FRIDAY, JULY 17, 2015
THE BAKER COUNTY PRESS — 5
Local
Fire destroys Valley Ave. home
• FIREFIGHTER
INJURES KNEE,
TODDLER FOUND
WANDERING NEAR
FIRE SITE
BY KERRY McQUISTEN
News@TheBakerCountyPress.com
BY KERRY McQUISTEN
News@TheBakerCountyPress.com
Monday just after noon,
the Baker Fire Department
responded to reports of a
house fire at 1710 Valley
Avenue in Baker City.
Early on, flames were
visible from blocks away
and smoke filled the
streets, causing traffic to
circle.
All the residents of
the home were out of the
building when the fire en-
gulfed the home, according
to Baker City Fire Chief
Mark John.
“A total of 18 personnel
responded to the fire— 13
from Baker City and 5
from Baker Rural,” John
said.
According to County
records online, the three-
story home was owned by
Kathleen Mitchell and was
originally built in 1904.
Mitchell, age 85, resided in
the historic home with her
husband Carroll, her grand-
son Shawn Beavers and his
wife Morgan, as well as
their infant daughter.
Within moments of
arriving, according to a
witness on the scene, fire-
fighter Dan Curtis took a
fall, injuring his knee.
While not personally
confirming Curtis’ name
due to HIPAA privacy
laws, Chief John did say
the injury sustained on the
scene resulted in a trip to
the hospital to treat that
injury.
Not long after, as heard
on scanner traffic around
Grenade carried
to Sheriff’s
Department
Wendee Morrissey / The Baker County Press
Firefighters fought Monday afternoon to save a fully engulfed home at 1710
Valley Avenue in Baker City.
1 p.m., responders on the
scene went into “defensive
operations”—retreating
from the home due to the
intensity of the flames and
smoke.
By this time, smoke from
the fire could be smelled
in the air as far as south
Baker.
To further complicate
the matter, as suppression
efforts wound down, a tod-
dler was noticed wander-
ing around the fire site by
one of the firefighters just
before 5 p.m.
Baker City Police re-
sponded and took the child
to the police department.
About 20 minutes later,
according to Police Chief
Wyn Lohner, the child’s
babysitter was reported by
a firefighter as being on the
scene looking for him.
As of the time of print,
the case was being sent
to District Attorney Matt
Shirtcliff for review and
consideration of criminal
Wendee Morrissey / The Baker County Press
18 total personnel responded to the fire.
charges.
Disaster action team vol-
unteers with the American
Red Cross also responded
to the this multi-family
fire, which they stated in
a press release, affected
four adults, a child, and
multiple pets.
Red Cross provided
food, clothing, comfort
kits, stuffed animals and
information about recovery
services.
Those who resided at the
residence reportedly lost
all their belongings, and
the home was completely
destroyed.
At the time of print, the
cause of the fire had not
been concretely deter-
mined and was still under
investigation, but the
preliminary determination,
according to John, was
that the fire started due an
electrical malfunction.
Sunday evening around 7:10 p.m., Heather Matheny of
Baker City came to the Baker County Sheriff’s office to
report a grenade for disposal.
The grenade had been discovered while Matheny, 27,
was cleaning the home of Merrill Carter, who had passed
away last August.
Matheny said the device was being held by Mr. Carter’s
son, who was waiting outside the building.
According to Sheriff Travis Ash, from his department
Deputy Eric Colton responded. Sergeant Mike Regan
from the Baker City Police Department also responded.
It was quickly determined that the grenade was live, with
the pin intact.
The Oregon State Police bomb squad out of Hermiston
was called, and arrived just after 11 p.m.
The Hazardous Device Technicians in the bomb squad
are qualified to conduct “render safe” operations of
improvised explosive devices (bombs), booby traps, and
military ordnance, as well as destruction of unwanted or
deteriorated explosives, blasting caps, explosive chemi-
cals, fireworks, and any other explosive items such as
railroad torpedoes and specialty items. The technicians
are also trained in post-blast investigation and weapons
of mass destruction response.
While the technicians were en route, the grenade was
moved once—away from the main building with inmate
and staff safety in mind.
After the bomb squad arrived, the grenade was taken
and rendered safe, with no injuries sustained at any time.
Baker City Police Chief Wyn Lohner said some “dead
cord” was also collected from the home and disposed of.
Sheriff Ash asks that if anyone should come upon an
explosive such as blasting caps, grenades, or any other
suspicious device, to please leave the item in place. He
encourages citizens to not use a cell phone near any sus-
picious device, and do not attempt to move it.
Durkee fire
burns 175 acres
Haines girl wins for patriotic art
BY GINA K. SWARTZ
Gina@TheBakerCountyPress.com
Anthony Lakes Veter-
ans of Foreign Wars post
#3048, Ladies Auxiliary
sponsors the Young Ameri-
can Creative Art Awards
every year.
This year they have
announced Ila Farber, a
Baker High School Senior
from Haines, Oregon, went
on to place second in the
state competition earning
her a $500 scholarship.
Last Thursday, July 9 at
the local VFW hall, Farber
was awarded a check in a
small ceremony and her
artwork was displayed.
The art contest is for stu-
dents in grades 9 through
12 and the student need not
be a direct descendant of a
veteran. The requirements
for the original artwork are
that the piece be on either
paper or canvas, no smaller
than 8” X 10” or larger
than 18” X 24”.
The art could be done in
water color, pencil, pastel,
charcoal, tempera, crayon,
acrylic, pen and ink or oil.
Digital art is not accepted.
Entries were judged on
originality of concept, pre-
sentation, and patriotism
expressed; the content of
how it relates to patriotism
and clarity of ideas; the
design technique; total im-
pact of work; and unique-
ness.
An essay must accom-
pany the art work.
First place winners at
Post Level go to the State
competition, and the State
winner goes on to the
Photo Courtesy of Paula Sawyer.
The Trail Creek fire near Durkee spread quickly,
burning 175 acres.
L-R: Diane Florence, Jodi Thomas and Ila Farber.
National contest where the
top eight winners are fea-
tured in the VFW Ladies
Auxiliary Magazine.
All top eight receive
scholarship money. Di-
ane Florence, Auxiliary
treasurer said, “Jodi is
instrumental at getting in
touch with the art teach-
ers and getting the word
out for students to enter.
We judge the entries here
at the post level and then
the winner of that goes to
the state level. So, Ila won
at the local level and now
has won second place at
the state level. The entries
come from all over the
state so second place is a
pretty big deal. The first
place state winner goes on
to national.”
Farber was the first entry
from Baker City that has
ever gotten that far.
Jodi Thomas, Auxiliary
Vice President and Chair-
man of the Creative Art
Awards contest said, “It’s
very impressive when you
see what the children actu-
ally have done and then
they write about their pic-
ture and some of it is very
emotional. There are still
good kids in our world.”
Thomas, who has been
in charge of the contest for
the last five years said this
was the first entry she has
had that has ever won any-
thing. “And for anyone that
is interested Crossroads
will be displaying Ila’s
artwork,” she added.
The artwork is Farber’s
to do with as she pleases
and exactly when it will be
at Crossroads is up to her,
when she delivers the piece
Gina K. Swartz / The Baker County Press
to them.
Thomas is hoping that
by getting Crossroads
involved it will spark more
interest in the contest.
“When you only have
one entry it’s a runaway
(on the local level),”
Thomas said.
Farber, who will be at-
tending BYU Idaho in the
fall said, “My art teacher,
Mrs. Anderson, told me
about it so I decided I
might as well try painting.”
Mike Farber, Ila’s grand-
father, who traveled from
California, was beaming
with pride as his grand-
daughter—one of eight
siblings, he said—was
awarded the scholarship
money.
Mike Farber is a veteran
and Ila’s older brother is a
Marine.
A wildfire in Durkee, dubbed the Trail Creek Fire,
quickly burned to 175 acres last Wednesday.
After initially spreading fast, Jason Yencopal with
Baker County Emergency Management, was on scene
and said the fire was hit hard with a Bureau of Land
Management (BLM) helicopter and at least four BLM
trucks—in addition to a dozer from the rural fire protec-
tion department cutting a trail. A fixed wing plane also
dropped retardant.
The fire was "laying down nicely" according to Yenco-
pal, and containment was complete by that afternoon. No
structures were in danger.
At the same time the Trail Creek Fire was burning, a
lightning strike touched of another small fire just over the
hill in the Dixie Creek area. The plane, which had been
on site in Durkee, dropped some retardant on that small
blaze on its way. One BLM truck arrived to monitor that
fire, which was 100% contained.
Transient sales
bother residents
A group of unlicensed transient merchants were report-
ed going door-to-door in just about every neighborhood
in Baker City this past weekend.
The company for which they allegedly work is un-
known, and it is also unknown if the magazines and other
items they claim to sell actually exist, or if all sales made
are simply scams.
The transients claim to sell “charm and whit” when
they first approach. Others claim to be minors who
are trying to “win” a trip—they state various locations
around the world—if they get enough sales.
Residents who see them in their neighborhood are
encouraged to call dispatch so that a police officer can be
called to the residence and handle the situation.