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About The Observer. (La Grande, Or.) 1968-current | View Entire Issue (Jan. 17, 2020)
LOCAL FRIDAY, JANUARY 17, 2020 TRUMP Continued from Page 1A all things appertaining to the trial of the impeachment of Donald John Trump, president of the United States, now pending, you will do impartial justice according to the Constitution and laws, so help you God?” The senators responded they would, and then they lined up to sign an oath book. Trump faces two charges after the House voted to impeach him last month. One, that he abused his presidential power by pressuring Ukraine to investigate Democratic rival Joe Biden, using military aid to the country as leverage. Trump is also charged with obstructing Congress’ ensuing probe. The president insists he did nothing wrong, and he dismissed HELP Continued from Page 1A County and three in Baker County. “The disasters that we are usually responding to are home fi res. However, we have also responded with shelter- ing and mass care to mud- slides, winter weather and wildfi res,” McCrindle said. In Wallowa County, they haven’t responded to any emergencies. “We haven’t volunteers here to respond,” she said. The shortage also means the charitable organization forgoes some other work, such as having volunteers talk to school classes about disaster response. “We have education programs we would love to implement in these counties,” McCrindle said, “but we aren’t able to because we don’t have enough volunteers.” McCrindle, who joined the Red Cross in the fall, knows what being a volunteer is about. Just one month after taking the role of executive director, she was deployed by the Red Cross to the Kincade Fire burning north of San Francisco. The Kincade Fire forced about 190,000 evacu- ations, and the Red Cross Cascade Region supported 10% of the residents, helping them relocate to 15 shelters. Next up was a 10-day de- ployment in Sonoma County, where McCrindle served as a relief for the local Sonoma responders who needed rest, giving them time to check on their own families and homes. “One of the biggest things that really touched my heart was the compassion and resiliency of the people who were affected by the fi re,” McCrindle told KTVZ in Bend after her deployment. STORIES Continued from Page 1A Wallowa County Chamber of Com- merce, started talking about how to collaborate and promote the Hells Canyon Scenic Byway, and Bishop proposed the notion of promoting the journey to the byway. Tourism slows in winter in East- ern Oregon aside from snowmobil- ers and other outdoor enthusiasts, Moore-Hemann said, so Dancer’s tour is a way to show there is more going on than snow trails. Aside from splitting the $6,500 tab, the organization in each county is responsible for procuring the room and board for Dancer and his wife and setting up activities for him to cover. Moore-Hemann said the Union County Chamber sees this as a worthwhile investment. “We’re really excited to be coming SALT Continued from Page 1A The number of crashes in the Interstate 5 test area dropped 27%, and the number on Highway 95 fell 23%, according to statistics the department published in the pamphlet “ODOT’s Use of Solid Salt.” In addition to the positives salt offers, it is proving to be a dollar stretcher. When the state granted permission to ODOT in 2017 to begin using rock salt to combat ice on Interstate 84 in Northeast Oregon, Clark said, it did not provide any extra money for purchasing it. To address this dilemma, ODOT cut back on the amount of sanding gravel and magne- sium chloride it purchases for ice reduction, freeing up funds to buy rock salt. But Clark said ODOT hasn’t felt the cutback on the materials because the roads have not needed as much sanding rock and magnesium chloride since the start of salting. Salting icy roads lowers the the trial anew on Thursday at the White House: “It’s totally partisan. It’s a hoax.” Eventual acquittal is expected in the Republican-controlled Sen- ate. However, new revelations are mounting about Trump’s actions toward Ukraine. The Government Accountability Offi ce said Thursday the White House violated federal law in with- holding the security assistance to Ukraine, which shares a border with hostile Russia. At the same time, an indicted associate of Trump’s personal lawyer Rudy Giuliani, Lev Parnas, has turned over to prosecutors new documents linking the president to the shadow foreign policy being run by Giuliani. The developments applied fresh pressure to senators to call more witnesses for the trial, a main freezing point of the water that forms ice, which leads to melting and prevents falling snow or rain from freezing. The magnesium chloride ODOT long used also lowers the freezing level of water but not to the degree salt does. The state road department uses 200 pounds of rock salt per mile per lane for each application. ODOT advises drivers to wash their vehicles to prevent them sustaining the effects of salt, which is signifi cantly more corrosive than magnesium chloride. The agency also is selec- tive in using rock salt. Clark said it is never applied when there is a foot or more of snow because then only large amounts of salt are effective in melting the snow. An ideal circumstance for using rock salt is when there is two inches of new snow on the freeway in the afternoon just before temperatures are about to drop. Clark said in the past, such snow froze before it could be plowed off. Now, crews apply salt and then plow it off, keeping the road wet but not icy. source of contention that is still to be resolved. The White House has instructed offi cials not to comply with subpoenas from Congress requesting witnesses or other information. “What is the president hid- ing? What is he afraid of?’’ asked Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer. “The gravity of these charges is self-evident,” he said. “The House of Representatives has accused the president of trying to shake down a foreign leader for personal gain.” House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said the new information from Parnas demands an investigation, which she doesn’t expect from Trump’s attorney general. “This is an example of all of the president’s henchmen, and I hope that the senators do not become part of the president’s henchmen.” It’s that compassion and resiliency that McCrindle and Kristen Heath, the regional disaster program manager, are looking for in the volunteers they recruit in rural Oregon. “We send out volunteers to help those families on really the worst day of their life, and try to assist them with their immediate needs until some of the other community organizations have time to catch up and get going to assist them,” Heath said. “That’s the biggest thing we’re doing on a day-to-day basis. We also do smoke- detector installations. We’re as much as possible getting out there to the neighbor- hoods and help people test or install new smoke alarms as needed, because that’s what saves lives.” Disaster Action Team vol- unteers arrive immediately after a home fi re or other back together as an active partner with Wallowa and Baker to make Eastern Oregon recognized as a force for tourism,” she said. Bishop had a similar take. “It’s really good exposure for us,” he said. When Dancer spent several days in Baker County in early July 2019, taking in events such as the Haines Rodeo as well as moun- tain biking at Anthony Lakes and visiting downtown Baker City and Halfway, the videos he produced reached more than 317,000 people and generated more than 359,000 views, Bishop said. Dancer’s productions also reach the demographic most desirable for businesses, Bishop said. Statistics from the July visit show the largest reach was with ages 25-34 (42%), followed by ages 18-24 (22%) and ages 35-44 (19%). Before the swearing-in, House Democrats prosecuting the case stood before the Senate and Rep. Adam Schiff of the Intelligence Committee formally read the articles of impeachment. Seven lawmakers, led by Schiff and Rep. Jerrold Nadler of the Judiciary Committee, made the solemn walk across the Capitol for a second day. All eyes were on Schiff as he stood at a lectern in the well of the chamber, a space usually reserved for senators. “House Resolution 755 Impeach- ing Donald John Trump, president of the United States, for high crimes and misdemeanors,” he began, reading the nine pages. The other House prosecutors stood in a row to his side. Senators said later that when Roberts appeared the solemnity disaster to provide compas- sionate care and comfort. They distribute relief sup- plies and provide client assis- tance for temporary lodging and other disaster-caused needs. DAT volunteers then can help victims get in touch with another group of Red Cross volunteers who make up an emotional care team, which is able to offer some health services, mental health services and spiritual care. “When you see people facing the worst days of their life, and you see the humanity that comes from people, complete strang- ers, wanting to help you or the community, it restores your faith in humanity, and there’s nothing that makes your heart fuller than seeing that,” McCrindle said. “And that has been my experience since I joined the Red Cross, is being with people like Bishop said the PNW Back- Stories content is popular in the regional metro areas that are vital sources of tourism dollars for Northeast Oregon — Boise, Port- land, Seattle and Spokane. Dancer said he works with of- fi cials in the communities he visits to come up with compelling places to visit and people to feature in his videos. He said his target audience is travelers who don’t want to spend all their time at a fi ve-star resort but instead savor “experiential” travel. That means both active pursuits — hiking, mountain biking, skiing — and meeting local residents at restaurants and other businesses. “People want to become part of the community during their vacation,” Dancer said. “They want more than a vacation — they want an experience.” of the occasion took hold. Security was tight at the Capitol. “I thought this is a historic mo- ment, and you could have heard a pin drop,” said Republican John Cornyn of Texas. “And so I think the gravity of what are undertak- ing I think was sinking in for all of us.” Republican House Majority Leader Mitch McConnell took a far different view of the charges and proceedings. He opened the chamber decrying Pelosi’s decision to hand out “sou- venir pens” on Wednesday after she signed the resolution to transmit the charges to the Senate. “This fi nal display neatly dis- tilled the House’s entire partisan process into one perfect visual,” McConnell said. “It was a transpar- ently partisan process from begin- ning to end.” that.” “We would love to hear about every fi re. A lot of times, people have fam- ily nearby that take them in and help them out, and that’s great,” Heath said. “It is so much better to be with loved ones in a disaster than to be on your own in a hotel. But we do have those other teams — our health services team, our mental health team — that can assist, too. So even if you’ve got a place to stay, a call can make some of those other resources available to you.” McCrindle said anyone in- terested in volunteering for the Red Cross can apply on the organization’s website: www.redcross.org. Volunteers have to pass a background check, she said, “because we are going into people’s homes and working with people.” From there, volunteers un- dertake extensive training. After his trip to Baker County last summer, Dancer said he was eager to return when winter has transformed the area. “We’ve always wanted to come here in the winter,” he said. “We want to give people an idea — there’s snow and there are fun things to do while you’re over here.” This month’s trip will mark his fi rst time making videos in Union County. Dancer arrives Saturday after- noon in La Grande and will head to downtown, where he will video an interview with Jim Whitbeck at his business, Blue Mountain Outfi tters, before taking in Ten Depot Street and Side A Brewing and capping the evening at hq, where James Dean Kindle and the Eastern Oregon Playboys are performing. Sunday covers fi lming at Mountain Works Bicycles, La “We give them all of the training they need to be able to perform the task that is required in terms of a disas- ter response,” she said. “And then they’ll go out on a few calls with (other volunteers).” The Red Cross also assess volunteers to determine what roles they might be best suited for. “We hold their hand through the whole process,” McCrindle said. Heath said volunteers who possess some key skills are better equipped to deal with disaster response situations. “Having that compassion, having the ability to sit down and have those conversa- tions, active listening skills,” she said, “those are really important for the DAT responders.” — East Oregonian Editor Andrew Cutler contributed to this report. Grande, dinner in Cove and a soak at the Grande Hot Springs. Mon- day starts at Le Bebe Cakes Bak- ery and Marketplace Underground, downtown La Grande, then he’ll visit Summerville to check out the Northwest Skillet Company before departing for Wallowa County. Dancer said he’ll try to post live videos whenever cell service allows. He said viewers enjoy the unedited, unscripted nature of his products. “It’s a lot of work,” he said, “but it’s really fun.” Dancer’s videos not only can give an immediate boost to local busi- nesses but the content is available for the chamber to use in the future to promote attractions. Moore- Hemann said Dancer’s approach is a double-boon for the local scene. — Observer Editor Phil Wright contributed to this report. Clark said crews never apply salt on dry pavement before storms to prevent ice from forming because it won’t stay around. “Wind or a truck passing over it would blow it away,” Clark said. Magnesium chloride, in comparison, can be used on dry pavement before storms because it can not be blown off. Clark said the use of salt is allowing ODOT to apply gravel more effi ciently. He said in the past ODOT would put out sanding gravel, which soon would be would scat- tered, forcing crews to put out a second load of gravel for the same ice. Now, because there is no ice due to salt use in some situations, crews don’t have to coat roads with the gravel at all. ODOT’s Strandberg said sanding gravel also is labor intensive because ODOT has to pick it up later, in part for environmental reasons. Gravel gets covered in oils from being on the road and needs to be kept away from water. An Independent Insurance Agency Reed & Associates for excellent service LOCALLY! Nicole Cathey THE OBSERVER — 5A 10106 N. ‘C’ • Island City 541-975-1364 Toll Free 1-866-282-1925 Medicare, Auto, Home insurance and Annuities www.reed-insurance.net Kevin Reed
