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.
Thursday, December 8, 2022
Klamath Basin Weather
Hazardous Weather Conditions
Winter Weather Advisory thru 10:00 PM tonight.
Winter Storm Watch in effect until December 10th.
Thursday night Snow showers, mainly before 10pm. Low around 20. Chance of precipitation is 90%. New snow accumulation of less than one inch possible.
Friday A chance of snow showers between 10am and 1pm, then a chance of snow after 1pm. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 36. South wind to 10 mph increasing to 12 to 17 mph in the afternoon. New snow accumulation of less than a half inch possible. Overnight, patchy blowing snow after 1am. Low around 29. Chance of precipitation is 90%. New snow accumulation of 1 to 2 inches possible.
Saturday Snow expected with accumulation of 1-2 inches. High near 38. Breezy, with a south wind to 25 mph, with gusts as high as 38 mph. Chance of precipitation is 90%. Overnight, patchy fog after 4am. Low around 21. Chance of precipitation is 90%. New snow accumulation of 1 to 2 inches possible.
Sunday A 40 percent chance of snow showers, mainly before 4pm. Patchy fog before 10am. Otherwise, mostly cloudy, with a high near 35. Little or no snow accumulation expected.
Monday Patchy fog before 11am. Otherwise, partly sunny, with a high near 34.
See Road Camera Views:
Lake of the Woods
Doak Mtn.
Hiway 97 at Chemult
Hiway 140 at Bly
Hiway 97 at GreenSprings Dr.
Hiway 97 at LaPine
Today’s Headlines
Oregon State Police’s Permit-To-Purchase Gun Application Now Online While Measure 114 On Hold
Oregon’s new permit-to-purchase application for prospective buyers of firearms is online today, as the legality of the State’s new gun control measure is getting resolved in state and federal courts.
Oregon State Police (OSP) put the application online overnight at Oregon’s Measure 114 had been set to take effect today, December 8, 2022, 30 days after Oregon voters narrowly passed the measure in a November 8, 2022, referendum. The Oregon Secretary of State’s Office had said last month it would certify the vote outcome and the Measure’s passage today, too.
According to the OSP yesterday, their Firearms Instant Check System (FICS) unit will continue to work to process and resolve the pended/delayed FICS transactions. This delay of implementation will allow firearm sales to continue being processed under the current law.
The OSP launched a “Permit to Purchase” webpage with preliminary information such as the Permit to Purchase Application, a description of the steps for acquiring a permit, and other information including answers to questions that OSP is anticipating.
The website is at tinyurl.com/HN-OSP-Gun-Law.
The Oregon State Police recognizes the impact this measure will have and is working diligently through this very complex measure to provide everyone with the most up-to-date information.
The Oregon Tech Foundation surpassed a historic milestone this year, awarding $1,030,000 in scholarships to Oregon Tech students.
The new record was celebrated Oct. 29 as participants gathered at the Klamath Falls campus and live-streamed to a gathering at the Portland-Metro campus for the annual Scholarship Awards Banquet. This special event honors the achievements of scholarship recipients and recognizes the philanthropic donors who make scholarships possible.
Funds raised through scholarships make a dramatic difference across Oregon Tech. For academic year 2022-23, the foundation awarded 342 scholarships ranging from $300 to $16,000.
These scholarships fill various needs for students including those pursuing excellence in academics, assisting those with demonstrated lesser financial resources, increasing opportunities for underrepresented groups, attracting and retaining students in certain fields of study, supporting scholarly athletes, and helping those close to graduation earn a diploma when they have limited to no financial resources left.
The U.S. Air Force is replacing F-15C Eagles of Kadena Air Base, Japan with a rotating force of fighters according to official Air Force spokeswoman Ann Stefanek. That announcement kicks off a process of ferrying nearly 50 fighter aircraft across the Pacific Ocean back to the United States mainland—a task with many challenges.
They need a place to go–not just any place but a secure military installation with the room to park them, and with a team of people who understand the care and feeding the Eagle requires.
It’s a problem with a ready solution—Kingsley Field, the home of the 173rd Fighter Wing, located on the west Coast in Southern Oregon, has extensive ramp space and whose Eagle Keepers are proficient at keeping them airworthy every day.
When these aircraft arrive, which began Dec. 4, 2022, Kingsley maintainers “catch” them and inspect them for any issues following their transit of the Pacific Ocean.
Currently the wing has accepted 14 Kadena F-15 Eagles and will send seven of them to new homes across the nation, including guard units in California, Massachusetts, and Louisiana. Four of them will retire to the Boneyard and three of them will call the 173rd Fighter Wing home.
The Klamath Falls Lions club will be selling See’s Candy for the Christmas Holidays as a fundraiser for its sight and hearing projects.
See’s candy will be available at Turn Thom, Point S tires next to Bi-Mart from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Mondays through Friday and 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturdays. The club began selling candy Monday, Dec. 5.
According to a press release, the Klamath County Lions clubs conducted vision screening for more than 4,000 students in Klamath County this past fall.
Lions also provide glasses for students and others in need, the press release states.
Oregon Tech faculty are partnering with Oregon Tech Library’s Open Educational Resources (OER) program to reduce student costs associated with textbook materials, and throughout the past three years have saved Oregon Tech students $1,216,866 in textbook costs.
According to University Librarian John Schoppert, OER are freely accessible, high-quality coursework materials made accessible to students to alleviate the high costs of mainstream publisher textbooks. OER describes openly licensed materials and resources for any user to use, remix, reuse, repurpose and redistribute.
OER are available at no cost to the student and, in general, no monetary cost to the faculty for adopting, adapting or creating an open resource, but it can take time to redesign a course to adopt new materials. To address this, the Oregon Tech Library’s OER program provides grants to faculty who wish to adopt or create high-quality, openly licensed materials for their courses.
The process also allows for sharing of knowledge as faculty modify materials for their courses, adopt materials to the course needs, or enhance materials with text, images, or videos to support different learning styles.
It’s time to wax the downhill skis and snowboards. That’s because the Mt. Ashland Ski Area, which has benefited from recent storms and is expecting more snow throughout the next several days, opens for the 2022-23 season this Saturday, Dec. 10 with lifts operating from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. through Monday, Dec. 12.
Information about what lifts and terrains will be open. Mt. Ashland’s daily holiday schedule will begin Thursday, Dec. 15, with more information at the operating schedule on the area’s website, www.mtashland.com.
Trails on the upper mountain will be ungroomed and for experts only. Skiers and snowboarders are cautioned to “expect early season conditions, meaning some natural obstacles will be present. Trails off the Comer and Sonnet chairlifts will be groomed and provide intermediate and beginner terrain.
Free ranger-guided walks will be offered again this winter at Crater Lake National Park beginning this Saturday, Dec. 10.
The ranger-led outings will be available 1 p.m. Saturdays, Sundays and holidays through April 30.
In addition, walks will be offered during the school holidays every day from Dec. 17 through Jan. 2 and March 25 through April 1. Walks last two hours and cover one to two miles of moderate to strenuous terrain through forests and meadows near and along the rim of Crater Lake.
No previous snowshoeing experience is necessary and snowshoes are provided free of charge. Participants must be 8-years-old or older and no pets are allowed.
Space is limited so call 541-594-3100 to check availability and make reservations.
Mt. Shasta Ski Park has announced that Openin Day is Saturday, Dec. 10th for the season.
It is mark the grand opening of the new Gray Butte Lift. The Ski Park Office says Mt. Shasta’s ski operation will be open 9am to 4pm Saturday, and with “Heavy snow, anticipate delays and have patience.”
The Mt. Shasta Ski Park says its goal is to have all lifts running, including the Gray Butte Lift for the first time.
NewsWatch 12 meteorologists are forecasting wintry weather in Siskiyou County with winds and snow at higher elevations above 3000 feet tonight, with another winter storm this weekend that could deliver an inch of snow hourly.
Mt. Shasta Ski Park says, “This weekend’s winter storm is predicted to bring 45+ inches of new snow, which means we are able to open early and it will be an epic powder day! With that much snow coming in, we want to ask everyone to be ready for potential delays, and please have patience with our team as they will be working hard to get everything ready and open. We could not be more excited to welcome our guests back for our best season yet!”
Around the state of Oregon
Winter Weather Advisory for Most of Southern Oregon
A Winter Weather Advisory is in effect Thursday from 10:00 a.m. through 10:00 p.m. above 2,000 feet for most of Southern Oregon.
Forecasters at the National Weather Service in Medford said snow accumulations of 1 to 3 inches are expected with 6 inches possible above 4,000 feet.
The Advisory area includes the central portion and eastern foothills of Douglas County, Josephine and Jackson counties and eastern Curry County.
This includes Canyon Creek Pass on Interstate 5, a portion of Highway 227 south of Tiller, and portions of Highway 138 from Steamboat east to Diamond Lake.
Forecasters said travel could be difficult due to reduced visibility from blowing snow and slick roads. Hazardous conditions could impact the morning and evening commute. There is a 30 percent chance of snowfall rates reaching 1 inch per hour between 10:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m.
Get current road conditions at www.tripcheck.com.
Five Electricity Substations Attacked in Pacific Northwest in November
At least five electricity substation attacks in Washington and Oregon in November were reported to the FBI, according to local media. Utility companies Puget Sound Energy, the Cowlitz County Public Utility District, and Bonneville Power Administration (BPA) told the Seattle Times they were cooperating with a federal investigation, though the FBI declined to confirm it was investigating the attacks. It’s not clear if any power outages resulted from the assaults.
One operation described as a “deliberate physical attack” took place at a Clackamas, Oregon, substation over the Thanksgiving holiday, BPA spokesman Douglas Johnson said. News of the attacks in the Pacific Northwest comes after damage from a substation shooting in North Carolina on Saturday plunged tens of thousands of people into darkness.
Governor Brown Issues Executive Order To Help Strained Oregon Hospitals
Governor Brown has issued an executive order in response to a surge in adult and pediatric cases and hospitalizations for respiratory viruses.
The order gives hospitals more flexibility to increase staffing and use volunteer nurses and doctors.
The Oregon Health Authority will spend up to 25-million dollars to hire supplemental nurses to help increase hospital staffing.
“Our health care workers––our nurses, doctors, and hospital staff––are being pushed to their limits by this year’s combination of flu, RSV, and COVID-19 hospitalizations,” said Governor Brown. “As they do everything they can to keep Oregonians healthy and safe, we must all do our part to help them. Our health care workers are working around the clock to protect the people most vulnerable to severe respiratory illnesses––including our young children and seniors.
“I am asking Oregonians to come together to help our health care heroes this holiday season. Stay home if you are sick, stay up to date on your vaccinations, and consider wearing a mask in crowded indoor situations––especially if you are at higher risk for severe illness from RSV, the flu, or COVID-19.”
Last month, Governor Brown issued an order that increased hospital flexibility to help with the increase in pediatric RSV cases. The new order expands that flexibility. See executive order
Search And Rescue Teams Save Man Stranded in Snow for Two Days Near Prospect
Jackson County Sheriff’s Office (JCSO) Search and Rescue (SAR) saved a 77-year-old man this morning after he was stranded in the snow for two days. SAR vehicle teams and the Snowcat began looking for the man last night at 1:55 a.m. after he was reported missing in the area of Elk Creek Road outside of Prospect.
The SAR Snowcat located the man around 8 a.m. this morning approximately 10 miles off the Elk Creek Rd. on National Forest Road 6640. Two days ago, he attempted to turn his truck around before becoming stuck in two to three feet of snow. He spent the last two nights in his truck without a functioning heater but was located in good spirits with a mild case of hypothermia.
During this winter season always be prepared even if you aren’t planning on driving in the snow. Bring supplies including blankets, food, and water. Make sure you tell someone where you are going and include the route, and especially what time you will be back. This ensures SAR will know your general location and begin searching as soon as possible. Thank you to the SAR volunteers for a successful mission.
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