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, July 26, 2022
Rogue Valley Weather
Excessive Heat Warning until July 30, 09:00 PM PDT
Another Pacific Power Outage in Medford Blamed on Birds
While the temperatures hit well over 100 in the Klamath Basin and other Oregon locations yesterday, the problems the Medford area encountered with temperatures near 110- were greater.
Pacific Power states that around 6:30 yesterday morning, a crow disrupted power service to approximately 5,600 Pacific Power customers.
Pacific Power said that service to approximately 1,800 customers had been restored by 9:30 AM, and engineers and crews are working on switching to alternate feeds to restore service to the remaining 3,800 customers, with the goal of full restoration by 1 PM.
Questions were raised over how one crow could disrupt power to so many people. On July 11, 2022, birds were responsible for a similar outage. The outage impacted City of Medford offices and the court systems as well.
There have been several outages around the Rogue Valley in recent weeks.
Pacific Power Outage Map: https://www.pacificpower.net/outages-safety.html
Talent Set To Have First Resident-Owned Community Where The Almeda Fire Burned
Southern Oregon is set to have its first resident-owned community where the Almeda fire burned hundreds of homes after a statewide non-profit teamed up with a Rogue Valley community organization to purchase the property.
Rose Ojeda, Director of Manufactured Housing for the Community and Shelter Assistance Corporation (CASA of Oregon) explained Talent Mobile Estates was recently purchased by the organization with a loan and will become the first resident-owned community by 2024.
Until then, Ojeda and her team are hoping to get all the families who lived in the mobile home park prior to the fire back into the community. Almeda burned 88 out of the 98 units.
After the conversation, the ball got rolling and the statewide nonprofit organization began working directly with Coalicion Fortaleza to get a better understanding of the community’s needs.
“It is extremely important that residents have control of the land of which they are living, because right now we do have a lot of residents that remain at the mercy of the sellers’ decision of potentially the use of that manufactured dwelling park and it is a growing fear among residents living in manufactured dwelling parks,” Ojeda said.
The property will not be considered a resident-owned community until at least half of the units are occupied, then the organization will be organizing residents to move forward on the plan.
Currently, the two organizations are contacting all the former residents who lost their homes on September 8th, 2020 to offer them the housing option.
This isn’t the first time the nonprofit has assisted communities to purchase residential dwellings, but it is the first time the organization is starting from the ground up. Former residents of Talent Mobile Estates can contact Jennifer with CASA of Oregon at jennifer@casaoforegon.org.
A Grants Pass man who was upset about his vehicle being impounded was arrested over the weekend for taking out his frustrations on the towing company.
The Josephine County Sheriff’s Office reports deputies responded to a vandalism incident at Goodfella’s Towing in the 3900-block of Highland Avenue on Saturday at about 3:25 p.m..
Deputies said 38-year-old Tyler Jon Watsabaugh entered the Goodfella’s property and smashed windows out of two of the company’s tow trucks. They said the suspect was captured on video surveillance and he was last seen heading toward town on foot. He was later found sitting in front of a business on NE 7th Street.
Upon contact, Watsabaugh told deputies he was upset that his Mazda pickup had been towed following a traffic stop by the Grants Pass Police Department. He said he was able to retrieve his backpack from the truck and left the scene on foot. He was placed into custody after a brief struggle with deputies.
Tyler Watsabaugh was lodged in the Josephine County Jail for Felony 1st-Degree Criminal Mischief, Resisting Arrest and Criminal Trespass.
Fatal Motorcycle Crash on Hwy 260-Josephine County
On Sunday, July 24, 2022 at approximately 10:01 PM, Oregon State Police Troopers and emergency personnel responded to a single vehicle crash on Hwy 260 near milepost 15.
Preliminary investigation revealed a westbound black Harley Davidson Sportster motorcycle, operated by Aaron Cizek (37) of Wilderville, left the roadway while negotiating a corner, striking a tree. Cizek sustained fatal injuries and was pronounced deceased.
Hwy 260 was reduced to one lane for approximately 2 hours. OSP was assisted by Rural Metro Fire and ODOT. Oregon State Police
A young Southern Oregon native who is home from college for the summer created a new event for young adults in the Southern Oregon area. Combining his love for basketball and the community.
Owen Patterson says growing up in southern Oregon there is not a ton of events that are catered toward young adults. Wanting to change that he and his friends organized their own 3×3 basketball tournament called Summer Jam.
“When you’re young in southern Oregon you’re always looking for something to do, we really wanted to provide an event that was targeted towards young adults but also could be enjoyed by everybody,” says Patterson.
Patterson and his friends used a lot of their own money to get it started. He was able to secure a few sponsors for the event after being shut down from other businesses for financial help.
Patterson’s mentor Will says the idea of creating an event that benefits the entire community was the goal of the summer project.
“Giving the community something that they have had and young entrepreneurs is what we need, you’ll look back and say this was started because of the idea of supporting young people that want to make something good out of their lives” says Will.
Patterson says with the support of the community he wants to build on this event every year and continue creating events for the people of southern Oregon. FOR MORE INFO: https://alliedprojects.site/
Wildfire Risks Continues to Increase Across Southwestern Oregon
As conditions continue to dry out and temperatures continue to be record-setting, the risk of wildfire continues to increase across southwestern Oregon. Any fires that may start have the potential to become serious in size and complexity. The RRSNF will impose Stage 1 public use restrictions on Forest lands, effective July 27, 2022 at 12:01 a.m. The Rogue River-Siskiyou National Forest public use restrictions do not apply to those lands within Wilderness Area boundaries.
Restrictions reduce the risk of human-caused fires by limiting where open flames may occur, and areas where smoking, welding, or operating internal combustion engines is permissible. Additionally, the Industrial Fire Precaution Level (IFPL) will increase to Level 2 across the entirety of the RRSNF.
Visitors to the Forest are encouraged to continue to be hyper-vigilant with fire while in the woods. Forest officials remind recreationists to never abandon a campfire, always ensuring that an extinguished campfire is cool to the touch. So far, in 2022, the RRSNF has responded to and extinguished 14 small human-caused fires, mostly attributed to abandoned campfires, with the total acreage 1.91 acres. Our partner agencies also respond to abandoned campfires regularly.
Recognizing that there is a strong tradition of having a campfire while outdoors in the summer, the RRSNF would encourage people to consider alternative, safe ways of celebrating those traditions. For example, to roast marshmallows over a fire, consider instead using charcoal briquettes in approved, designated fire rings to reduce the risk of flying embers and making extinguishing your fire easier.
We want to keep you informed about COVID-19 in Oregon. Data are provisional and change frequently. Note: This report covers the three-day period from July 22 to July 24, 2022.For more information, including COVID-19 data by county, visit our dashboard: http://ow.ly/vmcC50K3T6t
Governor Brown and Other Western Governors Call On Congress To Quickly Pass CHIPS Act
Governor Brown, joined by a bipartisan group of Western state governors, called on Congress Monday to stay in session as long as is necessary to immediately pass the CHIPS Act, which would expand semiconductor manufacturing in the United States.
“Oregon is a leader in semiconductor development, and we need Congress to act now to ensure the United States continues to lead the way in technology and manufacturing,” said Governor Kate Brown. “Every state in the nation is impacted by the semiconductor shortage. The investments made by the CHIPS Act will expand domestic semiconductor manufacturing and grow our high-tech workforce, which is critical for our businesses and working families.”
A copy of the governors’ letter is available here.
Western states represent over half of the top 15 semiconductor workforces in the United States. Joining Governor Brown in submitting the letter to Congress were Idaho Governor Brad Little, Washington Governor Jay Inslee, Arizona Governor Doug Ducey, North Dakota Governor Doug Burgum, New Mexico Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham, and Wyoming Governor Mark Gordon.
Instacart Accepting Oregon SNAP Now: Over 100 Oregon grocers, including Albertsons Company stores, are among the first to accept payments.
Digital grocery ordering company Instacart it will officially accept the Electronic Benefits Transfer and Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (EBT SNAP) in 10 additional states, including Oregon.
A spokesperson for Instacart tells Oregon Business the SNAP integration is already available at 80 of Oregon’s 122 Albertsons locations and nearly 30 of its 92 Safeway stores.
“While we’re introducing EBT SNAP acceptance in partnership with Albertsons Companies today, we hope to add more retailers across Oregon in the future,” the spokesperson says.
Albertsons Companies customers in Oregon can use EBT SNAP to purchase groceries from four banners — including Albertsons and Safeway, with additional banners scheduled to be released on the Instacart app later this year.
The announcement by Instacart is part of a two-year long effort by the platform to expand its payment system to include SNAP after the federal SNAP Online Purchasing Pilot was launched by the U.S. Department of Agriculture in 2019. The program enabled 47 states, including Oregon, to allow SNAP beneficiaries to shop and pay for groceries online.
Instacart is not the first online grocer to accept payment through the federal food assistance program. In April Target announced it would begin accepting SNAP payments through its Shipt delivery service. Walmart and Amazon also accept SNAP payments.
Susan Morris, chief operating officer for Albertsons Companies said in the press release that the program is part of the companies’ “ongoing efforts to create a flexible and convenient shopping experience for all customers,” by offering options to customers with limited mobility or young children which do not allow them to do in-person shopping.
In the press release, Sarah Mastrorocco, vice president of access to food & nutrition at Instacart, said the online ordering company “look(s) forward to continuing to expand this program and enabling more retailers to accept EBT SNAP payments online through the Instacart Platform.”
Where available, EBT SNAP participants can now shop for pickup or delivery on the Instacart App and grocers’ Instacart Platform-powered websites Carrot Storefront and Carrot Storefront Pro.
Rural Oregon Airports To Receive Federal Funding
The Federal Aviation Administration has allocated around $17.5 million toward airports in rural areas of Oregon to improve runways.
The Eastern Oregon Regional Airport in Pendleton will receive $4,958,260 for runway reconfiguration. The Corvallis Municipal Airport will receive $2,789,363 for runway reconstruction and lighting updates. The Crater Lake and Klamath Regional Airport will receive $9,750,000 for runway reconstructions.
“Small airports’ reliable air service in rural areas is crucial for Oregonians and our state’s economy,” said Senator Ron Wyden (D-Ore.). “I am gratified to see these dollars go toward improving critical runway infrastructure that is often taken for granted when flying. Investing in airport infrastructure lays the groundwork for airports in Corvallis, Pendleton and Klamath Falls to continue to support jobs, our state’s economic growth and tourism.”
Gas Prices Slowly Dropping in Oregon
Gas prices have been dropping across the U.S., and now Oregon pump prices are also seeing some relief.
Gas prices in the state are on average at $5.16/gallon, compared to the national average of $4.35/gallon, according to AAA data.
However, GasBuddy.com knows where the cheapest fuel prices are in Oregon
The counties with the highest average fuel prices in Oregon are Curry, Josephine and Multnomah, according to AAA. The counties with the lowest average gas prices are Marion, Linn and Hood River.
Heat WaveTargets Pacific Northwest
Summer is in full force for much of the United States as dry conditions take hold and sunshine blazes. After managing to avoid the worst Mother Nature has to offer for much of the summer, AccuWeather forecasters say the time has come for the northwestern United States to swelter amid unseasonable heat.
An area of high pressure is set to expand across the Pacific Northwest through much of the week which will make dry and hot conditions the norm for many across the region.
“This high pressure will set the stage for a prolonged period of well above-normal temperatures,” cautioned AccuWeather Meteorologist Joe Bauer.
High temperatures will steadily increase by a handful of degrees each day from Sunday into the traditional workweek across much of the Pacific Northwest and into southern British Columbia, Canada. Around midweek, temperatures are forecast to soar 10-15 degrees Fahrenheit (5-8 C) above normal.
While highs may fall short of records in most locations during the upcoming heat wave in the Northwest, above-average temperatures for a prolonged period of time will put the heat into dangerous territory for some residents and visitors alike.
The potential for dehydration, heat exhaustion and heatstroke will increase dramatically, especially for those partaking in rigorous exercise and manual labor, experts warn. People are urged to drink plenty of fluids and take breaks from the heat when possible.
As temperatures surge and rainfall chances remain minimal, soil and brush will dry out substantially during the heat wave, according to Bauer.
“The heat wave will dry out fuels as the region enters the peak of the wildfire season,” Bauer said.
Spring to early summer rainfall has been average to above average over much of the Northwest. Ample rainfall and temperatures near average have helped keep fuels moist thus far. But that combination has also allowed more grass and shrubs to grow, which can become more sources for wildfire ignition as the vegetation dries out later in the summer.
Women Missing Since May 1st 2022 between Medford, Grants Pass and Roseburg per Oregon State Police
| MAKENNA KENDALL 5/3/2022 |
| ERICA LEE HUTCHINSON 5/26/2022 |
| MARIAH DANIELLE SHARP 6/12/2022 |
| KAITLYN RAE NELSON 6/14/2022 |
| BROOKLYN JOHNS 6/14/2022 |
| DONNA LEPP 6/27/2022 |
| BARBARA DELEPINE 7/4/2022 |
| ****KENDRA MARIE HANKS 7/7/2022 FOUND MURDERED 7/21/2022 |
| CORI BOSHANE MCCANN 7/8/2022 |
| SHYHAILA SMITH 7/12/2022 |
| ALEZAE LILYANNE MARTINEZ 7/13/2022 |
| RAVEN RILEY 7/13/2022 |
| TAHUANA RILEY 7/13/2022 |
| DANIELLE NEWVILLE 7/14/2022 |
| CONNIE LORAINE BOND 7/19/2022 |
| KARIN DAWN RUSSELL 7/19/2022 |
| CHEYENNE SPRINGS 7/19/2022 |
| KAREN ANNETTE SCIORTINO 7/22/2022 |
| MARLENE HICKEY 7/23/2022 |
| MAKAYLA MAY VAUGHT 7/23/2022 |
Women Missing Since May 1st 2022 in Lane County per Oregon State Police
| BREISA RAQUEAL SIKEL 5/3/2022 |
| HANNAH MARIE RHOTEN 5/17/2022 |
| MARISSA ALEESA DAMBROSIO 5/18/2022 |
| ISABELLA BROSOWSKEYOUNGBLOOD 6/7/2022 |
| LOUISA DAY AVA 5/28/2022 |
| AMY CHRISTINA SULLIVAN 6/1/2022 |
| NIKKI ELIZABETH ZEREBNY 6/6/2022 |
| SHADOW STAR SEVIGNY 6/17/2022 |
| SHAUNA LEAH HOGAN 6/17/2022 |
| AIRIONNA CHEALSEY RHODES 6/27/2022 |
| KARISSA RENEE ADAMS 7/6/2000 |
| VERONICA ESSYNCE DELERIO 7/6/2022 |
| AUBRIE HANNA STEPHENS 7/10/2022 |
| LARA IVEY STEINMETZ 7/11/2022 |
| SARA LINDSAY SCHAEFER 7/12/2022 |
| ANGELINA MARIE NAZAR 7/16/2022 |
| LUCIA MARTHA PANNIER 7/17/2022 |
| MALINA LINN COATS 7/20/2022 |
As of today, 7/6/2022, there are now 37 women missing in between Medford and Eugene. Sadly Kendra Hanks has been found murdered, though that takes her off the list and we send thoughts and prayers to her family as well as the families of all missing people in our area.
38 women missing in less than 3 months. That averages out to a little more than 12 missing per month. Something needs to be done.
This is just a small compilation of missing women’s pictures in the area. There are of course women missing all over Oregon and men and children missing. Sadly most of them never get any attention. Family and friends must keep any information going and lead investigations so that they aren’t just forgotten. https://www.oregon.gov/osp/missing/pages/missingpersons.aspx
https://www.facebook.com/pg/Have-You-Seen-Me-Southern-Oregons-Missing-People-161249961222839/posts/
