The Observer. (La Grande, Or.) 1968-current, August 29, 2020, Image 5

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The Observer., August 29, 2020, Page 5, Image 5

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Newspaper Page TextSATURDAY, AUGUST 29, 2020 HOLIDAY Continued from Page 1A The recent daily case counts don’t meet the state’s criteria for reopening schools to in-person learning. According to the plan laid out by OHA, the Oregon Department of Education and Gov. Kate Brown’s ofﬁ ce in July, counties with 30,000 people or more must have 30 or fewer cases per 100,000 res- idents for three consecutive weeks, and a test positivity rate of 5% or less during that same timeframe. THE OBSERVER — 5A That same test posi- tivity rate must be reﬂ ected statewide. The guidelines allow for some exceptions, in order to meet the needs of students with disabilities and students in third grade or younger, who rely more on in-person learning. State health ofﬁ cials pre- viously said it’s possible the state won’t meet those guidelines until next spring. Fifteen counties, most of them rural, have lowered their rates of infection, kept their positive percentage rate low, and prioritized a return to in-person learning for younger students.. Sidelinger and Allen said right now, those who get infected in Oregon pass the virus along to one other person, on average. If everyone stays disciplined and follows the health guidelines for avoiding gatherings and wearing face coverings, that number could drop to 0.75, and Oregon could meet the met- rics needed to bring kids back to school. Oregon metrics for reopening schools OHA directors said state health experts are looking to countries like Denmark, Sweden and Germany when formulating Oregon’s health metrics, and for cues on how to stop the spread of the virus and reopen schools. “The speciﬁ c nations that we looked at really did take actions to drive their case rates down before schools reopened,” Sidelinger said, such as face coverings and widespread testing. While some rural coun- ties in Oregon have boasted low case counts over the past three weeks, the state’s rules for in-person instruction rely on a combination of metrics, using both county and state- wide health conditions. COVID-19 by the numbers* Worldwide cases: 24,299,923 Worldwide deaths: 827,730 U.S. cases: 5,845,876 U.S. deaths: 180,165 Total U.S. tests: 81,776,753 (8.70% positive) Oregon cases: 26,055 Oregon active cases: 20,749 Oregon deaths: 447 Total Oregon tests: 542,589 (4.57% positive) Union County cases: 414 Union County active cases: 367 Union County deaths: 2 Total Union County tests: 3,285 (11.63% positive) Wallowa County cases: 22 Wallowa County active cases: 13 Wallowa County deaths: 1 Total Wallowa County tests: 837 (2.51% positive) *As of 1:30 p.m. Friday, Aug. 28. Sources: World Health Organization, Cen- ters for Disease Con- trol and Prevention, Johns Hopkins University, Oregon Health Authority and Oregon Military Department. CALF Continued from Page 1A about 10 miles north of Harper, which is near Highway 20 about 22 miles west of Vale. Romans said he was home on Aug. 16 when he saw smoke billowing. He said he drove to the area that evening and by then the ﬁ re, the cause of which is still under inves- tigation, had burned onto part of the allotment where his family’s cattle were grazing. Romans said the cattle usually use that allotment from July 1 through Nov. 1. He said he wasn’t overly concerned, in part because the cattle were in a pasture with lots of rocky areas, but not much heavy fuel to sus- tain a fast-moving ﬁ re that could threaten the animals. Romans said he and other family members spent much of the ﬁ rst half of that week, Aug. 17-19, helping to ﬁ ght the ﬁ re to try to pro- tect unburned parts of the allotment. Romans said he and other relatives were busy on Aug. 20 trying to protect private land that’s part of the Becker Ranch. Finally on Aug. 21, he started tracking down his family’s Charolais, knowing they would start dropping calves soon and that the Photo contributed by Jeff Romans The calf was reunited with its mother on Sunday, Aug. 23. Photo contributed by Bureau of Land Management Russell Hamilton, a ﬁ re operations trainee from Spokane, Washington, delivered a new- born Charolais calf to its owners from the Romans Ranch on Sunday, Aug. 23. “We as ranchers in the Westfall Valley are thankful for our local BLM ﬁ reﬁ ghters and the way they look out for our livelihood. Not everyone would have cared about that one calf.” Jeff Romans, Malheur County rancher newborns would be less able to ﬂ ee should the ﬁ re start spreading rapidly. That day he found about 40 cows congregated at a reservoir, with the ﬁ re burning all around them. Fortunately, the fuel was scanty, and a helicopter dropped a bucket of water on the hottest spot to protect the cattle, Romans said. He drove the cows into a nearby canyon away from the ﬁ re, but with one excep- tion. At that point only one cow had given birth, and the female calf wasn’t old enough to go with the rest of the herd, Romans said. The next day, Aug. 22, Romans said he returned to the canyon and found all the cows — including the one that had the calf. But the calf wasn’t there. “Typically, when a cow leaves a calf she’ll go back and grab it,” Romans said. He notiﬁ ed ﬁ re ofﬁ cials WARMING “We’re very happy about that,” Romans said. His father, Bill Romans, and daughter, Mollie, later found that the cow and calf had been reunited. Jeff Romans said he actu- ally had met Hamilton a few days before, while helping to build a ﬁ rebreak. Romans said the calf could be worth about $1,000 next year and around $1,800 as a bred heifer. Romans said he had a great appreciation for ﬁ re crews even before they res- cued his family’s calf. “We as ranchers in the Westfall Valley are thankful for our local BLM ﬁ re- ﬁ ghters and the way they look out for our livelihood,” he said. “Not everyone would have cared about that one calf.” TREASURE VALLEY STEEL, INC. Continued from Page 1A course, also will have a big impact on shelter’s capacity in the immediate future. “The number of guests we can have will increase when COVID-19 rules become less restrictive,” Smith said. If the station receives permission to open in November, it will have been about 13 months after a vote by the La Grande City Council denied an appeal of an Oct. 8, 2019, La Grande Planning Com- mission decision that granted a conditional use permit for the warming sta- tion. The October plan- ning commission decision had been appealed by La Grande developer Al Adels- berger, who said he was not against the warming station but feels its location is not ideal because it is close to downtown. The Third Street loca- tion is the warming station’s third home. It was on Willow Street in 2018-19 and at the Zion Lutheran Church in the winter of 2017-18. Smith said there is a pos- sibility the warming station will be able to open for day use before Nov. 15. If so, the organization will use that opportunity to train volun- teers and as a site to help cli- ents take steps to secure per- manent housing. that the calf was missing. A day later, ﬁ reﬁ ghters from the BLM’s Snake River Valley crew No. 7, based in Vale, found the calf near the reservoir where the herd had gathered two days before. The ﬁ reﬁ ghters coaxed the calf and brought her to Russell Hamilton, an inci- dent ﬁ re operations trainee from Spokane, Wash- ington, who is part of the multi-agency team that’s managing the 48,000-acre Indian Creek ﬁ re. The blaze was 40% contained as of Wednesday morning, Aug. 26. Investigators concluded the ﬁ re was human-caused, but they have not identiﬁ ed a suspect. Hamilton hefted the calf into the front seat of his pickup truck and brought the animal back to the herd. Manufacturing Zee & Cee Purlins In-HouseCustom Cut Exact Lengths Staff photo by Dick Mason Union County Warming Station acting board chairwom- an Audrey Smith checks one of the exterior lights Friday, Aug. 28, at the shelter’s location in La Grande. The station hopes to open in mid-November. FAMILY OWNED 215 Elm Street La Grande (541) 963-5440 northwestfurnitureandmattress.com • 24 Colors • Custom Trim • 2 1/2” Corrugated • Delivery Available • Full Soffitt Line • 3 ft. Gulf Coast Panel • 3 ft. PBR Panel • 3 ft. Mesa Panel • 3 ft. Tuff Rib Panel • Standing Seam DELIVERY • 2 ft. Delta Rib AVAILABLE • 3 ft. Pro Panel 40 Year Full Paint Warranty • WeatherX Paint System Dr. Paulette Hugulet, DC, LLC 541-963-WELL www.DrHugulet.com Chiropractic Services  CDL Physicals  Drug Testing  Prolotherapy 10505 West 1 st Street, Suite B, Island City, Oregon Dr. Paulette Hugulet, (Owner-Proprieto Proprietor) is a veteran of the US Armed Forces. She offers non-surgical managem nagement for back and neck pain due to disc herniation; stenosis and related d cond conditions causing shoulder, arm, and leg pain. Clinic Hours: Mon.-Thurs. rs. 9am 9am-5pm (by appointment) Drug Testing Hrs: Mon.-Thurs. s. 10 10am -4pm/Fri 10am-1pm (no appt needed) ONTARIO 541-889-4214 BOISE 208-336-7505 1460 N. Verde Dr. Toll Free 1-866-887-8335 6619 S. Supply Way Toll Free 1-888-717-8335 WWW.TREASUREVALLEYSTEEL.COM