LAKE SHASTINA - Arsonist mental state questioned

Arraignment postponed in arson case

By DEBORRA BRANNON

Photo by John Diehm - Fire crews work to put out a blaze at the Lake Shastina administrative office on Wednesday morning. Shastina resident Clete James White was charged with setting fire to this building and three other structures.

LAKE SHASTINA - The man arrested and charged with arson and burglary in connection with Wednesday’s fires in the Lake Shastina Community Services District (LSCSD) has been transported to a mental health facility out of the area for evaluation, according to Siskiyou County Sheriff’s office spokesperson Susan Gravenkamp.

The arraignment of the suspect in the case, Lake Shastina resident Clete James White, 56, was originally scheduled for Friday. It has been postponed ’until a determination can be made of his mental state,’ she said.

Of the four fires that were set early Wednesday morning, three were destructive - one home was destroyed completely and another home was significantly damaged, as was the LSCSD administration office on Everhart Drive.

The first call reportinga fire in the Lake Shastina Community Services District on Wednesday was received by dispatch at 5:22 a.m., Gravenkamp reported.

CAL FIRE engineer Mike McWilliams, also a Lake Shastina volunteer firefighter, was on duty out of the Weed station. He was on one of the first engines to respond to the initial structure fire at 5200 Stag St.

McWilliams said that when firefighters arrived at the scene, the two story home was ’fully involved’ (engulfed by flame).

According information released by Lake Shastina Police Chief Rick Alves, the suspect ultimately charged with arson and burglary in connection with Wednesday’s events, Clete James White, contacted emergency personnel outside the residence and told them that no on was inside. He then ’disappeared from the scene.’

As firefighters fought the first blaze, they noticed smoke coming from a house nearby at 5208 Stag. McWilliams said that when he and LSFD volunteer Josh Poulas went to investigate, they saw fire on the first floor of second home.

’We had to force entry because the home was empty, and we were able to pretty much keep the damage contained to one room on the first floor,’ McWilliams said.

Incident commander for the fires on Stag St. was Mount Shasta Fire Protection District chief Chris Baker, who lives in the Lake Shastina Community and responded when dispatch called for response to the first fire.

Baker had called for mutual aid response to the first fire, McWilliams said. When the second fire was discovered, Baker put in a request for more additional engines.

According to McWilliams, once the second fire was contained, Baker ordered any additional engines still en route to stage in the area of the LSCSD administrative offices.

McWilliams said that, because of all the fire activity in the area, Baker wanted to keep engines staged and ready in the district.

’Apparently when those engines arrived, they saw fire in the administrative office,’ McWilliams said, and Mount Shasta City Fire Department Matt Melo took charge as incident commander of that fire.

Three water tenders were called to the scene of Wednesday’s Stag St. fires, McWilliams reported.

’Normally hydrants in Shastina are more than sufficient, but the ones up the hill sometimes are not able to flow enough. We weren’t able to keep our engines full up there, so Chief Baker called for the water tenders,’ he said.

Source: Siskiyou daily.com