SPORTS
Tigers throw perfect game during sweep
➜➝➞➞➝➟ ➠➡ ➝➢ ➤➥➦ ➟➦➧
➻➼➼➽ ➽➾➚ ➪➼ ➼➶➹ ➘➾➴➶➷➽ ➬➶➮➬➱➹✃➮➷➹ ❐➾❒➽➹➾ ❮➴➾➶➬➷❒ ➼❰ Ï➾ ➻➹➾❒➽➷
MONDAY ➨ ❏➩➫➭➯ ➲➳➵ ➲➸➺➳ ➨ $1.50
Meet
Morgan
Lake’s new
camp host
Wallowa
conservation
projects
win OWEB
grant
✒ ❿✙✦✙✖ ➀✕✗
✗✛✛✢✕✔✘✓✗ ➁✛✙❛✗✛
✒ ➩➌✛ ➫✗✛✣✓✢
▲✛✜✜✛✗ ✘✗✕✦✛✖✛❛
➀✕✘✛✗✚➌✛❛
➂➃➄➅➅ ✧✙✖✛✚ ✘✓
➭✢➌✕✢✔✛✧✛✢✘ ➯✓✕✗❛
▲✕ ➆✗✕✢❛✛ ✤✓✗ ✕
✕✜✜✗✓✦✛❛ ✢✛✕✗✖➊ ➲➳
➇✜✛✗✤✛✔✘ ➉✕➊ ✘✓
✧✙✖✖✙✓✢ ✙✢ ✤➍✢❛✙✢✣
✚✜✛✢❛ ✘➌✛
ÐÑ ➜ áâãàäåàä
ÜÔÕ ❖ ÙÚ ❖ Ô ÐØÕÙ ➝ Ø ➞
Þßà
Thousands of acres
➟✝✝ ø ✁ ð ÷ûù ➠ ð ✠ øô þðõðÿø ✑ ùû ✆
ðôø ùû ÿô ✁ ✠ ùõôðû îøìùõ ìõ
SUBMERGED
The Oregon Watershed
Enhancement Board ap-
proved $937,322 in fund-
ing for six projects in Wal-
lowa County on April 17.
Wallowa County.
“That amount of money to
go to one county in one fund-
ing cycle is extraordinary,”
said Coby Menton, proj-
ect manager at the Grande
Ronde Model Watershed.
OWEB is a state board
made up of 19 members
based in Salem and is fund-
ed by the Oregon lottery,
federal dollars and salmon
license plate revenue, ac-
cording to the Oregon Sec-
retary of State’s website.
Of the six, three are
GRMW projects. Founded
in 1992, GRMW is “the pri-
mary entity coordinating
habitat restoration on both
private and public lands
within the Grande Ronde
Basin,” its website states.
Receiving the most fund-
ing of the three — $118,096
— is a project to replace
a double culvert at Little
Sheep Creek in the Imnaha
Basin. Menton said the area
îô þððõ î ✞ õù ☎ õ ÿô ✁ ÷îô ✆
✁
sage for years, and the proj-
ect will open up 11 miles for
habitat for steelhead and
trout. GRMW will partner
with the Federal Highway
Administration,
Oregon
Department of Transpor-
tation, U.S. Forest Service
and Wallowa County in
addition to OWEB on this
project. GRMW was also
granted $101,002 to con-
tinue an ongoing project
that involves monitoring 12
existing stream gauges in
Union and Wallowa coun-
ties. GRWM is partner-
ing with the Oregon Water
Resources
Department
and Bonneville Power Ad-
ministration in addition to
OWEB.
✚➍✧✧✛✗➎
ÐÑÒÓÔÕÖÔ×ØÙÚÛÜÝÖ
Þßàáâãàäåàä
“(The total number of acres impact-
ed) is not a huge percentage of farm-
land in the Grande Ronde Valley, but
for some it is the only ground they raise
crops on,” Bingaman said.
Hailing from Mur-
freesboro, a town with
a rich Civil War history
just outside
Nashville,
Tennessee,
La Grande’s
newest camp
host is bring-
ing her no-
⑤❺➵➵❺❾
madic spirit
and fun-loving personal-
ity to Morgan Lake.
Deidre Lepper, who
starts at her Morgan Lake
camp host post May 1,
said she moved to La
Grande to explore the
Northwest during her
retirement and to spend
time with her son, Joseph
Hayes, a retired Army
ranger, and his sons.
“It’s just beautiful here,
absolutely gorgeous,” she
said. “I thought when I
retired that I was going to
head toward the North-
west and do the nomad
thing and camp, but I
decided to hang out here
about a year or two with
Joe until I get comfortable
with camping and things
like that and be ready to be
on my own.”
See Flood / Page 5A
See Camp / Page 5A
➏★➐➑ ➒✭✪➓➔✴✮✯✰ ✱✲✳✰✵✶✰✵
→❊✼❀ ✼❀ ✾ ❀✸✾✽✽ ❇❉✺✿✼❉❅ ❉■ ✿❊✹ ✾❏✺✼❍✷✽✿✷✺✾✽ ✾❅❃ ❈✹✿●✹✹❅ ➣✸❈✽✹✺ ✾❅❃ ❑❉✻✹ ✿❊✾✿ ✼❀ ❍❉✻✹✺✹❃ ●✼✿❊ ●✾✿✹✺▼
✒ ↔✖✓✓❛✙✢✣ ✘✕↕✛✚ ✕ ✘✓✖✖ ✓✢
➆✗✕✢❛✛ ➙✓✢❛✛ ➛✕✖✖✛➊ ✤✕✗✧✛✗✚
ÐÑ ◆ Ù ❖❦ P ÔÚÝÕ
Þßàáâãàäåàä
☞✁ ð ◗ ùùüìõï ø ✁ îø ôøû ✟✠✞ ❘ ùûø ✁ ðîôø
Oregon 2-1/2 weeks ago did minimal
damage to structures in Union County,
but the same can not be said for agri-
cultural land.
Thousands of acres of agricultural
land in Union County remain under at
least a foot of water in the Imbler and
Cove area. So bad are conditions that
submerged in the Grande Ronde Valley.
Merrigan said 1,000 acres of land
his company has contracted for seed
production is under water. This is a
substantial percentage of the land Blue
Mountain Seeds has under produc-
tion, land that will now not produce
harvestable seed crops until 2021.
➡❡ ❝❳✈❡ ❤✐ ➢✐✐❭
❣✐❤❞➤✐srrr ➡❡ ❝❳✈❡
❤✐❞❝♦❤➥ ❝✐s❭♦❤➥ ❞❝❡
❜❳❞❡➤ ♥❳❣❬r➈
➋ ➦③❹❹ ➧❺❾❾③❸✇⑦❶ ➦❹⑥❺
➧❽⑥⑦⑩✇③⑦ ❼❺❺④⑨ ❸❺⑦❺❾✇❹
➨✇⑦✇❸❺❾
ôùíð ÿð ✝ üô ✠ ù ✟✝ ü ðîôì ✝✄ þð íìôøî ✞ ðõ
for small lakes.
Among those who have been hit
hard is Blue Mountain Seeds of Im-
bler, which grows much of its grass
seed on the land of farmers it has
contracts with.
“It has been a tough two weeks,’’ said
Bill Merrigan, general manager of Blue
Mountain Seeds, who noted this year’s
Merrigan explained that the land now
submerged is lost for this year because
the grass seed crops growing on it were
üðôøûù ✄ ðüþ ✄ ø ✁ ð ◗ ùùüìõï ☛ ❯ ðôîìüø ✁ îø
even if the water were to suddenly
◗ ùùüìõï ✁ îôþððõø ✁ ð ☎ ùûôøø ✁ ð ❚ ûîõüð üûîìõù ❱ ø ✁ ðÿð ✝ üôñ ìø ☎ ù ✟✝ üþðøùù ✝ îøð
Ronde Valley has seen since 2011.
Merrigan estimates approximately
5,000 acres of farmland is currently
in the year to plant new seed.
The Blue Mountain Seeds general
manager added it also would not be
wise to plant seed on the land because
ù ✑ ø ✁ ð üîíîïð ✠ î ✟ ôðü þ ✄ ø ✁ ð ◗ ùùüìõïñ
which will have to be repaired over the
next year.
“Flooding tends to deposit silt
and debris and brings in weeds,”
Merrigan said.
The challenge the Imbler company
faces is compounded by the fact that all
of the grasses it grows are perennials,
which produce seed after two years and
then die. This means Blue Mountain
Seeds will not be able to harvest a crop
on the land that is now submerged un-
til the summer of 2021 since the seed
to be planted in 2020 will not produce
seed until 2021.
Patty Bingaman, a farmer in the Im-
bler area whose family farm has been
ìí÷î ✠ øðü þ ✄ ◗ ùùüìõïñ ôîìü íîõ ✄ îï ✆
ôìïõìÿ ✠ îõø ✝✄ þ ✄ ◗ ùùüìõï ☛
ricultural families are being impacted
Rising up to Paradise
✒ ▲✓✔✕✖ ✕✗✘✙✚✘ ✔✗✛✕✘✛✚ ✜✕✙✢✘✙✢✣
✘✓ t✛✢✛✤✙✘ ✥✕✗✕❛✙✚✛ ✤✙✗✛ ✦✙✔✘✙✧✚
ÐÑæÜÙÚçèØÜéØÚ
êëäÞßà áâãàäåàä
Summerville artist David Lundquist of
Eagle Eye Studios, a former illustrator for
the Grateful Dead, Jerry Garcia Band and
Bill Graham Presents, has been selling
limited edition, signed prints of his latest
ìíîïðñ òóìôìõï ö÷ øù úîûîüìôðñý øù þðõðÿø
victims of the Camp Fire, which leveled the
city of Paradise, California, last November.
See OWEB / Page 5A
❲ ❳❨❬❡❭ ❪②❨❡s❫❴ ❵❜❝❳❞
❣❳❤ ❲ ❭✐❥❧ ♠❝❡❨❡
♣❡✐♣s❡ ✐♥✈♦✐q❨s② ❤❡❡❭
❨✐❪❡ ❝❡s♣r➈
➋ ✉✇①③④ ⑤⑥⑦④⑧⑥③⑨⑩❶ ❷✇❸❹❺
❷❻❺ ❼⑩⑥④③❽⑨ ✇❾⑩③⑨⑩
16,000 homes were destroyed,” Lun-
ü ✡✟ ìôø ôîìü ☛ ò ☞✁ ð ÿï ✟ ûðô ✞ ðð÷ ✠✁ îõïìõïñ
îõüø ✁ ð ✄ îûð ôøì ✝✝ ÿõüìõï íùûð ûðíîìõô ☛ ý
☞✁ ð ✌ îí÷ ✍ ìûð þ ✟ ûõðü î ÿðû ✄ ✎✏✆ íì ✝ ð ✆
but there are about 500 still missing,
wide swath through Paradise as far as
the eye could see, everything reduced
to ashes except for a few free-standing
chimneys and the raw steel shells of
parked automobiles. (Very oddly, there
was an occasional house that was un-
øù ✟✠✁ ðü þ ✄ ø ✁ ð ÿûð ø ✁ îø ìõ ✠ ìõðûîøðü ð ✆
ery house around it.)
“It was absolutely frightening what I
saw,” Lundquist said. “It was really a wake-
up call. I asked myself, ‘what can I do?’
These people obviously need some help.”
In talking to a friend from the Bay
area, Lundquist learned that this friend
îô ïùìõï øù ÷ ✟ ø ùõ î þðõðÿø ✠ ùõ ✠ ðûø ✑ ùû
ü ✡✟ ìôø ø ✁ ù ✟ ï ✁ ø ù ✑ ✠ ûðîøìõï ø ✁ ð þðõðÿø
☎
the Paradise victims. That’s when Lun-
The Camp Fire, which is now being
called the deadliest and most destruc-
artwork to sell at that concert.
“I spent two weeks painting this idea in
my head that was an image of a Phoenix
øì ð ÿûð ìõ ø ✁ ð ôøîøð ✂ ô ✁ ìôøùû ✄ ñ ☎ îô ûð ✆ ûìôìõï ✑ ûùíø ✁ ðüðôøû ✟✠ øìùõù ✑ ø ✁ ðÿûðîõü
portedly caused by a PG&E transmis-
sion tower malfunction. The burden
of liability has caused the corporation
øù ÿ ð þîõ û ÷ø ñ ðî ìõï ÿûð ì øìíô
❋★✩✪✫ ✬✭✪✫✴✮✯✰ ✱✲✳✰✵✶✰✵
✝
✞ ✟ ✠✄ ✝
✠
❙✷✸✸✹✺✻✼✽✽✹ ✾✺✿✼❀✿❁ ❂✾✻✼❃ ❄✷❅❃❆✷✼❀✿ ✾❅❃ ❇✾✺✿❅✹✺ ❄✾✷✺✾
wondering if their insurance alone will
❩✾✸❈✺✾❅❉ ❀❊❉●❍✾❀✹ ✿❊✹ ❈✹❅✹■✼✿ ❇✾✼❅✿✼❅❏ ✿❊✾✿ ✼❀ ✺✾✼❀✼❅❏
provide enough support to recover.
■✷❅❃❀ ■❉✺ ■✼✺✹ ✻✼❍✿✼✸❀ ❉■ ❢✾✺✾❃✼❀✹❁ ❑✾✽✼■❉✺❅✼✾▼
“About 86 people lost their lives and
❞❋❡❢❣
❈✁ ❈✠✡☎☛✄✥
✂✄✄☎✆☎✝ ✥ ✞✥ ✥ ✥ ✥ ✥ ✥ ✥ ✥ ✸✟ ✹✟
❈✠✡✡☞✌☎
❈✑✠✄✄✒✠✑✞✥ ✍✎✥ ✥ ✥ ✥ ✻✏ ✺✟
❉✝✂✑✏✓✓✎✥
✥ ✥ ✥ ✶✟ ✽✟
❍✠✡✝✥
✥
✥
✥
✥
✥
✔✝✍✍✝✑✄✥
✔✠✍✍✝✑✎✥ ✥ ✥ ✥ ✥ ✥ ✥ ✥ ✥ ✥ ✥ ✥ ✥ ✹✏ ✷✏
WEDNESDAY
✕✝☛✠✑✞✥
✥ ✝ ✥ ✄✥ ✥ ✥ ✥ ✥ ✥ ✥ ✸✏ ✸✏
✖✓☎
✍
☞✂✑☎
✖✗☎
✌☎✠✌✥ ✥ ✥ ✥ ✥ ✥ ✥ ✥ ✥ ✥ ✥ ✥ ✼✏ ✹✏
✘✗✠✑✍✄✥
♠♦♣qr♦s t✉✈✈ ✇①②③④⑤⑥⑦①⑧⑦⑨③⑩⑤④❶①✇❷⑥③④⑦❸①⑧
❹❺❻❼❽❾❿
❹➈➉➊➋➌➍
➀➁ ➂➃➄
➅➅➆➀➇
➎➏➐➑➒➓ ➔➒→➏➣
↔➏➣↕➒➓ ➙➛➑➑➓
❙❆❘❚ ❊▲P❙ ❙❊❳❯❆▲ ❆❙❙❆❯▲❚ ❙❯❘❱■❱❖❘❙
creating life again,” Lundquist said.
He later learned the concert had fall-
en through, but undeterred, Lundquist
moved ahead with the project, seeking
out a printer who would make prints of
the image.
❅❇❋●❏❅● ❑◆
◗❲❨❩❬❭❪❩❪❨❭❨
❫✄✄☞✝ ✺❴ ✠✌✄❵ ✶✽✗✂❜✝✄
✷✄✝☛✍☎
✔✂ ❝✑✂✌✞✝❵ ✖✑✝❜✠✌
See Paradise / Page 2A
❤❏✐❢ ❏ ◆●❇❥❦ ❞❡❢❏❧
✙✚✛✛ ✜✢✣✤✦✧✣★✩✣★ ✪✣✫✧★✬✬✭ ✚✮
✯✰✱✲✳✴✵✲✵✱✴✱✬★ ✧✣✪✾ ✚✪ ✣✭✚✿✛✮✬
✪✣✫✧♥✛✚❀★✚✪✾✣✬✦✧✣★✩✣★❁❂✬✭❁
▼✬★✣❂✬✪✮✚❂✮ ✿✪❃✬✬✪ ❄✚❀✣✰❛❁
Online at lagrandeobserver.com