be prepared

Ask Henry:

It’s Responsible Pet Owners Month so I wanted to share my top ten things you need to do to be a responsible pet owner.

1) Being a responsible pet owner starts before you even get a pet. Make sure you pick a breed that fits with your lifestyle. Do you live in an apartment? If so I wouldn’t rush out and get a Great Dane. Always consider adopting from a shelter, there are so many animals looking for their forever homes. If you must go with a breeder make sure they are reputable!

The following is the ski, snowboard and weather report for Monday, January 18, 2016 for South Lake Tahoe brought to you by Lake Tahoe SkiBum.

A winter weather advisory is in effect until 10:00 a.m. Monday.

Search and Rescue volunteers from El Dorado County recently responded to a report of an out-of-bounds snowboarder from Heavenly who ended up near the Montgomery Estates neighborhood. Twelve volunteers on skis, snowmobiles and snowshoes made their way about four miles into the wilderness before locating 41 year-old Pavel Kletsov.

On Friday, December 11, Kletsov left the boundaries of Heavenly Valley Ski Resort and ended up in the Cold Creek Drainage, just above Montgomery Estates. Due to the fresh new snow and terrain he got stuck and could not get out on his own.

With a forecast for the Sierra of a significant snowfall over both Donner Summit and Echo Summit, Caltrans issued a statement for motorists to take caution and to alert drivers of tools at their disposal to help them on their trip.

High winds are predicted with heavy snow, creating the potential for white-outs and even blizzard conditions on summit passes between Wednesday night and Friday morning.

Winter is here and that means more family and friend gatherings inside the home. Whether in the kitchen, near the fireplace or stove, it’s always a good idea to brush up on home safety tips.

Before we gather around the fireplace or stove, remember these important safety tips:

• Have a qualified professional install stoves, chimney connectors, and chimneys.
• Stoves should have the label of an independent testing laboratory.
• In wood stoves, burn only dry, seasoned wood. In pellet stoves, burn only dry, seasoned wood pellets.

This past summer was Lake Tahoe’s busiest tourist season in recent memory. With the economy rebounding and major population growth projected for nearby metropolitan areas, this summer is also a harbinger of change. We must be prepared to meet the challenges of increased visitation in the future.

Author Garth Stein will join our Friends of the Library Book Club, via Skype, to discuss his new book "A Sudden Light". Mr. Stein, the New York Times best selling author of "The Art of Racing in the Rain", presents a long-awaited new novel in which a boy trying to save his parents’ marriage uncovers a vast legacy of family secrets.

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6:15 p.m. update 9/15/15:

New evacuation advisories were put up at the scene of the large Butte Fire on Tuesday.

There will be an escorted processional from South Lake Tahoe to Placerville on Thursday to honor 21-year-old Mikey Hallenbeck. The young U.S. Forest Service firefighter, and Sierra-at-Tahoe employee, died while fighting his very first fire on Saturday

The U.S. Forest Service and cooperating fire agencies will escort Hallenbeck from the "Y" in South Lake Tahoe to his final resting place. The procession will start at approximately 10 a.m. and proceed westbound on Highway 50 up Echo Summit, through Sierra-at-Tahoe Resort, down to Placerville. It is expected to end at 2 p.m.

With fires already burning out of control in Alaska and Southern California, there is no time like the present to learn how to prevent fires.

The Wildfire Safety Expo was held Saturday in South Lake Tahoe, and kids and adults alike learned not only fire safety tips, but were able to interact with the multiple agencies in the area that fight and prevent fires.

Also on hand at the Expo were law enforcement, TRPA, the City of South Lake Tahoe and the Lake Tahoe Humane Society.

Two different backcountry hikers needed to be rescued by the El Dorado County Sheriff’s Office Search and Rescue Team on Monday, June 8.

The first incident was at 12:43 p.m. when an adult male hiker fell at Cascade Falls, resulting in traumatic injuries. With the assistance of ground personnel from Lake Valley Fire Department, USFS and Cal Fire, rescuers were able to provide care and get the hiker hoisted out on a California Highway Patrol helicopter. The CHP helicopter transferred the hiker to a CALSTAR medical air ambulance, and then transported to Renown Medical Center in Reno.

It’s Wildfire Awareness Month at Tahoe, and with the summer tourist season around the corner, we must all remember that drought has left our Region with severely dry forest conditions and an extreme risk of wildfire. This summer we need to think about “when” not “if” another fire will happen. All of us have important roles to play in preventing the next wildfire, and in making sure our homes, families, and communities are prepared for it.

Visitors in South Lake Tahoe this weekend should plan on staying in town longer Sunday so they aren't affected by major road work in El Dorado Hills. Travelers headed to the South Shore will need to be prepared as well. Early morning closures of Highway 50 will affect both lanes of traffic between South Lake Tahoe and Sacramento.

BE PREPARED FOR 2015 with new employments laws for California & Nevada

Get caught up on the new employment laws and understand how they impact you and your business. Join your fellow Chamber members at these two informative sessions that will present highlights of new legislation and case law updates, including new wage and hour laws, for both California and Nevada.

CALIFORNIA SESSION 9:00am - 10:30am

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Liberty Utilities is reminding customers to always be prepared for winter storms and possible power outages that may result from them.

“Although we’ve made significant progress in reducing electrical outages since acquiring the utility nearly four years ago, the reality is that a really big winter storm can impact our ability to keep the lights on,” according to Mike Smart, President of Liberty Utilities-California.

With the approaching winter storm, Liberty offers the following outage preparation tips:

El Dorado County Connections - One Stop is hosting a free hiring event on Wednesday, October 1, 2014, from 9:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. at the El Dorado County Child Support Services building located at 3883 Ponderosa Road in Shingle Springs. The hiring event will be conducted by Wollborg/Michelson Personnel Service, who is looking to fill multiple positions for a large El Dorado Hills area health care provider. Job openings are available in positions such as Data Entry Clerks, Customer Service Representatives, and Group Level and Member Level Processors.

The 2014 "Jazz & Beyond - Carson City Music Festival" will open with a "Mad Hatter Garden Party," a ticketed event in the backyard of the Nevada Governor's Mansion, on Friday, August 1, from 5:00 to 7:30 p.m. The gate opens at 5:00 p.m., and the show starts at 5:30 p.m. The party features music by the Corky Bennett Trio, finger foods by Carson City Confections, wine, beer, and a raffle. The Governor's Mansion is at 606 Mountain St., Carson City, and entrance is by the Robinson St. entrance.

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After months of building, remodeling, planning and prepping, Sonney Bruning has opened "Sonney's BBQ Shack" in South Lake Tahoe.

"We've redone everything from the plumbing to the beer chiller, from the furniture to the floors," Bruning said while taking an unusual break right before the restaurant's soft opening March 22.

Is cutting down a Christmas tree in the forest part of your tradition or wanting to start a new one? This is the time of year that tree cutting permits go on sale, and they'll go quickly! Just 2,500 permits will be available to those wishing to cut down their own Christmas Tree in the Lake Tahoe basin this year. Available are a variety of pine, fir and cedar trees from designated cutting areas around the lake. The permits cost $10 each and available only on a first come, first serve basis starting on November 18, 2013. There is a two permit per family limit.

Even the name IRONMAN tells the story. After watching a day of swimming, biking and running it was proven to me that these athletes must be made of iron, or, at least, something different than my composition. Even having the trademark name in all capital letters gives one a sense of strength.

Youth Theatre Carson City is excited to announce our upcoming auditions for SHREK: The Musical, an exciting adaptation of the classic DreamWorks film to be held on Sept. 14 10 a.m. in the gymnasium at the Carson City Community Center.

Jazzercise takes to the outdoors for a free two day exercise event at the Harvey's Arena on Monday, August 12 and Wednesday, August 14. Eight local instructions will showcase some of the hottest routines and highlight music from Pit Bull, Jennifer Lopez, Macklemore, Michael Franti and lots more.

Everyone is invited to this family friendly event which will be a forty minute aerobic worked followed by 20 minutes of strength training.
Participants are encouraged to bring their own weights or tubes if they have them. The event starts at 6:30 pm on both evenings.

Here is the Memorial Day weekend fishing report for rivers, lakes and streams in Nevada, Northern California and the Sierra. This report is for the week of May 22-28. Pack plenty of sunscreen, fill your cooler full of cold beverages and enjoy the long holiday weekend.

According to a recent article in the Wall Street Journal there are 6 reasons why there is a declining inventory of homes for sale in the United States. These 6 reasons also apply to Lake Tahoe, on both the California side and Nevada sides of the Lake.

Their 6 reasons why housing inventory is declining

1.  Many homeowners are underwater (owe more than their home is worth) so they are unlikely to sell until home values rise more than they have already. More than 10 million home owners are in this position in the US.