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
Wednesday, December 21, 2022
Rogue Valley Weather
Greystone Court Holiday Food and Fund Drive for ACCESS Starts Tonight
Jackson County food support service ACCESS says the Annual Greystone Court Holiday Food and Fund Drive holiday light display starts Wednesday, December 21, and continues through Christmas Eve.
The Christmas lights show hopes to illuminate a need to support food demands locally. Together, ACCESS staff and Greystone Court residents will accept donations of nonperishable food items and cash to help feed people struggling with hunger in Jackson County.
“This cherished event brings the community together to view the beautiful holiday lights while also helping feed thousands of local families,” said ACCESS Advancement Director Kellie Battaglia. “We are so grateful to the Greystone Court residents for their longtime support and to all those who come out to share in the spirit of giving.”
During the four nights, Asante will match up to $10,000 of donations collected from the community during the event.
ACCESS says each donation has double the impact with Asante’s matching donation such that every $1 which normally can provide four meals will provide eight meals with the matching gift.
Since the event’s inception 22 years ago, more than 175,000 pounds of food and $385,000 in donations have been collected, which provided more than 1.6-million meals.
ACCESS invites foods rich in protein that are especially needed including peanut butter, canned tuna, canned meat, and beans. However, donations of any non-perishable food items such as rice, pasta, and cold and hot cereals are always helpful.
Greystone Court is located off North Phoenix Road in east Medford, one block south of Cherry Lane. The event runs nightly 5:30-9:00pm. Santa Claus will make a guest appearance each evening. FOR MORE INFO: https://accesshelps.org/greystone-food-drive/
Local Law Enforcement Joint Traffic Safety Saturation Patrol for the Holidays
The Medford Police Department and our local law enforcement partners are encouraging safe travel this Holiday Season.
With the Holiday Season in full swing, we want to remind everyone to put away those distractions while driving and understand your responsibility to drive safely and follow the rules of the road.
The Medford Police Department, the Jackson County Sheriff’s Office, and the Oregon State Police Central Point Office are participating in a Saturation Patrol on December 23, 2023, between the hours of 12:00 P.M. and 5:00 P.M. The coverage area will be primarily Highway 62 from the Big X intersection (Hwy 62, Hwy 238, Hwy 99), within the city limits of Medford to White City, including the Rogue Valley Expressway and Highway 62 (Crater Lake Highway).
This joint traffic safety operation will focus on the enforcement of Speed, Occupant Safety, Lane Usage, Impaired Driving, and Distracted Driving. These categories of traffic violations and crimes have been proven to be the primary contributors to serious injury and fatal crashes. We thank you for driving responsibly, and wish you Happy Holidays!
White City Man Dies in Fatal Crash on HWY 66 in Klamath County
On Monday, December 19, 2022, at approximately 7:35 PM, the Oregon State Police responded to a multi-vehicle crash at the intersection of Hwy 66 and Clover Creek Rd, in Klamath County.
The preliminary investigation indicated a maroon 2006 Ford Escape, operated by Elijah Nathanial Allen (26) of White City, was stopped at the intersection of Hwy 66 and Clover Creek Road. The driver of the Ford Escape pulled out in front of silver a 2012 Dodge Ram 2500, operated by Michael Hormann (68) of Klamath Falls, that was traveling westbound on Hwy 66.
A side impact collision occurred on the drivers side of the Ford Escape. The driver of the Escape was pronounced deceased at the scene due to injuries from the crash. The occupants of the Dodge Ram were uninjured.
The roadway was closed for approximately 7 hours while the investigation was conducted. OSP was assisted by the Klamath County Sheriff’s Department, the Keno Fire District, and ODOT.
Fatal Crash- HWY 199- Josephine County
On Sunday, December 18, 2022, at approximately 2:15 AM, the Oregon State Police responded to a two-vehicle crash on Hwy 199, near milepost 5, in Josephine County.
The preliminary investigation indicated a Toyota Prius, operated by Karlee Ann Hawley (22) of Grants Pass, was traveling northbound in the southbound lane of Hwy 199, near milepost 5, when it struck a southbound Kia Sedona, operated by Kai He (51) of Kerby, head on. The operators of both vehicles died as a result of the collision. A passenger in the Kia, Yuhao Li (26) of Kerby, was transported to the Rogue Regional Medical Center with serious injuries.
The cause of the crash is currently under investigation. OSP was assisted by the Josephine County Sheriffs’ Office, Rural Metro Fire, AMR, and ODOT.
Fatal Crash- HWY 234- Jackson County
On Friday, December 16, 2022, at approximately 4:00 PM, the Oregon State Police responded to a single vehicle crash on HWY 234, near milepost 11, in Jackson County.
The preliminary investigation indicated a red Nissan Frontier, operated by James Robertson (81) of Central Point, was traveling westbound on Hwy 234, near Table Rock Rd. For unknown reasons the vehicle drifted onto the shoulder and struck a driveway embankment. The driver was pronounced deceased at the scene by medical personnel.
OSP was assisted by the Jackson County Sheriff’s Office and ODOT.
Three million people throughout Northern California and Southern Oregon woke up early Tuesday morning to an earthquake alert on their smartphones.
Some received the alert seconds before they felt Tuesday’s earthquake off the coast of Humboldt County: a moderate to strong temblor at 6.4 on the Richter scale , according to the U.S. Geological Survey.
Others who got the alert didn’t feel the earthquake at all ― but they could have, according to the USGS.
“ShakeAlert performed exactly as planned,” said Bob de Groot, early warning system’s operations coordinator at the USGS’s Pasadena office.
When USGS sensors near Fortuna, California, registered the temblor, the 2:34 a.m. alert went out to anyone who might be affected: North to the Northern California-Oregon border, south to the San Francisco Bay Area and San Jose, east past Shasta County and northeast as far as Medford, Oregon.
For an earthquake its size, it was the most widespread ShakeAlert sent since the system went up in California in 2019.
The reason so many people got the warning was the quake had tremendous possibility to affect a widespread area, de Groot said. The shaking from deep strong temblors ― the one in Humboldt County started deep in the Gorda Plate ― have the potential to travel far from their source.
With three tectonic plates bumping and sliding against each other, the area near Fortuna is “pretty complicated,” de Groot said. “There’s a lot of action there.” There were 40 quakes with magnitudes of 6.0 and higher in the past 100 years near Fortuna, one of which ― a 6.2 ― hit in December 2021.
When setting up the alert system, geologists also consider the type of ground through which an earthquake travels, de Groot said. That’s because some soil pushes the seismic waves along more than other soils.
Soft soil absorbs more of the seismic waves, slowing them down; but it also makes them bigger, so you get harder shaking.
On Oct. 17, 1989, part of the Cypress Freeway in Oakland collapsed when the 6.9 Loma Prieta earthquake hit the Bay Area. The part that failed was built on mud, de Groot said.
“We’re always looking at fine tuning” the alert system, he said. “We learn from every earthquake.”
Some people contacted the USGS to ask why they got Tuesday’s alert when they lived so far away from the epicenter.
“We’re trying our best not to over-alert people,” de Groot said. The USGS is working with social scientists to predict people’s responses to the alerts: How too many alerts for small quakes could make people complacent, etc.
Because different earthquakes can travel different distances and shake at different strengths, geologists want to strike a balance between speed and accuracy.
“There’s the chance more people would be alerted and not feel any shaking,” de Groot said, but “ultimately it’s about safety.”
First pioneered in 2006, the ShakeAlert system was first used in 2018 to warn trains and other industries to brace for earthquakes. It went public in California in 2019, then in Oregon and Washington in 2021.
The California Office of Emergency Services helped fund and set up sensors to detect earthquakes, de Groot said: 1,115 in California.
As of December 2022, ShakeAlert uses a network of 1,675 sensor stations and serves 50 million people from Washington to San Diego.
To see a list of apps for which you can sign up to get alerts in your area go to shakealert.org .
Ban On Measure 114 To Stay In Effect
On Tuesday, Dec. 13 in Burns, Harney County Circuit Court Judge Robert S. Raschio ruled that he would continue a temporary restraining order on Measure 114 (M114) until he receives notice from the state on the new permit system to purchase a firearm in the state of Oregon.
M114 passed in November and was scheduled to go into effect on Dec. 8. The measure requires permits, background checks, and completion of a safety class. The measure also bans purchasing magazines that carry more than 10 rounds of ammunition.
If the measure takes effect, individuals who already own magazines that can hold more than 10 rounds can continue to possess or use them at firing ranges, competitions, or for hunting (if allowed by the law). However, individuals wouldn’t be able to purchase a new magazine in the state of Oregon that holds more than 10 rounds.
The lawsuit — which was filed by Harney County residents Joseph Arnold and Cliff Asmussen, along with the nonprofit Gun Owners of America — argues that aspects of M114 violate the Oregon State Constitution.
On Dec. 13, Ben Callaway, owner of Spent Cartridge in Burns, testified that his distributors would not ship such guns to his store because of M114. He stated that he could only purchase firearms that ship without a magazine.
On Friday, Dec. 23, Rashcio will hear challenges from the attorney general’s office.
Police Say Abandoned White Hyundai Spotted In Eugene Unrelated To Idaho Stabbings
A white Hyundai abandoned in Eugene was found by police to be unconnected to the University of Idaho quadruple murders.
The vehicle had the same description as a vehicle of interest tagged by police in the investigation, giving hope to some that the abandoned car in Oregon would uncover further clues. However, police in Idaho now believe it to be a dead end.
“The vehicle was involved in a collision and subsequently impounded. The vehicle is registered out of Colorado and the female owner is not believed to have any relation to any property in Moscow, Idaho or the ongoing murder investigations,” the Moscow Police Department said in a Tuesday update. “The public is asked to stop contacting the owner.”
Despite the update, police assured the public that they have assembled a massive team to investigate every individual tip sent in with due diligence, of which the number at this point exceeds 10,000, a police spokesman said. The team will continue working throughout the holidays, a spokesman stressed. The FBI has assigned further personnel to help with the investigation.
Oregon Veteran Home Loan Max Loan Limit Increases in 2023
The Oregon Department of Veterans’ Affairs (ODVA) will increase the maximum loan limit for the Oregon Veteran Home Loan for 2023, conforming to loan limits for mortgages set by the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA). ODVA will now accept loans up to the new maximum loan amount of $726,200, an increase of $79,000 from $647,200 in 2022, for funding on or after January 1, 2023.
The Oregon Veteran Home Loan Program offers eligible veterans fixed-rate financing for owner-occupied, single-family residences in Oregon. The veteran home loan product is a non-expiring, lifetime benefit for any eligible Oregon veteran and may be used up to four times. The program provides financing for purchases only, and cannot be used for refinancing.
This state benefit is separate and distinct from the federal VA Home Loan Guarantee and has lent nearly $9 billion in low-interest home loans to more than 336,000 veterans since 1945. To be eligible, a veteran must have served on active duty with the U.S. Armed Forces, as documented on their DD-214, and must meet one of the service criteria outlined on ODVA’s website.
For more information about the Oregon Department of Veterans’ Affairs Veteran Home Loan, and program eligibility, please visit www.orvethomeloans.com or call 800-633-6826 to speak with an ODVA home loan specialist.
Oregon’s Homeless Number On The Rise
Homelessness in Oregon increased 22-percent this year compared to 2020.
The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development released its 2022 Annual Homeless Assessment Report which estimated the number of homeless people on a single night last January was 14-thousand-655.
The number of homeless youths declined 19-percent over the last two years.
Oregon Department of Emergency Management Warning
Enjoy the holidays safely with fire prevention:
Keep candles 12 inches away from other objects.
Use a sturdy candle holder that won’t tip over.
Don’t leave burning candles unattended. Blow them out before leaving or going to bed.
Consider using flameless, battery-operated candles.
Medical Examiner Seeks Public Help to Identify Woman Found In Portland
The Multnomah County Medical Examiner’s Office is asking for the public’s help identifying the body of a woman who died Nov. 28 in Portland.
The Medical Examiner describes the woman as white, between the ages of 20 and 40 years old. They say she also was about 5′4″ tall, weighing 139 pounds. She had medium to long brown hair with brown eyes.
The woman also had pierced ears, with scars on both forearms and the following tattoos:
- Right wrist: Faith Hope Love
- Left wrist: Amirah
- Right Shoulder: Black and red butterfly
Anyone with information about the woman is asked to call the Multnomah County Medical Examiner’s Office at (503) 988-0055 and reference case number #MU-221128-812.
