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DA’s Caldor Fire case goes up in smoke Odin Rasco Staff writer
Mountain Democrat photo by Odin Rasco
David, left, and Travis Shane Smith, center, sit with their attorneys Mark Reichel and Linda Parisi Dec. 29 as they await a decision from Judge Vicki Ashworth following a four-day pretrial process.
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The decision to not take to trial the case of the father and son accused of starting the Caldor Fire was reached not due to a smoking gun, but rather smoldering bullets. El Dorado County Superior Court Judge Vicki Ashworth ruled the prosecution’s case against the pair lacked sufficient evidence to be taken to trial, in no small part due to a study initially n See smiths, page A7
2023
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California Department of Water Resources photo by Xavier Mascareñas
Sean de Guzman, Anthony Burdock and Jordan Thoennes, from left, with the California Department of Water Resources Snow Surveys and Water Supply Forecasting Unit, prepare to conduct the first media snow survey of the 2024 season at Phillips Station near Echo Summit Tuesday, Jan. 2.
Snowpack 30% of average at Winter storms leave lasting impacts Phillips Station The Mountain Democrat looks back on some of the top headlines of the past year. See Monday’s edition for more top stories.
Odin Rasco Staff writer The sudden and severe deluge that hit the county and much of California on New Year’s Eve 2022 was ultimately only the opening salvo in a series of storms
that soaked the state through winter and some of spring. The storms, fed by an atmospheric river passing over the state, led to flooded businesses and roads, evacuations, rockslides, sinkholes, uprooted trees and significant property
Photo by Wendy Chadwick
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A hay bale serves as high ground for Appleseed Horticulture owner Scott Martin on a flooded Placerville Drive.
damage. Hangtown Creek spilled past its boundaries in multiple locations in Placerville, flooding out sections of the road on Main Street and Placerville Drive and even sending a hot tub downstream from a flooded-out Ferguson Plumbing Supply on Cold Springs Road. Drainage issues led to the Veterans Memorial Building parking lot becoming a basin of water, flooding the first floor of the building that resulted in the cancellation of all events held there for nearly an entire year. Residents of Cameron Park, White Hall and south of Sand Ridge Road and Highway 49
saw evacuation orders as the continuous downpour created hazardous flooding conditions, according to the El Dorado County Sheriff ’s Office. Roads were closed due to fallen rocks and trees, and many others rendered unusable when the overwhelming amounts of water opened sinkholes or washed out drainage culverts. Residents of the Divide were no strangers to difficulty during the storms, with the rain and snow making travel a difficult prospect that led to neighbors such as the Unsung Heroes
deputies fired at Signor when he answered the door with what appeared to be a firearm in his hand. Sheriff ’s officials said the warrant was for Signor’s roommate Jason Ziesman, who was booked into the El Dorado County Jail on narcotics charges hours after the shooting, according to arrest records.
The California Department of Water Resources on Jan. 2 conducted the first snow survey of the season at Phillips Station. The manual survey recorded 7.5 inches of snow depth and a snow water equivalent of 3 inches, which is 30% of average for this location. The snow water equivalent measures the amount of water contained in the snowpack and is a key component of DWR’s water supply forecast. Statewide the snowpack is 25% of average for this date. After one of the largest snowpacks on record last season, the start of this water year has been dry despite some recent storms in the last weeks of December that provided a small boost in the snowpack. While state reservoirs are still above average for this time of year and strong El Niño conditions are present in the Pacific Ocean, the outlook for the rest of the winter remains uncertain. One year ago, the January survey at the Phillips location showed a water content of 177% of average. “California saw firsthand last year how historic drought conditions can quickly give way to unprecedented, dangerous flooding,” said DWR Director Karla Nemeth. “Although El Niño does not guarantee an above average water year, California is preparing for the possibility of more extreme storms while increasing our climate resilience for the next drought.” DWR’s electronic readings from 130 stations placed throughout the state indicate that the statewide snowpack’s snow water equivalent is 2.5 inches, or 25% of average for this date, compared to 185% on this date last year. “While we are glad the recent storms brought a small boost to the snowpack, the dry fall and below average conditions today shows how fast water conditions can change,” said DWR’s Snow Surveys and Water Supply Forecasting Unit Manager Sean de Guzman. “It’s still far too early to say what kind of water year we will have, and it will be important for Californians to pay attention to their forecasts
n See signor, page A5
n See Snowpack, page A3
n See STORMS, page A3
Placerville man killed in officer-involved shooting Eric Jaramishian Staff writer Placerville resident Thomas Signor, 32, was killed in an officerinvolved shooting April 26. Signor was living on Baco Drive when the El Dorado County Sheriff ’s Office narcotics team knocked on his door to serve a narcotics-related warrant. It was reported sheriff ’s
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