Power struggle ensues for supervisors

By Victoria Metcalf

Special to Plumas News

It was a power struggle within the Plumas County Board of Supervisors’ Chambers today, Tuesday, Sept. 22. A brief power outage interrupted service in parts of Plumas County, but it  turned into many problems for the supervisors, as Clerk to the Board Nancy DaForno tried to get the phone working, the live broadcast up again, and deal with other issues.

Public Works Director Bob Perreault was discussing pledge revenues for the Chester landfill, when the lights suddenly went out. The courthouse generator kicked on in just moments, but the occurrence caused some reaction both around the table and in the chambers.

Public Health Agency Director Andrew Woodruff, speaking over the phone into supervisors’ chambers, noted that when the power went out at the Health and Human Services Building, the generator didn’t respond initially. But then the power came back on.

And as Plumas County Clerk/Recorder Kathy Williams addressed supervisors with her concerns regarding a liability issue, DaForno announced, “We can’t use our phone system because it’s on the internet.”

That left Chester area Supervisor Sherri Thrall without phone service to attend the scheduled meeting.

Just as County Council Craig Settlemire was further explaining Williams’ topic, the power went off again, briefly.

At that point, DaForno told the board that she could no longer contact the auditor’s office. Auditor Roberta Allen was needed to answer questions that she and Williams had shared, but she was held up in road construction delays just outside of Quincy on Highway 70.

“I’m leaving and I’m not coming back,” DaForno said jokingly as she pushed through the double doors of the supervisors’ chambers.

At that point Supervisor Lori Simpson offered up her cell phone to connect with Thrall in Chester. Thrall said that she tried to call to reconnect with the meeting but couldn’t.

With DaForno back in the room, she said someone in the IT department told her that the power outage messed everything up.

Thrall said that the power came right back on in her area. Supervisor Kevin Goss who had checked with someone in Greenville, said that everything was working there too.