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TUESDAY JULY 26, 2011 Breaking news at: www.redbluffdailynews.com Extreme Sports See Inside American Profile RED BLUFF D.C. trip Sports 1B Sunny 94/65 Weather forecast 8B DAILYNEWS TEHAMACOUNTY DAILY 50¢ T H E V O I C E O F T E H A M A C O U N T Y S I N C E 1 8 8 5 Collision on river kills rafter DN Staff Report A collision between a boat and a raft claimed a life, Sunday after- noon, on the Sacramento River. Chester Lee Hunt, Jr., 36, was on a raft with Barbara Hunt, 21, drifting with the current and was about mid river, near the William B. Ide Adobe State Historic Park in Red Bluff when the collision occurred that would eventually take his life. The boat was being driven by Elmer Fries, Jr. 63, of Red Bluff and the owner of E’s Locker Room. A Tehama County Sheriff’s press release said the power boat was traveling between 25-40 mph down river according to witnesses before it struck the raft and Hunt. Tehama County Assistant Sher- iff Phil Johnston said there was an indication of alcohol in Fries dur- ing a field test, but some tests weren’t conclusive. Fries was not arrested. “At this point in time, the cause appears to be just inattention on the part of the driver,” Johnston said. A blood sample from Fries was taken by the department. “He volunteered to give us a blood sample and is being cooper- ative with law enforcement,” John- ston said. Johnston said it’s standard pro- cedure to obtain a blood sample in any accident involving a death whether boat or automobile. The Hunts and their raft were loaded onto the power boat and taken to the shore to meet EMS before Chester Hunt was flown to Mercy Medical Center in Redding where he died of his injuries, John- ston said. Fries was on the boat with three other people. “We elected not to arrest Mr. Fries due to pending further inves- tigation since he is being coopera- tive,” Johnston said. It will probably take a few weeks before results from the Vegetation fire near Montgomery Road blood test are back, he said. The Tehama County Sheriff’s Department is still investigating the incident and will send its report onto the Tehama County District Attorney’s office once it is com- plete, he said. “A forensic autopsy (of Hunt’s body) is scheduled to be conducted Tuesday,” Johnston said. “We should know more by the end of this week.” ——— Daily News reporter Julie Zeeb contributed to this report. Pot back on state ballot SACRAMENTO (AP) — Supporters of legalizing recreational marijuana will try to win over California voters again next year, after the secretary of state’s office on Monday cleared them to begin circulating ballot petitions. This time they will argue that pot growers should be treated the same as vineyard owners or micro- brewers. Those who grow marijuana for their own use would not be taxed, but those who sell it would be regulated by the state Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control. Medical marijuana activist Steve Kubby, who is one of the key backers of the current movement, said keeping the recreational use of marijuana illegal was like the federal government’s prohibition of alcohol, which ended in 1933. ‘‘We’re repealing bad laws,’’ he said in an inter- Daily News photo by Julie Zeeb Firefighters work to contain a vegetation fire reported at 2:07 p.m. Monday that burned five acres in the frontage area between Interstate 5 and Montgomery Road. No structures were involved, however, there were several residences threatened due to a southeast wind, a Red Bluff Fire spokesman said.The fire was contained at 2:30 p.m.The cause is under investiga- tion. Mop-up of the fire was expected to take a few hours, he said. Red Bluff Fire and CalFire responded. PG&E continues cleanup By TANG LOR DN Staff Writer With the demolition and removal of the Cinderella Motel complete, Pacific Gas and Electric Co. contin- ues with plans to cleanup possible toxins left over from the days when a manu- factured gas plant operated at the site. Pre-remediation samples of soil and ground water were taken earlier this month and have been sent to a laboratory to be tested. The tests should be complet- ed sometime this week, PG&E spokeswoman Nicole Liebelt said. Samples were taken from adjacent By JULIE ZEEB DN Staff Writer Four people were arrested Sunday on Hogs- back Road, east of High- way 99E, after leading law enforcement on a chase. Deputies attempted to make a traffic stop on Highway 99E at Hogs- back Road on a vehicle with four people, includ- ing three men and one woman, visible. According to Tehama County Sheriff’s logs, the sites to help PG&E deter- mine the scope of the project cleanup site. While no future sam- plings are planned, two new groundwater wells and soil vapor probes have been installed to help with contin- uous monitoring of the site. “This will allow us to be actively aware of what’s going on at the site and help us design a cleanup plan that is appropriate for the site,” Liebelt said. That information along with the results from the lab tests will be used by PG&E to create a remediation action plan in coordination with the state Department of driver failed to yield at 7:19 p.m. Sunday, turning onto Hogsback Road where they proceeded to drive east, going 45 mph. The California High- way Patrol and its heli- copter were requested after the vehicle sped up to 70 mph, going up to 85 mph before slowing to 40 mph at the beginning of the dirt portion, logs show. As the vehicle passed Tuscan Springs Road it was at speeds of 50 mph, logs show. A few minutes later, the vehicle slowed then rapidly accelerated, throwing rocks onto the patrol car. The vehicle began to 7 5 8 5 5 1 6 9 0 0 1 9 Toxic Substances Control. It is still a longways off before any actual environ- mental remediation will be done, Liebelt said. PG&E’s remediation action plan should be com- pleted by early 2012, at which time the public will get a chance to comment on the plans before they are finalized. Any necessary remedia- tion activity will take place in late 2012 and into 2013. The motel was on the site of a former manufactured gas plant that was owned and operated by PG&E from 1874 to 1947, accord- ing to PG&E’s website. pull away due to road con- ditions, continuing to slow and accelerate to throw rocks on the patrol vehicle and also starting to lose a camper shell, logs show. Eventually, four people were detained at 8:21 p.m. Tehama County Jail booking sheets show Wes- ley Jay Miles, III, 33, was arrested at 8:21 p.m. on Hogsback Road, 18 miles east of Highway 99E, on the charges of evading a police officer with wanton disregard for safety, DUI: alcohol or drugs and dri- ving on a suspended license” DUI violation. Bail was set at $56,000. Two of the passengers, Research in the 1980s by the United States Environ- mental Protection Agency of more than 1,5000 former plants found residues may remain on sites, according to the website. PG&E is per- forming voluntary cleanup of former plant sites under the direction of the state Department of Toxic Sub- stances Control. In the meantime, the site continues to be fenced and secured with private security monitoring the area. ——— Tang Lor can be reached at 527-2153, Ext.110 or by e- mail at tlor@redbluffdai- lynews.com. Four arrested following police pursuit including Alfredo Ramiro Galvan, 25, of Red Bluff, were arrested and booked on the charge of public intoxication. The fourth person was arrested on an unrelated Tehama County Sheriff’s Department war- rant. Nothing further was available. view Monday. ‘‘We’re creating a sales tax on the biggest crop in the state, and we’re bringing it with- in a regulated model.’’ Kubby said the latest effort stands a better chance than Proposition 19, which fell 6 percentage points short of the majority vote it needed last November. That initiative would have made California the first state to legalize recreational marijuana use and sales. Voter attitudes are evolving, said Kubby, who helped write the medical marijuana law California voters approved in 1996 and was the 1998 Libertari- an candidate for governor. He said his measure also stands a better chance during a presidential election. Supporters say older, more conservative voters are more likely to participate in midterm elections, while presidential elections tend to draw a broader elec- torate. On Monday, the secretary of state’s office said proponents can begin gathering the 504,760 signa- tures they’ll need to collect by Dec. 19 to put the ini- tiative on the June or November ballots next year. The timing depends on how quickly the signatures are submitted and verified, although Kubby said pro- ponents plan to submit revisions that would likely push the measure to the November general election. Opponents said legalization could lead to increased addiction, drugged drivers and a clash with See POT, page 7A Men caught busting into sporting store Two Sacramento men were arrested Sunday evening in connection with an attempted burglary at the Big 5 store on South Main Street in Red Bluff. At 10:08 p.m. Sunday, Red Bluff Police received a report of two men, wearing stockings on their heads, were throw- ing rocks at the windows at Big 5. Officers were sent to the area and found two men nearby who matched the description provided by the witness. Investigating officers discovered that one of the windows at the front of the business had been shattered in what appeared to be an attempt to gain entry into the store. The original witness returned to the scene and confirmed the two men the officers had located nearby were the same ones he had seen at Big 5. The subjects, who were identified, as Shawan Wimberly, 20, and Michael Barnett, 23, were arrested on suspicion of attempted commercial burglary and were both booked into the Tehama County Jail on bail of $15,000 each. —Julie Zeeb Best Roofing Company. As a token of our apprecia- tion, use this ad to receive Thank you for voting us Tehama County’s COMPLETE AUTO REPAIR Smog Inspection $ 2595 + cert. 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