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WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 9, 2020 | SILVERTONAPPEAL.COM
PART OF THE USA TODAY NETWORK
Oregon senators introduce bill to stop power line fires
Zach Urness
Salem Statesman Journal
USA TODAY NETWORK
In the wake of a historic wildfire season blamed in
part on downed power lines, Oregon’s two U.S. sena-
tors introduced legislation Tuesday to “reduce the risk
of fire through power system upgrades.”
The “Wildfire Resilient Power Grid Act of 2020”
would help fund fire safety equipment installation and
proper vegetation management, according to senators
Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley, who authored the bill.
“Fire after fire ignited this summer because the ag-
ing power grid could not withstand a major windstorm
during the season’s hottest and driest days,” Wyden
said. “Many utility companies are already working to
improve the resiliency of their power grid, but the sheer
costs of these investments must not come at the ex-
pense of rural utility customers. Congress must do all
that it can to stop the catastrophic wildfires decimating
the West, and that means improving rural infrastruc-
On the night of Sept. 7, downed power lines ignited
a fire at the Gates School and former Beachie Creek
Fire incident command team post. PHOTO COURTESY OF
INCIWEB / US FOREST SERVICE
ture. By partnering with utilities around the country,
we can increase wildfire mitigation efforts at a modest
cost — a fire prevention investment that will pay divi-
dends by saving lives, homes and businesses.“
The legislation does not require utilities to shut
down power in cases of extreme fire danger — some-
thing that had been pushed for after a mixed response
from utilities during the Labor Day windstorm. Some
utilities did shut down power in response to the “ex-
tremely critical” fire danger the night of Sept. 7, while
others, including Pacific Power, did not.
The wildfires that ravaged the Santiam Canyon are
believed to have been caused by a combination of wild-
fires growing out of the Mount Jefferson and Opal
Creek wilderness, combined with downed power lines
that ignited on high winds within towns much closer to
Detroit, Gates and Mill City.
Marion County Commissioner Kevin Cameron said
he supported the legislation.
“The improvements resulting from Senator Wyden
and Merkley’s bill will reduce disasters in the future,
but improve everyday reliability for our citizens who
See FIRES, Page 2A
Silverton
firefighters
exposed to
COVID-19
Virginia Barreda and Bill Poehler
Salem Statesman Journal
USA TODAY NETWORK
Firefighter paramedic Grayson Engels-Smith performs a check on an engine on Wednesday at Marion
County Fire District No. 1 in Salem. The district has made large budget cuts after two of its operational
levies failed in the past two elections. ABIGAIL DOLLINS / STATESMAN JOURNAL
Marion County fire
to lay off firefighters
Bill Poehler
Salem Statesman Journal
USA TODAY NETWORK
Months after helping fight the worst wildfires in
Oregon history, nine firefighters from Marion County
Fire District No. 1 will be laid off.
After voters rejected the second operations levy in
as many elections, the fire district that covers 55,000
people over 80 square miles of Marion County was
forced to cut $2.4 million from its $19.7 million budget.
Marion County Fire District No. 1 laid off three fire-
fighters after the first levy failed in May – the first one
it ever had that failed – and will trim its staff to 41 peo-
ple, including 32 in operations as firefighters or para-
medics, after failing again in the Nov. 3 election.
“It’s the toughest thing that I’ve had to do in my fire
service career,” Marion County Fire District No. 1 chief
Kyle McMann said. “I’ve lost a lot of sleep since May
knowing that we lost a levy for the first time in our
history.”
The department also will close stations in Macleay
and Labish Center by removing furniture and trans-
ferring staff to other stations. Additionally, the Four
Corners and Chemeketa/Middle Grove Stations will
have their staffing reduced.
McMann said the remaining firefighters had to ac-
cept cuts to wages through furlough days and health
care benefits.
He said the cuts will result in longer response times
on some calls and a reduced ability to fight fires in
some remote areas.
Wildfires put spotlight on district
The Labor Day wildfires illustrated the role Marion
County Fire District No. 1 plays in the county.
Though the district mostly covers rural areas, it
also backs up other fire departments in the county
when they are called out.
McMann said only a small portion of the district
near Pratum and Macleay east of Salem were directly
See FIREFIGHTERS, Page 4A
Silverton Wine Bar & Bistro
sold, closed until spring
Emily Teel
Salem Statesman Journal
USA TODAY NETWORK
Chef Joel Autry has owned the Silverton Wine Bar
& Bistro, a beloved dining destination in an historic
building on Silver Creek in Silverton, since 2015.
On November 28, Autry announced in a post to the
business' Facebook page that he has sold the business
to new, "highly experienced" owners who plan to re-
open in spring 2021 when the business can return to
more normal operations.
"I will miss so many things about serving you all.
The laughter, the friendships, the support are things I
will carry with me for the rest of my years."
Autry got his start in the culinary world making
barbecue sauce and participating in barbecue compe-
titions.
In his five-year tenure at Silverton Wine Bar & Bis-
tro regulars loved his menu of homey, yet polished
dishes including basil baked salmon, spicy meatloaf,
Swiss fondue and key lime pie.
Autry said he hadn't been looking to sell the busi-
ness when the buyers expressed interest.
"I probably wouldn't have if we weren't going
through what we're going through," he said, but be-
See WINE, Page 3A
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At least 20 Silverton firefighters were exposed to
COVID-19 while attending a training session in late
November.
Two days after participating in the agency's fire-
fighter academy training Nov. 21, the person told the
agency they were experiencing symptoms, according
to officials from the Silverton Fire District. The train-
ing event was for new volunteer firefighters.
On Nov. 30, the individual was notified they tested
positive for the virus.
Silverton Fire District assistant chief Ed Bram-
busch said the training took place at a tower at the
district headquarters at 819 Railway Street NE in Sil-
verton where the new volunteers were training for
search and rescue inside a burning building.
Twenty members of the fire district who attended
the all-day class "may have had high-risk exposure"
while training. Those 20 were notified Nov. 30 of the
possible exposure and instructed to get tested or iso-
late until Dec. 5, 14 days after the exposure.
Grambusch said firefighters are instructed to re-
main 6 feet apart while inside the station under its
COVID-19 protocols. The station is deep cleaned after
each training exercise.
He said the department is paying for the costs as-
sociated with COVID-19 testing for the 20 people
identified as close contacts, though not all have cho-
sen to get tested.
“I’ve got some who said they are going to get tested
and I’ve got some who are going to wait until the end
of Saturday,” Grambusch said.
Grambusch said the department has six paid staff
members and about 75 volunteers and has plenty of
staff to continue to operate and respond to calls. Sil-
verton-area residents have not been jeopardized and
the public has not been put in any danger due to the
exposure, he said.
The district entered into agreements early in the
pandemic with neighboring agencies to help cover
calls in the case of an outbreak.
A high-risk exposure is one where people are
within 6 feet of a confirmed COVID-19 individual for a
cumulative total of 15 minutes or more, regardless of
whether one or both of them were wearing facial cov-
erings, fire district officials said in a release.
So far, none of the individuals exposed during the
training are showing virus symptoms, officials said
Tuesday.
Though the infected firefighter felt COVID-19
symptoms and was tested Nov. 23, they didn’t get re-
sults of the positive diagnosis until Nov. 30.
“The whole situation, the whole COVID-19 with
testing and everything is so extremely frustrating,”
Grambusch said. “I don’t know why we don’t have a
system for first responders to get a rapid test.”
The district provided a timeline of events regard-
ing the exposure:
h Nov. 21: All day firefighter training takes place at
the district training facility.
h Nov. 23: The district is notified by a training par-
ticipant that they have COVID-19 symptoms.
h Nov. 23: All personnel receiving the training or
instructing this training are notified.
h Nov. 30 (morning) – The fire district is told the
individual tested positive for COVID-19.
h Nov. 30 (morning and afternoon) – District has a
consultation with Marion County Health. All affected
personnel notified and all personnel who may have
had the high-risk exposure are told to self-quaran-
tine through Dec. 5 and get tested for the virus.
Virginia Barreda is the breaking news and public
safety reporter for the Statesman Journal. She can be
reached at 503-399-6657 or at vbarreda@statesman-
journal.com. Follow her on Twitter at @vbarreda2.
Bill Poehler covers Marion County for the States-
man
Journal.
Contact
him
at
bpoehler@statesmanjournal.com or Twitter.com/
bpoehler