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2009 in Review: Top 10 most-viewed videos
Dec 31, 2009 (Appeal-Democrat - McClatchy-Tribune Information Services via COMTEX) --
From plays to perps, from food to football, the Appeal-Democrat produced almost 200 videos that generated 186,000 views in the past year.
But some were more watched than others. Here is the list of the 10 videos that attracted the most eyeballs in 2009.
10) Suspect caught cold-handed: Imagine it's December, a month not noted for tropical conditions in the Mid-Valley, and you really want to avoid somebody. Do you:
a) Find a nice temperature-controlled closet to stay out of sight.
b) Hide under a pile of soft, warm blankets
c) Dive into the Yuba River and stay there until you're apprehended by Marysville police and your body temperature's dropped 2 degrees.
If you chose a and b, you might be found, but at least you'll be warm. If you chose c, as Brad Allen Whitmer of Yuba City did on Dec. 16 after fleeing from police following being pulled over driving an allegedly stolen pickup, you might wind up as one of the 10 most-viewed videos of the year.
9) Sikh Parade preparation: Yuba City's connection to Sikh culture and the largest single event in the area are showcased here.
This video from Oct. 28 shot at the Sikh Temple Gurdwara in Tierra Buena showed the tremendous human effort needed to prepare food and other items for the thousands that come to Yuba-Sutter for the parade every year.
8) Sikh Parade: Even bigger than the preparation for the parade is the parade itself.
An estimated 75,000 people lined the parade route this year on Nov. 2, and this video highlighted the pomp and pageantry the parade offered.
7) Yuba Fire 25 percent contained: August was not a good month for the foothills community of Dobbins. A wildfire raged in the area for 11 days, torching 3,900 acres in the Yuba River canyon and destroying two homes, one of which was occupied. This Aug. 17 video from the front lines detailed efforts to bring the blaze under control.
6) Chase ends in a flash: This video from Dec. 2 provided a few examples of how to not to wind up in a crime-related news video.
First, don't allegedly stand by the drive-through lane of the Marysville Taco Bell naked. Second, don't lead Marysville police in a vehicle pursuit while naked. And third, don't attempt to unsuccessfully drive your car over a levee less than 150 feet from the office of the local newspaper -- while still naked.
The end result was 31-year-old Aneil Singh Punian of Sacramento in handcuffs (and, at that point, clothes), and the sixth most-viewed video of the year.
5) Yuba Fire grows to 3,260 acres: This video was shot the day before our No. 7 video and also showed the efforts to bring the foothills wildfire under control.
4) Surveillance camera: Marysville beating: This was the one video on the list not shot by the Appeal-Democrat staff and was instead an effort to find a suspect in a vicious attack on a store clerk.
The Feb. 15 video from a surveillance camera of Yuba Food & Liquor on 10th Street in Marysville showed the attack on clerk Jodh Singh that left him with a broken nose, two black eyes and bruises.
A suspect, 25-year-old Daniel Lee Jones Jr. of Marysville, was arrested in the following days.
3) Children rescued from fire: An event that sparked an act of heroism by an off-duty Yuba City firefighter was highlighted in the third most-viewed video of the year.
On the morning of Jan. 13, a space heater started a fire in a house on Butte House Road in Tierra Buena. Capt. Eric Hankins was driving by the house when the fire started.
Hankins entered the burning building and rescued two children, ages 3 and 1, from the smoke-filled residence. Chief Marc Boomgaarden, who has since retired, said the children likely would have died in the fire were it not for Hankins' actions.
2) Car in Ellis Lake: When people go fishing in Ellis Lake, the normal target is, well, a fish.
When Marysville police went fishing in Ellis Lake on Feb. 16, the game was a little bigger than a mudcat. A Honda Accord, to be specific.
A few hours after the car -- the contents of which included empty beer cans and an uneaten container of Carl's Jr. french fries -- was pulled out of the lake, the owner came to the department to claim responsibility.
1) Highway 20 fatal accident: One of the most significant tragedies of the year was the most-viewed video of 2009.
A head-on collision the night of Jan. 14 near Plantz Road east of Marysville claimed the life of 17-year-old Danielle Woodruff of Marysville, who was on her way to a birthday party.
Lorenzo Flores Aguilar, 50, pleaded guilty to a charge of gross vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated and was sentenced to the maximum 10 years in prison.
Contact Appeal-Democrat Interactive content producer Robert LaHue at 749-4713 or rlahue@appealdemocrat.com
To see more of the Appeal-Democrat, or to subscribe to the newspaper, go to
http://www.appeal-democrat.com. Copyright (c) 2009, Appeal-Democrat, Marysville,
Calif. Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services. For reprints,
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