LOCAL
A2 — THE OBSERVER
TODAY
On Nov. 13, 2015, Islamic
State militants carried out a
set of coordinated attacks in
Paris on the national stadium,
restaurants and streets, and a
crowded concert hall, killing 130
people in the worst attack on
French soil since World War II.
In 1775, during the Amer-
ican Revolution, the Continental
Army captured Montreal.
In 1849, voters in California
ratified the state’s original
constitution.
In 1940, the Walt Disney film
“Fantasia,” featuring animated
segments set to classical music,
had its world premiere in New
York.
In 1942, President Franklin
D. Roosevelt signed a measure
lowering the minimum draft
age from 21 to 18.
In 1956, the Supreme Court
struck down laws calling for
racial segregation on public
buses.
In 1969, speaking in Des
Moines, Iowa, Vice President
Spiro T. Agnew accused net-
work television news depart-
ments of bias and distortion,
and urged viewers to lodge
complaints.
In 1971, the U.S. space probe
Mariner 9 went into orbit
around Mars.
In 1974, Karen Silkwood,
a 28-year-old technician and
union activist at the Kerr-McGee
Cimarron plutonium plant near
Crescent, Oklahoma, died in a
car crash while on her way to
meet a reporter.
In 1979, former California
Gov. Ronald Reagan announced
in New York his candidacy for
the Republican presidential
nomination.
In 1982, the Vietnam Vet-
erans Memorial was dedicated
on the National Mall in Wash-
ington, D.C.
In 1985, some 23,000 res-
idents of Armero, Colombia,
died when a volcanic mudslide
buried the city.
In 2019, the House Intelli-
gence Committee opened two
weeks of public impeachment
hearings with a dozen cur-
rent and former career foreign
service officials and political
appointees scheduled to tes-
tify about efforts by President
Donald Trump and others to
pressure Ukraine to investigate
Trump’s political rivals.
One year ago: Speaking pub-
licly for the first time since his
defeat by Joe Biden, President
Donald Trump refused to con-
cede the election. Masked
workers in teams of two began
counting ballots in counties
across Georgia; the hand tally of
the presidential race stemmed
from an audit required by a
new state law. Republicans suf-
fered setbacks to court chal-
lenges over the election in the
battleground states of Arizona,
Michigan and Pennsylvania.
The governors of Oregon and
New Mexico ordered near-lock-
downs in the most aggres-
sive response yet to the latest
wave of coronavirus infections
shattering records across the
U.S. Peter Sutcliffe, the British
serial killer known as the “York-
shire Ripper,” died at 74; he was
serving a life sentence for the
killings of 13 women. The Miami
Marlins hired Kim Ng as general
manager, making her the high-
est-ranking woman in the oper-
ation of a major league team.
Today’s Birthdays: Jour-
nalist-author Peter Arnett is
87. Actor Jimmy Hawkins is 80.
Blues singer John Hammond is
79. Country singer-songwriter
Ray Wylie Hubbard is 75. Actor
Chris Noth is 67. Actor-come-
dian Whoopi Goldberg is 66.
Actor Rex Linn is 65. Actor Car-
oline Goodall is 62. Former
NFL quarterback and College
Football Hall of Famer Vinny
Testaverde is 58. Rock musician
Walter Kibby (Fishbone) is 57.
Comedian and talk show host
Jimmy Kimmel is 54. Actor Steve
Zahn is 54. Actor Gerard Butler
is 52. Writer-activist Ayaan Hirsi
Ali is 52. Actor Jordan Bridges
is 48. Actor Aisha Hinds is 46.
Former NBA All-Star Metta San-
diford-Artest (formerly Ron
Artest and Metta World Peace)
is 42. Actor Monique Coleman is
41. Actor Rahul Kohli is 36.
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SaTuRday, NOVEmBER 13, 2021
Roads to be busy over holiday
Thanksgiving
travel projected to
bounce back to pre-
pandemic levels
By DAVIS CARBAUGH
The Observer
PORTLAND — Roads
may be heavily con-
gested again for this year’s
Thanksgiving travels,
according to projections
from the American Auto-
mobile Association.
AAA predicts that
53.4 million Americans
will travel for the holiday,
which is a rise of 13% from
2020. With travel numbers
nearing that of 2019, the
projected boost in travel is
expected to be the largest
single-year increase since
2005.
“Travel is again high
on the list for Ameri-
cans who are looking for-
ward to spending time
with family and friends
this Thanksgiving,” AAA
Public Affairs Director
Marie Dodds said in a
press release. “But it means
travelers should plan for
roads and airports to be
noticeably more crowded
than what we experienced
during the pandemic.”
The projections from
AAA show that roughly
16.2% of the entire Amer-
ican population are
expected to travel for
Thanksgiving, while
approximately 17.7% of
Oregon citizens will tra-
verse. That percentage
comes out to about 746,000
alex Wittwer/The Observer, File
Semis and other motorists line Island Avenue in La Grande on Wednesday, Nov. 3, 2021, waiting to get
back on the road. An accident on I-84 east of Pendleton and dense fog caused ODOT officials to close
the interstate for roughly four hours. Thanksgiving holiday traffic this year is predicted to be close to
pre-pandemic levels, and travelers are advised to plan ahead for crowded airports and roads — and
perhaps unexpected delays.
Oregonians traveling for
turkey day.
During the Thanks-
giving holiday in 2019,
approximately 49.9 mil-
lion Americans traveled by
automobile, 4.6 million flew
and 1.5 million used public
transportation. Due to a
severe drop in travel due to
COVID-19, in 2020 roughly
5.5 million fewer automo-
bile travelers hit the road
and air travel was cut in
half by just over 2 million.
As this Thanksgiving
approaches, AAA predicts
that 652,000 Oregonians
will travel by automobile
and 86,000 will fly.
A steep rise in gasoline
prices over the last year is
having an impact on pro-
jections, but not to a large
extent, according to AAA.
Gas prices are roughly one
dollar more per gallon than
during last year’s Thanks-
giving holiday.
“Gas prices aren’t
keeping people home,”
Dodds said in a press
release. “Those who need
to trim expenses will do so
in other ways such as lim-
iting dining out and looking
for more budget-friendly
choices in accommodations
and other activities.”
With travel being
expected to return to
pre-pandemic levels this
year, AAA is reporting that
hotel rates are up nearly
50% and rental car rates
have risen by about 4%.
The top travel spots for
AAA Oregon members are
Anaheim, Fort Lauderdale,
Orlando, San Diego and
Maui.
According to AAA, the
organization will likely
receive roughly 8,200 calls
for road assistance over
the holiday. The top issues
involve dead batteries, flat
tires and lockouts.
AAA urges caution and
planning ahead for this
Thanksgiving, noting that
busy roads and crowded
airports should be expected.
According to the organiza-
tion’s website, those who
travel by airplane should
expect full flights.
The official Thanks-
giving holiday travel
period is defined as Nov.
24-28. AAA predicts that
the busiest travel days will
take place on the Tuesday
and Wednesday before
Thanksgiving.
La Grande schools COVID-19 rate rises slightly
Count numbers
remain low,
allowing the school
district to reduce
some restrictions
By DICK MASON
The Observer
LA GRANDE — The
La Grande School Dis-
trict’s COVID-19 infection
rate, which had been drop-
ping dramatically, was up
slightly the first week of
November.
The school district’s
latest weekly statistics
show that 17 students
missed school during the
week of Nov. 1-5 because
of positive COVID-19
tests, COVID-19 symp-
toms or close contact with
those who have COVID-
19. That number is up eight
from the week of Oct.
25-29 when nine students
missed school because of
COVID-19, but down sig-
nificantly from the week
of Oct. 18-22 when 48 stu-
dents missed class and the
week of Oct. 11-15 when 57
students were out because
of COVID-19.
“I’m happy that the
trend is going down,” said
La Grande School District
Superintendent George
Mendoza.
Mendoza noted that
the school district’s infec-
tion rate is far lower than it
was in August, September
and much of October. To
put things in perspec-
tive he pointed out that in
the past three weeks the
total number of students
who missed school due
to COVID-19 was 43, a
far cry from the 123 stu-
dents and staff who were
out during one week in
mid-September.
The superintendent said
that because COVID-19
numbers are remaining
low, the school district was
able to move into the less
restrictive low-risk cate-
gory on Thursday, Nov. 11,
under the rules of its 2021
Communicable Disease
plan. The school district
had been in the moderate
risk category.
Entrance into the low-
risk category means
schools can again con-
duct assemblies and con-
certs that can be attended
by parents and community
members, more volunteers
can work in the school dis-
trict and in some instances
children in different grades
can have recess at the
same time at elementary
schools.
The school district’s
week of Nov. 1-5 statistics
indicate that no staff mem-
bers were absent during
the week due to positive
COVID-19 tests, symp-
toms of the disease or close
contact with someone who
has it. This marks the fifth
week in a row that the La
Grande School District
did not have any staff out
because of COVID-19.
The district’s latest sta-
tistics, based on reports to
school district nurses, show
that five students were out
during the first week of
November due to testing
positive for COVID-19.
Four of these students
were from Island City Ele-
mentary School and one
was from La Grande High
School.
A total of 12 students
were quarantined the week
of Nov. 1-5 due to close
contact with someone with
COVID-19 or suspected of
having COVID-19, up four
from the previous week.
Five of the students out
were from Island City Ele-
mentary, three were from
Central Elementary, three
were from Greenwood Ele-
mentary and one was from
La Grande Middle School.
Mendoza stressed that
students and staff still must
exercise caution and follow
COVID-19 safety protocol
despite the overall decline
in the infection rate.
“We have to be careful
in order to continue oper-
ating,” Mendoza said.
CHD to host COVID-19 booster clinics,
will also administer pediatric vaccines
By DAVIS CARBAUGH
The Observer
LA GRANDE — The
Center for Human Devel-
opment in La Grande
announced a series of
upcoming vaccination
clinics, offering both
COVID-19 booster shots
and the Pfizer BioNTech
pediatric vaccine.
CHD will hold a drive-
thru clinic from 9 a.m. to
3 p.m. at the Union County
Fairgrounds on Nov. 18.
A drop-in clinic will take
place at CHD from 10 a.m.
to 2 p.m. on Nov. 19.
Pfizer booster shots are
available for all persons 65
years or older, residents 18
or older living in long-term
care settings, individuals
18 or older with under-
lying medical conditions
and people 18 or older who
live or work in a high-
risk environment. Individ-
uals looking to receive the
booster dose must have
received their last dose of
Moderna or Pfizer six or
more months prior.
alex Wittwer/The Observer, File
Doses of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine sit in a tray at the Center for
Human Development vaccination clinic in La Grande on Friday,
Aug. 5, 2021. In November, CHD began administering the Pfizer pe-
diatric vaccine to children age 5-11.
Johnson & Johnson
booster doses are available
to individuals 18 or older
who received a previous
Johnson & Johnson vac-
cine two or more months
ago.
Children age 5-11 are
eligible for the Pfizer pedi-
atric vaccine, which will
be available at the drop-in
clinics as well as by
appointment.
The Pfizer pediatric
shots were approved by the
FDA and recommended
by the CDC in early
November. According
to an Oregon Health
Authority media briefing
with Dr. Kristen Dillon, a
senior adviser with OHA,
the pediatric vaccines are
being distributed to phar-
macies, public health
clinics, hospitals and other
community centers in
Oregon.
The initial distribu-
tion of the pediatric vac-
cine began in Oregon last
weekend, with sites still
in the process of receiving
their doses. Dillon noted
that the Pfizer pediatric
vaccines do not need to
be held in the same ultra-
cold storage as the orig-
inal wave of vaccines for
adults, which allows the
doses to be stored at refrig-
erated temperatures and
for longer periods of time.
The durability of this wave
of pediatric vaccines will
make them readily acces-
sible in rural areas in
Oregon.
Dr. Dean Sidelinger, the
Health Officer and State
Epidemiologist for OHA,
said the pediatric vaccines
are not known to have
serious side effects for chil-
dren, and children who
receive the vaccine should
be able to return to school
the next day.
During the week of
Thanksgiving, the Center
for Human Develop-
ment will not hold vaccine
events, but appointments
will be available.
NEWS BRIEFS
Cove council to hold
executive session
COVE — The Cove City
Council will hold an exec-
utive session followed by a
special meeting on Tuesday,
Nov 16.
The meeting will be
hosted at Cove City Hall,
504 Alder St., at 7 p.m. and
can be accessed via com-
puter, tablet or smartphone.
The executive session
will include considering
the employment of a public
staff member, which will be
the only matter of business
prior to the special meeting.
The special session will
entail a call to order and
public comment section,
which is limited to three
minutes per individual.
The meetings can be
viewed at https://www.got-
omeet.me/CityofCove. Indi-
viduals looking to tune
in via phone can call 877-
309-2073 or 312-757-3129.
The access code to join the
meeting is 566-891-733.
Umatilla sheriff
investigating death
of man in Ukiah
UKIAH — The Umatilla
County Sheriff’s Office is
investigating the death of a
man in Ukiah.
The sheriff’s office in a
press release Wednesday,
Nov. 10, reported the Uma-
tilla County dispatch center
on Nov. 7 at 11:45 p.m.
received a 911 call
requesting an ambulance to
the Antlers Hotel in Ukiah
for an unresponsive male.
“CPR was being per-
formed at the time of the
call,” according to the press
release.
Medics with the Pend-
leton Fire Department
arrived, and the man, whom
the sheriff’s office identified
as Lewis Milton Brightman,
59, of Klamath Falls, died at
the scene.
Sheriff’s deputies arrived
and requested a detective
respond, the press release
stated, and the sheriff’s
office requested an autopsy
because the cause of death
could not be determined.
The autopsy was sched-
uled for Nov. 9, and the
results are pending. The
sheriff’s office said the
investigation is ongoing
with “further informa-
tion to be released when
appropriate.”
OTEC to return
$3 million to
member-owners
BAKER CITY —
Oregon Trail Electric
Cooperative’s Board of
Directors has approved
the retirement of $3 mil-
lion in capital credits to its
member-owners.
OTEC in a press release
Tuesday, Nov. 3, explained
capital credit retirements
are one of the more visible
benefits of membership in
an electric cooperative.
“Positive financial con-
ditions allowed for us to
return these funds to our
members,” OTEC Chief
Financial Officer Heidi
Dalton said. “Our financials
are strong and we’re proud
to demonstrate the power
of the cooperative business
model through capital credit
retirements.”
The credits become
each member’s “owners’
equity” and investment in
OTEC, and each year the
board makes a decision on
how much it can return to
members without reducing
the cooperative’s financial
strength.
Returns are applied
directly to the member’s
account if the amount is
less than $15, or if the
member has a past due bal-
ance. Members with returns
greater than $15 and no past
due accounts will receive
a check in the mail in
mid-December.
Since OTEC first began
retiring capital credits in
1996, according to the
press release, the co-op has
returned $49 million to its
member-owners. Nonprofit
cooperatives such as OTEC
allocate and periodically
return those funds back to
the member-owners rather
than to stockholders.
— The Observer
Ththe e, as inves-