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Tuesday, March 18, 2025
Klamath Basin Weather
Today
Partly sunny ith a high near 42 degrees. West to southwest inds around 7 mph. Overnight, partly cloudy with a low near 27.
See Road Camera Views around the Klamath Basin:
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 Klamath Falls Headlines
A late winter storm slammed Southern Oregon over the weekend, wreaking havoc with floodwaters, heavy snow in higher elevations, and complete highway shutdowns.
A 53 mile stretch of Highway 58 from Oakridge to the intersection of Highway 97 in Klamath County closed to all traffic Sunday, as was Oregon 138 Diamond Lake highway. Fallen trees and debris were a common sight Sunday with heavy wet snow and high winds.
The highway just opened back up about 12pm today.
The snow continued to pile up at Crater Lake. The webcam view of the visitor center is gone. Yesterday, the snow depth was up to a whopping 173 inches, with more falling all day Monday . All roads were closed throughout the park, including Highway 62 and Munson Valley Road to Park Headquarters & Rim Village due to the snowstorm.
In Northern Klamath County, Gilchrist schools canceled school for Monday. A Central Point woman is dead after drowning in Kane Creek on Sunday afternoon.
The Jackson County Sheriff’s Office (JCSO) said on Monday that their deputies responded to a call for a missing woman in the 5000 block of Kane Creek Rd on Sunday, Mar. 16 at 4:21 p.m. Investigators found that the woman was trying to clear branches from a culvert under her driveway when her waders filled with water, with flood waters pulling her into nearby Kane Creek.
Jackson County Fire District 3 responded with its water Technical Rescue Team, with crews finding her about 100 yards down the creek. A Mercy Flights ambulance took the woman to a local hospital, where she was pronounced deceased after medics attempted lifesaving measures. JCSO said next of kin has been notified, and that the name of the woman will not be released out of respect for her family’s privacy. JCSO is also reminding residents to stay away from flood-prone areas during periods of heavy rainfall, and to stay on higher ground whenever possible.
The city of Phoenix is offering sandbags to residents to prepare for potential flood impacts on Monday. Anyone looking to pick up a sandbag can call the Public Works department.
Drain, Oregon in Northern Douglas County was inundated with flood water over the weekend as was much of Roseburg and Grants Pass. The City of Roseburg opened a temporary shelter at Joseph Lane Middle School. The shelter is available to anyone who has been evacuated from their home due to flooding.
The City of Sutherlin has declared a State of emergency. ODOT says staying home is the safest thing to do during a winter storm. If you must travel, be prepared for extended delays and closures. Check TripCheck.com or call 511 for the latest conditions and closures.
More unsettled weather is expected the rest of this week, with snow showers locally in the Klamath Basin and continued rainy weather predicted in lower lying areas in the state.
A couple of Klamath Union High School students are already some of the top young filmmakers in the country.
That’s according to this year’s annual C-SPAN StudentCam Documentary Competition. Sophomores Kenzi Freid and Zoe Bitzer took 29th place out of 1,500 entries. It’s for their documentary “The Education Gap.”
The film highlights the challenges students face across the U.S. Meanwhile Elsie Baumann took 36th place for her film “Run Free” about the Klamath Dam Removal and the positive effect it has had on fish. This is her second time competing. Elsie took third place in the U.S. last year.
For more on the competition or to view the student films, visit Klamath Union High School’s Facebook page.
The biologist’s words came during the second annual Renaissance Tour of the Klamath Drainage District (KDD happened last week.
This is the first time there has been water on the refuge in five years. The tour was started as a way to inform and reassure visitors with the promise of improvement after years of drought plagued farmers and decimated wildlife habitat. On Thursday morning KDD officials, scientists and the Modoc Nation agreed the improvement is real.
Situated north of Stateline Road between Highway 97 and the Klamath Hills in a triangle of soil that borders the Lower Klamath Lake Refuge lies the 27,000 acres of KDD land, which approximately 12 landowners rely on for irrigation. It’s also a critical resting point for waterfowl and migratory birds traveling along the Pacific Flyway.
Since 1907, the drainage district’s primary function has been to remove water from the former lake bed of lower Klamath Lake by dispersing it in all compass directions for use by irrigators throughout the Klamath Project with much of the water being sent back to the Klamath River.
Bordering the Lower Klamath National Wildlife Refuge — the nation’s first waterfowl refuge — the district also provides much of the water that replenishes those wetlands. In recent years however, the Bureau of Reclamation has cut back water allotments which created tremendous setbacks for area farmers, ranchers and their neighboring waterfowl who look for respite in the wetlands, wetlands that have been bone dry for the past few years.
Before acts of Congress, the area of KDD and the Lower Klamath National Wildlife Refuge was a natural marsh abundant with diverse wildlife species.
It also was home to the Modoc Tribe who lived, hunted and gathered there before being forced to leave. It wasn’t long after that the Bureau of Reclamation began to build a network of dikes, canals, drains and pumps to make way for the railway and agricultural users.
The WinCo Foods Grocery Store project here in Klamath Falls will begin on Monday, March 17th with mobilizing of equipment and preparing for earthwork.
The project location is on the north side of Shasta Way, between Washburn Way and Avalon Street, on the large vacant lot next to Fred Meyer. The only closure at this time will be the sidewalk on the Shasta Way frontage. Expect more truck traffic than usual. Additional press releases will be made as the project progresses.
STARBASE Kingsley, a STEM Education program, closed its doors to program operations on Friday not only impacting Kingsley Field’s site, but all 90 programs across the United States, Puerto Rico, and Guam.
STARBASE Kingsley was one of the original seven academies in the nation and has served our community as a leader in STEM education for 32 years.
The U.S. House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate are in disagreement on how much to allocate for the 90 STARBASE locations. Currently, the House has proposed $60 million; the Senate has proposed $20 million.
As a result of this disparity, the DoD comptroller (the financial reporting and accounting office) is acting conservatively and only released $20 million for all STARBASE locations during the continuing resolution.
Once Congress passes the appropriations budget and the President signs it into law, the length of STARBASE closures will be known. If the Senate concedes to the House and increases the STARBASE budget to $60 million, operations can resume. If the House concedes to the Senate and lowers the budget, STARBASE will face closure until next fiscal year.
At Oregon Tech, Klamath Falls-area students demonstrated their forward thinking and supportive ambitions to make the world a more sustainable place during MESA’s Demo Day held Tuesday on the college campus.
MESA, an acronym for Mathematics Engineering Science Achievement, is an after-school program that empowers middle and high school students through invention education. They tackle relevant issues by designing projects that create and maintain healthy, equitable and diverse communities and ecosystems with this year’s focus being climate action.
Paired into teams (five middle school, five high school), the students explained their designs for a panel of judges as they competed for the first-place prize. Seeing representation from area schools Ponderosa, Mazama and Klamath Union, the projects tackled everything from water filtration to fire mitigation.
One project, called the Water Bug, was ambitiously thought up by a team of sixth-graders for the use of quantifying the volume and velocity of a body of water. Another middle school team engineered a device that would keep syringes holding essential nutrients for waterfowl at appropriate temperatures for workers out in the field.
Another Ponderosa team, taking inspiration from a discussion they had with a janitor at the middle school, crafted BOB (Big ‘Ol Bin), a compost collector that would automatically sort compostable materials and thereby reducing food waste and other geological plights caused by garbage collection. Through this project, the students hope it would additionally influence Ponderosa to bring washable trays and silverware while also having the compost be used by the school’s gardening club.
At the high school level, the teams shared ideas for an aquaponic farming system that would reduce water waste by self-regulating at what depth to soak depending on which plants inhabit the device. Another water-related project from a team of Mazama High School students saw the use of mushrooms and other purifying plants to clear excess nutrients from a body of water.
Starting Monday, Mar. 31, all schools within the Klamath County School District (KCSD) will be extending their school day by 14 minutes for the rest of the year.
Superintendent Glen Szymoniak said Friday that the district needs to make up class time lost due to last month’s weather-related closures. Start times will stay the same, and bus schedules will be adjusted to accommodate changes in the school schedule.
Fridays with an early release schedule will be adjusted, with students now being released 46 minutes early instead of one hour early.
KCSD junior high and high school students will also have an instructional school day on Thursday, Mar. 20 — a previously scheduled no-school day due to parent-teacher conferences. These conferences will be held in the evening of that same day.
Any families in the district with questions are being asked to contact their school directly. This announcement comes ten days after Klamath Falls City Schools announced they would also be extending their school day by 14 minutes for the rest of the school year, starting Monday, Mar. 31.
A deadline of April 2, 2025, has been set for the Spring Brick Order for bricks dedicated to military veterans to be placed at the Veterans Memorial in Klamath Falls.
The Veterans Memorial Project is a community wide project which honors and recognizes Veterans who have served this nation. The memorial features a pavilion, war monuments and over 5,000 dedicated bricks meant to be a lasting legacy to military individuals.
Each brick is a tribute to a military member and their service.
Bricks can be ordered for $50.00 each and dedicated to any United States veteran, regardless of where they live and whether they are living or deceased.
A brick order form can be downloaded from the city website at www.klamathfalls.city.
For more information, contact the City of Klamath Falls Development Services Office at 541-883-4950 or online, at cityparks@klamathfalls.city.
KLAMATH ANIMAL SHELTER PET OF THE WEEK FOR ADOPTION
This week’s pet is a dog named ” Stella “

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Around the State of Oregon
A Wolf Creek man is in the Douglas County Jail on second-degree manslaughter charges after a pickup truck crash on Monday killed his daughter.
The Douglas County Sheriff’s Office (DCSO) said driver impairment is a factor in the crash. Deputies were sent to respond to a crash on ODF land bordering the 1200 block of Tunnel Rd in Glendale at about 1:30 p.m. on Monday, Mar. 11. DCSO said the truck, a green Ford F250, was occupied by the driver, 55-year-old Ian Anthony Fleming of Wolf Creek, when the crash happened.
Three juvenile girls were also reportedly in the truck at the time of the crash. DCSO said the three girls were thrown from the truck as it rolled down an embankment, with all three sustaining injuries. Fleming got out of the truck and tried to get medical care for his daughter, who was seriously injured.
Fleming borrowed a car to drive his daughter to the Tunnel Rd ambulance station, where Glendale Ambulance paramedics declared her dead. Paramedics took the other two girls to Asante Rogue Regional Medical Center in Medford for treatment. DCSO said on Tuesday its detectives responded to the scene after deputies said Fleming had fled.
Detectives determined alcohol and drugs were a factor in the crash, arresting Fleming on charges of second-degree manslaughter.
Gov. Tina Kotek has been saying for months that Oregon’s public schools need more money, and they need to be held accountable for better academic outcomes.
Now Kotek — along with fellow Democrats Senate President Rob Wagner and Speaker of the House Julie Fahey — pushed two complementary bills forward to legislators this week. House Bill 2009 had its first hearing Monday afternoon; Senate Bill 141 is set to have its first hearing on Wednesday.
Both were presented earlier in the session as placeholder bills meant to study the adequacy of public education and school accountability. They now carry amendment proposals that lay out more specifics. This is the latest of several efforts in recent months to give Oregon more teeth when it comes to education.
This week’s bills would set new metrics for public schools, paying more attention to existing markers, like graduation rates, but with some additional measures as well, such as eighth-grade math and early grade attendance rates.
They also aim to fine-tune what the Oregon Department of Education is responsible for. But perhaps the biggest change is that the bills would require districts to take certain steps if they aren’t showing enough improvement.
As it stands now, districts that have been struggling and qualify for state “intensive” support can choose whether to opt in — a measure that was designed and funded through the Student Success Act in 2019. As of this fall, only a fraction of the districts that qualify have taken the state up on their offer.
An Oregon appeals court on Wednesday found that a gun control law approved by voters over two years ago is constitutional, reversing a lower court ruling from a state judge who had kept it on hold.
The law, one of the toughest in the nation, requires people to undergo a criminal background check and complete a gun safety training course in order to obtain a permit to buy a firearm.
It also bans high-capacity magazines holding more than 10 rounds. Measure 114 has been tied up in state and federal court since it was narrowly approved by voters in November 2022. It was among the first gun restrictions to be passed after a major 2022 U.S. Supreme Court ruling changed the guidance judges are expected to follow when considering Second Amendment cases.
A state judge in rural southeastern Oregon temporarily blocked the law from taking effect after gun owners filed a lawsuit claiming it violated the right to bear arms under the Oregon Constitution. Circuit Court Judge Robert S. Raschio then presided over a 2023 trial in Harney County and ruled that the law violated the state constitution. The Oregon attorney general’s office appealed the ruling.
Oregon ranchers want higher payouts from the state to recoup their losses for cattle and other livestock killed by wolves. But the fate of a bill that would increase those payments will be determined by whether enough Democratic lawmakers, who hold the majority in Salem, are willing to defy environmentalists and support the proposal.
For years, Oregon ranchers have complained about wolves preying on their cows, horses and other animals. Because shooting a wolf is against state hunting laws, lawmakers in 2011 agreed to compensate ranchers for the financial loss of any animal that dies following a wolf attack.
Ranchers say the money is vital to keeping their operations profitable. In 2023, Oregon counties gave ranchers $70,300 from state coffers for dead or injured cattle that experts determined were likely attacked by wolves. Ranchers are currently compensated for the market value of the cattle lost to wolves. But ranchers say the losses they suffer are deeper than merely the cost of a replacement calf or cow.
Numerous Republican lawmakers agree. Sen. Todd Nash, a Republican from Enterprise and former president of the Oregon Cattlemen’s Association, introduced a bill in January that would require the state to pay ranchers at least the fair market value – and in many cases far more – for animals injured or killed by wolves.
Under the bill, Oregon would have to pay seven times the market value of cow calves, sheep and goats, and three times the market value for other cows.
Every year, the Oregon Law Enforcement Memorial Ceremony honors the state’s law enforcement officers who have died in the line of duty.
This year’s ceremony will be held Tuesday, May 6th at 1 p.m. at the Oregon Public Safety Academy in Salem.
The annual event commemorates the more than 190 fallen officers who have made the ultimate sacrifice in service to the state of Oregon since the 1860s. This includes law enforcement, corrections, and parole and probation officers from city, county, state, tribal and federal law enforcement agencies.
The Department of Public Safety Standards and Training is proud to host the ceremony in partnership with the Oregon Law Enforcement Memorial Fund, Oregon Concerns of Police Survivors (C.O.P.S.), Oregon Fallen Badge Foundation, and various statewide law enforcement associations.
Northwest Natural wants to raise gas rates nearly seven percent for single family homes.
That would increase an average monthly bill five-dollars 55-cents. Northwest Natural says the increase is needed for inflation, higher interest rates, and investments to increase safety. The Oregon Public Utility Commission will hold a virtual hearing to take comment on March 18th.
A recent Josephine County Sheriff’s Office (JCSO) sex offender compliance and outstanding warrant sweep resulted in 25 arrests and three probationary detainers.
According to JCSO, called Operation Sentinel, the sweep was a multi-agency, county-wide sweep took place from March 6 through 10. It targeted sex offenders and those individuals with outstanding warrants, for both felonies and misdemeanors. This includes repeat and violent offenders as well as those individuals who took off to avoid prosecution.
The sweep resulted in 19 felony arrests, five misdemeanor arrests, 1 probable cause arrest, and three probationary detailers. Police also found and seized over 10 grams of illegal drugs.
During the operation police also conducted door to door verifications of addresses reported by sex offenders as their residences in an effort to check the validity of their registrations.
The U.S. Marshals Service, Oregon State Police, Rogue Area Drug Enforcement, Josephine County Parole and Probation, Grants Pass Police Department, U.S. Postal Inspection Service, and the Josephine County District Attorney’s Office assisted with Operation Sentinel.
The Oregon Department of Revenue has added features to the “Where’s My Refund” tool.
Users can learn more about the status of their refund, they can see when additional information is needed, and the website is easier to navigate. To use the tool, taxpayers need to create a login at Revenue Online.
https://revenueonline.dor.oregon.gov/tap/_/
Filing a tax return could net thousands in tax credits for low-income families
Salem, OR—Oregon’s newest refundable personal income tax credit put more than $39 million into the pockets of low-income families in its first year in 2024.
The Oregon Kids Credit, created by the Legislature in 2023, is a refundable credit for low-income people with young dependent children. For those with a modified adjusted gross income (MAGI) of $25,750 or less, the full credit is $1,000 per child for up to five dependent children under the age of six at the end of the tax year—a maximum benefit of $5,000. A partial credit is available for individuals and families with an MAGI up to $30,750.
So far in 2025, more than 22,000 taxpayers have claimed $25 million in benefits from the Oregon Kids Credit.
When combined with the federal Earned Income Tax Credit and the Oregon Earned Income Credit, it could help boost the tax refund for the lowest income families by a total of $13,770.
The EITC is for people with an adjusted gross income of up to $66,818 in 2024. Families may be eligible for a maximum refundable credit of $7,830 on their federal tax return, and a maximum Oregon EIC of $940 on their state tax return.
All three credits are fully refundable, meaning the portion of the credit that is larger than what a taxpayer owes can be refunded. Taxpayers may even be able to claim the credits and receive a tax refund if they don’t normally file a tax return.
To claim the credits, taxpayers must file a return. To assist taxpayers, Oregon offers several free filing options, including free fillable forms and the new Direct File Oregon. Taxpayers who need help filing their taxes can also find free assistance options on the agency website.
Families who are eligible for the Oregon Kids Credit are also likely eligible for the refundable Working Family Household and Dependent Care Credit (WFHDC), which helps low- to moderate-income families pay for the care of their dependents while they’re working, looking for work, or attending school.
For more information about the federal EITC, the Oregon EIC, the Oregon Kids Credit and other similar credits, go to the Tax benefits for families page.
Taxpayers filing their own 2024 income tax returns can get free assistance using the new combination of IRS Direct File and Direct File Oregon when Oregon Department of Revenue volunteers visit libraries across the state this tax season.
The Chief Executive Officer of Waterfall Community Health Center in North Bend has resigned. The former Gresham pastor is accused of sexually abusing teenagers.
According to a notice of proposed disciplinary action from the Board of Licensed Professional Counselors and Therapists, between roughly 1998 and 2001, Lance Nelson engaged in sexual misconduct with two minors. The board says Nelson remained in contact with the minors through his connections with Springwater Church of the Nazarene in Gresham. It also says he continued the sexual misconduct with the two minors while he pursued a counseling degree and offered the two individuals counseling services.
The board says it did not learn of the alleged conduct until 2023.
On Tuesday, the Waterfall Health Center announced in a Facebook post that Nelson had resigned effective immediately.
Oregon and nine other states recently achieved a collective goal of shifting new car buyers toward electric rather than gas-powered vehicles in an effort to reduce pollution and combat climate change.
The states have collectively registered 3.3 million new electric vehicles in the last 12 years, fulfilling a 2013 agreement to do so by 2025, according to a report shared Monday by the Northeast States for Coordinated Air Use Management, a Boston-based nonprofit association of state air pollution control agencies.
Transportation was and remains the largest source of planet warming greenhouse gases in Oregon and the nation. When then-Gov. John Kitzhaber signed onto the 2013 agreement, just 300 electric vehicles were registered in Oregon.
Today, more than 100,000 electric vehicles have been registered in the state, according to the Oregon Department of Energy. That’s about 5% of all new cars registered in the state in the last decade.
Since the Oregon Legislature voted to ban single-use plastic grocery bags and limit plastic straws in 2019, most Oregonians have grown used to bringing their own bags to the store and asking for straws.
Now, lawmakers looking to stop plastic from piling up on the state’s beaches are turning their attention to other plastic utensils, condiment packaging and hotel-issued toiletries.
The Oregon Senate voted 22-8 on Tuesday to pass Senate Bill 551, which would expand the state’s plastic bag ban to cover takeout bags provided by restaurants and the thicker plastic bags some stores have offered since the original ban took effect in 2020. The bill would also require customers to explicitly ask for plastic utensils, single-serving plastic packaging for condiments like ketchup, coffee creamer, jelly and soy sauce and plastic-packaged hospitality size shampoos, soaps and lotions, like they already must ask for straws.
Sen. Janeen Sollman, the Hillsboro Democrat behind the bill, said it will be good for the environment and for businesses that will save money by buying fewer plastic goods. The proposal won support from all Democrats and four Republicans. Three of those Republicans — Sens. David Brock Smith of Port Orford, Dick Anderson of Lincoln City and Suzanne Weber of Tillamook — represent coastal districts, and Brock Smith said his experience on Oregon’s beaches contributed to his vote for the bill.
Sen. Todd Nash, R-Enterprise, lives far from the ocean but said he voted for the bill because of the timber industry. Other Republicans were less convinced. Sen. Kim Thatcher, a Keizer Republican who voted against the bill, said her dogs would look forward to it because they’d have easier access to saucy Chinese takeout that leaks out of folding boxes and can now be contained by a plastic bag.
And Sen. Noah Robinson, R-Cave Junction, said he opposes littering but loves plastic. Stores, restaurants and hotels should have the freedom to choose the products they think are best for their customers, he said.
Oregon State Representative Pam Marsh introduced a bill Tuesday that would create a fund to help those who lose their property to utility-caused fires.
HB3917 would allow utilities companies to create a fund of $800 million that would pay property damage claims arising from wildfires caused by their equipment. The fund will be managed by the Public Utilities Commission.
Another bill introduced by Marsh addressing utility companies’ roles in fire is HB3666, which requires utility companies to apply for a wildfire safety certification, meeting a requirement that she said isn’t currently set. If they meet the standard, the PUC will award them a wildfire safety certificate.
HB3917 doesn’t stop the ability to pursue civil action against a utility commission, but it does entail a caveat, that if you gain funds from a claim with the fund, you will not be able to pursue action against the utility provider.
Ten men formerly incarcerated at Oregon’s MacLaren Youth Correctional Facility in Woodburn have filed a $51 million lawsuit against the state’s juvenile justice agency, the Oregon Health Authority (OYA), alleging that they were all sexually abused by a single OYA doctor, and that several of them were also sexually abused by various other OYA staff.
The lawsuit seeks $100,000 in economic damages and $5 million in noneconomic damages for each plaintiff. It follows a series of other youth sexual abuse lawsuits filed last year that have put intense scrutiny on OYA’s handling of youth sexual abuse cases.
The latest lawsuit, filed Wednesday in Multnomah County Circuit Court, accuses OYA of negligence, civil rights violations and sexual battery of a child. In addition to the agency and the State of Oregon, it lists 20 staff, five directors and five superintendents as defendants, alleging that they either committed sexual abuse or failed to report it.
The complaint states that the plaintiffs do not know the full identities of many of the defendants. The plaintiffs are all listed by initials; although they are all now in their 30s, the lawsuit states that they are seeking to use pseudonyms during the proceedings due to the sensitive nature of the allegations.
OHA urges people to check immunity against measles; get vaccinated
As cases appear in other states, including neighboring California, Oregon health officials recommend measures to stay safe
PORTLAND, Ore._ With spring break and summer travel season approaching, Oregon Health Authority (OHA) encourages people to make sure they are protected against measles. Getting the MMR vaccine — for measles, mumps and rubella — is the most effective prevention tool against the highly contagious virus.
Twelve U.S. states, including California, Texas and New Mexico, have reported cases of measles since Jan 1. While Oregon has no cases so far in 2025, last year the state recorded 31 confirmed cases — its highest measles count in more than 30 years — during an outbreak among unvaccinated people, including two children younger than 5.
“Measles is an amazingly contagious virus that unfortunately in recent years has re-emerged in our communities, primarily due to a declining percentage of people who are getting vaccinated,” said Paul Cieslak, M.D., medical director for communicable diseases and immunizations at OHA’s Public Health Division.
“Measles is a serious and potentially life-threatening infection for individuals who haven’t received immunity through the MMR vaccine,” said Dawn Nolt, M.D., M.P.H., professor of pediatrics (infectious diseases) in the OHSU School of Medicine.
“The good news is that we have a highly safe and effective vaccine – it is our strongest line of defense and the best way to keep yourself, your children and your community safe. If you have questions about the vaccine, we encourage you to talk to your healthcare provider about your concerns.” she said.
Cieslak said anyone planning travel to countries or states where measles is circulating should get the MMR vaccine before they go. “Getting the vaccine now will allow you to start building immunity prior to your trip,” he said.
Cieslak addresses common questions about measles, symptoms, the vaccine and more in this week’s Oregon Health News newsletter, published Thursday.
Symptoms
Measles typically starts with a fever, cough, runny nose and red eyes. A rash usually follows, beginning on the face and spreading to the rest of the body.
Symptoms begin seven to 10 days after exposure to a person with measles. Common complications of measles include ear infection, lung infection and diarrhea. Swelling of the brain is a rare but much more serious complication.
About 20% of people who contract measles are hospitalized. In developed countries in recent years, one or two of every 1,000 measles cases have been fatal.
Measles spreads through the air after a person with measles coughs, sneezes, or even breathes. People who are infected can be unknowingly contagious for four days before a rash appears and up to four days afterward.
That means someone with measles can be unaware they are infected and can easily spread the virus before noticing any symptoms.
During the 2024 outbreak in Oregon, OHA worked with local public health officials to share information about specific locations where known measles cases had spent time so that members of the public were aware they may have been exposed to the highly contagious virus.
What families of school-age children should know
In addition to reducing risk of transmission, getting the vaccine can help families avoid having to isolate at home for several weeks if they are exposed to measles.
Additionally, state law requires an unvaccinated child exposed to the virus to be excluded from school or childcare during the period when they could become sick, which is usually for 21 days after exposure.
This exclusion period can be extended if there are more measles cases.
What people born before 1957 should know
People born before 1957 do not need to be vaccinated against measles—they are presumed to be immune.
That’s because, before the measles vaccine was first available to the public in 1963, virtually all children would contract measles by their teenage years, making them immune for life.
What people born in 1957 or later should know
People born in 1957 or later, however, could still benefit from the vaccine because they would have been at least 6 years old in 1963. At that age, there was still a meaningful chance they hadn’t been exposed to measles yet and could benefit from the new vaccine.
People who can document receiving the measles vaccine series at some point in their lives or have documentation showing a previous measles diagnosis or laboratory evidence of immunity can be confident they are immune and do not need to receive the MMR vaccine.
What anyone traveling should know
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends the following measles prevention measures for anyone traveling, especially internationally:
- Babies ages 6 through 11 months can receive an early dose of the vaccine to protect them for travel; but they should then receive another dose at 12 through 15 months and a final dose between ages 4 and 6.
- Children older than a year who have not been vaccinated should immediately receive one dose and follow with a second dose at least 28 days later.
- Children older than a year with one prior dose should receive an early second dose of MMR vaccine separated by at least 28 days.
- Teenagers and adults previously vaccinated with one dose should consider getting a second dose if they are traveling to an area where measles is circulating.
- People preparing to travel internationally who have not been immunized should get the vaccine prior to departure.
More CDC recommendations can be found here.
Oregon Parks and Rec Dept is asking beachgoers to remember this is Western Snowy Plover nesting season.
Sensitive nesting areas are identified on maps for the southern and northern Oregon coast. Signs are also posted on trailheads, where visitors might be asked to stay on the wet sand and keep dogs out of the area.
Snowy Plover nesting season runs through September 15th, to help reverse the decline of the threatened species.
Several Republican members of the Oregon House signed a letter to President Trump asking him to order voter identification and citizenship verification.
The request follows a mutiple clerical errors with Oregon’s Motor-Voter registration system that allowed at least 12-hundred people to be incorrectly registered to vote in the recent general election. Nine of those people voted. Who knows how many others have voted in other elections and primaries over the past 10 tens years.
The DMV has made changes to correct the problem and the Secretary of State’s Office is slowly reviewing voter registrations from the DMV.
Oregon State Parks will hire more than 200 seasonal Rangers and Ranger Assistants for positions across the state for the 2025 season.
Hiring starts as soon as this month and runs through about June with new positions listed on a rolling basis on the website. The positions last anywhere from four to nine months. Most seasonal staff work April through September, but some start as early as this month or work as late as December. Seasonal staff help visitors access world-class experiences and ensure clean and safe park areas for everyone to enjoy.
Duties include janitorial work, landscape maintenance, visitor education and visitor services. Salaries start at $19.78 per hour for seasonal assistants and $23.21 for seasonal rangers. Both positions include comprehensive medical, vision and dental plans for employees and qualified family members. The positions also include paid sick leave, vacation, personal leave and 11 paid holidays per year.
Student workers, ages 16 and older, start at $19.77 or more per hour depending on experience. Several of Oregon State Parks’ top leaders started their careers as seasonal employees including all three Region Directors. Seasonal staff gain valuable skills working with experienced Rangers at parks around the state.
The first wave of openings include positions along the coast from Washburne to Cape Lookout; the Willamette Valley including Silver Falls and Detroit Lake; the Columbia River Gorge and Eastern Oregon including Wallowa Lake and Lake Owyhee. For more information about current openings, visit stateparks.oregon.gov.
If you have any questions or need additional assistance in accessibility or alternative formats, please email Oregon Parks and Recreation Department Recruiting OPRD.Recruiting@oprd.oregon.gov. Oregon Parks and Recreation Department is an equal opportunity, affirmative action employer, committed to diversity and pay equity.
A bill to make Oregon one of a small number of states that have banned the sale of flavored tobacco drew passionate support but also very personal objections during a public hearing this week.
Proponents of the bill told a legislative committee that flavored tobacco “smells like candy” and addicts children as young as elementary school age while setting them on a path toward early death.
But opponents argued flavored tobacco, which often is ingested through vaping or packets that are sucked on, offers adults a less harmful alternative to smoking traditional cigarettes and the problem resides with stores that violate the law by selling it to Oregonians under age 21.
Chief among the bill’s opponents is Sen. David Brock Smith, a Port Orford Republican, who told the Senate Committee On Early Childhood and Behavioral Health that vaping flavored tobacco allowed him to kick a 30-year habit of smoking that was passed on to him from his dad.
Richard Burke, executive director of the 21+ Tobacco and Vapor Retail Association of Oregon, said banning flavored tobacco takes away “bodily autonomy” for adults and even the National Health Service in the United Kingdom has started a “Swap to Stop” program where it gives smokers vaping products in exchange for their traditional cigarettes. Burke also said a prohibition could create an underground trade.
Senate Bill 702 supporters who testified Tuesday were people of all ages, including parents, teens and doctors. They said not only do the fruity and sweet flavors hook youth under 21, the flavored tobacco impacts their ability to focus at school and be productive later in life.
Youth have little trouble getting around Oregon’s age restrictions on sales by getting the products from adults or buying the products at stores that are lackadaisical about enforcement, proponents of the bill said.
A pair of country stars is coming to one of Oregon’s biggest summer events, The Happy Canyon Kick-Off Concert, which is the opening to the Pendleton Round-Up. The weeklong festival in northeast Oregon that’s anchored by one of the biggest and most popular rodeos in the country.
This year, the concert will be headlined by country singers Tracy Lawrence and Rodney Atkins, who will perform at the Happy Canyon Arena on Saturday, Sept. 6.
Tickets go on sale at 10 a.m. March 14 at pendletonroundup.com. Lawrence, who had more than a dozen chart-topping singles in the 1990s and 2000s, is coming off his “Ain’t My Last Rodeo Tour” and hosts a radio show, “Honky Tonkin’ with Tracy Lawrence.” Atkins, who has also had several No. 1 singles, has been trickling out new songs in recent months, his first new solo work since 2019.
The rodeo portion of the Pendleton Round-Up will take place Sept. 10-13 this year. Tickets are on sale now.
The long-delayed deadline for REAL ID is now just three months away. There’s a chance that full enforcement may get gradually rolled out, but May 7, 2025, is the changeover deadline.
Starting then, state-level ID cards, such as driver’s licenses, won’t be accepted for federal purposes, namely getting through airport security, unless it’s REAL ID-compliant. If you plan to catch a domestic flight on or after May 7, you will be required to use a REAL ID. A little gold or black star in the upper right-hand corner is one of the easiest ways to know you’re holding a REAL ID.
In Oregon, it’s a black star. A REAL ID is an identification card that serves all of the same purposes of a standard drivers’ license or state-issued identification card. A federally-mandated switch to REAL ID for federal purposes, such as flying domestically, was originally signed into law by Congress in 2005.
The purpose is to establish “minimum security standards for license issuance and production,” according to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security website. The law, established four years after the 9/11 terrorist attacks, came in response to federal calls for higher security standards in the U.S. Originally, the law mandated the switch to REAL ID by 2008, but it has been pushed back for various reasons due to logistical hurdles and later the COVID-19 pandemic.
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