A SPECIAL VISIT
CLOSE OF 2021
Monks from the Gaden Shartse Monastery return to El Dorado County.
Laugh your way into 2022 with Dave Barry’s year in review.
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Inside, A6
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C A L I F O R N I A ’ S O L D E S T N E W S PA P E R – E S T. 18 51
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VOLUME 170 • ISSUE 154 | 75¢
mtdemocrat.com
FRIDAY, DECEMBER 31, 2021
Residents A new year is here! powerless Eric Jaramishian Staff writer Some El Dorado County PG&E customers without power are outraged after learning they may have to wait until Jan. 5 for electricity to be restored. Other residents told the Mountain Democrat they were notified by PG&E that power restoration may not come before Jan. 9 or 10. Snow began falling Sunday and the inconvenience of the outages due to downed trees and power lines is felt countywide. Emily Saad, 33, who initially got a notification that her power would be restored Dec. 31, lives with her 102-year-old grandmother Emmeline Saad along with her mom and husband on Sand Ridge Road in south county, an area where 2,675 customers were affected as of Wednesday, according to PG&E data. “For a 102-year-old, almost a 103-year-old woman, this is pretty inconvenient,” Emmeline said. “Thank God I have my family and I’m not on oxygen.” Emily has lived in Placerville for 1 1/2 years. Emmeline moved from Ohio to live with Emily this summer. “We feel really bad because it is cold and
In the
we can’t make her comfortable 24/7,” Emily said. “She is coughing, she does have some breathing issues. So those are definitely exacerbated, but she’s doing a great job at being a real trooper through this.” Emily said if the generator is not on, Emmeline is bundled in her room with many blankets and immediately moves in front of her heater when power is on. AccuWeather reported a high of 39 degrees Fahrenheit in Placerville Wednesday and the temperature could get as low as 26 degrees Friday. Emily estimates at least a couple of inches of snow fell in her neighborhood. She said she spends around $40 a day on propane and gas to operate her smallpower generator for eight to 12 hours. “We’ve been having to constantly go out and get more gas this week just to make sure we’re in stock,” Emily told the Mountain Democrat. Even though they are being conservative by not running the generator 24 hours of the day, the cost to operate her generator until Jan. 5 will cost her about $400, assuming the power comes back on, Emily said. n
See POWER OUT, page A3
Photo by Perron Simpson
The South Fork of the American River rushes through a serene snowscape at Randall Tract Dec. 26. El Dorado County communities near the 1,800-foot elevation mark and above saw winter make its mark and welcome in a new year this week. Happy New Year and best wishes to all in 2022.
NEWS 2021 in
On the eve of the new year the Mountain Democrat staff looks back on top news stories of 2021 PLACE ADDRESS LABEL HERE
Caldor Fire chars 221,835 acres, devastates Grizzly Flat Eric Jaramishian Staff writer The Caldor Fire sparked Aug. 14 near Omo Ranch, one of a string of devastating California wildfires, becoming the 16th largest to burn in the state ever. Over a timeline of more than two months, the blaze burned 221,835 acres of land mostly in El Dorado County and in Amador and Alpine counties as well. Residents of Grizzly Flat, Somerset and
Pollock Pines were ordered to evacuate Aug. 17. Strong winds and fire fuels directed the fire north and east, destroying most of Grizzly Flat and displacing hundreds of residents. The fire destroyed nearly 1,000 structures. As the fire continued east, it pushed into the Tahoe Basin, forcing evacuation orders forresidents in the South Tahoe area, including Meyers, Christmas Valley, Tahoma and South Lake
Tahoe. The fire also jumped Highway 50. Fire and Caltrans officials closed the freeway from Pollock Pines to Meyers on Aug. 20 to keep residents and travelers safe while crews battled the blaze. In the most recent update in the Caldor saga, two men were arrested — accused by the El Dorado County District Attorney's Office of starting the fire. Prosecutors say witnesses and evidence suggest the father and son duo —
Travis Shane Smith, 32, of Folsom, and David Scott Smith, 66, of Somerset — were at the location where the fire started Aug. 14.
Witnesses say they heard multiple gunshots in the general area of n
See CALDOR, page A8
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