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
Tuesday, June 14, 2022
Rogue Valley Weather
Ashland Fire Crew Puts Out Structure Fire Caused By Oily Rags
Thankfully no one was injured in a structure fire Monday morning, June 13th, when firefighters put out the flames caused by oily rags left on the back deck.
One occupant was asleep inside the home at the time, but got out safely.
Ashland Fire & Rescue and the Ashland Police Department rushed to the scene at 5:25 am in the 700 block of Terrace Street, arriving to find smoke pouring from the home’s exterior near the garage.
The firefighters quickly put out the flames, keeping the fire damage confined to the exterior of the home including stairs, a window, and siding.
Smoke got into the interior of the house, causing smoke damage.
“We’re thankful for neighbors and hikers who called 911 early this morning and helped alert the resident to the fire,” said Kelly Burns, Ashland Fire & Rescue Battalion Chief who was in command.
The smoke alarms did not go off inside the house because they had been disabled during construction the day before.
Ashland Fire & Rescue reminds citizens:
- Always restore smoke detectors after changing batteries or disconnecting hard wired systems. Dust during construction can make smoke alarms go off needlessly, so if you disable the alarms while you’re working, enable them when done.
- To dispose of oily rags, Dry, Dunk, and Dispose. Using detergent in the water can help break down dangerous oils. Do not lump rags together at any point.
Ashland Fire and Rescue was assisted by the Ashland Police Department and Jackson County Fire District #5 IAFF Local 2596.
Man Arrested in Grants Pass in Carjackings Connected to Case of Missing Idaho Woman
At approximately 7:29 p.m on Sunday 6/12 Officers from the Grants Pass Police Department responded after a citizen called and said her vehicle was stolen at gunpoint. According to police, officers had already been in the area looking for a vehicle with possible stolen plates.
When police arrived to the carjacking scene, they located the vehicle with the stolen plates, which had been abandoned and the driver, who had forcefully taken another vehicle. The suspect, later identified as 42-year-old Jeremy Anderson, fled the area in the stolen Ford Escape.
While officers were still gathering information on the suspect and the stolen vehicle, it was located traveling in the area of Allen Creek Road and Redwood Avenue. The suspect vehicle fled from police at a high rate of speed.
Due to the reckless disregard for the safety of the public by the suspect, officers terminated the pursuit and began setting up a perimeter to locate the vehicle. Additional reports were received about the vehicle driving at a high rate of speed, possibly heading toward Williams Highway.
While officers were attempting to locate the suspect off of Williams Highway, a caller reported that another vehicle was stolen in the area of Skycrest Lane and the suspect had discharged a round from a firearm while stealing the vehicle. Officers located the stolen Ford Escape abandoned and another vehicle, a PT Cruiser, had been stolen. Prior to officers arriving on that scene, there was yet another report of a vehicle being stolen in another nearby area. It was later determined the shots were fired while the second vehicle was being stolen by the suspect.
With the report of shots being fired and multiple vehicles being car jacked, deputies with the Josephine County Sheriff’s Office and Troopers from the Oregon State Police responded to assist with the investigation. As officers arrived on scene, they learned the suspect had crashed the stolen PT Cruiser then forcibly stole a GMC Canyon pickup.
A short time later, there was a report of a vehicle that crashed near the Valley of the Rogue State Park on Interstate 5. The vehicle matched the description of the stolen GMC Canyon.
Deputies and Troopers from Jackson County, Oregon responded and learned the suspect who had crashed the GMC had taken yet another vehicle, a yellow Dodge Ram, by force. The truck was located by officers responding and a pursuit followed. The suspect attempted to elude the officers and eventually stopped at a residence and was taken into custody by the Oregon State Police and Jackson County Sheriff’s Office.
Anderson was turned over to detectives with the Grants Pass Police Department and was later booked in the Josephine County Jail.
As of this writing, police have not confirmed if at any point during the series of carjackings, or before, if Anderson was accompanied by 36-year-old Candi R. Chandler, of Orofino, who was reported missing by her father Keith on June 2. Last Wednesday, an Orofino Police Department release said if Chandler was in the company of Anderson, that it was unclear if she is doing so by choice or if she is under duress. Chandler was considered an “At-Risk Missing Person,” said police.
Police say the investigation into the carjackings is ongoing. One person was transported for minor injuries as a result of one of the vehicle thefts. All vehicles have been recovered and the original vehicle with the stolen plates has been impounded for further investigation.
Anderson is now facing charges related to the multiple carjackings. Police says he will face crimes in both Jackson and Josephine Counties.
Charges include the following:
- Idaho parole violation. Additional warrant for aggravated assault.
- Robbery in the first degree
- Burglary in the first degree
- Felon in possession of a firearm
- Unauthorized use of a motor vehicle (x3)
- Unauthorized use of a weapon-Firearm
Pacific Power Begins Fire Mitigation Efforts
Pacific Power is investing nearly half a billion dollars over the coming years in wildfire mitigation strategies. Targeting communities at the highest wildfire risk.
Grid hardening is their biggest component towards their wildfire mitigation. This means Pacific Power crews will be replacing and rebuilding their equipment to make their systems more resilient to extreme weather conditions.
Pacific Power has started in high-risk areas such as the Medford, Grants Pass, and Ashland areas but plans to expand once these areas are complete.
Pacific Power Vice President of Operations Allen Berreth says grid hardening is their biggest component towards their wildfire mitigation. Creating installations that wrap around bare wires to protect them from falling branches. As well as replacing wooden powerline poles with a more fire-resilient material such as steel or fiberglass.
Another step Pacific Power is taking toward wildfire mitigation is applying meteorology and data analytics to develop weather forecasting models to show weather impacts on their systems. These efforts started in 2018 and will continue through 2028.
Gas Up Again
The nationwide average price for a gallon of gasoline is topping $5 today for the first time ever.
Automobile Association of America (AAA) says the average price Saturday is $5.004.
Drivers in some parts of the country, especially California, are paying more. AAA shows California’s average regular gasoline price per gallon at $6.43, with Siskiyou County’s average at $6.61.
The national average price has risen 19 cents in the past week, and it’s up $1.93 from this time last year.
AAA says Oregon’s average gas price per gallon today is $5.54, with average county-by-county prices as follows.
$5.56 in Jackson County
$5.72 in Curry County, Oregon’s most expensive gas price
$5.68 in Josephine County
$5.45 in Klamath County
$5.62 in Lake County.
AAA data show diesel fuel’s national average cost at $5.77 today, up from $3.21 per gallon a year ago and $5.53 a month ago. AAA shows California’s average cost for a gallon of diesel fuel is $6.99 while Oregon’s average diesel price per gallon is $6.16.
We want to keep you informed about COVID-19 in Oregon. Data are provisional and change frequently. This report covers the three-day period from June 10 to June 12, 2022. Visit our dashboard, linked below, and hover over the new cases graph to view new presumptive and confirmed case numbers reported to OHA by date.For more information, including COVID-19 data by county, visit our dashboard: http://ow.ly/HrHv50JwBl6
Oregon Is First State To Ban Synthetic Cannabis
Oregon will soon become the first-ever state to ban synthetic weed sales, which includes products containing lab-grown cannabinoids like delta-8.
- Starting on July 1, Oregon will ban the sale of synthetic cannabinoids or cannabis compounds like CBN.
- It’s the first US state to ban lab-grown weed, but many are already federally illegal.
- Oregon officials said the lack of regulation over synthetic weed influenced their decision.
Starting on July 1, weed shoppers won’t find certain weed gummies and other products at their go-to stores, even if they’re THC-free. That’s because Oregon Liquor and Cannabis Commission officials say they’re concerned about the unregulated nature of these products, many of which exist in a federal legal loophole .
“We have testing for pesticides. We have testing for residual solvents from the extraction process. We don’t have any testing for any of the whole universe of chemical reagents that you could use to synthetically turn one cannabinoid into something else, or for any of the byproducts of that reaction,” Steven Crowley, the hemp and processing compliance specialist with the Oregon Liquor and Cannabis Commission (OLCC), told The Oregonian.
The federal government has banned or temporarily banned certain synthetic cannabinoids like K2 or “spice,” but there are hundreds that remain unregulated at the state level.
Scientists are lab-engineering naturally-occurring cannabinoids – All cannabinoids, the chemical compounds in weed, start as CBG (short for cannabigerol), or the “mother” cannabinoid , as researchers often call it.
When exposed to environmental factors like light or heat, CBG reacts and turns into other cannabinoids, like THC, CBD, THCV, and CBN. THC, the cannabinoid best known for getting a person “high,” but isn’t legal everywhere, is also the most commonly occurring one in the cannabis plant.
Hundreds of these cannabinoids exist but are often found in small quantities in nature. Now, scientists are engineering them to create greater potency in labs .
According to Crowley, the influx of lab-made cannabinoids is related to a surplus of CBD.
“And so, the people who had CBD on hand were looking for other ways that they could market it. People started working on different products that they could convert the CBD into. This is where you get the delta-8 THC products,” Crowley said.
If synthetic weed sellers want to keep their products on store shelves in Oregon, they’ll have to apply to the FDA’s regulation process . Wyld, which sells gummies with synthetic CBN, filed a petition to stop the ban.
By July 2023, approved synthetic weed products will only be sold at OLCC-sanctioned stores, according to the ban.
Oregon State Workers Receive Raise Early
State workers in Oregon will start receiving their 3.1% cost-of-living raises four months early and the state will pay 5% hiring and promotion bonuses, under agreements authorized by Gov. Brown this week.
Under contracts negotiated by the governor last year, state workers were set to receive a 3.1% cost-of-living raise on Dec. 1 but they will now be paid the higher rates starting Aug. 1, under amendments the Brown administration signed this week. Stateworkers also receive separate annual raises known as “step increases,” unless they have reached the top of their pay ranges.
Liz Merah, a spokesperson for the governor, said Brown agreed to the early raises in recognition of that inflation is causing steep price increases for workers and to address difficulties the some state agencies have faced filling vacant jobs. Merah said that some state agencies “have faced vacancy rates upwards of 20% as hiring has been constrained across all sectors.”
Inflation has eaten into workers’ wage gains, although it varies by industry and some workers have still come out ahead so far including the education and healthcare sector.
Oregon Author Sentenced to Life in Prison for Murdering Her Husband
The self-published romance novelist who was found guilty of shooting and killing her husband at the Oregon Culinary Institute back in 2018 has been sentenced to life in prison for his murder.
In late May, Nancy Crampton-Brophy – who once wrote an essay titled “How to Murder Your Husband” – was convicted of second-degree murder in the death of her husband, Dan Brophy.
Dan Brophy was found dead inside the Oregon Culinary Institute on June 2, 2018. He was a chef and teacher at the institute. The jury spent two days deliberating following a nearly six-week trial.
Klamath County Shooting Death
The Klamath County Sheriff’s office continues the investigation into the shooting death of a Bonanza man over the weekend. At approximately 8:45AM on Sunday m Klamath County Sheriff’s Office deputies along with personnel from Klamath County Fire District 5 and Bonanza Ambulance Service, were dispatched to the 5900 block of Flamingo Dr in the Bly Mountain area east of Bonanza, on a report from an individual that he’d shot someone in
self-defense.
Fire personnel were first to reach the scene and began life-saving efforts on 34 year old Kyle Alan Majestic Sr., of the Bly Mountain area who succumbed to his injuries. Deputies questioned the responsible individual, who alleged that Majestic came at him swinging a dangerous weapon. The investigation is in the early stages and anyone with any information they feel can help with the case is urged to contact the Klamath County Sheriff’s office.
Oregon Country Fair Returns!
After a two year hiatus, the Oregon Country Fair returns in less than a month. Three days of live entertainment kicks off July 8th with a variety of musicians, vaudevillians, circus acts, spoken word and other acts on 18 stages.
Advance tickets for the Oregon Country Fair are $40 for Friday and Saturday and $35 for Sunday. All admission tickets are sold through TicketsWest online; no admission tickets are sold at the fair site. Children under 12 get in free with a ticketed adult.
For a full list of performers and more info, visit the Oregon Country Fair website: https://www.oregoncountryfair.org/
https://www.facebook.com/pg/Have-You-Seen-Me-Southern-Oregons-Missing-People-161249961222839/posts/