The latest Klamath Falls News around the Klamath Basin and the state of Oregon from Wynne Broadcasting’s KFLS News/Talk 1450AM/102.5FM, BasinLife.com and The Herald & News.
MONDAY, DECEMBER 9, 2019
Klamath Basin Weather
Today
Mostly sunny, with a high near 41. Overnight, cloudy with a low around 27 degrees.
Tuesday
A 30 percent chance of rain after 4pm. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 42. Overnight, a chance of rain before 10pm, then a chance of showers after 10pm. Snow level 4800 feet, with a low around 33. Chance of precipitation is 50%.
Wednesday
A 30 percent chance of rain after 4pm. Snow level 5100 feet. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 44. Overnight rain expected with a snow level around 5800 feet lowering to 5200 feet. Low around 33. Chance of precipitation is 70%.
Thursday
Rain likely, mainly after 10am. Snow level 6100 feet. Cloudy, with a high near 42. Chance of precipitation is 60%. New precipitation amounts between a quarter and half of an inch possible.
Friday
A chance of showers. Snow level 4800 feet rising to 5500 feet. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 44.
Today’s Headlines
The Klamath County Public Health Air Advisory is Green until noon today.
The 90th anniversary of the Medical Dental Building/Oregon Bank Building at Ninth and Main streets will be celebrated today with an open house from 9 to 11 a.m. according to a news release. There will be refreshments in lobby and a tour of the building available.
Mt. Ashland Ski Area opened yesterday one week early for the season. The lower mountain lifts will operate from from 9am until 4pm.
Due to wind effects on the upper mountain, coverage is too thin on the summit to open the Ariel lift. All skiing will be on the lower mountain from Windsor Lift down. With more than 26″ at the base Mt. Ashland is please to be open and operating.
Crater Lake National Park is offering their popular ranger-guided snowshoe walks which began this last weekend for the 2019-20 winter season. The walks take place on Saturdays, Sundays, and most holidays through April 26.
They will also be offered daily from December 26 through January 5 and from March 20 through March 29. Snowshoes are provided free of charge and no previous snowshoeing experience is necessary. Walks start at 1:00 pm, last 2 hours, and cover 1 to 2 miles of moderate-to-strenuous terrain. Routes vary, but most walks begin at Rim Village and explore the forests and meadows along the rim of the lake. Along the way, participants discover how winter affects Crater Lake and the park’s plants and animals.
Crater Lake National Park is one of the snowiest inhabited places in America, receiving an average of 43 feet of snow per year. Snowshoeing with a ranger is a fun way to experience this winter wonderland. Space on each tour is limited and advance reservations are required. For more information and to sign up, call the park’s visitor center at 541-594-3100.
A new federal rule could push at least 19,000 people in Oregon off food stamps next year, according to projections released by the state Department of Human Services.
The rule change will leave states with less flexibility in allowing able-bodied adults without children to receive food stamps if they are not working or in a training program at least 20 hours a week. Such adults typically can only get food stamps for up to three months in a 36-month period. But states can get waivers to provide aid longer if the recipient is in an economically depressed area.
The new rule which takes effect April 1 would put in place more stringent requirements for when states can receive waivers for counties. Between January and April, Oregon would go from having 31 counties eligible for a waiver to six.
Around the state of Oregon
On Friday, Oregon State Police Troopers and emergency personnel responded to the report of a vehicle crash on Hwy 395 at E. Punkin Center Rd.
The preliminary investigation revealed that a gold, 2009 Toyota Camry, operated by Michelle Dawn Fry (45) of Umatilla, was traveling northbound on Hwy 395 and failed to stop at a red light and collided with a black 2006 KIA Spectra, operated by Elidio Salas De La Paz (77) of Hermiston, which was traveling southbound on Hwy 395 making a left hand turn onto E Punkin Center Rd.
Salas De La Paz and his wife/passenger Alicia Salas (75) were both transported by ambulance to Good Shepherd Medical Center, Hermiston. Alicia Salas was pronounced deceased at the hospital.
Fry was lodged at the Umatilla County Jail on the charges of Manslaughter, DUII, Assault, and reckless driving.
Last Thursday, detectives and deputies from the Jackson County Sheriff’s Office, with the assistance of Phoenix Police Department, executed a search warrant on Northridge Terrace, Medford. Investigators found evidence of multiple crimes involving burglaries and thefts in multiple locations in Jackson County.
Two suspects were arrested at the search warrant scene. They are:
Brandin Gregory McConkey, dob 082784, of the 100 block of Northridge Terrace Medford, OR and
Gina Marie Messenger, dob 092589, of the same address.
McConkey was lodged at Jackson County Jail on Charges of Burglary I, Aggravated Theft I, UUMV and UEMV. Messenger was lodged on three charges of Identity Theft and one charge of Theft I.
One person was injured in a shooting at a party at a Portland Airbnb rental, in which police said 55 shots were fired from multiple guns.
No other injuries were reported. The woman who was injured was taken to a hospital with a non-life-threatening gunshot wound. Police responded late Friday to multiple reports of a shooting and in a release, identified the location as an Airbnb rental. Police, in the release, said the company is cooperating to help identify people who may have attended.
The University of Oregon Board of Trustees plans to meet Tuesday to consider awarding a $100,000 bonus to president Michael Schill. Students and staff have seen Schill’s $720,000 salary and annual bonuses as being at odds with the university’s statements that it does not have sufficient funds.
There have been protests against the university administration over such things as tuition costs and program cuts. Schill’s employment contract states his salary will remain at $720,000 through July 1. It will increase after that to $738,000. The contract includes yearly bonuses of up to $200,000 and other provisions.
Board Chair Chuck Lillis and Vice Chair Ginevra Ralph are recommending approval of a $100,000 bonus this year based on Schill’s performance. At its meeting, the board also is scheduled to hear an update on the tuition and fee setting process, projected cost drivers for 2020, such as retirement costs, and a conceptual discussion on a “guaranteed tuition program” that would lock in tuition costs at an as-yet undefined rate for five years.
…For complete details on these and other stories see today’s Herald & News. Wynne Broadcasting and the Herald and News…stronger together to keep you informed.