The latest news stories of interest in the Rogue Valley and around the state of Oregon from the digital home of Southern Oregon, Wynne Broadcasting’s RogueValleyMagazine.com
Monday, April 25, 2022
Rogue Valley Weather
Today– Mostly cloudy, with a high near 69. Calm wind becoming west northwest around 6 mph in the afternoon.
Tuesday– A 40 percent chance of showers before 11am. Snow level 4300 feet lowering to 3700 feet. Partly sunny, with a high near 61. Light northwest wind increasing to 5 to 10 mph in the morning.
Wednesday– Mostly sunny, with a high near 64. Calm wind becoming northwest around 5 mph in the afternoon.
Thursday– A 40 percent chance of showers, mainly after 11am. Snow level 3500 feet rising to 4300 feet in the afternoon. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 59.
Friday– Mostly sunny, with a high near 65.
Shooting Investigation At Rogue Valley Mall Carnival
On Saturday night at approximately 10:21 pm, Medford Police Officers were dispatched to the Rogue Valley Mall for a report of a disturbance in which shots had reportedly been fired.
Multiple vehicles were seen fleeing the scene as Officers arrived in the area. Multiple spent shell casings were located in the parking lot to the East of Bed, Bath and Beyond.
Officers conducted a safety check of the area ensuring there weren’t any potential victims needing medical attention and began taking statements from multiple witnesses who were still on scene.
A short time later a male subject was reportedly dropped off at one of Medford’s local hospitals with multiple gunshot wounds.
At this time the subject is still being treated for his wounds. Detectives and other investigative assets have been called in as this case is still under investigation. Medford Police Case# 22-6816 Medford Police Dept.
Arrest Made in Pacific Pride Fire
Medford Police Detectives have been actively investigating the Pacific Pride Fire at 936 S. Central Avenue, since the day it occurred on April 13th, 2022.
Today, John Charles Salmons, 49, a houseless individual known to frequent the Medford area, has been lodged in jail for:
– Arson 1st Degree
– Criminal Mischief 1st Degree (6 counts)
– Recklessly Endangering
No bail.
On April 16th, at about midnight, a Medford Police officer contacted Salmons on the bike path, in the 1400 block of Biddle Road, after seeing him with a warming fire. The officer discovered Salmons was on probation for Second Degree Arson, and ultimately arrested him for Probation Violation. Detectives later linked him to the Pacific Pride fire, and cited video surveillance as playing a key role. The Pacific Pride fire was believed to have been started intentionally. On April 22nd, 2022, the above charges were added to Salmons who remained in custody from the previous arrest.
Salmons’ original Arson conviction stems from a fire in Medford on August 1st, 2021.
Anyone with information related to this case is asked to contact our department, 541-770-4783. Case 22-6203 — Medford Police Dept.
This weekend South Medford’s recent fuel depot petroleum release cleanup is moving into a monitoring phase for some contamination effects.
Meanwhile, some deep ground surface cleanup efforts are yet to start. A SOLVE stream clean-up event along Bear Creek proceeded today while canceled in places at Hawthorne Park and McAndrews Road.
Oregon’s Department of Environmental Quality advises cleanup volunteers to stay clear of a water surface boom on the creek. It says a boom will stay on Bear Creek for at least the next few weeks as “crews have completed most of the cleanup of petroleum products released into the water from the April 12 fire at the Pacific Pride Commercial Fuel Station in Medford.” DEQ and NEXGEN Logistics LLC, which operates Pacific Pride, say they will monitor Bear Creek for fire-related petroleum runoff contamination and respond as needed. They reported this week that 20,000 gallons of petroleum products were in runoff from the fire scene.
Oregon Civil Air Patrol Training in Grants Pass Focuses on Finding Missing Aircraft
More than 50 Civil Air Patrol members from the Oregon Wing gathered in Grants Pass this weekend to train and practice for missions to help Oregon pilots and communities.
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Gathering at the facility near Grants Pass Airport, cadets and adult members of squadrons from many parts of Oregon trained to operate radios, work in the Command Post, serve as aircrew and to move and fuel aircraft. Five CAP aircraft from around Oregon responded to assist.
Saturday activities included four aircraft conducting Cadet Orientation Ride. Many cadets also took part in Orientation Rides, which teach them the functions of the aircraft and its equipment and the duties and tasks of pilots. The flights took off and landed at Grants Pass Airport, (designated as 3S8). Each cadet gets five flights in CAP powered aircraft during their time as a youth member. Lt Col Vivi Wells, project officer, said facilities were shared by Pacific Aviation and Josephine County.
Sunday activities included more Orientation Rides for cadets and two aircraft searching for a simulated missing airplane, which is a familiar mission for Civil Air Patrol, which serves as the Volunteer Auxiliary to the U.S. Air Force on searches for missing or significantly delayed aircraft. In this instance, CAP used a test beacon to send out a signal similar to those transmitted by aircraft in trouble. The aircrew, utilizing special equipment on the aircraft, were able to triangulate on the beacon, determining its location. The second aircraft was given instructions to search for a simulated crashed aircraft by visual search techniques.
Personnel traveled by vehicle and aircraft from the Medford Composite Squadron, Grants Pass Composite Squadron, High Desert Composite Squadron (Bend/Redmond), Washington County Composite Squadron (Hillsboro), McMinnville Composite Squadron, Mahlon Sweet Composite Squadron (Eugene) and Columbia Composite Squadron (Portland). Leaders and trainers from about the Oregon Wing lead the classes.
Many volunteers from the Grants Pass squadron made the event possible by being chaperones, preparing food, setting up radios and antennaes. Several days of planning and preparation were needed.
Established in 1941, Civil Air Patrol is the official auxiliary of the U.S. Air Force and as such is a member of its Total Force. In its auxiliary role, CAP operates a fleet of 560 single-engine Cessna aircraft and more than 2,000 small Unmanned Aircraft Systems (sUAS) and performs about 90% of continental U.S. inland search and rescue missions as tasked by the Air Force Rescue Coordination Center. Often using innovative cellphone forensics and radar analysis software, CAP was credited by the AFRCC with saving 130 lives in fiscal 2020. CAP’s 54,000 members also perform homeland security, disaster relief and drug interdiction missions at the request of federal, state and local agencies. As a nonprofit organization, CAP plays a leading role in aerospace education using national academic standards-based STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) education. Members also serve as mentors to over 20,000 young people participating in CAP’s Cadet Programs. One of the premier public service organizations in America, CAP benefits the nation with an estimated economic impact of $209 million annually. Visit www.CAP.News or www.GoCivilAirPatrol.com for more information.
The fact that people can still test positive for COVID-19 after being vaccinated may make some people question why they should get vaccinated or receive a booster dose.It’s ideal when a vaccine prevents infection, but the primary purpose of vaccines is to prevent severe illness, hospitalization and death.
The current COVID-19 vaccines remain highly effective at preventing severe illness and death.The two mRNA COVID-19 vaccines (Pfizer and Moderna) accomplish this by introducing your immune system to the spike protein from the SARS-CoV-2 virus, allowing you to build up antibodies against it. When somebody has enough antibodies, they may be able to immediately fight off the virus and prevent infection. As immunity wanes the number of antibodies decline, and that’s when our memory B- and T-cells take action.
Those memory B- and T-cells immediately recognize the virus and quickly build more antibodies. This process may be too slow to prevent infection. But it helps explain why people who are vaccinated against COVID-19 experience not only lower rates of infection, but significantly lower rates of hospitalization and death compared to those who aren’t vaccinated.
Even as immunity wanes and new variants mutate to evade immunity (leading to more breakthrough cases), the vaccines remain impressively effective.
The latest data from the CDC show people age 12 and older who received no vaccinations were 20 times more likely to die from COVID-19 and 7 times more likely to be hospitalized compared to those who received primary series and booster vaccine doses.
Additionally, recent studies have found potential connections between COVID-19 and diabetes, heart disease and cognitive decline. Studies also suggest COVID-19 vaccines reduce the risk of long-term health complications.To learn more, visit our blog: http://ow.ly/rqZZ50IQmrx
Tuesday Is Voter Registration Deadline For May Primary In Oregon
Tuesday is the voter registration and party choice deadline for Oregon’s May 17 primary election.
New Oregon voters with a valid state driver license, driving permit, or ID can register online at oregonvotes.gov until 11:59 Tuesday night – marking three weeks until election day.
If you do not have a valid oregon driver’s license or ID, you will need to fill out a paper voter registration card.
The cards are available at the post office, county libraries, or county elections buildings. Those must be mailed with a USPS postmark of April 26.
Oregon Has $10Million Dollars to Help Wildfire Victims Rebuild
The Oregon Department of Energy has ten-million dollars available to help wildfire victims rebuild their homes in a way that’s more energy efficient.
Oregonians lost five-thousand homes in the 2020 wildfires. The incentives range from three-thousand to 18-thousand dollars. The more energy efficient items that are added to a home, the more money that can be received. Low to moderate income residents can also receive more money.
You are eligible if you are rebuilding a structure deemed by state or county officials as destroyed or damaged in the wildfires between August 1 and September 30, 2020, and you have completed or are in the process of completing a local jurisdiction permit process. Eligible structures include:
- Site-built residential homes
- Manufactured homes
- Commercial Buildings
- Multi-Family Buildings
- Public Buildings
These incentives are available to structure owners who have already rebuilt, are in the process of rebuilding, or will soon rebuild their structure. Program incentives are tied to structures and are focused on rebuilding communities so owners may change, but the incentive is to support construction costs of the property owner that is rebuilding.
Some manufactured home parks destroyed in the fires may not return. Eligible replacement manufactured homes may be relocated outside of disaster areas in Oregon.
Details are available at the Oregon Department of Energy’s website: https://www.oregon.gov/energy/Incentives/Pages/EEWR.aspx
Albany Woman Arrested In Murder Of Her 3-Year-Old Child
Albany Police arrested 32-year-old Rebekah Gasperino Saturday for allegedly murdering her 3-year-old child.
Police said officers conducted a traffic stop on a car occupied by Gasperino around 2:30 a.m.
During the course of the traffic stop, police said they learned Gasperino may be a danger to herself or others and needed to check the wellbeing of her 3-year-old child immediately.
When officers responded to her home on 2000 block of Sun Place SE in Albany, they found Gasperino’s 3-year-old child deceased, police said.
Gasperino was transported to Albany Police Department and taken into custody for first degree murder.
The child’s father and other family members have been notified, according to police. The investigation is ongoing.
Winston Man Dies In Motorcycle Crash
A Winston man is dead following a motorcycle crash on Saturday. Douglas County Sheriff’s Office said deputies responded shortly after 4:30 p.m. in the 1000 block of Brockway Road.
When deputies arrived, they learned a Harley Davidson motorcycle, operated by 41-year-old Michael Poole, had been traveling at a high rate of speed and lost control, officials said. Poole was pronounced dead at the scene. Officials said next of kin has been notified.
US Coast Guard Rescues Teens Stranded On Coast Near Whale Cove
The U.S. Coast Guard rescued two teenagers Saturday evening who were stranded along the Oregon coast.
Coast Guard crews spotted the teens – a female and a male – in the water near Whale Cove, south of Depoe Bay.
A helicopter crew from the Coast Guard’s North Bend station pulled them both to safety. Emergency crews were on standby at a nearby beach.
They were reportedly unhurt after the incident, authorities said.
Grants Pass Missing Person
The Grants Pass Police Department is seeking assistance from the public in locating 30 year old Noah Baker. Baker was despondent after an argument and left his residence in Grants Pass driving a silver Ford Fiesta with Oregon Plate 671MUR.
Baker is described as a white male adult, 5’09”, 170 lbs, brown hair and blue eyes and was last seen wearing black sweats, black shirt, black shoes and a black hat.
If anyone knows of his whereabouts or sees Baker, please call your local law enforcement agency or the Grants Pass Police at 541-450-6260. Reference case #2022-14203 Grants Pass Police Department
Klamath County Sheriff’s Office Asks for Public’s Help in Search For Trucker Suspect
The first real clue to come in on all the missing person cases in the area. Help Klamath Falls Oregon Sheriff Office ID this trucker. He was the last to see this woman alive and could be the key to not only solving this woman’s disappearance but a number of the hundred other women missing in PNW. IF you have any information, please call (541) 883-5130
https://www.facebook.com/pg/Have-You-Seen-Me-Southern-Oregons-Missing-People-161249961222839/posts/