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About The nugget. (Sisters, Or.) 1994-current | View Entire Issue (July 25, 2018)
Wednesday, July 25, 2018 The Nugget Newspaper, Sisters, Oregon 19 Fire crushes hopes of wheat farmers By Gillian Flaccus Associated Press PHOTO PROVIDED Sysytr Skin-‘nerd will be in Sisters at Hardtails Bar & Grill on July 28. Skydyrd tribute set to take widg at Hardtails The big wheels keep on turning toward Sisters as the world’s only all-female Lynyrd Skynyrd tribute band gets set to take the stage at Hardtails Bar & Grill on Saturday, July 28. “Sysytr Skin-’nerd isn’t about copying every note just to mimic their Hall of Fame counterparts,” their promo- tional materials say. “These ladyz are dedicated to honor- ing and preserving the peren- nial brilliance of the music of Lynyrd Skynyrd. These Systyrs have set out to stimu- late your every sense, take you back in time and put you right into the thick of it, just like it was in the ’70s. From the first thunderous guitar chord of the opener through every timeless classic, right up to the climactic anthem ending of ‘Freebird’ you are there!” Lynyrd Skynyrd remains one of America’s most beloved bands, more than 40 years after a plane crash in Mississippi took the life of lead singer and songwriter Ronnie Van Zant, guitar- ist Steve Gaines, vocalist Cassie Gaines, road man- ager Dean Kilpatrick, pilot Walter McCreary, and co- pilot William Gray. Songs like “Sweet Home Alabama,” “Freebird” and “Gimme Three Steps” have become permanent fixtures of the American songbook. Sysytr Skin-‘nerd com- bines the history, the sound and most importantly, the passion of the music created from the classic era of Lynyrd Skynyrd. Pick up your Fall Program Guide! We’ve got g great programs for all ages! View SPRD activities & classes, and register online at www.SistersRecreation.com 1750 W. Mckinney Butte Rd. | 541-549-2091 SNO CAP MINI STORAGE Sisters Industrial Park 157 Sisters Park Dr. • 541-549-3575 www.SistersStorage.com • State-of-the-art Security Technology • Sizes from 5x5 to 12x40 • Individual Gate Codes • Long-term Discounts • On-site Manager PORTLAND (AP) — Farmers rushed to save their livelihoods as a wildfire roared through vast Oregon wheat fields Thursday and crushed their hopes at the peak of what was expected to be one of the most bountiful harvests in years. Farmers used water tanks on the backs of pickup trucks and tractors to battle flames whipping across fields. One man was found dead near his charred tractor Wednesday, July 18, appar- ently overrun as he tried to clear a strip of land to protect a neighbor’s property. Farmers who grow tens of thousands of acres of soft, white wheat typically bound for Asia said they are con- fronting walls of fire up to 30 feet high and wind so strong that it tosses embers ahead of the fire’s leading edge. “It’s been day after day after day of pretty horren- dous winds and then the fire creates its own wind,” Alan von Borstel, who has battled the flames with his son, said by phone. “As the fire gets closer, you actually start to feel threatened, and if it gets too close, we realize we can’t do it, (and) we get the hell out of Dodge.” Wheat farmers like always have water tanks loaded on the back of trucks during the hot, dry summers. When a fire breaks out, they race to the scene alongside professional fire crews. If they have time, the farmers mow down stand- ing wheat to slow the fire’s progress and come behind fire trucks to tamp down flames with their water. But their most important job is called “disking.” They use a tractor attachment to till the wheat into the soil, creating a gap up to 150 feet (46 meters) wide between the advancing flames and the rest of the field. That gives fire- fighters a chance to get ahead of the blaze. “Without the help of the farmers, this thing wouldn’t get stopped,” von Borstel said. “There are lots of us out there. We look out for each other.” Von Borstel’s crops so far are untouched, but his cousin lost over a square mile on Wednesday with the fire just a few miles from his home. The blaze about 85 miles east of Portland has scorched nearly 80 square miles of wheat fields and grasslands since igniting Tuesday. There has been tens of thousands of acres of cropland lost. — Logan Padget “There has been tens of thousands of acres of cropland lost,” said Logan Padget, a fifth-generation wheat farmer who was battling the flames Thursday. “I’ve heard that some peo- ple have lost literally every- thing ... You’ve got two years worth of effort that’s coming down to a two-week harvest, and all your time and care and effort for the land is wasted.” Your Care can now do your FAA Physical! Class 2 & Class 3 Tasty THURSDAY July 26, 5-7 p.m. Cascadia Wine Collective LIVE MUSIC Sat., July 28, 7-9 p.m. | Cuppa Joe 391 W W. Cascade Ave Ave. | 541 541-549-2675 549 9 2675 corkcellarswinebistro.com $10 OFF with this ad, thru 8/15/18 541-548-2899 3818 SW 21st Pl., Ste. 100 Redmond • Open every day yourcaremedical.com WALK-IN • URGENT CARE • OCCUPATIONAL MEDICINE • X-RAY
