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, your local health and Medicare agents.
Friday, June 4, 2021
Klamath Basin Weather
Today Sunny, with a high near 87. West wind 5 to 10 mph. Overnight low around 50.
Saturday Sunny, with a high near 78. Overnight clear, with a low around 42.
Sunday Sunny, with a high near 74. Overnight low around 41.
Monday Sunny, with a high near 75.
Tuesday Sunny, with a high near 70.
Today’s Headlines
The Klamath Basin remains in the midst of a contentious water crisis, with more than 90% of Klamath County in “extreme drought,” according to the U.S. Drought Monitor.
For more than 100 years, the Bureau of Reclamation has released water from the lake for farmers to irrigate crops, for Native tribes to fish and, more recently, to protect endangered species. Not this year, however.
Water is typically released through a series of headgates into the “A” canal, located on the southern shore of Upper Klamath Lake in Klamath Falls. Some believe, despite millions of dollars to secure the headgates from a simple turnstile back in 2001, that the headgates will be breached as they were then. Farmers, however, say there is no such plan for that to occur this year.
Fights over water in the Klamath Basin extend back more than a century and, with climate change expected to continue eating into the region’s water supply in decades to come, the need for the diminishing resource is only expected to grow more intense.
A large red-and-white tent now sits just outside a barbed-wire fence encircling the headgates. The tent, which is adorned with signs lamenting the lack of water for irrigation alongside “don’t tread on me” flags and an oversized banner reading “we the people,” has been dubbed the Water Crisis Info Center and plays host to weekly gatherings of up to 100 people.
Klamath Falls reminds customers and citizens to be vigilant when it comes to potential utility scams.
The city alerted the public Thursday to individuals pretending to be the city public works department sending text messages advising of a water shutoff and a link that individuals can click on.
Do not click on or go to the link. The city of Klamath Falls said it will never send a text with a link in the body of the message.
Residents who want to confirm the validity of any messages claiming to be the city utility department or public works may call the city at (541) 883-5316.
Stan Pulliam, the Sandy, Oregon mayor who announced he is exploring a run for governor in the 2022, will be in Klamath Falls on Saturday.
The public is invited to join Pulliam June 5 from 10 a.m. to noon at Sugarman’s Corner, 533 Main St. According to Pulliam, the visit is part of a statewide listening tour to hear ideas about “how to bring Oregon back to its rugged, pioneer glory of innovation, fortitude and freedom.”
Saturday, June 5th will be the first Keno Community Classic Car and Crafts Show in Keno, at two locations, Whoa Tavern with music, food and crafts, and the classic cars on display at Keno Tractors parking lot with music provided by Wynne Broadcasting and BasinLife.com, the online digital magazine.
Proceeds go to the Bager Run Wildlife Project. Come out and support your local community projects.
Everyone of all ages are invited out for the community celebration to enjoy the cars and show! The fun starts at 9AM and runs until 3PM in downtown Keno. Signups for cars will be taken as late as Saturday morning, tomorrow. Plenty of prizes to win for car owners!
Oregon reports 267 new confirmed and presumptive COVID-19 cases, 7 new deaths
There are seven new COVID-19 related deaths in Oregon, raising the state’s death toll to 2,683 the Oregon Health Authority reported today. Oregon Health Authority reported 267 new confirmed and presumptive cases of COVID-19 as of 12:01 a.m. today bringing the state total to 202,247.
The new confirmed and presumptive COVID-19 cases reported today are in the following counties: Baker (2), Benton (1), Clackamas (18), Columbia (3), Coos (1), Crook (3), Curry (1), Deschutes (19), Douglas (36), Gilliam (7), Hood River (2), Jackson (19), Josephine (3), Klamath (2), Lane (21), Linn (15), Malheur (6), Marion (25), Multnomah (48), Polk (1), Sherman (1), Tillamook (2), Umatilla (15), Union (4), Wasco (1), Washington (9) and Yamhill (2).
Vaccinations in Oregon
Today, OHA reported that 20,401 new doses of COVID-19 vaccinations were added to the state immunization registry. Cumulative daily totals can take several days to finalize.
Oregon has now administered 2,232,799 first and second doses of Pfizer, 1,615,840 first and second doses of Moderna and 145,844 single doses of Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccines. As of today, 1,877,344 people have completed a COVID-19 vaccine series. There are 2,255,274 people who have had at least one dose.
SYCAN WILDFIRE UPDATE
BLY, Ore. – Firefighters have continued work today on the Sycan River Fire, as well as responding to lightning fires as they are discovered. The Sycan River Fire, burning approximately 20 miles north of Beatty, is 615 acres and will be 75 percent contained as the day begins today.
At the end of shift, the fire will transition to the Bly Ranger District and a Type 4 Incident Commander. Tomorrow 42 firefighters will continue to work on mop-up and patrol.
All road closures have been lifted and Forest Road 27 has reopened.
“We appreciate everyone’s cooperation while we worked on the Sycan River Fire this week,” said SCOFMP Type 3 Team Incident Commander Sam Tacchini. “It made it possible for us to fight the fire efficiently and get it back to the Bly Ranger District to continue towards full containment.”
So far today, the South Central Oregon Fire Management Partnership’s (SCOFMP) federal and state agencies responded to six lightning fires from last night’s storms. The fires ranged from a tenth to 1.5 acres.
It is expected in the coming days that as conditions continue to dry out in the storm areas, additional lightning fires will be discovered. The public is asked to report suspected wildfires to 911.
Human-caused wildfires are preventable! The public is asked to use extreme caution with anything that can spark a fire. Hot temperatures, dry fuels and high winds can quickly turn a small spark or ember into a large wildfire.
South Central Oregon is already seeing an active and early fire season. In addition to being careful with anything that can spark a fire, the public can take measures to be prepared. Private landowners can create and maintain defensible space around structures, especially in rural and forested areas.
The public can also sign up for emergency and evacuation alerts.
For the latest evacuation information, visit https://www.facebook.com/KlamathCountyGov. To sign up for Klamath County alerts, visit http://alerts.klamathcounty.org.
The Ross Ragland Theater presents summer musical “Pirates of Penzance” on Friday, July 9th, Saturday, July 10th at 7:30pm and on Sunday, July 11th at 2:00pm.
LIVE streaming will be available opening night ONLY! The Pirates of Penzance is a comic operetta by Gilbert and Sullivan. Though it debuted over 140 years ago (in 1880), its popularity has never waned and is considered a quintessential work by the famous dramatist/composer duo. The most recent Broadway revival (in 1981) ran for 787 performances and won several Tony and Drama Desk awards.
Penzance is perhaps best known for its much parodied, “Major-General’s Song. Opening Night: Friday, June 9 th @ 7:30pm LIVE STREAMING-ONE NIGHT ONLY! Saturday, June 10th @ 7:30pm Matinee: Sunday, June 11th @ 2:00pm Tickets: 12 and under $10, Students $18, Senior/Military $20, Adults $22, STREAMING Pass $22. Call 884-LIVE today to reserve your ticket now!
As of Tuesday, Oregon’s overall adult vaccination rate stood at 65.8 percent.
The Klamath County Museum will offer free admission for Klamath County residents on Saturday, June 5, in commemoration of the anniversary of D-Day during World War II.
The museum at 1451 Main St. will be open regular hours, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. The D-Day invasion on June 6, 1944, involved about 160,000 American and allied troops landing along a 50-mile stretch of French coastline.
More than 9,000 allied soldiers died on D-Day. The deaths included three men from the Klamath Basin: Walter Buick, Charles Semon and Donald Turner. Because the anniversary date falls on a Sunday, when the museum is closed, free admission is being granted to local residents on Saturday. For more information call the Klamath County Museum at (541) 882-1000.
Around the state of Oregon
As the weather warms and fire danger increases, Bureau of Land Management Medford District officials are implementing public use restrictions on BLM-managed lands in Southern Oregon.
Starting June 4, 2021 at 12:01 a.m., certain activities on BLM-managed lands in Jackson and Josephine Counties will be restricted to prevent human-caused fire and reduce wildfire potential.
The Western U.S. is in the most expansive and intense drought this century, according to the U.S. Drought Monitor, and the drought continues to intensify in parts of the Pacific Northwest, including Southern Oregon.
Jackson and Josephine counties experienced the driest April and May on record, which dates back 111 years. Significant fire potential is expected to increase to above normal for Southern Oregon in June. Starting June 4, campfires will only be allowed at the Hyatt Lake Campground and the lower section of the Rogue River below the high-water mark.
In all other areas, visitors can use portable cooking stoves that use liquefied or bottled fuels. Otherwise, campfires or any other type of open fire, including the use of charcoal briquettes, is prohibited. The safety of the public and all wildland fire responders is always the number one priority for all wildland fire agencies. This year, it is especially important everyone does their part to reduce human caused wildfires.
BLM officials are taking the necessary steps to ensure their ability to deploy firefighters for wildfire response. Officials stress their commitment to the most efficient wildland fire suppression operations during these challenging times.
A drought is forcing Oregon to consider major changes this summer to everything from how it stocks trout in lakes and reservoirs across the state to when it will release some species of fish from hatcheries.
The Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife also is considering relocating some fish species to save them and doing away with bag limits for recreational anglers because of the extended drought, Oregon Public Broadcasting reported Thursday.
Officials say stream flows are at 25% of normal and migratory fish like salmon and steelhead will be most affected, particularly in areas along the coast and in smaller tributaries. The state typically stocks lakes and reservoirs around the state with trout for recreational anglers, but some of those have unusually low water levels or are already dry, said Shaun Clements, the agency’s deputy administrator for inland fisheries.
This weekend, Saturday and Sunday mark Oregon’s next “Free Fishing Weekend,” allowing anglers of all ages to fish, clam, or crab for free.
During a Free Fishing Weekend, no fishing licenses or tags (including a Combined Angling Tag, Columbia River Basin Endorsement or Two-Rod Validation) are required by Oregon residents or non-residents.
Other fishing regulations do apply, including area closures, bag limits, and size restrictions. People are asked to check for any in-season regulation changes — particularly for salmon, steelhead, sturgeon, and marine fishing — at their destination.
Several ponds in the Willamette Valley will be stocked for the last time this season, and stocked trout are a good option for beginners.
People near Portland, Bend, Medford, Roseburg or in Lane County, have a number of nearby options.
Britt Festival concerts are expected to return this summer starting in late July, according to Britt president and CEO Donna Briggs.
In a message to supporters, Briggs said that they have “every reason to believe” that 70 percent of Oregonians 16 and older will be vaccinated in time for Britt to start holding concerts.
Governor Kate Brown has designated that vaccination percentage as the benchmark for lifting most COVID-19 restrictions, though aspects of that promise remain nebulous.
The Jacksonville organization plans to hold “a once-in-a-lifetime celebration” of Britt Presents concerts and Britt Festival Orchestra performances beginning by the end of July and running through mid-October. Announcements of the particulars are expected early this month.
Briggs indicated that announcements will be staggered, with Orchestra reveals set for June 7 and 25, and Britt Presents announcements on June 14 and July 14.