker A: I think the response has been good. I'm hearing a little bit of, you know, anti tax measure people, you know, people who don't want any kind of taxes or any increase in taxes. And I'm, but I'm also hearing a lot of people who are supporting of this tax and realize that we need it and it's a small cost for what we are, for what we get out here.
• 13:13
  Speaker B: And could you explain a little bit about just how the tax works and
• 13:15
  Speaker E: how it would be applied specifically how it might be applied across a greater number of property owners than maybe in the past?
• 13:22
  Speaker A: Yeah. So what this is, it's called the Special Utilities Improvement and Operations Tax. And it was first voted on by the registered voters of shelter Cove in 1981. The tax measure requires a two thirds majority to pass. So at that time, 2/3 of the voters said, yes, we'll pay $80 per year per taxable parcel. And this will go only to the utilities, to the electricity, wastewater and water utilities of Shelter Cove. Two thirds of the approximately 2/3 of the tax is for making capital improvements to the utilities and the remainder is for operating utilities. And so there's been no increase on this tax since 1981. It's been at $80 per parcel since then. And you know, with inflation, that $80 is now worth about $290. So at that time, registered voters said, yeah, we'll pay $290 essentially. And there were two attempts to increase the tax in the 1990s, 1993, 1994. Both those attempts failed. However, the first one was 47% of the vote, but the second one was 60%. So it actually improved on the second round, but still needed two thirds majority to pass. So that's, you know, every vote counts on this. And just as an example, there was a recent, fairly recent increase in the fire tax out Here that's also just similar to this tax. It only goes to the fire department every year. Every parcel pays a certain amount of fire tax. And they went on the ballot in 2017 and it passed by only one vote. An increase on that tax. So one vote could make all the difference.
• 15:05
  Speaker E: What I wanted to ask about as
• 15:06
  Speaker B: well, which is just, you know, the
• 15:07
  Speaker E: benefits that residents could see specifically with, you know, infrastructure improvements or, you know, I believe in another article you talked about deferred maintenance. What are the some of the projects you're looking at?
• 15:17
  Speaker A: Yeah, right now we're looking at we're needing to replace four of our water tanks in the system. Four of our welded steel water tanks. We're looking at grant and loan options, but those require in kind portions. And so this tax increase measure will really help us out with being able to contribute our in kind portion so that we can receive these grants and loans. We also need to replace our water treatment plant. It's another huge expenditure that we would have to get a grant or loan and need in kind commitment. We have some underground electric lines we need to replace. Our power poles frequently need to be replaced. Sewer lines are constantly needing maintenance. You know, we have 23 miles of sewer lines out here. Every time it rains, we see it at the plant with the inflow and infiltration. We have 43 miles of or 44 miles of water mains out here too, that constantly needing upgrades and maintenance. Over 250 fire hydrants. You know, there's just a lot to maintain. We also need to. We need some storage buildings to keep our equipment out of the elements, keep them from corroding. We need a new backhoe. There's a long list of deferred maintenance we need to get to.
• 16:30
  Speaker E: Do you think that for the time being this will be enough to meet those expenditures or is Shelter Cove going to continue to look for additional sources of revenue?
• 16:39
  Speaker A: We'll continue to look for additional sources of revenue, especially grants. Right now the grants are not very many of them out there available for a system such as ours. We're not classified as failing right now. So we are not prioritized with the grants out there. So it's kind of hard to get them. However, you know, we did experience three of our four tanks I just talked about failed in the December 2024 earthquake. The Outfall pipe actually split off from the discharge pipe. So the outfall connection, it didn't completely break away, but it broke away enough to leak. And we were able to fix it but by replacing a fitting. But it was pretty scary. And one of the tanks has what's called elephant footing where the steel is actually bulged out at the bottom of the because of the pressure of the water sloshing around in there during the earthquake. And it looks like if we get another earthquake like that, which, you know, it's only a matter of time, it will probably rupture is what it looks like. So even though we're not classified as a failing system, these tanks are about to fail. So we're trying to get these things fixed before they break. Extra revenue of the tacks will definitely help us meet the demands. It's not going to be the end all, be all answer. So we will have to search for other funding. Basically, I'm trying to prolong further rate increases on the resident customers of Shelter Cove. There's only about 700 of those versus over 3,800 property owners. So this tax will apply for every property owner, including the registered voter ratepayers of Shelter Cove. But it will affect everyone equally evenly across the board and not just put all these critical infrastructure demands on the resident ratepayers.
• 18:15
  Speaker B: Discussions are continuing with a special town hall meeting this Thursday, April 30th at 6pm at the Fire Hall Meeting Room 9126 Shelter Cove Road. Reporting for KMUD News, I'm April Lewis. The Mad River Community Hospital is offering a new program for reduced cost and free mammograms. We spoke with Vice chair of Humboldt Trinity Healthcare, Steve Engel to learn more
• 18:46
  Speaker E: love to learn more about the free and reduced cost mammogram program. What are some of the basic things that folks listening and what should they know?
• 18:54
  Speaker F: I think the most important thing is that early diagnosis of breast cancer has a 95%, 97% cure rate. So when you're talking about early diagnosis, we're talking about getting the mammogram on a regular basis from 40 up. We're talking about talking and working with your primary care to get the get the care that you need. Then we're talking about the significance of one in eight women are going to are going to have some sort of breast cancer during the course of their lifetime. So if you talk about early detection, detection and wanted aid, we're talking about a significant number of women that need to get need to get taken care of. So the 3D mammogram is going to identify suspicious areas. The ultrasound is going to define that a little bit better. But keep in mind that just having a mammogram doesn't mean you have Breast cancer. What it means is you're taking care of yourself and you're taking care of your family. So having the mammogram done and then having a negative result, it's wonderful for the woman to know that there is nothing wrong and that can go forward. What we deal with in Humboldt county and a lot of rural areas is we have a lot of women who have high co pays or they have no insurance. And what we have is we have a woman who has to make the decision between getting a mammogram or feeding lunch to their kids or taking care of their family. And so obviously the woman will take care of their family before they'll take care of themselves. And so by doing this, what we're hoping to do is increase the number of women that have access.
• 20:28
  Speaker E: And what are the criteria for someone getting a benefit, a reduced or free cost out of this program?
• 20:35
  Speaker F: What we're looking for is self reporting. So do they have insurance or not? Because we want to obviously build the insurance company if we can. We want to stretch the grant as far as possible. If they do have insurance but they have a large copay and define large co pay by themselves. So it could be whatever it is. But if they consider it a large copay, then we'll cover the copay for them. Then if they have no insurance, then we can cover the whole thing.
• 21:04
  Speaker E: And then any information on how long
• 21:06
  Speaker B: this program will run or is this
• 21:07
  Speaker E: something you want to keep going into the future?
• 21:09
  Speaker B: Is it just for this grant?
• 21:10
  Speaker E: What's the plan with this?
• 21:12
  Speaker F: Well, the National Breast Cancer foundation gave us in 2025, $25,000 to. To do the same service. And we did it through 2025. We have been granted $20,000 for 2026. We're going to stretch that as far as we possibly can. I would expect it to go somewhere into the fall, if not further. But then we're going to be applying for a grant again from them probably in 2027. We would like to keep this going as long as we possibly can because it's. It doesn't do the woman any good to get into the process and then lose access.
• 21:51
  Speaker E: In terms of just how to get in touch, what's the best way for folks to learn more?
• 21:56
  Speaker F: Yeah, scheduling into the mammogram program is very, very simple. Call Mad River Community Hospital. Ask for the radiology department. The schedulers there have all the information and they can get it done for you.
• 22:07
  Speaker B: Reporting for KMUD News, I'm April Lewis. College of the Redwoods celebrates the graduation of 34 fire academy cadets. This is the first class to graduate the program with full state fire accreditation. Gabriel Zucker reports.
• 22:30
  Speaker G: On Sunday, April 26, the College of the Redwoods announced that 34 fire academy cadets had graduated. This is the first class to complete the fire program with full state fire training accreditation. This is the 10th formal academy that has graduated at the College of the Redwoods and is the first fully accredited class by the State of California. Fire Training According to Sean Robertson, Academy Director for Fire Technology at the College of the Redwoods. He explained in an interview with kmud what makes this different than past classes.
• 23:01
  Speaker H: The main differences are that there are more training hours required for the curriculum and then the students take what's called IFSAC Pro Board Testing, which gives them certification that's accepted nationwide for a Firefighter 1 certificate because it's based on a national consensus standard, which is the first and one of the main requirements for entry level firefighting jobs across the country and especially in California and locally.
• 23:32
  Speaker G: Here in Humboldt county, graduates complete over 1000 hours of hands on training with training including structural firefighting, hazardous materials response, wildland firefighting, emergency medical response, and firefighter safety and technical rescue. This accreditation has to meet state and industry standards, making graduates pathways easier finding jobs they want, Robertson explained.
• 23:56
  Speaker H: Having IT accredited means that it's recognized by the state as meeting their requirements. It allows us to develop a much more robust program. We're working on offering an associate's degree in Fire technology. It allows us to create pathways to Humboldt State. It allows us to offer other state fire training classes for people already employed as firefighters that need continuous training or promotional training opportunities. So it's just really something we've looked a long time on and it's going to allow us to offer a whole lot more to our local communities for firefighting.
• 24:36
  Speaker G: Robertson also explained that this program has connections all over Northern California, giving graduates hands on learning with different fire departments and gives them context to find a job after graduating.
• 24:47
  Speaker H: We are very well tied in with Cal Fire and their hiring process as well as Humboldt Bay Fire and Arcata Fire and a little bit with Fortuna as they are the main local agencies that hire. With Cal Fire, we help the students get an orientation to the application process. We have some of the hiring local hiring committee come in and talk to them about applying and then we give them opportunities to interact with different Cal Fire personnel and then throughout the academy they're able to get certificates that they can then upload to the applications
• 25:26
  Speaker F: and
• 25:26
  Speaker H: many of them who apply to get jobs and it's great to go visit, for example Hirox Hand Crew Training center, which is done in southern Humboldt where a lot of our prior graduates are actually there. And then they help us train the new ones. So it's just a great tangible thing for them to see. Oh, that person graduated one or two semesters ago and they have this job that I want, so it's a great process. We also then have local agencies like Humboldt Bay or Aceda or Fortuna come and talk to our cadets about their hiring process and they can ask a lot of questions so we definitely try to connect them with all those agencies.
• 26:12
  Speaker G: This program is a one semester course offered in the spring and the fall. Robertson warned that they are currently wait listed through 2028, but anyone interested can find information on the Fire Technology page on the College of the Redwoods website. This is Gabriel Zucker with kmud.
• 26:30
  Speaker B: That's all for our news broadcast. Thanks for listening. Thanks to our engineer and thanks to our Assistant Director, Gabriel Zucker. KMUD News is online. You can find us on kmud.org and now streaming on podcast platforms including Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can download our stories and newscasts for offline listening. You can also follow us on social media aimbudnews, including Facebook and Instagram. Do you have issues important to you that deserve more attention? Are there stories we're missing or that you're curious about? You can give us a call at 707-923-2605 or send any email email to newsmud.org Redwood Community Radio is funded by Press Forward, the national movement to strengthen communities by reinvigorating local news. Learn more at PressForward News. Redwood Community Radio acknowledges that its transmitter sites are on the unceded territory of the Sikyon, Wailaki, Wiat, Wilcott and Kato. People, we honor ancestors past, present and emerging and acknowledge the ongoing cultural, spiritual and physical connection that these tribes have to this region. Reporting for kmud, I'm April Lewis. Stay tuned in.