SOFTBALL: Hukkanen leads Skins over Bears MORE IN SPORTS:Fishing goeson at lowMelones, Ci ANO INSIDE: Q8iAwith DistrictAttorneyLaura Krieg,A4
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1HE MOTHER LODE'SLEADING INFORMATION SOURCE SINCE1854 • SONORA,CALIFORNIA gg
TuolumneCounty TOOAYS READER BOARD
RIM FIRE REFORESTATION
NOTICES
Cesar Chavez
Day- Cesar Chavez Day will be observed Tuesday, March 31. State, county and city offices as well as schools and school offices in Tuolumne and Calaveras counties will be closed. Federal offices and libraries will be open. Mail delivery and garbage collection will not be impacted and both Tuolumne and Calaveras county transits will be operating. Banks are expected to be open but some businesses may be closed. It is advised to call ahead. The Union Democrat office will be open Tuesday and a paper will be published.
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Residents say insurance unavailable or overpriced r
By ALEX MacLEAN
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The Union Denmcrat
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COMMUNITY
Maggie Beck /Union Democrat
Purchasephotos online at www.uniondemocrat.com
California Department of Fish and Wildlife interpreter Gail Davis (right) talks to Tenaya Elementary School second-graders about water animals found in the forest.
Tuolumne County officials are still hearing from area homeowners about skyrocketing fire-hazard insurance rates, and plan to forward those concerns to the California Department of Insurance within a couple of weeks. Some people have reported that they were recently dropped &om their homeowners' insurance plans, and others say their rates have gone through the roof, with companies citing fire ratings and perceived wildfire risks as reasons.
Insurance brokers and real estate professionals say they first started seeing insurance ratesfor fire-hazard coverage rise at leasttwo years ago,even beforethemassive 2013 Rim Fire swept through the area. "It's been an ongoing battle for the past
Children plant first new trees in forest burned by fire • EASTER SERVICES: Celebrations abound in coming weeks.B1 • JUBILEE:Candidates sought for 2015 Tuolumne Lumber Jubilee queen crown.B1 • CENTENARIAN: Jewel Guhl, of Sonora, turned 100 years old on March 6.B1 • FLASHBACK:The Union Democrat shares unidentified photos. Do you remember?B4
By GUY McCARTHY
NEWS ELSEWHERE • JESSICA'S LAW: Offici alsannounced Thursday that the state will stop enforcing blanket restrictions outlined in the 2006 law.A5 • CONCEALED WEAPONS:A federal appeals court agreed Thursday to reconsider its decision to strike down a state lawthat requires applicants for a concealed-weapons permit to show "good cause" beyond selfdefense.AS
NEWS TIPS?
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insurance agent in Groveland. Kiefersaid he started hearing rumors
Under bright, warm sunshine Thursday, about 150 students from Tenaya Elementary School in Groveland helped plant the first new trees in part of the Stanislaus National Forest burned in the massive 2013 Rim Fire. The youngsters worked between pockets of burned brush Tenaya Elementary School sixth-grader Alexus Baker, 12 and mature trees with black- (left), and U.S. Forest Service culturalist Kim Williams, work ened trunks, with their teach- together to plant a tree in the Rim Fire burn area. Students ers and other grownups as part helped plant incense cedar seedlings (below). of early Earth Day activities. U.S. Forest Service staffcoor- yon live oak and incense cedar," dinated the event to highlight Dettman said."Some trees died largerreforestation and resto- during the fire here, and more ration efforts that are still in of these will probably die be//'~ National Environmental Policy cause of the drought. "It can take many generaAct approval processes. "We wanted the kids to be tionsfor the forest to come the first ones to do it," said back," Dettman said. "We're Maria Benech, team leader for b asically short-cutting t h e Rim Fire Reforestation in the processa little bit,to getsome Stanislaus Forest. aWe want shade on the ground and speed to make that connection with things up." s them. They're the ones who are Beaumont Cook, 10, a fifthgoingtosee these treesgrow." gradernamed afterher greatStudents &om second- to grandmother, said she can resixth-grade, ages7 to 13,helped member the first day she saw plant one-year-old incense ce- the giant Rim Fire burning. "My dad was driving me back dar seedlings on about 3 acres Working with the Forest Serat Sweetwater Campground from junior rodeo and he saw vice on Thursday helped Beaunext to Highway 120, just east this big cloud of smoke," Beau- mont understand more about of the turno6'to Cherry Lake. mont said. 'We thought it was the fire and the forest going Paul Dettman, a lead fire pre- on our ranch but it was actually forward.
&om clients about the area's rating for fire
vention technician for Grove-
land Ranger District, said the Sweetwater area was doing OK considering the amount of fire that went through 20 months ago. "Most of the trees in here are ponderosa pine, some manzanita, black oak, bull pine, can-
PHONE: 770-7153,9$4834 NEWS: editor@uniondemocrat.a>m FEATUR ES: feaiuresIuniondemocrat.cam SPORTS sport : s@uniondemocratcom EVENTSAND WEEKENDER: weekenderIuniondemocraimm lETTERS: letsrs@uniondemocratatm CAlAVERAS BUREAU:770-7197 NEWSR OOMFJDC532-8451 SUBSCR IBERSERVICES: 533-3814
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couple of years or so,n said John Kiefer, an
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The Union Bemoerat
out in the canyon."
"I remember smelling itlike burning pine needles and bark and wood," she said. "It was a gross, disgusting smell. My impression was like 'I don't want my place to burn.'.. . I didn't want anything to burn at all. I was scared."
" The connection for me i s
now I see the earth is growing," she said."Planting trees and all these people coming out here todayjustfor us.I got to plant a treeand Ifeelgood about doing it." See TREES/Back Page
protection being downgraded shortly after the Groveland Community Services District began subcontracting with Cal Fire to manage the district's fire department in the summer of 2012. Some say they've been told the area's fire rating went from a 5 to a 10 after the switch, Kiefer said. Many companies use See FIRE /Back Page
MCClintock
fish-flow bill introduced ON PAGE C6:See local reservoir storage statistics on weather page daily. By ALEX MacLEAN The Union Democrat
C ongressman Tom M c Clintock has introduced legislation that would allow dam operatorstohaltwaterreleases from dams for endangered fish during times of drought. The Save Our Water Act, or McClintock HR 1668, calls for a suspension of provisions in the 1973 Endangered Species Act pertaining to water management in areas affected by drought. McClintock, R-Roseville, introduced the bill Thursday afternoon in the U.S. House of Representatives. SeeWATER/Back Page
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