Page 1 - Mid Valley Times 10-21-21 E-edition

Thursday, October 21, 2021
Vol. 3, No. 16
Sanger
council
discusses
district
boundaries
By Jon Earnest
Mid Valley Times
The Sanger City Council held a second public hearing earlier this month to discuss and receive community input regarding the potential re- drawing of City Council dis- trict boundaries for election of council members.
At the Oct. 7 regular meet- ing, council members heard a presentation from Jeff Til- ton of National Demnograph- ics Corporation. Tilton talked about the redistricting pro- cess, and council members received presentation notes.
During public comment, one commenter said that any proposal splitting up northeast from southeast could mean no district representative living
See COUNCIL on page A2
Dog-gone fun in Dinuba
50 cents
Arrest
made in
July 4
Reedley
homicide
By Juanita Adame
Mid Valley Times
A Fresno man has been ar- rested in the shooting death of 25-year-old Jacob Encinia, a Reedley father who was gunned down in the 1400 block of North Columbia Av- enue on the Fourth of July.
Juanita Adame / Mid Valley Times
A competitor in this year's annual "Dog Days" event in Dinuba coaxed her English bulldog to fetch as she tossed a ball on Oct. 16. The morning event at Nebraska Park in north Dinuba allowed residents to show off their pooch and demonstrate skllls. Contests were held and prizes were awarded for best costume, best fetch, and owner and dog lookalike. The event attracted more than 20 entries, and more than 100 people attended the event on a temperate fall day. Another Dog Day photo and cutline is in the Lifestyle section on Page A7.
Fabian Portillo, 23, was tak- en into custody in San Diego County on
a homicide
warrant
related to
the En-
cinia case.
Portillo
was trans-
ferred to
the Fresno
County Jail
on Oct. 15,
the Reed-
ley Police Department wrote in an Oct. 19 news release.
Encinia was fatally shot sometime after 10 p.m. on Ju- ly 4. According to Reedley Po- lice Department, the dispatch call came in at approximately 10:30 p.m.
When officers arrived, they found Encinia suffering from a gunshot wound. He was transported to Adventist Health Reedley, where he lat- er died.
“We heard what sounded like loud booms, but because of all the fireworks, we didn’t think much of it,” said a resi- dent on the evening of the shooting.
See ARRESTonpageA6
Case numbers still sending mixed signals
By Jon Earnest
Mid Valley Times
This week's latest release of case numbers for COVID-19 in Fresno and Tulare counties continue to send mixed signals as to the levels of infection by the virus.
On one hand, the rate of daily new cases per 100,000 people showed a very slight decline — from 25.6 to 24.2 in Fresno County and from 29.7 to 28.6 in Tulare County — but the actual num- ber of new cases increased slightly in both regions. Hospitalizations also in- creased by 23 in Fresno County and by 19 (through Oct. 19) in Tulare County.
Since the pandemic was first regu-
Coronavirus Update
larly reported in March 2020, the Fres- no County Department of Public Health listed as of Oct. 19 that there were 133,688 total positive cases (7.6 percent positivity rates), with 2,063 people dy- ing either directly or in connection to the virus. The most recent numbers showed that 58 of the 273 hospitalized patients were in intensive care units, and that there were 22 available ICU beds.
The most recent 30-day incidence rate requirements report the middle of last week showed that census tract re- gions around the county were improv-
ing. In the Reedley area, only the north- west portion of true city (117 cases per 10,000 people) and Lac Jac region (101 per 10K) were above the 100 level. All regions surrounding Sanger had shown reductions below 100 per 10,000.
While most of southern Fresno County remained in a solid red range of substantial case numbers, the situa- tion improved in the Wahtoke-Navelen- cia region east of Reedley (33 per 10K) enough to where the region was in a moderate (tan) phase, Also, cases in the foothill areas including Squaw Valley and Dunlap dropped below the 30-day incidence rate requirements.
See VIRUS on page A6
Runners were on their marks at Reedley Fiesta celebration
Fabian Portillo
Jon Earnest / Mid Valley Times
Female runners in the two-mile race sprinted north along G Street to- ward the finish line at the intersection of G and 10th streets during the early morning Reedley Fiesta Run/Walk on Oct. 9.
MVT Staff Reports
Runners and walkers turned out in strong num- bers to participate in a re- turn to live competition at the annual Reedley Fiesta Run/Walk on Oct. 9.
A total of 38 runners of varying ages entered and completed the longer 6-mile competitive run, dozens more participated in the 2-mile run while a good number of families includ- ing young children and in- fants/toddlers being pushed in strollers were part of the recreational walk.
The Run/Walk returned to live competition after be- ing held as a "virtual" event in 2020 because of COV- ID-19.
Photos by Jon Earnest / Mid Valley Times
The overall winners of the 6-mile run on Oct.9 were 29-year-old Vic- toria Solis in the female division and 15-year-old Seth Magnotti of Kingsburg in the male division. Solis posted a time of 45 minutes, 45.61 seconds while Magnotti had a winning time of 39:54.5.
Classifieds - A9 Directory - A10 Legals - A12-16 Sports - A11, A17-18 Lifestyle - A7-8
Lights & Sirens - A3, A5 Obituaries - A2-3 Opinion - A4