Reedley E-edition 12-28-17

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Vol. 128, No. 52 | Thursday, December 28, 2017 www.reedleyexponent.com Reedley (Fresno County) CA 93654 | 50 cents Firefighters extinguish pair of holiday blazes
Flames erupt along the side of a garage at a residence
in the 300 block of East Shimizu Avenue on Dec. 24. The blaze, reported at about 6:30 a.m., caused about $5,000 in damage to the garage wall. Reedley fire- fighters also extinguished
a small fire in the attic of a home on South Columbia Avenue on Christmas Day.
Reedley Police Department / Photo Contributed
Burning embers sparked fire on Christmas Eve
Staff Report
Two structure fires — the first start- ed along the side wall of a garage — kept Reedley firefighters busy on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day.
The two blazes resulted in a combined $7,500 in damage but saved further dam- age of $350,000 and $150,000, respectively, according to Fire Chief Jerry Isaak.
Firefighters were first dispatched to a home in the 300 block of East Shimizu
Avenue at about 6:30 a.m. Dec. 24, accord- ing to a news release from the fire depart- ment. Arriving firefighters and police on the scene saw the exterior wall of the ga- rage — where the gas meter was located — was on fire. Firefighters quickly extin- guished the flames and shut off the gas.
Fire also was burning inside the wall of the garage as flames reached the elec- trical panel, the news release stated. The fire damage was limited to the garage well.
Investigators said the fire started from hot coals and yard waste that had been placed in the greenwaste disposal container near the garage. All refuse con-
tainers were fully consumed by the fire. Seventeen Reedley firefighters fought the blaze and were assisted by two en- gines from Fresno County Fire and one engine from Dinuba. Fire officials said a neighbor alerted the occupant of the home
about the fire.
At about 6:10 a.m. on Dec. 25, fire-
fighters responded to a carbon monoxide alarm in the 300 block of South Columbia Avenue. After noticing a slight smoke haze inside the home, firefighters discov- ered smoke in the attic and contacted ad- ditional units.
See FIRES on page A2
City OKs
accident
cleanup
program
By Jon Earnest
jon@midvalleypublishing.com
The city of Reedley has agreed to negotiate a temporary contract with a new company for accident cleanup services involv- ing hazardous materials.
At its Dec. 14 regular meet- ing, the Reedley City Council unanimously approved a “pi- lot” accident cleanup program agreement with Michael’s Envi- ronmental, a newly created cor- porate arm separate of Michael’s Towing of Reedley. The company will clean up hazardous materi- als found at vehicle accident sites; in particular hazardous fu- els, oils and materials.
City Manager Nicole Zieba told the council that Michael’s Environmental wouldn’t bill the city when it comes out to clean up these accident scenes. In- stead, the company bills the in- surance of the responsible party for the accident.
The initial two-year agree- ment has Michael’s Environ- mental come to every vehicle ac- cident scene in the city to clean up chemicals and debris.
“At the end of the six-month period, we’ll sit down. We’ll see if it’s beneficial for both par- ties,” Zieba said. “If it is, we’d like to continue for another year-and-a-half.”
Zieba said the city’s proac- tive stance in dealing with haz- ardous spills will keep the city “ahead of the curve.”
The council was able to see photographs of Michael’s clean- up work at three recent accident sites, including one that was up in Kings Canyon National Park.”
Council Member Bob Beck said the city’s action is timely as he felt the state would get involved in enforcing new man- dates at accident sites.
“You never know what kind of damage is done to your roadways and sidewalks,” he said.
“Two years will go by quick to see whether it works or not,” said Frank Pinon, mayor pro tem. “I think it’s a great idea.”
A wet 2017 — good and bad
ABOVE:TheKingsRiverflowspastCricketHollowParkonJan.31. ArecordSierraNevadasnowpackandheavyrainfallseasonin2016-17resultedinheavywaterreleasesfrom PineFlatReservoirthatcausedflooding alongtheriver. FresnoandTulareCountysheriff’sofficesalsoshutdowntherivertorecreationalusefromlateMaytoearlyJuly. BELOW: In June, Jill Stollmeyer of San Luis Obispo and her dogs cool off in a flooded portion of campground near The Wakehouse Woodfire Grill and Bar.
File Photos / The Exponent
Heavy rainfall totals ended drought status, but caused flooding problems
Staff Report
Water — particularly water flow- ing down the Kings River — was a big story in Reedley in 2017.
The good news? The five year drought in the state officially was de- clared over this year. The bad news? The region had to deal with periods of flooding.
A record snowpack in the Sierra Nevada and a heavy January rain- storm in the foothills caused the Kings River to fill to its banks in mid-Janu- ary. The water levels never subsided and heavy water releases from Pine Flat Reservoirs caused flooding in many spots along the river.
On May 24, Fresno County Sheriff Margaret Mims announced the clo-
sure of the Kings River below the dam throughout Fresno County to all swim- ming and boating activities. That clo- sure remained in effect until July 17, affecting recreation activities along the river for local businesses.
During that period, rising river levels caused a mandatory evacua- tion of residents from the Riverbend Mobile Home/RV Park between Cen- terville and Minkler north of Reedley. About a dozen displaced residents spends a few days at an American Red Cross Shelter established in the Reedley High School gym.
Classified - A6-7
Directory - A5 Legals - B8-9
AVID students work with Toys for Tots
By Jan Balallo
Special to The Exponent
Reedley High School’s AVID (Advancement Via Indi- vidual Determination) program has been working on a holiday season project to help out the community.
The students have spent most of their time in class put- ting on projects and making the magic of the holidays hap- pen for themselves, the school’s AVID program and the commu- nity.
The AVID program is de- signed for students who are willing to work to succeed in their high school and college career and beyond. The pro- gram is designed to teach skills and behaviors for academic success and provides support for a student-teacher relation- ship. It also creates a positive peer group for the student, and
develops a sense of hope for personal achievement gained through hard work and deter- mination.
This year’s AVID project for the holidays is Toys for Tots. The students’ mission was to collect new and unwrapped toys that they then took to an official Toys For Tots donation center. The toys then were to be handed out to children during the holiday season.
The Toys for Tots project included the following AVID students: Agustin Villarreal, Roxana Ramos, Victoria Her- rera, Melanie Mestre, Sbeidy Faburrieta, Jasmine Garcia, and Karina Ramirez. The head of the AVID program is Victor Blocker, who also teaches U.S. and world history at the high school.
These students have joined
See AVID on page A3 Sports - B3-4
Jon Earnest / The Exponent
Reedley High AVID program students display some of the toys collected for the Toys for Tots project. Pictured from left are Jasmine Garcia, Victoria Herrera, Karina Ramirez, Roxana Ramos, Sbeidy Faburrieta, Agustin Villarreal and Jan Balallo.
Lights & Sirens - A3 Obituaries - A2-3 Opinion - A4
More photos from 2017, Page A6
Exponent office closed on Jan. 1
The business office of The Exponent will be closed on Monday, Jan. 1, in observance of New Year’s Day.
There will be early dead- lines this week. Classified liner ads and legal notices are due by 10 a.m. Thursday, Dec. 28. Regular and classified display ads are due at noon on Thurs- day, Dec. 28.
The office will reopen for business at 8 a.m. on Tuesday, Jan. 2.