Major Traffic Accident and Injuries on highway 254

By Emily Smith

This morning at 4:02am there was a traffic collision on highway. When the vehicle crashed, it rolled causing major damage to the vehicle and causing injuries to the male, who was found on the shoulder outside of the vehicle. Police then requested an ambulance and tow truck.

The accident was labeled major by CHP, for the injuries of the person involved. The highway was closed but then deemed clear and reopened by 6:41am.

A Big Misunderstanding: it was a survival kit, not a bomb

Pauline Willing

10/25/17

On the 10/20/17 a women thought there was a “Pipe Bomb” in Fortuna 10th Street.

She called the police and they sent  the Humboldt Country explosive ordnance disposal team.

They tried to destroy it safely and then they found out that it was an homemade container used to carry survival items. The husband of the women who called the police left it there for a hunting trip.

So all in all, it was just a big misunderstanding and they made a big thing out of it. So nobody got hurt, but the resident had to leave his house and wait at the neighbor’s house. Neighboring residents were also informed.

Traffic Jam by Abandoned Vehicle!

By Isabella Vonglakhone on October 25, 2017

Today at 8:22 a.m.on Highway 255, there was a traffic jam due to an abandoned teal Ford. Sergeant Le France, of Eureka PD, responded to the scene and reported a broken window. There is a possible suspect, but none have been confirmed.

At around 9:05 a.m, a tow truck went en route to relieve traffic and remove the vehicle from the scene. All is well, but a suspect is yet to be found.

60 customers lose power in Orleans

Maicie Spencer

October 25, 2017

Today at 9:55 am there was a power outage in Orleans, CA, just off the road of Red Cape and near the Klamath River. Around 60 individuals that were affected by this power outage.

PG&E will be helping fix and find that happened in today’s events. They didn’t know what caused this outage, and PG&E was investigating.The power was back and running at 5pm, and everything was good again.

2.2 Earthquake Hits 16km From Rio Dell

Cayden Sauls

10/25/17

A 2.2 magnitude earthquake hit 16km from Rio Dell, California today. It hit at 11:36am and was not felt by many. This is not a rare occasion on the west coast of California.

A survey done in a 5th period class at Fortuna High School, Fortuna is a town a couple miles from Rio Dell, showed that not one student felt it. It was a shallow earthquake at a little over 21km  deep but did not have the power to be felt by most. Earthquakes like this are a common thing around there due to the active nearby faults. These little earthquakes are a good thing; hopefully stalling a rumored long overdue devastating earthquake.

Traffic Collision in Fortuna, nobody injured

Bailey Sanderson

10/25/17

At 4:57 AM this morning, a call came in about a traffic collision on 118 S Fortuna Blvd. This was a single-person collision, involving a man with no injuries. This man ran into the Cal Fire building, fence, and gate with his car.

Officers have not concluded how or why he ran into these structures.

Highway 299 W and Guintoli Ln Offramp: Animal Hazard

By Paige Richardson

Four vehicles reported an animal hazard off highway 299 and Guintoli Ln offramp at 10am this morning, causing traffic hazards.

Power Outages in Hoopa affect Pine Creek and Orchard Loop

Benny Pavloff

10-25-17

Today, 10-25-17, at 12:06 pm twelve customers of PG&E in the Hoopa area were left without power for unknown reasons. PG&E are on location investigating why the outages occurred but haven't found anything yet. The houses without power are located on the block of Pine Creek and Orchard Loop. There have been no further updates on the situation.

Hit and Run or Run and Hit..?

By Skylar Mattly

At 10:48 am, Wednesday October 25, there was a reported hit and run accident at 875 Redwood Drive in Garberville, CA. Shortly after the accident occurred, CHP was contacted and informed. The responders then went to go scout out what happened. The emergency responders had arrived within minutes after the call.

At 10:50 am emergency responders were at the scene. At 10:51 am, it was reported that when they arrived, the vehicle was not on, the owner was not inside, and it was parked. The person whom was “hit” was not in need of any medical assistance and emergency responders left. Was it really a traffic collision?

Controlled Burn at Potawot Village This Weekend

By Jarod Jones

The United Indian Health Service has announced that there will be a prescribed fire this Saturday, October 28, 2017 at 1600 Weeot Way, Arcata, CA. The event is supervised by the Arcata Fire Department under the direction of Battalion Chief Sean Campbell,  so If you live near or see the smoke arising, there’s no need to panic.

The controlled fire is estimated to burn from 2:00pm to 5:00pm if the weather stays in favor. There will be smoke in and around the Potawot Village, so all should take necessary precautions.

50-year-old transient takes advantage of people evacuating from homes in Santa Rosa

By Hailey Hipes

Yesterday, October 24th, at 1:45pm, officers noticed a 50-year-old white male acting suspiciously in the Santa Rosa area near the evacuation zones. After he was located, police found that he had stolen jewelry, cell phones, and other valuables from many lifeless evacuee homes. He was arrested.

Following his arrest, he was not only charged with felony grand theft, but he was also charged with possession of a concealed weapon as well as possession of narcotic paraphernalia. Thank you HPD for looking out for the evacuees of Santa Rosa!

Power Outage In Fortuna Leaves 39 Without Power

October 25, 2017

By Ethan Higgins

Today at 11:24 am, the area surrounding Fernwood drive succumbed to a power outage. The cause of which at the time is unknown but PG&E is investigating the source and cause. No other areas have been known to be affected.

There are no known injuries or deaths at the time and it seems that the people affected will survive with no clear or present danger.

Man is Charged with Lewd Conduct and Violation of Parole

Tia Graham

Charles Steven Flinn was found in a  women's bathroom on 2500 block of 4th street. He left right after police arrived. He was caught on surveillance, and they released this out to social media to help find him.  

After three days, officers found him with the help of State Parole Agents. Later he was charged with lewd conduct and violation of parole and was booked into Humboldt County Correctional Facility on 10-20-17.

Man tries to flee from hit and run

Arcata, CA

By Alvretta Huffman

The suspect Roman Jealousofhim had a loaded firearm and had methamphetamine in his possession and was convicted of a hit and run.

On October 25, 2017 at the estimated time of 12:00 am, a traffic collision was reported at Old Arcata Rd. When police officers came to the scene, the suspect was trying to flee. They found the suspect in the passenger seat of the cab; when they caught the suspect they found illegal items on him. They then took Roman  to Humboldt County correctional facility to book him.

Shots Fired at Mendocino Fire Department

By Caitlin

Landowner fires at Mendocino Fire Department after mistaking them for trespassers.

On October 14th at 12:02 AM, the Mendocino County Sheriff’s Department reported that the Fire Department was suppressing fires in Redwood Valley, CA because of the Mendocino Lake Complex Fire. The owner of the land the Cal Fire workers were on is owned John Maxwell Heron. He thought the firemen were trespassers and he yelled at them, opened fire, and then called 911.

The Sheriff as well as multiple other officers patrolled investigating the situation. After establishing that the Fire Department was on John Heron’s land, they attempted to arrest him for the discharge of his firearm. When confronted, he resisted arrest and was later booked into the Mendocino County Jail with a bail set at $15,000.

Road closures affect Humboldtian travels

By Tanner Baum

If you are trying to leave Humboldt County, the only way out is north unless you want to take it slow.  On highway 36 there is full closures west of Buck Mountain road from 8am to 12pm and 1pm to 5pm Monday through Thursday from 8am to 12pm and 1pm to 3pm on Fridays, with monitoring  should be 30-minute delays. There is also lane closures on both sides of the 101 near Redcrest undercrossing from 8am to 6pm weekdays. Also a roadway evacuation near Cedar Creek Road in one way traffic control from 7:30 am to 5pm.

Possible “Pipe Bomb” Handled by FPD & EOD

By Liana Hetticher

On October 20th, 2017, Fortuna PD released a press release about a possible bomb scare on the 300 block of 10th street in Fortuna. The resident found the suspected “pipe bomb” on her back porch and contacted FPD wanting to know how to react. According to the press release: “Suspicious Device Found Near Residence Destroyed By Bomb Squad,” the resident’s son had moved the device and placed in front of their home in the carport.

After calling in the experts, The Humboldt County Sheriff Explosive Ordnance Disposal Team, the device was taken away to be detonated safely where it was discovered it was not in fact a bomb. Instead, it was a waterproof survival kit left behind on accident by the resident’s husband just before leaving for a hunting trip. “The object was determined to be constructed of PVC pipe and was capped on at least one end and wrapped in paracord and duct tape,” containing waterproof matches, an emergency blanket, and a fire starter.

Hwy 36 construction inconveniences travelers and workers

By Hailey Hipes

Highway 36 construction has affected people all over Humboldt County. Many people cross over 36 everyday, and a couple handfuls must cross over right where the construction is happening.

12 miles East to just over 16 miles East of Bridgeville is the area affected. It is closed from from 8-5 Monday-Thursday, and from 8-3 on Friday. The only time it is open is from 12-1 Monday thru Friday. This construction will last until November 1st of this year. This is a huge inconvenience to many people crossing over this area daily.

Zack Cook, an employee at Wright Tree Service, works 5 days a week which involves them going over 36 very often and sometimes running right into the construction. “I crossed over 36 very often this last summer and over deer hunting season, almost every weekend,” he told me. Although he was very aware that this was going to be happening through people continually talking about it, he still feels that “it’s stupid”. This also makes his job that much more stressful because if he isn’t done before the roads open for the hour, he will get stuck out there for the day.

This has clearly been a major inconvenience to many people, but hopefully, CalTrans finishes this construction sooner than later so the roads will be open like normal again and there will be no more stressing over it.

Homecoming parade comes together in short amount of time

Fortuna, California

Emily Smith

FHS celebrated Homecoming Week September 11-15, ending in a parade, game, and spectacular halftime show.

At our high school Fortuna High there is a very special week, one that celebrates competition, class pride, and most importantly togetherness throughout the school. Homecoming has lots of events including the Thursday Night game, lip sync, the traditional friday night football game against McKinleyville, which ended in a win for Fortuna, and the half time of the show includes the crowning of homecoming royalty, queen Haley Benbow and king Bailey Foley and also the show of the parades covered in christmas lights creating a beautiful display to end a great week.

Senior class advisor, Adam Pinkerton, said “while building these floats, ideas come in throughout the week and on average it takes 3-4 days” Which may not seem that long but with the limited amount of time, the class float rules stating “Floats must be built in the bus barns on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday of Homecoming week” After the week of work and effort, the judging ended in Senior float getting first, Freshmen second, Junior’s third and Sophomores 4th.

First Humans of Fortuna: “Everybody has been very welcoming, I got into this for the community side of things.”

By: Liana Hetticher

Officer Lindsey Frank, born in Reno, raised in Sacramento before moving to Humboldt County when she was 25 is Fortuna High’s current Student Resource Officer(SRO). So far, she loves her job, “Everybody has been very welcoming, I got into this for the community side of things,” she says.

Officer Frank is not strictly Fortuna High’s SRO. She also spends time at the middle and elementary schools in Fortuna doing things with the kids. Such things include walking the track at Toddy Thomas Middle School as part of the 100 Mile Club, reading to kids at all the elementary schools, and helping out the students of Fortuna High. Frank is still able to be a patrol officer, which was her position prior to being involved in the schools. She returns to her previous position over summer break, spring break, winter break, and other breaks throughout the school year. If she receives a call and she is closer than one of the other officers, often times she will respond.

There are some difficulties that come with the job, but she is working through them for the benefit of the youth. Some of her difficulties are getting the youth to open up and trust her, most kids are guarded and uneasy because of her uniform. She is trying to help Fortuna’s youth open and up and trust her to help them when needed. One thing that Frank says is easier about the job is the schedule; although still fast paced, her schedule has relaxed a little bit. It is easier for her to get her own children ready for school in the mornings, she enjoys being home with them, whereas in her old position, she would often work the graveyard shift and be getting home as they are leaving for school.

Officer Frank has been an officer for 9 years. She started out in Ferndale, she was there for 5 years before transferring to Fortuna for the past 4 years. The things she enjoys the most about her job is the helpfulness. She enjoys being able to make a difference in someone’s life, she enjoys the variety of responsibilities from day to day. She doesn’t have to be bored, she can be as busy as she pleases.

Arts are Alive in Downtown Eureka the first Saturday of the month

Fortuna, Ca.

Benny Pavloff

Every month, artists and musicians from around the community get together and show off their work at ‘Arts Alive’. Arts is a gathering for new and old artists to get their name known throughout the county, some even come from out of the area. Arts Alive is held every first Saturday of every month and is located in the Old Town area of Eureka, Ca. Whether it be cool jazz played by a band in a coffee shop or a young boy playing classical music on his guitar, Arts has something for everyone.

A tenant who lived above the gazebo blew bubbles over the plaza while the sound of music bounced through the air, you could only barely hear the chants of the crazy dude with a sign warning us of the end is near. Hot dog vendors and food trucks filled the air with the smell of food and local charities were out fundraising. Arts alive is a very friendly welcoming place to be where you can meet new people, listen to new music, and drink some amazing coffee from Old Town Coffee and Chocolate ( probably my favorite part ).

Ross Hill Road construction

Fortuna, CA

Savannah Laloli

According to a letter dated February 6th, 2017, Rosshill Road construction in Fortuna, CA has the main intent of improving and making roads safer for pedestrians and bicyclists, however not also supporting a crosswalk to the Redwood Preparatory Charter School. The way planned to do this is by limiting the amount of lanes down to one, making the bicycle lane wider. Ross Hill Road is the main route in and out of the city to four different schools.

Huskyology Homecoming half time heartens town

Photograph by Issa V Photography

On Friday, September 15, 2017, Fortuna High’s annual homecoming game and halftime show took place. The Fortuna Huskies’ football team went against the Mckinleyville Panthers and took a win with a score of 34-16. Coach Mike Benbow of the Huskies said that the Fortuna High’s football team played very well. “I think that we came out and did everything they had planned on doing all week, and it was awesome to see so many kids participate and be apart of the win,” states Benbow.

Photograph by Issa V Photography

Along with the game, Fortuna High puts on a phenomenal show summing up their homecoming week. This show contains fireworks, a homecoming king and queen reveal, a giant burning F, a night parade with class floats and royalty riding in corvettes. This show brings the community together and makes Fortuna High School unique.

The halftime show takes a lot of time to prepare. What goes into preparing the show as Mrs. Coit, the coordinator of the homecoming halftime show, says is: royalty must be nominated, cars for the royalty have to be found, fireworks have to be bought and set up, the announcer’s script has to be written, there has to be runners to light the F and much more. After all this work, the show gets pulled together.

Photograph by Issa V Photography

At the end of the night, Bailey Foley and Haley Benbow were honored Homecoming King and Queen, the firework show went off, the giant F was lit, and the Huskies took a win. “I thought the show was almost perfect!” says Mrs. Coit. Fortuna High’s annual homecoming game and halftime show of 2017 really summed the excitement of their homecoming week.

Photograph by Issa V Photography