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2A — THE OBSERVER D AILY P LANNER TODAY Today is Thursday, March 12, the 72nd day of 2020. There are 294 days left in the year. THURSDAY, MARCH 12, 2020 STATE Coronavirus Grant County puts deputy in charge of coronavirus task force ■ County’s emergency management coordinator resigns over concerns about process By Steven Mitchell EO Media Group TODAY’S HIGHLIGHT On March 12, 2003, Eliza- beth Smart, the 15-year-old girl who vanished from her bedroom nine months ear- lier, was found alive in a Salt Lake City suburb with two drifters, Brian David Mitchell and Wanda Barzee. (Mitchell is serving a life sentence; Barzee was released from prison in September 2018.) ON THIS DATE In 1864, Lt. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant assumed command as General-in-Chief of the Union armies in the Civil War. In 1912, the Girl Scouts of the USA had its begin- nings as Juliette Gordon Low of Savannah, Georgia, founded the fi rst American troop of the Girl Guides. In 1913, Canberra was of- fi cially designated the future capital of Australia. In 1925, Chinese revolu- tionary leader Sun Yat-sen died in Beijing. In 1933, President Franklin D. Roosevelt delivered the fi rst of his 30 radio ad- dresses that came to be known as “fi reside chats,” telling Americans what was being done to deal with the nation’s economic crisis. In 1947, President Harry S. Truman announced what became known as the “Truman Doctrine” to help Greece and Turkey resist Communism. In 1955, legendary jazz mu- sician Charlie “Bird” Parker died in New York at age 34. In 1980, a Chicago jury found John Wayne Gacy Jr. guilty of the murders of 33 men and boys. (The next day, Gacy was sentenced to death; he was executed in May 1994.) In 1987, the musical play “Les Miserables” opened on Broadway. In 1993, Janet Reno was sworn in as the fi rst female U.S. attorney general. A three-day blizzard that came to be known as “The Storm of the Century” began inun- dating the eastern third of the U.S. A series of bomb- ings in Mumbai, India, killed 257 people (the explosions were allegedly mastermind- ed by India’s most wanted man, Dawood Ibrahim). In 1994, the Church of England ordained its fi rst women priests. LOTTERY Megabucks: $5.8 million 6-19-24-37-42-45 Mega Millions: $80 million 6-17-48-54-69-12 x5 Powerball: $110 million 7-15-21-33-62-23 x2 Win for Life: March 9 4-20-53-66 Pick 4: March 10 •1p.m.:8-8-2-3 •4p.m.:5-8-1-3 •7p.m.:4-6-9-6 •10p.m.:9-2-0-8 Pick 4: March 9 •1p.m.:2-1-5-8 •4p.m.:4-7-2-9 •7p.m.:8-8-9-7 •10p.m.:7-1-3-2 JOHN DAY — The Grant County Court in an emergency meeting Fri- day to address the new coronavirus named deputy Dave Dobler, county search and rescue coordinator, as incident commander of a new task force. Although there are no known cases in Grant County, Dobler, along with his 30 search and rescue volunteers, will track people in the community who may have the virus using search and rescue software and will share the information with agencies such as police, fi re and emergency medical services. “We owe it to our community to be proactive,” Dobler said. Dobler said the task force also would focus on prevention. He said there is more the county could do, such as hiring a part-time employee to circulate through the community to sanitize frequently used surfaces, such as door handles, surfaces and keypads in public places. “You can say, ‘Well, those are the businesses’ problems,’” Dobler said. “Actually, those are all of our prob- lems.” Dobler said the area has limited police, fi re and emergency services “Our ability to respond is limited if we are sick, and our community deserves better,” he said. Dobler proposed the creation of an emergency operations center to oper- ate during business hours. Dobler said he wants to set up phone lines, a website and an exclusive email addresses to track information about illnesses within the community. He said, should there be any outbreaks within any neighboring communities, the hours could be increased, from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. And should there be any confi rmed cases in the county, the center could oper- ate around the clock. Dobler said the task force would work with the schools, health care providers and senior centers to ensure people are following “good hygene.” “We are a small community, and the nice thing about being small is that we can be agile and do things that big- ger communities are not going to do because politically they are afraid to take those steps,” Dobler said. “I don’t think we are in a community that is afraid to take those steps.” Dobler said he would like to have a plan in place should any emergency dispatchers get sick. Dobler said he does not know what that plan would look like, but would like to have it tested within seven days. He said he Steven Mitchell/EO Media Group Grant County Undersheriff Zach Mobley, left, and deputy Dave Dobler address the Grant County Court in an emergency meeting Friday to plan for the coronavirus. The court pegged Dobler to head up a task force that will use search and rescue volunteers to track people who may have the new coronavirus. Ted Williams, the county’s emergency management coordinator, resigned over concerns about the task force. would like to coordinate with Condon and Baker City on the testing. He said there is a process in place, but he needs to test it. County Judge Scott Myers said the county has an Offi ce of Emer- gency Management. Myers asked if Dobler’s intent was to change emergency management or include it in the process. Dobler said it was to include emer- gency management. Ted Williams, the county’s emer- gency management coordinator, said he had been monitoring the corona- virus and the county health depart- ment should be the lead agency. Dobler said the health department was invited to work within the struc- ture his organization has created. “They will decide how much they will be in,” Dobler said. “Hopefully it will be all in.” Williams said he wanted to work together and not create redundancy by duplicating efforts. He said he worked on an emergency plan for four years. The court suggested Williams and Dobler work together and said now, given the seriousness of the virus, is not the time for infi ghting. Williams resigned Monday, citing concerns about the task force and the lack of an emergency plan being followed. Williams said the emergency plan he submitted in 2019 covered pandem- ics, viruses and other biohazards, and listed the health department as the lead agency. He said he was blindsided by the creation of the task force by the sheriff’s offi ce at Friday’s meeting. “We have a vulnerable population in Grant County,” Williams said. “For county court and the sheriff’s offi ce to go off on their own puts people at risk.” 2020 Election Season Candidate filing deadline clarifies picture By Sam Stites Oregon Capital Bureau SALEM — With the dead- line for fi ling for the May pri- mary passing Tuesday, the picture of how Oregon’s 2020 election season will play out in statewide and legislative races became clearer. In the Oregon House, several key races will settle whether Democrats maintain or extend their majority. In the Senate, half the seats are up for election where Democrats also hold a strong majority. With a contentious end to the past two legislative sessions over a bill to reduce carbon emissions and long- time political players vying for secretary of state, 2020 is expected to be an exciting year for those tuned into Oregon’s politics. Secretary of state On the day of the fi ling deadline, Cameron Smith, one of four Democrats seek- ing the offi ce, exited the race. That leaves Jamie McLeod- Skinner, former congressio- nal candidate and Terrbonne lawyer; 13-year political veteran Sen. Mark Hass, D-Beaverton; and Sen. Sh- emia Fagan, D-Portland, all vying to replace Bev Clarno, a Republican appointed to the job who is not seeking election. Sen. Kim Thatcher, a Keizer Republican who has served in both chambers of the Legislature beginning in 2005, will face off in the May primary against Republican Dave Stauffer, who grabbed headlines in 2016 when he ran for governor as a Demo- crat with an idea to solve traffi c problems across the Interstate 5 bridge spanning the Columbia River by build- ing water slides. Thatcher, who along with Republican Senate colleagues took part in the third walkout in February, is aiming to use the offi ce of secretary of state’s Corporation Division to encourage business devel- opment and reaffi rm Oregon as a business-friendly state. She’s also touts herself as a fi erce proponent of govern- ment accountability and transparency. Key races in the House Democrats will work to maintain and potentially grow their supermajority in the House, especially after House Republicans joined their Senate counterparts in a walkout the fi nal two weeks of the legislative ses- sion, halting any semblance of progress. “For the fi rst time in recent memory, and dat- ing back before 2000, not a single House Republican in Oregon is going unchal- lenged in 2020,” said Bar- bara Smith Warner, leader of the House Democrats. “It’s no coincidence that this historic fi ling day comes in the wake of House Republi- cans walking off the job and taking a taxpayer-funded vacation, effectively ending the 2020 session and leaving hundreds of critical bills to die without a vote.” Seats Oregonians should keep an eye on include House District 54, which covers parts of Bend, where Republican Rep. Cheri Helt is facing a tough race. Helt was one of two Republicans to break from their caucus — the other was fellow Bend Republican Sen. Tim Knopp — and remained in the Capitol as the rest walked out in a boycott. Democrats are backing Ja- son Kropf, a Deschutes County deputy district attorney, as their candidate in a district that boasts a 12-point advantage in Democratic voter registration and was won handily by Hillary Clinton in 2016. Elsewhere in the state, Rep. Tiffi ny Mitchell, D-Astoria, announced she decided against seeking reelection in House District 32, which covers much of Clatsop County and parts of Tillamook, Columbia and Washington counties. Mitch- ell beat a recall effort against her at the end of 2019, but she’s come under pressure from Oregon’s unions for votes on retirement reform. According to her party, Mitchell’s exit is for personal reasons rather than political, with her husband taking a new job out of state. The seat has been held by Democrats for nearly two decades, and two Demo- cratic candidates fi led to run. They include Warren- ton resident Debbie Booth- Schmidt, a small-business owner and trial assistant for Clatsop County, and George Kiepke, a retired main- tenance supervisor from Astoria. FAMILY OWNED Two Republicans have also fi led for the race: Vineeta Lower, Mitchell’s 2018 opponent and a teacher from Seaside, and Tillamook Mayor Suzanne Weber. In the Portland metro area, two seats held by Democrats — House District 37 held by Rep. Rachel Prusak, D-West Linn, and House District 26 held by Rep. Courtney Neron, D-Wilsonville — will be inter- esting to watch. Republicans Larry McDonald, Peggy Stevens, Derrick Kitts and Dan Laschober will face off in the May 19 primary for the opportunity to run against Neron, who stunned political pundits in 2018 by unseating Republican House member Richard Vial. “We look forward to taking back seats across the state of Oregon where Governor Brown and House Demo- crats have hitched their wagon to a very unpopular cap and trade bill,” said Jihun Han, political direc- tor for Evergreen Oregon, the House Republicans campaign arm. “We plan on carrying the energy we have seen from all corners of the state to November.” Key races in the Senate The Senate will be a bit less exciting to watch with only half of the 30 seats up for reelection or open, but enthralling all the same as Senate Democrats try to maintain and extend their majority following an explo- sive legislative session where only three bills were passed. Coos Bay Democrat Sen. Arnie Roblan is retiring, and the race will be highly con- tested with Democrats hold- ing a 4,000-vote advantage over Republicans in Senate District 5. Coos County Commis- sioner Melissa Cribbins has fi led for the May primary as a Democrat and will likely face Republican primary candidate Richard Ander- son, a Lincoln City fi nancial analyst. In Bend, retired Daimler executive Eileen Kiely of Sunriver has fi led for the Democratic primary and will likely face Knopp for Senate District 27 in November. Another key fi gure in the Republican walkout, Sen. Denyc Boles, is up for elec- tion after being tapped to fi ll the seat following the death last year of longtime Repub- lican Sen. Jackie Winters. Boles will face one of two Democrats: Deb Patterson, a faith-based health care executive from Salem, or Kenji Sugahara, a pilot from Polk County. www.CountrysideSheds.com FREE DELIVERY STORAGE BUILDINGS (541) 663-0246 Locally owned and operated for over 25 years 10505 N. 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