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Klamath Falls
March 28, 2024

Klamath Basin News, Friday, March 6 – Klamath County Donates Big to Ross Ragland Theatre

Broadcasting’s KFLS News/Talk 1450AM/102.5FM, BasinLife.com and The Herald & News.

FRIDAY, MARCH 6, 2020

Klamath Basin Weather

Today
A 30% chance of rain in the late afternoon, otherwise cloudy with a high near 59.   Snow level 6300 feet.  Overnight, rain possibly mixed with snow. Snow level lowering to 5300 feet. Low around 29.  New snow accumulation of less than a half inch possible.

Saturday
Snow flurries possible at time during the day, high near 39.  Overnight low around 23.

Sunday
Mostly cloudy, with a high near 45. Overnight low of 26.

Monday
Partly sunny, with a high near 47.

Tuesday
Sunny, with a high near 57.

Road Conditions

Traveling? Click and check these cameras below for the latest road conditions.

Lake of the Woods Hiway 140
Greensprings Drive at Hiway 97
Doak Mountain looking east
Chemult, Oregon
LaPine, Oregon
Bly, Oregon
Medford at I-5 -Biddle Road & Crater Lake Parkway

Today’s Headlines

The Klamath County Public Health Air Advisory is Green until noon today.

Noting that it is our responsibility to help protect the health of people in the community Sky Lakes Medical Center leaders today decided to postpone this year’s health fair to minimize the potential exposure to contagions.

The Heath Fair was schedule to happen at the Fairgrounds tomorrow. The action is in response to increased awareness of COVID-19 or coronavirus and follows recommendations by other organizations in the Northwest urging people to avoid large groups and gatherings. Further, people with cold symptoms are encouraged to stay home to protect others. As of today, there are no confirmed cases of COVID-19 locally, although influenza is still present.

The Klamath County Commissioners voted to approve a $25,000.00 donation to the Ross Ragland Theaters “Light the Tower” campaign.

Funds from the county will bolster theater restoration projects as well as help relight the tower. The Ragland will be replacing the retro neon lighting that used to illuminate the tower with new and more efficient LED lighting. Klamath County Commissioner Chair Kelley Minty Morris said Klamath County recognizes that a sustainable and vibrant arts and cultural community is a key factor in attracting residents, visitors and businesses.

The Ragland is also hard at work completing their new offices on the corner of Pine and 7th.   This space was previously the Community Lounge. They aim to finish up this project by May 2020.

U.S. Housing and Urban Development Secretary Ben Carson announced an additional $1.1 million in funding for HUD’s new Foster Youth to Independence  Initiative. Ten housing authorities will receive this funding continuing HUD’s efforts to assist young adults transitioning out of foster care and who are at risk of homelessness.

HUD’s Foster Youth to Independence Initiative provides housing assistance and supportive services to young people with a child welfare history who are at-risk-of or experiencing homelessness.

HUD Regional Administrator said congratulations to the Klamath Housing Authority on being approved for our FYI initiative. It will provide additional resources to support the community’s efforts to prevent young people from becoming homeless. Klamath Housing Authority was awared $9,661.00

The Klamath County Chamber of Commerce Government Affairs Committee is hosting a candidate forum to welcome Republican candidates for Oregon’s Congressional District 2, a position currently held by Congressman Greg Walden who announced he will not seek re-election.

The forum co-hosted by the Herald and News is scheduled for Monday March 9th from 6 to 8 p.m. at Oregon Tech auditorium.

This forum will give voters an opportunity to ask questions and better understand the Republican candidates who have filed for Congressional District 2.  A similar Democratic candidate forum will be coordinated at a later date. At the town hall-style forum will attendees will be able to submit questions in writing to then be addressed by candidates. Current Republican candidates for Oregon’s Second Congressional District include Jason Atkinson, Cliff Bentz, Knute Buehler, David Campbell, Jimmy Curmpacker, Justin Livingston, Justus Mayo, Kenneth Medenbach, Mark Robert and Jeff Smith.

KLAMATH COUNTY PUBLIC WORKS DEPARTMENT

MAJOR WORK FOR THE WEEK OF MARCH 9, 2020

 Klamath County will have work crews at the following locations. Please use caution when in these areas and watch for flaggers. If you are able to avoid the work zones, please use an alternate route for your safety and the safety of Klamath County employees.

ROAD CLOSURE – Joe Wright Road between Washburn Way & Tingley Ln Estimated Duration: March 16th – March 29th · Bridge Replacement. Detour route will be provided.

Joe Wright Road between Washburn Way & Tingley Ln Estimated Duration: March 9th – March 13th · Shoulder Closure for utility work for Bridge Replacement Project.

Homedale Road from South 6th to Delaware Estimated Duration: March 2nd – May 1 st · Daytime travel lane closures w/flaggers for Avista gas main & services relocation.

In general, flagging stations will be set up at the end of the work zone and delays will be 0 to 20 minutes for the motoring public. Other minor work is occurring through the County but we are only listing the major items in this announcement. There may be adjustments of work schedules due to weather or other items outside of the County’s control (breakdown of equipment, material/resource availability, etc.) Please do not contact the County if you do not see work occurring, it could be finished already or will be rescheduled.

Klamath County Public Works and the Board of County Commissioners appreciate the motoring publics’ patience during the repair season for our local roads and bridges. If you have any questions regarding work, please contact the Public Works Department at (541) 883-4696.

Around the state

The special session of the Oregon Legislature came to an abrupt halt on Thursday when the boycott by Republicans over a climate change measure forced the end of the session. Governor Kate Brown issued a statement today saying she intends to finalize executive actions to not only address climate change but a host of other issues.

Republicans have insisted that any climate change legislation go before voters. Democrats, who wield a supermajority in both the Senate and the House had made climate legislation a priority to reduce emissions in Oregon of greenhouse gases that are causing global warming.

Oregon Coronavirus Update

Since the outbreak of COVID-19, the Oregon Health Association has relied on CDC guidance about who to test for the virus, which includes focusing on individuals experiencing symptoms of the virus—fever, cough, shortness of breath— and who either traveled from mainland China or had close contact with a confirmed case in the 14 days before they became sick.

The CDC  has expanded that testing guidance to give clinicians more discretion to determine whether to seek testing for COVID-19 for patients. That guidance encourages clinicians to use their judgment in deciding whether a patient has signs and symptoms of COVID-19, and whether that patient needs to be tested.

OHA is adapting the new CDC guidance by encouraging clinicians to pursue COVID-19 testing when evaluation of hospitalized patients who test negative for influenza indicates likelihood of viral pneumonia.

OHA guidance will also provide a streamlined process for clinicians to request a test from the Oregon State Public Health Laboratory. This includes creating an online form for OHA epidemiologists to electronically approve testing requests if the clinician’s patient meets the testing criteria.

Oregon State Police Troopers and emergency personnel responded to  a single vehicle crash on Hwy 47 at milepost 75, near Manning.

Preliminary investigation revealed that a silver Acura Integra, driven by Andrew Schappert (35) of Vernonia, was traveling southbound on Hwy 47 when the vehicle left the roadway in a right curve and struck a utility pole.

Schappert sustained fatal injuries and was pronounced deceased. Hwy 47 was closed for approximately five hours.

Grayson Boyte of Maupin, purchased a Keno 8-spot ticket during dinner and a drink at the Rainbow Tavern. When he left, little did he know that the ticket he left sitting on the bar was worth over $71,000.

Not only did he leave his winning ticket behind, he hadn’t signed the back of the ticket either – meaning anyone could have claimed the jackpot.

“I got all the way out to my truck when it hit me, I didn’t pick up my ticket,” he said. “I went back inside and scanned it, and they told me they didn’t know how much it was, but that it was more than $600.”

The next day Boyte, who is in construction, was joking with his employees about how much the ticket was worth, betting lunch on how much the ticket was.

“All the bets were less than $5,000,” he said. “When I found out it was a ticket worth $71,000? I was saying HOLY COW!”

Boyte plans to purchase a new trailer for his construction business with the $71,826 win – and buy his crew lunch.

“I owe the bartender who didn’t throw my ticket away or claim it,” he said. “That was great customer service.”

During the 2019 fiscal year, more than $5.2 million in Oregon Lottery proceeds were directed to economic development, parks, education, Outdoor School, Veterans services and watershed enhancement in Wasco County, where Boyte lives and purchased his winning ticket. Since 1985, Oregon Lottery players have won more than $38 billion in prizes.

The Oregon Lottery reminds players to always sign the back of their Lottery tickets, regardless of the game. In the event of winning a jackpot, they should consult with a trusted financial planner or similar professional to develop a plan for their winnings. Prize winners of more than $50,000 are advised to contact the Lottery office and schedule an appointment to claim their prize.

The NW Prescription Drug Consortium is pleased to retain Moda as their contracted program administrator and begin using Navitus as their pharmacy benefit manager (PBM) effective January 1, 2022.

The NW Prescription Drug Consortium was created in 2006 to allow Oregon and Washington state agencies, local governments, businesses, labor organizations, and uninsured consumers to pool their purchasing power to get better prices on prescription drugs. It is made up of the Oregon Prescription Drug Program (OPDP) and the Washington Prescription Drug Program (WPDP) which are managed by the Oregon Health Authority (OHA) and Washington State Health Care Authority (HCA) respectively.

Moda has served as the consortium’s program administrator for 13 years. Navitus demonstrated through the evaluation process that it shares the aligned values and goals of the consortium and Moda, including openness and transparency. Navitus also has a demonstrated history of collaborative partnerships and extremely high customer satisfaction ratings serving as a PBM.

Cascade-Siskiyou National Monument (CSNM) is now accepting applications for its summer Artist-in-Residence program. Selected artists are provided with a beautiful environment in which to generate artistic works and share their works with the public.

This is a particularly unique year for artists to participate in the program, as 2020 marks the celebration of the 20th Anniversary of the CSNM’s designation as a National Monument.

Artistic expertise, professionalism, and creative uses of artistic media are encouraged. Selected artists receive a one to two-week residency at CSNM facilities during the summer. Three artists and two alternates will be selected to participate June, July and August 2020. All artists are encouraged to apply for a chance to participate in the program, and there is no preference given to any one particular style or medium. Selections are made based on the following criteria: entry materials, residency proposal, professionalism, and creative vision.

During their stay, artists share their vision in one public presentation. Following their residency, artists donate at least one digital image of their completed artwork to CSNM. CSNM holds a publishing copyright to donated digital imagery for promotional use to advance the residency program. The artist retains a non-exclusive use copyright. Interested visual artists may obtain more information and download an application and guidelines by accessing the Cascade-Skiskiyou Artist-in-Residence website, by e-mail (chamise.kramer@usda.gov) or by calling (541) 618-2051. Detailed instructions are on the entry form. Applications must be postmarked by April 3, 2020.

Klamath Falls News from partnership with the Herald and News, empowering the community.

…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.

More Klamath Local News Here.

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