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 and News, and BasinLife.com, and powered by Mick Insurance. Call 541-882-6476.
Monday, Sept. 9, 2024
Klamath Basin Weather
Today
Widespread haze before 10am. Sunny, with a high near 88. Calm west southwest winds 5 to 9 mph in the afternoon. Areas of smoke between 10pm and 11pm. Overnight widespread haze, partly cloudy, with a low around 52. West winds 5 to 9 mph.
Today’s Klamath Falls Headlines
Chiloquin Copperfield Fire Update – Monday, 8AM
Chiloquin, Ore. – The recent thunderstorms produced some fire starts north of the Copperfield Fire. Crews are being diverted to assist in initial attack on the new fires. In addition, resources will began transitioning to other fires throughout the state, helping in their
efforts as resources are limited due to wildfires across the state.
Containment increased to 68%.
Today’s weather calls for continued cooling temperatures and lighter winds. This will help with ongoing mop up efforts and allow crews to
continue their push deeper into the black areas around the fire
perimeter.
Evacuation levels were reduced this morning. Evacuation levels are
determined by the Klamath County Sheriff's Office in conjunction with
fire officials and agency administrators. Current evacuation areas and
levels can be found at https://www.klamathcounty.org/300/Emergency-Management.
Fire Statistics:
Estimated Size: 3,822 acres
Containment: 68%
Cause: Under Investigation
Estimated Cost: $6.8 million
Primary residences destroyed: 8
Other buildings destroyed: 22
Fire Crews on scene: 596
Current conditions can be found at
https://www.klamathcounty.org/300/Emergency-Management.
Klamath & Lake Long-Term Recovery Group Asking For Donations For Chiloquin Copperfield Fire Victims
The Chiloquin community was struck by the devastating Copperfield Fire in the Chiloquin/Sprague River area.
While firefighters continue to battle the blaze, this wildfire has affected 19 structures, including at least 8 homes. The journey to recovery from such a disaster is long and challenging, often taking months or even years.
To support the survivors in rebuilding their lives, we need crucial funds to provide them with the necessary resources. Together, as a community, we can help these families—moms, daughters, sons, dads, just like you and me—get back on their feet. Let’s unite to offer hope and support to those who need it most. Every penny counts, 100% of the Proceeds go to assisting survivors. Klamath & Lake Long-Term Recovery Group is a 501(c)(3) Public Charity.
PLEASE DONATE WHAT YOU CAN HERE: https://givebutter.com/vqPqGk
Tempers flared in the Sprague River Fire District garage where a special board meeting was held Thursday evening.
The issue- reaffirming the board’s decision to fire the Klamath County Fire District 3 Chief, Christine Friend.
Though the board no longer grants time for the public to enter comments during meetings, fuming residents boiled over and spoke out in protest, demanding to be told why the local fire chief was being fired. Friend herself, attended the meeting and announced the reason she says she was allegedly fired.
From the crowd, Friend said, “They are trying to say that I misappropriated funds, which I did not.” The former chief was fired last month, a board action which also resulted in the loss of the board’s former president, Michael Shultz, and Friend’s two sons who also served the community for nearly two decades.
After a brief executive session, the board gathered before dozens of Sprague River residents to tackle the first pressing issue of reaffirming the Aug.15 termination of the former chief. Though Christine Friend was decidedly fired last month, the board’s attorney, Michael Spencer, alluded to contention regarding the board’s termination process.
After the meeting, Sprague River residents spoke with the Herald and News about the decision made at the board’s last meeting in August.
Sprague River resident Bunny Lindsay said the board’s attorney provided a document regarding the decision to terminate Christine’s status as fire chief, which the board was to vote on during the August meeting. The document, she said, had already been signed by two members of the board. In conversations after the meeting, residents discussed grave concerns regarding a lack of board transparency.
The Middle Fork Fire near Crater Lake National Part has burned some 5,286 acres and is now 61% contained, according to a news release from the U.S. Forest Service.
“The North Entrance to Crater Lake National Park reopened on Saturday, September 7, at 6 a.m. for Ride the Rim. If crews are unable to complete hazardous reduction work related to the Middle Fork Fire on Friday, the North Entrance will close again on Sunday morning so they can resume work,” the Oregon Department of Forestry said in a news release. The Ride The Rim event happens over two weekends and will be happening again this weekend.
Crews will continue heavy equipment operations near the park’s North Entrance. They are also cleaning up roads and repairing areas disturbed by suppression activities, especially along Hwy 230. Firefighters will continue securing edges on the fire’s north and east sides and patrolling for hotspots.”
Residents wanting information about current park conditions can call Crater Lake National Park at 541-594-3000.
9/11 Patriot Day ceremonies will be held Wednesday at 11 a.m. at the Klamath County Courthouse.
Ron Johnson, Senior Vice Commander for Veterans of Foreign War Post 1383 and a Marine veteran, will serve as master of ceremonies. The color guard will be a combined color guard from VFW Post 1383 and the Marine Corps League Crater Lake Detachment 373. The ceremony will remember the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks by Islamist terrorists who highjacked four commercial airlines on the East Coast.
As you remember on 9/11, two planes were crashed into the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center in New York City while two flights flew towards targets in Washington, D.C. One team succeeded in striking the Pentagon, the headquarters of the U.S. Department of Defense, and the fourth hijacked plan crashed in rural Pennsylvania when passengers attacked the terrorists. In all, 2,977 people were killed, the deadliest terrorist attack in U.S. history.
Following the welcome, Johnson will lead the pledge of allegiance. Ipo Ross from the Knights of Columbus will perform the National Anthem. Johnson will give a presentation, “We Remember and Never Forget!” followed by the invocation by Color Guard Chaplain Ben Quen, senior Master Sergeant, U.S. Air Force retired.
Link River Bridge Project Work
The southbound U.S. 97 off ramp to Klamath Falls City Center will be fully closed for three days beginning today, Monday, September 9th at 6:00 a.m. until Wednesday September 11 at 6:00 p.m. while workers continue work on the U.S. 97: OR 58-California Border Bridge Retrofits project at Link River Bridge.
The purpose of this project is to improve the seismic resiliency of bridges on U.S. 97 so the highway can continue its role as a primary north-south lifeline route in the aftermath of a major earthquake. Drivers should follow the signed detour route as follows: From U.S. 97 Southbound:
- Continue south on U.S. 97 and take EXIT 277 (HWY 66/HWY 140)
- Turn left on South-Side by-pass (HWY 140), then turn right on to the U.S. 97 North (Klamath Falls/Bend) on-ramp.
- Continue north on U.S. 97 and take the Klamath Falls City Center exit, EXIT 275.
Please use caution when traveling through work zones. All work is dependent on weather conditions and schedules are subject to change.
The intersection of Main Street, East Main Street and Michigan Avenue has been reopened to traffic and a pedestrian route is open as well.
At this time N. Eldorado Avenue remains closed at Main Street. Construction crews are still working in the area to complete the sidewalks, lane striping and traffic signals. Temporary lane closures are anticipated during these construction activities. The sidewalks are anticipated to be completed and open to pedestrians on September 16th.
It is anticipated that N. Eldorado Avenue will remain closed until the traffic signals are installed at the end of October. For more information, please contact Public Works at 541-883-5363.
Bryan Fix, vice president and chief human resources officer at Sky Lakes Medical Center, has been chosen as annual Champion for Career and Technical Education by the Association for Career and Technical Education.
The ACTE comprises education leaders, business and industry executives, celebrities and thought leaders who support and champion CTE programs as a vital part of developing a prepared, adaptable and competitive workforce. According to a news release submitted by the ACTE, Fix has significantly contributed to CTE, and has remained committed to student career pathways, dramatically improving outcomes for local students by reintroducing clinical rotations for high school students.
Most notably, Fix and his team in the Human Resources and Training and Development departments at Sky Lakes Medical Center initiated an innovative “Earn-and-Learn” program, hiring high school juniors and seniors as paid Unit Ambassadors. These students participate in hands-on experiences, receive monthly career counseling, and have their training and education funded by Sky Lakes to advance within the medical system.
This program has expanded into three unique tracks, including a Surgical Technician pipeline in partnership with Klamath Community College, enabling students to become Surgical Technicians with significantly higher wages.
WE’RE HIRING for: Office Specialist 2 at OSU Extension Office in Klamath County.
About the position:
- This position will provide digital marketing and general office support for the OSU Extension Klamath County office.
- This is a full-time, 12-month position located in Klamath Falls
CLICK ON THE PIC FOR FULL INFORMATION
Campground fees at the Indian Well Campground and the Indian Well Campground Group Campsite at Lava Beds National Monument will increase effective Oct. 1.
The new camping rates will be $20 a night for individual campsites and $60 a night for the group campsite. Lava Beds will continue to offer half-priced camping for Interagency Senior pass holders and Interagency Lifetime Access pass holders.
Park Superintendent Chris Mengel noted the increases are the first since Lava Beds implemented the $10 camping fee in 1985 for individual campsites, and the first increase for the park’s group site since it was constructed in 2005. Standard campsites will still be available first-come, first-serve, only.
Indian Well Campground Group campsites, however, will become reservable through Recreation.gov. Reservations of the group campsite will be made available six months in advance and be reservable April through October.
“Allowing advanced reservations of the group campsite will provide 24/7 ease of reservations; offer groups the convenience and flexibility to plan their trip ahead of time and make changes to reservations when needed,” Mengel said in a press release. According to the release, the proposed camping rate increases are “necessary to improve and maintain a high-quality camping experience.
Online reservations for the group campsite will begin in the spring of 2025.
Klamath Falls got some good news from the state this weekend. Oregon is getting over 12-million-dollars from the U.S. Department of Transportation for road projects.
Portland gets nearly ten-million-dollars for improvements to a seven-mile stretch of 82nd Avenue. It’s a state highway and the city has taken over maintenance of the road. Klamath Falls receives two-million-dollars for intersection safety improvements. Milwaukie, Tangent, and Ashland will share 920-thousand-dollars for planning.
Fire Crew Jobs Available
The Klamath National Forest is currently accepting applications for multiple fire positions at locations across the forest.
The application period is open now and closes on September 24, 2024.
Fire positions are available on fire engines, wildland fire modules, hotshot crews, helitack, and in fuels and dispatch. Open positions range from entry-level firefighter up to Assistant District Fire Management Officer.
There are vacancies in Fort Jones, Yreka, Klamath River, Macdoel, Happy Camp, and Seiad. All positions are permanent full-time or permanent seasonal and include benefits.
The Klamath National Forest has one of the busiest wildland fire programs in California, and the work can be highly rewarding. It is a tough job at times, but an excellent way to challenge oneself while working in the great outdoors. It’s an opportunity to care for your public lands on a spectacular national forest and become part of a skilled fire crew – training together, fighting fire together, and traveling together. One of the many benefits of working for the Forest Service is that crews are available to go to other national forests across the country to help with wildfires. Crews also work on prescribed burns, both on-forest and away on assignments.
The city of Klamath Falls is working to reduce groundwater use in the Klamath Basin after accepting a federal grant for improved recycling of wastewater flows.
Klamath Falls City Council approved the receipt of a one-to-one matching grant of $345,000 from the Bureau of Reclamation at the regular council meeting Tuesday night. A summary of the project design says the goal of the new “water strategy plan” is to develop recycled water treatment upgrades to reduce the need for and use of potable water taken from ground water supplies.
“The city of Klamath Falls must supplement recycled water produced at their wastewater treatment plant with potable water from their groundwater supply to meet the obligations of the Avangrid Cogeneration Plan,” the project’s technical proposal reads.
Use of groundwater supplies has ecological impacts, according to the report, influencing habitat loss and increased nitrogen presence in the Upper Klamath River and Lost River, where the South Suburban Sanitation District and Spring Street Sewage Treatment Plant discharge recycled wastewater flows.
By increasing recycled water use, the city can help reduce these environmental impacts while improving efficiency. Wastewater manager Chris Claymore said staff applied for the USBR WaterSMART grant back in 2023. Claymore said the grant is a one-to-one match, requiring the city to match any portion of the USBR funding that is used for the project. City wastewater services also received council’s approval for another project which will improve sewer infrastructure in the Pacific Terrace residential area.
In an amount not to exceed $771,308 (with a contingency of just more than $115,000), council approved a piping rehabilitation project for sewer lines which have fractured or experiencing root intrusion, according to staff.
The city also partnered with South Suburban Sanitary District to increase the size of the project during the meeting to reduce costs during both entities’ concurrent infrastructure projects’ undertakings.
Another grant award of $100,000 was accepted to assist with Klamath Housing Authority’s project building affordable low-income and veteran housing units. Insufficient sewer services in the location of the projects — just east of Homedale Road — require a pressurized lift station with force-main sewer services. The acceptance of the grant award from Business Oregon was approved to implement an upgraded lift station at the site.
The 10th annual Ride the Rim Days will be held at Crater Lake National Park on two Saturdays — Sept. 7 and 14.
The event is hosted by the park in partnership with the Friends of Crater Lake and Discover Klamath. On both days East Rim Drive from the North Junction to Park Headquarters will be closed to motorized vehicles at 7 p.m. on the Fridays before the event until 4 p.m. on Saturdays to allow for non-motorized recreation including biking, hiking and running.
The event is free, but normal park entrance fees apply. Ride the Rim has grown in popularity each year. “It provides an opportunity to experience East Rim Drive in a unique way, under your own power, whether you’re on a bicycle or on your own two feet,” notes Superintendent Craig Ackerman. “It is a strenuous endeavor, but the rewards of a slower pace, opportunities for quiet reflection, and healthy, vigorous recreation make it a special experience for many people.”
In accordance with National Park Service policy, e-bikes (low-speed, electric bicycles with power assistance) are permitted as part of this event. The operator of an e-bike may only use the motor to assist pedal propulsion.
The motor may not be used to propel an e-bike without the rider also pedaling, except in locations open to public motor vehicle traffic. The closed route around the lake is about 25 miles long with 3,500 feet of climbing at elevations over 7,000 feet.
In a statement, park officials suggest, “Make sure your battery power, or leg power, will last this long, or consider a shorter out-and-back route. There is no SAG wagon provided.”
Park visitors on the Ride days should expect a large number of bicyclists on park roads. Cyclists and motorists on West Rim Drive are asked to ride and drive with “caution and patience.”
Cyclists should ride single file when sharing the road with motorists. West Rim Drive will be open for all travel. North Entrance Road will also be open beginning at 7 p.m. on Fridays before the rides. Park staff recommend that cyclists avoid riding on West Rim Drive, if possible, because of increased traffic from Ride the Rim participants, shuttles, and other park visitors. Ride the Rim parking will be available at the North Junction, Park Headquarters, and the Picnic Hill area of Rim Village.
Participants are encouraged to share rides to help ease parking congestion. A free shuttle will transport participants to the start of the ride or to their vehicles after the event.
The shuttle will run between North Junction, Rim Village and Park Headquarters. The shuttle will not carry bicycles to accommodate more people. “A person or people from each party will need to remain with bicycles while members of their party park or retrieve vehicles.
For single riders, there will be a limited bike valet at North Junction and Park Headquarters,” note park officials.
The Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife is hosting free pheasant hunts for kids 17 and under. There are two hunts in Southern Oregon, one in Central Point and another Klamath Falls.
Kids must have a valid Hunter Safety Education card and a valid hunting license. They must be accompanied by an adult 21 years or older. The Central Point hunt is taking place at the Denman Wildlife Area on September 14 and 15. Check in starts at 7 a.m. and the hunt goes from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
To join the hunt, participants must register beforehand. For more information on this hunt, call 541-826-8774.
The Shaw Historical Society is planning a banquet dinner from 5:30 to 8 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 12, 2024, at Oregon Tech’s College Union. The guest speaker will be Ryan Bartholomew.
Cost is $40, with rib roast or beef. A vegetarian option will be available upon request. A no-host social hour begins at 5:30 p.m. Visit oit.edu/shaw2024 to make reservations online. Deadline is 5 p.m. Friday, Sept. 6. For more information, contact Katie Cavendish at (541) 885-0222.
Win-R-Insulation, Inc. wants you to know of a special partnership with EnergyTrust of Oregon where you may be able to qualify for a FREE CEILING INSULATION PROGRAM.
Click here for full details: https://www.basinlife.com/2024/07/08/win-r-insulation-announces-free-ceiling-insulation-program-click-here-for-info/
Around the State of Oregon
A Medford man is dead and two others were sent to hospitals for medical treatment following a boating accident in Winchester Bay.
On Thursday 63-year-old James McKeane of Medford, his son 36 year-old Kenneth McKeane of Central Point and his neighbor 35-year-old Anthony Knight of Medford were ocean fishing. After a few hours, weather conditions brought them back to the docks. While heading towards the bay a large wave crashed into the left side of the boat, rolling it over and eventually capsizing it.
All three of the men went into the water without life jackets. James McKeane and Knight were rescued by the United States Coast Guard, with Knight unconscious. Both James and Knight were transported to Lower Umpqua Hospital to receive medical treatment.
Efforts to revive Knight were made, but ultimately were unsuccessful. Kenneth McKeane was later located by a USCG helicopter on the North Jetty and was airlifted to North Bend Hospital.
The accident remains under investigation by the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office Marine Division alongside the Oregon State Marine Board.
Oregon State Police are reminding parents and students of the SafeOregon hotline. It takes reports of potential threats against students and schools. The tips can be made anonymously.
They can include safety threats, fights, drugs, weapons on campus, cyberbullying and students considering self-harm or suicide. A technician reviews the reports and assigns them either to police or school administrators.
Tips can be made by phone, text, email or on the website, SafeOregon.com. That’s safeoregon dot com.
Michael Bakkela was sentenced to 11 years in prison for a fire Phoenix is still recovering from.
The fire Bakkela started happened on the same day as the Almeda Fire four years ago Bakkela was seen on Quail Lane, near the railroad tracks, where he intentionally started a fire that was then pushed by strong northwest winds.
The DA’s office says the fire destroyed or damaged 14 homes and three businesses. Bakkela pleaded no contest to 15 charges of criminal mischief and one count of arson back in 2022.
The fire he started did merge with the Almeda Fire, but the DA’s office made it clear there is no evidence linking Bakkela to the start of the Almeda Fire.
The application deadline for the new EBT program has been extended to midnight Sept. 30, 2024.
The program offers $120 per child to help cover grocery costs when school food programs are not as easy to access.
Eligible families should act now. Thousands of families may be unaware that they qualify for this essential benefit. The Oregon Department of Human Services (ODHS) and the Oregon Department of Education (ODE) urge families to check their eligibility and apply before the extended deadline.
Remember, once benefits are received, they must be used within 122 days. Most eligible children received their benefits automatically on June 28, 2024, if their households:
Participate in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP)
Participate in Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF)
Are Oregon Health Plan (Medicaid) members in households with incomes under 185 percent of the Federal Poverty Level
Children in foster care also automatically received Summer EBT. However, families who did not receive benefits automatically, particularly those with children enrolled in a school during the 2023-2024 school year who were eligible for the National School Lunch or Breakfast Programs, should still apply to determine their eligibility.
Families are encouraged to visit sebt.oregon.gov or contact the Summer EBT Call Center to verify their eligibility
More than 3,000 Oregon state workers have filed claims alleging that they are underpaid due to an inaccurate evaluation of their experience and education in a recent state equal pay analysis.
The Oregon Department of Administrative Services conducts the analysis at least once every three years to ensure employees have the correct job classification and are fairly paid.
The latest review, covering about 36,000 state employees and completed in June, resulted in salary increases for 8,789 workers, who were reclassified based on updated education and experience assessments, according to Bryanna Duke, public records manager for the agency.
The significant number of reclassifications marks a victory for the state’s public employee unions, which have successfully negotiated several changes to the equal pay analysis process, aiming to promote fairness and address wage disparities between male and female state employees, as well as between employees of color and their white counterparts.
However, 3,025 employees – or about 8.4% of employees covered by the analysis – have appealed, contending that the state miscalculated their experience, education level or both, according to Andrea Chiapella, spokesperson for the Department of Administrative Services.
LL Flooring, the hardwood flooring retailer formerly known as Lumber Liquidators, is going out of business.
Less than a month after filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, the Virginia-based company says it is now “winding down operations” after failing to find a buyer in recent negotiations with prospective bidders. That means all of its remaining stores will soon close their doors.
LL Flooring expected to begin to begin the process this week, with closing sales at hundreds of stores slated to start Friday. The retailer says store closures should be completed over the next 12 weeks, with timing varying by location.
Oregon Schools Are Failing
A national education research organization says Oregon deserves a failing grade for the report cards on individual schools’ performance that it releases every fall, which the group says mask just how far behind many students remain in the wake of the pandemic.
Oregon was one of just 13 states that the nonpartisan Center for Reinventing Public Education gave an F for making it wildly difficult for parents to find and compare data about long-term school performance. Neighboring Washington state received a B.
The state’s current report card site, its federally-mandated effort to inform Oregonians about the state of their schools, requires members of the public to download PDFs for individual schools and districts.
In most states, there are clear signs of a rebound in such metrics, even if students have yet to return to pre-pandemic norms. But Oregon has yet to show any upticks, save for in its graduation rate data, which has risen modestly post-pandemic.
Ghost Guns To Be Outlawed this week
So-called ghost guns, privately made firearms that don’t have serial numbers and are largely untraceable, will be banned across Oregon today, after a federal judge denied a legal challenge that tried to block the prohibition.
Ghost guns differ from weapons manufactured by licensed companies in that the latter are generally required to have serial numbers — usually displayed on the frame of the gun — that allow officials to trace them back to the manufacturer, the dealer and the original purchaser.
The U.S. Department of Justice reported recovering 25,785 ghost guns in domestic seizures in 2022. In the Oregon case, Stephen Duvernay, a lawyer for the Oregon Firearms Federation and the Firearms Policy Coalition Inc., argued in federal court this month that self-made guns without serial numbers are common in the U.S., The Oregonian/OregonLive reported.
Duvernay also said requiring his clients to add serial numbers to their guns or gun parts would be impractical, adding that about 1 million people own such weapons in state and would be affected by the new law. In 2023 the Oregon Legislature passed House Bill 2005 banning ghost guns.
State Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum, a Democrat, had pushed for the legislation for years, according to Oregon Public Broadcasting.
When the ban takes effect, firearms made after Oct. 22, 1968, must have a serial number, and violating the law could result in a $1,000 fine. Repeat offenders could face higher fines and potentially incarceration. Under the law, people with firearms that currently do not have serial numbers can have numbers put on them by federally licensed gun dealers so they comply with the statute.
Since July 2023, Oregon has also barred the sale, transfer and import of unserialized firearms and the possession, sale and manufacturing of firearms that cannot be detected by metal detectors or X-ray machines.
Federal officials are moving ahead with plans to promote the shipment of goods by zero-emission trucks up and down the West Coast.
Authorities say the U.S. Department of Transportation is giving Washington, Oregon and California 102-million dollars to create a network of semi-truck charging and fueling stations to power battery and hydrogen fuel-cell semi-trucks traversing the three states. Officials say major hubs would be built in San Diego, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Portland and Seattle.
Thanks for reading the the news on BasinLife.com from Wynne Broadcasting.
Ready to Advertise in 2024? Let’s get the word out for Summer! Call BasinLife.com at 541-363-7503. Or email us today at INFO@BasinLife.com with your name, business, and what you’re looking for. We’ll customize a plan fit for your budget.
We offer more local advertising opportunities than any one in the Klamath Basin. We’re ready to help you with the best radio and digital advertising in Southern Oregon.
You can receive Daily Radio Mentions across our 6 stations, Articles, direct link Banner Ads, floating Banner Ads on hundreds of article pages daily, Social Media Posts, geo-fencing and geo-targeting services, and also available are Email Blasts to thousands of local residents. We can also keep you updated with the latest smart digital marketing strategies for 2024 for your business. BasinLife.com is still the best value in the Klamath Basin for advertising, as we celebrate our 8th year promoting businesses!
For information or prices on plans, simply call us today at 541-363-7503 or email us at Info@BasinLife.com. Let us keep your business top-of -mind!