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empirereport.bsky.social
Empire Report
@empirereport.bsky.social
2 followers 9 following 25 posts
Inform, Engage and Empower the Redwood Empire
https://empirereport.org/
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empirereport.bsky.social
After holding a single public meeting, California State Parks Staff are releasing an arguably half-baked, barely vetted Road and Trails Master Plan for Annadel State Park.

Meeting #2 on Feb 4 - RSVP required.

www.parks.ca.gov?page_id=31763
Trione-Annadel State Park Road and Trail Management Plan
California State Parks
www.parks.ca.gov
January 22, 2026 at 7:41 PM
empirereport.bsky.social
It's the Wild West in Covelo!

Unmarked vehicle pursuit - Red&Blue flashing pursuer was stopped by Sheriff and CHP and RELEASED. Three pursuers wearing tactical gear and weapons released.

kymkemp.com/2026/01/21/u...
Unmarked Pursuit with Unclear Authority Raises Alarm After Covelo Chase
A high-speed pursuit through Covelo involving three young men affiliated with a developing tribal police program—none reported to be certified nor authorized to operate in the area—prompted a…
kymkemp.com
January 21, 2026 at 7:38 PM
empirereport.bsky.social
Skunk Train a "Public Utility" - can condemn private property for public use (as they intend to do in Willits) - raising questions about their system's collapsed tunnel (between Fort Bragg and Willits) - and also how it would impact railbanking for Great Redwood Trail
theava.com/archives/279...
A California state appeals court last week denied a landowner’s request that the court reconsider its decision that the owner of the Skunk Train in Mendocino County has the power to condemn private property. The decision is the latest salvo in a long-running dispute over the attempt of Mendocino Railway — the owner and operator of the popular Skunk Train excursion service — to condemn a 20-acre undeveloped parcel in Willits, allegedly to be used for current and future passenger and freight rail operations. In California, a public utility is authorized to condemn private property for public purposes, providing that it pays the owner “just compensation” for the land. The owner of the parcel, John Meyer, challenged the condemnation on grounds that Mendocino Railway is not a “public utility” for purposes of the eminent domain law and therefore had no power to pursue condemnation. Meyer also argued that even if the railway was a public utility, the proposed use of the condemned property was not for public purposes and therefore did not qualify for condemnation. After a six-day jury trial in 2022, Meyer’s arguments prevailed in Mendocino County Superior Court. Under California law, to be deemed a public utility, a rail operator must be open to, and actually serve, the general public, not a private group, and the property to be condemned must be for public purposes. The railway owns a roughly 40-mile rail line that runs from Fort Bragg to Willits. The track’s primary operations and revenues (over 90%) come from running private Skunk Train excursions. In addition, the line provides passenger commuter service to a small number of individuals and families that commute to their properties on the line. The train also has some modest freight operations and hopes to have more in the future. The line was open for the full 40-mile run until 2015 when a collapsed tunnel — yet unrepaired — severed the line into two parts. Notwithstanding the collapse, the railway continued off…
January 15, 2026 at 7:42 PM
empirereport.bsky.social
A week after he went missing, Sonoma County Sheriff's Henry1 appears to be finally looking for missing man.

globe.adsbexchange.com?icao=a023ff

www.sebastopoltimes.com/p/missing-ma...
map of H1 flying looking for Kale. https://www.sebastopoltimes.com/p/missing-man-grew-up-in-west-county
January 12, 2026 at 11:27 PM
empirereport.bsky.social
West Sonoma County is nearly divided in two by this Monte Rio Hwy 116 slide.

dot.ca.gov/caltrans-nea...
Landslide on State Route 116 West of Monte Rio in Sonoma County Caltrans Has Implemented One-way Traffic Control Update January 9, 2026 Caltrans hired an emergency contractor who arrived at the site yesterday to stabilize the highway. Using a crane with a large auger, the contractor drilled through the pavement and earth below the eastbound lane, lowered steel beams into the holes, and backfilled them with gravel. Although the steel beams aren’t interlocked to create a solid wall, they are aligned close enough together to stabilize the road until a permanent retaining wall is designed and built. Landslide on State Route 116 West of Monte Rio in Sonoma County Caltrans Has Implemented One-way Traffic Control Update January 9, 2026 Caltrans hired an emergency contractor who arrived at the site yesterday to stabilize the highway. Using a crane with a large auger, the contractor drilled through the pavement and earth below the eastbound lane, lowered steel beams into the holes, and backfilled them with gravel. Although the steel beams aren’t interlocked to create a solid wall, they are aligned close enough together to stabilize the road until a permanent retaining wall is designed and built. Landslide on State Route 116 West of Monte Rio in Sonoma County Caltrans Has Implemented One-way Traffic Control Update January 9, 2026 Caltrans hired an emergency contractor who arrived at the site yesterday to stabilize the highway. Using a crane with a large auger, the contractor drilled through the pavement and earth below the eastbound lane, lowered steel beams into the holes, and backfilled them with gravel. Although the steel beams aren’t interlocked to create a solid wall, they are aligned close enough together to stabilize the road until a permanent retaining wall is designed and built. Landslide on State Route 116 West of Monte Rio in Sonoma County Caltrans Has Implemented One-way Traffic Control Update January 9, 2026 Caltrans hired an emergency contractor who arrived at the site yesterday to stabilize the highway. Using a crane with a large auger, the contractor drilled through the pavement and earth below the eastbound lane, lowered steel beams into the holes, and backfilled them with gravel. Although the steel beams aren’t interlocked to create a solid wall, they are aligned close enough together to stabilize the road until a permanent retaining wall is designed and built.
January 10, 2026 at 12:18 AM
empirereport.bsky.social
Commercial fleet is said to be putting crab pots out today - yet AIS shows none are using their mandated transponders.

Read all about it:

norcalpublicmedia.org/202601089998...
https://www.marinetraffic.com/en/ais/home/centerx:-123.2/centery:38.3/zoom:10 crab pots - old style (not legal anymore like this) https://norcalpublicmedia.org/2026010899988/news-feed/bodega-bay-crabbing-fleet-heads-out-to-sea-despite-price-uncertainties
January 9, 2026 at 7:39 PM
empirereport.bsky.social
Three vehicle pile up blocking all lanes of SB 101 @ Baker this morning.

One rollover, no extrications. One patient.

Slow TF down, people. Leave earlier for work, sheesh.
google maps of the accident
January 9, 2026 at 4:07 PM
empirereport.bsky.social
A book too hot for Windsor HS to teach in the classroom? Scythe, by Neal Shusterman is that book.

norcalpublicmedia.org/202601089997...
Windsor school board rejects award-winning YA novel, prompting censors
 A multi-award-winning young adult science fiction novel has been removed from the Windsor school district’s proposed curriculum, sparking a local deb
norcalpublicmedia.org
January 8, 2026 at 9:05 PM
empirereport.bsky.social
It's the season of flooding and guess who can't keep their flood cameras working? If you guessed Sonoma County Public Works, you're right!

www.youtube.com/@SonomaCoPI/...
Sonoma County Public Infrastructure
Sonoma County Public Infrastructure
www.youtube.com
January 7, 2026 at 11:43 PM
empirereport.bsky.social
The Pilot of Sonoma County Sheriff's helicopter, Henry1, is alleged to have prevented the promotion of a black deputy to Henry1 because "black men can't swim"

Alt URL: archive.is/0y0Lz

www.pressdemocrat.com/2025/12/18/s...
Former sheriff’s deputy sues Sonoma County, alleging racial discrimination, harassment
The lawsuit filed by Marcus Holton, who is Black, details racist comments by colleagues, being passed over for promotions and retaliation rooted in a long-time “good old boys club” cult…
www.pressdemocrat.com
January 7, 2026 at 7:11 PM
Reposted by Empire Report
bnonews.com
NEW: Second video shows ICE shooting in Minneapolis. A woman, a U.S. citizen, was killed
January 7, 2026 at 6:19 PM
Reposted by Empire Report
danielsuitor.com
This is the video.
January 7, 2026 at 5:47 PM
empirereport.bsky.social
The Glory Hole Watch has commenced!

Source: www.facebook.com/profile.php?...
Lake Berryessa's Glory Hole (spillway)
January 7, 2026 at 4:13 PM
empirereport.bsky.social
The Brown Trout are running!
raw sewage alert for the lower russian river
January 7, 2026 at 4:10 PM
Reposted by Empire Report
thedesk.net
The Corporation for Public Broadcasting has officially disbanded, months after Congress and President Trump stripped funding from public media.
Corporation for Public Broadcasting disbands after Congress pulls funding
The decision has already triggered layoffs and budget crises across public radio and television stations.
thedesk.net
January 5, 2026 at 7:14 PM
empirereport.bsky.social
Lopez De San Roman disrupting expectations as stand-out cyclist web.archive.org/web/20251230...
Sebastopol teen delivers breakthrough season on World Cup mountain biking circuit
In her first season as a pro rider, Vida Lopez De San Roman, 19, switched her focus to mountain biking, and finished 2nd in the world in her age group.
web.archive.org
December 30, 2025 at 9:36 PM
empirereport.bsky.social
A train through downtown Sebastopol as recently as 1978?!

Believe it, or not.
The train is a fond memory, but I prefer the trails
What it was like working on Main Street when the train came through
www.sebastopoltimes.com
December 30, 2025 at 9:08 PM
empirereport.bsky.social
With as much as 10% of Sonoma and Monterey counties without power, and 25% of Mendocino County!
source: https://poweroutage.us/area/utility/760
December 24, 2025 at 4:24 PM
empirereport.bsky.social
The last 24 hours of storm development over California is truly something to behold! The December 24th early morning wind event stopped power to more than 100,000 households (and counting)!
December 24, 2025 at 4:23 PM
empirereport.bsky.social
Huge swaths of coastal California are without power this Christmas Eve.

pgealerts.alerts.pge.com/outage-tools...
SF to Fort Bragg - coast is out of power almost without exception, and deep into west Sonoma County SF to Big Sur - many outages including most of the Monterey Peninsula
December 24, 2025 at 4:15 PM
empirereport.bsky.social
Cordell Marine Sanctuary end-of-year report:

www.youtube.com/watch?v=w_VY...

cordellfoundation.org

mailchi.mp/accd4150cd76...
Explore the Blue: Cordell Bank 360° Experience
YouTube video by NOAA Sanctuaries
www.youtube.com
December 22, 2025 at 7:34 PM
Reposted by Empire Report
deflock-redmond.bsky.social
"The final installment of the Flock Trilogy, filmed on a publicly deployed Flock Safety camera."

Benn found nearly 70 #Flock AI surveillance cameras with no user name or password required to access the past 31 days of recorded or live footage! 😩

Cancel Flock! 🚫

#deflock #surveillance #flocksafety
This Flock Camera Leak is like Netflix For Stalkers
YouTube video by Benn Jordan
youtu.be
December 22, 2025 at 4:44 PM
empirereport.bsky.social
Noon Yesterday: A shark was seen breaching with a *human swimmer* in its mouth in Pacific Grove (Monterey)

Missing Swimmer has not been found.

archive.is/gcb8k
shark breaching - image credit Michael Fontenot, Flickr
December 22, 2025 at 5:33 PM
empirereport.bsky.social
www.youtube.com/live/mcQJUHn...
Green Valley Road Flooding Conditions Livestream
We’re excited to announce a new live camera feed to help residents monitor flooding conditions on Green Valley Road! This project is made possible through a partnership between the Sonoma County Depar...
www.youtube.com
December 22, 2025 at 4:32 PM
empirereport.bsky.social
The flooding Garcia River, just North of Point Arena, closed Highway 1 at 11pm last night.

Source: www.facebook.com/groups/64272...
December 22, 2025 at 4:02 PM