The latest and most comprehensive coverage of local News, Sports, Business, and Community News stories in the Klamath Basin, Southern Oregon and around the state of Oregon from Wynne Broadcasting’s KFLS News/Talk 1450AM / 102.5FM, The Herald & News, and BasinLife.com, and powered by Mick Insurance.
WEDNESDAY, JULY 8, 2020
Klamath Basin Weather
Today Sunny, with a high near 81 degrees. Overnight, clear with a low around 43.
Thursday Sunny, with a high near 84.
Friday Sunny, with a high near 86.
Saturday Sunny, with a high near 89.
Today’s Headlines
With the report of the latest numbers, Covid-19 has claimed five more lives in Oregon, raising the state’s death toll to 220, the Oregon Health Authority reported last night.
Oregon Health Authority reported 219 new confirmed and presumptive cases of Covid-19 bringing the state total to 10,605.
According to OHA statistics, one new case was revealed in Klamath County yesterday.
The new confirmed and presumptive COVID-19 cases reported today are in the following counties: Benton (2), Clackamas (18), Columbia (2), Coos (4), Crook (1), Douglas (3), Hood River (3), Jefferson (2), Josephine (3), Klamath (1), Lake (1), Lane (15), Lincoln (1), Linn (1), Malheur (7), Marion (23), Morrow (2), Multnomah (52), Polk (6), Umatilla (20), Union (5), Wallowa (1), Wasco (2), Washington (27), Yamhill (16).
An outbreak of 22 cases of COVID-19 has been reported at Columbia River Processing in Morrow County.
The cases include all persons linked to the outbreak, which may include household members and other close contacts to an employee. The outbreak investigation started on June 16, but the initial case count was below the threshold for public disclosure.
State and county public health officials are working with the business to address the outbreak and protect the health of the employees.
Eight people associated with a youth baseball team that includes students who attend Newberg High School or other nearby schools have tested positive for Covid-19, the Newberg School District confirmed.
During a weekend tournament in Roseburg, the Newberg team learned that a team from Roseburg had reported two cases of COVID-19 among their players, according to Newberg School District Superintendent Dr. Joe Morelock.
The Newberg team had no contact with the Roseburg team but they decided to leave the tournament early anyway, Morelock said. On Friday, one of the Newberg players tested positive for COVID-19. Everyone associated with the team was notified and told to be tested for COVID-19. As of Monday afternoon, eight people associated with the team have tested positive for the virus. Only one of the eight people who have tested positive for COVID-19 is showing symptoms.
Morelock said all contact tracing and social distancing protocols have been followed and the team is working with Oregon Health Authority. The names of students and adults who have tested positive will not be released.
No Klamath Falls team was involved in the tournament, but players from teams the Klamath Falls Falcons have played this summer were participating. Because of the time frames involved it is highly unlikely any of the local players were ever exposed.
On Monday around 5:30PM Klamath County Sheriff’s Office deputies were dispatched to the area of 7400 block of Hagger Way for a suspected arson. Upon arrival deputies interviewed residents who stated that the fire was started by Robert Lee Martinez following a dispute.
Martinez was seen leaving the residence and detained by an off duty Malin Police Department Reserve Officer with assistance from Klamath Community College Campus Security. Multiple crews from Klamath County Fire District 1 as well as support units from Kingsley Fire worked to suppress the fire which began in a trailer and spread to adjacent structures.
On Monday night Lake County 911 received an emergency call reporting a shooting at 11 North G Street in Lakeview, Oregon.
Lake County Sheriff’s Deputies and Oregon State Police Troopers responded and found Jacob Wheat (26) of Lakeview, OR. laying in the parking lot. Wheat was critically injured and died while responding officers attempted first aid.
The Lake County Major Crime Team was activated to investigate. Law enforcement believes there is no active threat to the community. The Lake County Major Crime Team consists of the Lake County District Attorney’s Office, the Lake County Sheriff’s Office and the Oregon State Police. Anyone who has information regarding this investigation or was in the area of the incident, and has not been contacted by police is encouraged to contact the Lake County 911 non-emergency line at 541-947-2222 or the Oregon State Police Southern Command Center at 541-883-5711.
The Ross Ragland Theater is the proud recipient of a $15,900.00 Union Pacific Railroad Community Ties Giving Program COVID-19 Relief Grant.
“This awesome opportunity has given us a chance to build a new working relationship with Union Pacific,” said executive director, Scott Mohon.
Union Pacific’s Community Ties Giving Program provides small and medium-sized grants that align with the railroad’s priority cause areas in safety, workforce development and community spaces. This year, Union Pacific provided additional funding to address critical community needs associated with the pandemic.
“We understand every community has its own unique needs,” said Scott Moore, senior vice president-Corporate Relations and chief administrative officer, and Union Pacific Foundation President. “This funding will go directly to those impacted, providing the assistance they need to survive and recover from the outbreak.”
The Ragland opened back up to the public this week after being forced to close via Governor Brown’s state decree on March 13th 2020. “The theater is learning how to operate again as a professional performing arts venue in a post Covid-19 world,” said director of development and marketing, Terra Russo. “A grant like this allows us to continue to learn new best practices with the doors open!”
The Ragland has recently partnered with Klamath County Fairgrounds to offer the public drive-in movie nights throughout July and plans to host Friday Night Flicks and Saturday Family Matinees over the summer as they wrap up their 30th Anniversary Season.
Two Rivers Art Gallery is hosting J.P. Biddlecome, an author who will be holding a signing for his second book, Big Noise, on July 18th. Two Rivers Art Gallery in Chiloquin will host the event from 2-4 p.m, and refreshments will be served.
J.P. Biddlecome is an 18-year-old author and artist. He asked for a typewriter for his seventh birthday, and has pursued writing ever since; it provided him with a way to create worlds to fill with his imagination. During his freshman year in high school he was assigned to write a five-page historical fiction essay. Those five pages became his first book, Infantry Soldier.
He started drawing comic strips when he was seven. Those stick figures have developed into award-winning art pieces. He is now the youngest member of the Two Rivers Art Gallery.
Around the state of Oregon
U.S. Marshalls have charged seven people with arrests for various crimes during weekend riots in Portland, and yesterday made their first court appearances on federal charges.
Only 4 of the 7 are from the Portland area: Rowan Olsen, 19, AndrewSteven Faulkner, 24, Christopher Fellini, 31 and Cody Porter, 28.
The others are Shant Singh Ahuja, 28, from Oceanside, California; Gretchen Margaret Blank, 29, from Seattle; and Taimaine Jame Teo, 24, from Eugene.
Authorities said they were arrested for events that took place between July 2 and the early hours of July 6.
Olsen, was charged with giving a false name, a false date of birth, was charged with disorderly conduct, creating a hazard on federal property, and failing to obey a lawful order. He allegedly pushed and held a glass door at the Hatfield Courthouse closed, which kept officers inside and shattered the door. After the door was broken, officials said, a mortar came into the courthouse and exploded near the officers.
Ahuja is accused of destroying a closed-circuit video camera on the outside of the federal courthouse.
Blank allegedly assaulted a federal office with a shield.
Faulkner, Fellini, Porter and Teo allegedly used high intensity laser to assault federal officers. Faulkner also had a sheathed machete at the time of his arrest, authorities said.
The investigation by the US Marshals, the FBI, ATFE, Federal Protective Service, Customs and Border Protections and Homeland Security continues.
A former deputy with the Jackson County Sheriff’s Office has pleaded guilty to one count of official misconduct and will never be able to work as a law enforcement officer again, according to the county District Attorney’s office.
In October of 2019, police were examining a cell phone during the course of an investigation and found photos apparently taken by JCSO deputy Roger Campbell. The DA’s office said that one photo was shared earlier that year, on May 5. The discovery of those photos led JCSO to ask Oregon State Police for an investigation into the deputy’s actions.
When OSP investigators went to serve a search warrant at Campbell’s home, they were reportedly blocked by a gate. When Campbell gave the phone to OSP, they found that it had been factory reset “so no information on the cell phone could be retrieved.
A 3.9-magnitude earthquake occurred off the Oregon Coast on early Monday morning, according to a report by the U.S. Geological Survey.
The earthquake was recorded as being six miles deep at a distance of 279 miles off the Oregon coast from Bandon, which could be felt by some residents, around 5:28 a.m. No damage was reported. The quake was one of several to strike between Sunday and Monday morning along the Pacific Coast, including a 3.0-magnitude quake near Lone Pine, Calif., a 2.9 earthquake near Lucerne Valley, Calif., and a 3.3-magnitude earthquake near Susanville, Calif.
After nearly four months closed, the Oregon Historical Society plans to re-open its museum to the public on Saturday, July 11, 2020 at 10am. Following re-opening, public museum and store hours will be Wednesdays – Saturdays from 10am – 5pm and Sundays from 12pm – 5pm.
The OHS Research Library remains closed for renovations that began in January 2020. More information on library services that are available during the renovation can be found at ohs.org/libraryreno.
Following the guidance and requirements of the Oregon Health Authority (OHA) for cultural attractions and museums, the Oregon Historical Society has implemented important safety protocols for the health of our staff and visitors. New safety protocols are detailed at the bottom of this press release as well as at ohs.org/reopening.
When the Oregon Historical Society closed on Saturday, March 14, the museum was about to debut a new original exhibition, Nevertheless, They Persisted: Women’s Voting Rights and the 19th Amendment, which chronicles the complicated history of woman suffrage and broad voting rights and profiles the brave activists who fought for woman suffrage. Now extended through mid-2021, this exhibit shows the many ways Oregon history connects to the national history of woman suffrage and to the complex history of American democracy
The Department of Public Safety Standards and Training (DPSST) will be offering wildfire training to members of the Oregon National Guard starting Saturday (7/11) through (7/17).
As part of this training there will be two live-fire (field burn) training sessions on the 12th and the 16th. Again these two burns are planning training events that will be held at the Oregon Public Safety Academy at 4190 Aumsville Hwy SE, Salem, OR.
Note: People with breathing difficulties in the immediate area may need to take precautions. This should last from approximately 1pm to 9pm on both days.
The live-fire training is part of the wildland firefighter training the Oregon Department of Public Safety Standards and Training (DPSST) is providing to 400 citizen-soldiers and citizen-airmen from the Oregon National Guard being proactively trained in case their assistance is needed to support wildland firefighting efforts around the state.
The state has a long standing agreement between the Oregon National Guard and Oregon Department of Forestry known as Operation Plan Smokey. This plan stipulates the details of how Oregon National Guard members will be utilized to assist in firefighting efforts. This agreement is reviewed annually by the leadership of both agencies and Governor Kate Brown’s Office.
PacifiCorp today issued the largest request for proposals for energy projects in company history, seeking competitively priced resources that can connect to its 10-state transmission system.
Pacific Power is a division of PacifiCorp, which is already the largest regulated utility owner of wind power in the West. These projects will significantly increase the amount of renewable energy resources serving Pacific Power customers.
PacifiCorp’s most recent Integrated Resource Plan outlines the company’s plans to add 1,823 megawatts of new solar resources, 595 megawatts of new battery energy storage and 1,920 megawatts of new wind resources by the end of 2023. This is enough to power nearly three million typical homes with renewable energy.
The company will accept bids featuring different resource types and bid structures, including forms of power-purchase, battery storage, and build-transfer agreements. PacifiCorp will not be submitting any self-build resources and therefore won’t be competing with independent developers on their projects. Projects must be able to achieve commercial operation by December 31, 2024. Long-lead projects, such as pumped storage, can submit offers with commercial operation dates beyond December 31, 2024.
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