Northcoast rivers were re-opened to fishing following a heavy mid-week rainstorm that visited the area resulting in higher water levels. River levels were said to have jumped several feet in a matter of hours. The fishing season had been closed for two weeks due to low water levels.
The steelhead rearing pond at the mouth of Sprowel Creek overflowed the previous week, washing the approximate 35,000 steelhead fry to freedom.
The downpours also caused sliding on U.S. 101 south of Leggett. Rocks and clay moved downhill during the heaviest rain and at some points covered both lanes and forced the closure of the highway.
The rainfall also forced a halt to the construction of the new bridge to replace the Moody Bridge over the South Fork across from the Tooby Ranch. Altogether, the area received over seven inches of rain in three days.
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The investigation into the slaying of a Myers Flat man was continuing, according to a front page report. Two Alaska residents were questioned in regard to the death of 28-year-old Deryl Coen but a spokesman for the Sheriff’s Department classified them as “remote suspects” because they had been in the area. Coen was shot once about 5 a.m. the previous Sunday in what was thought to have been a marijuana robbery. Two men burst through the door of a cabin that was being used to process dried marijuana in the Fruitland Ridge area. It was not known how much marijuana was taken. Coen did not own the property. His body was found when another person staying at the cabin returned and notified authorities.
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Southern Humboldt was said to be in the midst of a venereal disease outbreak. According to the Department of Public Health, three cases of syphilis had been reported in the area over the past month and a half. This was considered a high number for a rural area. Health officials were concerned because the identity of the carrier of the disease was not known. The officials were not releasing the exact locations where the cases were reported, but at least one case was said to have appeared in a location south of Weott and the other two were located south of Fortuna.
The rash of syphyllis cases is believed to have migrated into the area from Del Norte, “where there has been a lingering problem for two or three years.”
According to Public Health, the most common venereal disease in the area was gonorrhea. So far, 205 cases of gonorrhea had been reported in the entire county.
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The privately owned Phillipsville Water Company had filed a notice of intention to sell with the Public Utilities Commission. Darrel and Ruth Beasley, the owners of the company, had hired Miranda Real Estate agent Dave Richardson to manage the sale for them. The prospective purchasers were said to be “four persons currently employed with state forestry in Weott, and another forestry employee from out of the area.”
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Numerous music events were scheduled to celebrate the season. The Raymond Miller Choir was scheduled to perform Handel’s Messiah at the Garberville Presbyterian Church, accompanied by the Chamber Orchestra under the direction of Kris Haedrich and Betty Bliss. The Redwood Players were also presenting an evening of Christmas music, featuring the South Fork Band and the Community Christmas Choir, accompanied by Katherine Behel and under the direction of Reverend Bob Sanders.
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