The Baker County press. (Baker City, Ore.) 2014-current, December 30, 2016, Image 5

The Baker County press., December 30, 2016, Page 5, Image 5

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Newspaper Page TextFRIDAY, DECEMBER 30, 2016 THE BAKER COUNTY PRESS — 5 2016: A Year in Review / Local May Healthy kids day held Despite the windy and cool weather, plenty of at- tendance was noted during a Baker County YMCA- sponsored Healthy Kids Day event, held Saturday, April 30, 2016, from 9 a.m., to 1 p.m., at Geiser Pollman Park, in Baker City. County, Sunridge discuss TLT penalties The Baker County Board of Commissioners held its ﬁrst, regular session of the month, on Wednesday, May 4, 2016, 9 a.m., in the Commission Chambers, of the Baker County Court- house with a Memo of Understanding involving the Sunridge Inn’s pay- ment of Transient Lodging Tax penalties key on the agenda. Three interview for City Manager After some of the ﬁnal candidates for the City Manager position, soon to be vacated by retiring Mike Kee, either dropped out of the running or ac- cepted other positions, three remaining candi- dates interviewed in front of City Council early in the week. 911 calls not recorded The Baker County Board of Commissioners held an emergency, regular ses- sion on Wednesday, May 11, 2016, 10 a.m., in the Commission Chambers of the Baker County Court- house, in order to address the critical issue of Baker County 911 Consolidated Dispatch Center’s failed Stancil Recorder. GBVRFPD holds open house The Greater Bowen Val- ley Rural Fire Prevention District hosted an open house on Saturday, May 7th. Besides grilled burg- ers and dogs, drinks, and sides, the event featured information on ﬁre alarm installation and ﬁre safety, and offered giveaways for kids and adults. Water rates go up It wasn’t the 17.5%, 19% or even the 25% water rate increase that had been tossed around over the past month, but in the end, City Council still voted to increase Baker City water rates by 11.2% total. The increase means a 10% jump in base and usage rates, with an additional 1.2% increase to adjust for inflation. Commissioner race a nail-biter With only 38 votes sepa- rating Republican candi- dates Bruce Nichols and Kody Justus in Tuesday’s County Commission- ers primary election, the results of that race most likely will not be ofﬁcial for 14 days, according to County Clerk Cindy Carpenter. Unofﬁcially, it appears Nichols has taken the race. Unity man burned On Monday afternoon, Fred Amans, 67, of Unity, was Life Flighted to Boise after sustaining third degree burns in a work- related accident. Amans performs mainte- nance for the Burnt River Motel and Market, includ- ing a small rental cabin on the property in which the explosion that burned him Elk perish occurred. New 911 system installed The Baker County Board of Commissioners held a regular session on Wednesday, May 18, 2016, 9 a.m., in the Commission Chambers of the Baker County Courthouse, high- lighted by an important 911 Consolidated Dispatch Center recorder installation update. Local teens save truck driver’s life When they completed a CPR class to supplement their babysitting skills at the end of January, little did Sydney Slobig, a sophomore from Baker City, and Sydney Palmer, a junior from Haines, know they’d soon be using their newfound knowledge to save a man’s life. Veteran travels to D.C. “It’s just something that I like to do... It just gives the kids an insight of what it was like, back in 1941 ...” said local World War II Marine Corps veteran Robert Bennett. June 30J bus driver retires For 25 years, Unity’s Patty Trost carried what she calls her “precious cargo” across the southern part of Baker County. But with the end of this school year at Burnt River’s School District 30J, Trost retired. Wyden holds town hall On Tuesday, May 31, 2016, 9 a.m., Senator Ron Wyden hosted a Baker County Town Hall meeting in the Baker High School (BHS) auditorium. Man arrested for motor- cycle, car, gun theft On May 31, around 8 a.m., Deputy Tracy How- ard stopped Anthony Dett- man, 29, of Nebraska, on Campbell Street in Baker City for riding a motor- cycle without a helmet. Baker County gets first ever presidential conven- tion delegate Last weekend, several GOP Precinct Committee People from Baker County traveled to Salem. Oregon Republicans met at the Oregon State Fairgrounds to select delegates and alternates who will repre- sent the State of Oregon at the Republican National Convention in Cleveland, Ohio. Among those elected to one of those delegate positions was Suzan Ellis Jones of Bridgeport. Newspaper owner ar- rested The owner, editor, and publisher of The Record- Courier newspaper, Gina Deann Perkins, age 50 of Goodrich Creek, was arrested Saturday the 4th after two incidents, one at a private residence at 50416 Anthony Lakes Highway, just outside of Haines, technically North Powder. Standoff ends well On June 2, 2016 at about 3:12 p.m. Baker City Po- lice received the report of a man at 2010 Grove Street, recently released from prison, who had a ﬁrearm. Speaker visits Oregon State Speaker of the House, District 44 Democrat Tina Kotek, joined by District 60 Republican Representative Cliff Bentz, and Kotek’s Chief of Staff, Tim Inman, hosted a Breakfast with the Speaker, to discuss local issues in a round-table format, at the Sunridge Inn Restaurant, on Friday, June 3, 2016, 7 a.m. Former Halfway couple killed Husband and wife, Lance and Jade Simpson, both Pine Eagle graduates formerly of Halfway, were killed last Friday afternoon when their pickup left a dirt road and plunged more than 600 feet down into a ravine, Hobble Creek Canyon, in Utah. McNeil crowned On June 11th, Baker City’s Lori McNeil was crowned Mrs. Oregon United States 2016. Bookmobile gets make- over From cleaning through completion, the Baker Library District’s bookmo- bile underwent a make- over—18 hours total—at the hands of Oregon Sign Company last weekend. One killed outside Haines A head-on collision on Highway 30 outside Haines took the life of one and seriously injured two others Monday evening. Walden holds townhall Around 45 members of the community attended a town hall, hosted by U.S. Congressman Greg Walden, at the Sunridge Inn Restaurant June 20. July Cycling event celebrates 15 years From Thursday, June 24 to Sunday, June 26, Baker City celebrated the 15-year anniversary of the Baker City Cycling Classic. new building The Eastern Oregon Regional Theater, EORT, announced its soon-to-be new location in the historic Orpheum Theater on Main Street. Sumpter recalls mayor The votes are in for Sumpter’s recent recall election with a high per- centage of the town’s 133 registered voters taking part. Ballots were due Tues- day, June 28th. Unofﬁcial results for the recall of mayor Leland Myers are 53 yes votes and 51 no votes. Best Western, Sunridge files for bankruptcy Late last month, Town- ridge, Inc., dba (doing business as) Best Western Sunridge Inn, of Baker City, ﬁled for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, in the District of Oregon U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Portland, citing ﬁnancial issues, pending litigation, and the need to restructure debts. ‘Gold Rush’ stars go to Haines Todd Hoffman, Jack Hoffman, Andy Spinks, Dave Turin, Jim Thurber, and several other cast and crew members from the Discovery Channel’s “Gold Rush” brought their families to Haines last Sunday for the town’s 4th of July celebration. Regional Theater gets 30, which includes Baker County, took an informal tour of Huntington on Wednesday, July 6. Local woman attends RNC The slate of 28 delegates and their alternates from Oregon to represent at the Republican National Con- vention (RNC), includes for the ﬁrst time a Baker County resident, Suzan El- lis Jones. Jones is chair of the Baker County Repub- licans. 5J to stick to four-day week July 11, the Baker School 5J School District board members met to discuss calendar options for the 2016-17 school year. ‘House Hunters’ films here A ﬁlm crew from the hit Home and Garden Chan- nel (HGTV) show “House Hunters” shot footage in Baker City last week with the crew and a couple of potential buyers being seen along with a local real- tor all over the downtown area. Ferrioli tours Huntington Senator Ted Ferrioli, the Senate Republican Minor- ity Leader from John Day who represents District Celebrities, politicians join parade Last Saturday’s Miners Jubilee parade was ﬁlled with guests from out of town, including Jim Thurb- er and Jack Hoffman from the Discovery Channel’s hit show “Gold Rush.” Todd Hoffman was origi- nally scheduled to appear, but was unable to return from a trip on time. Nonpartisan issue back on ballot The effort to make Baker County Commissioner seats nonpartisan, which was soundly rejected by voters last fall, is once again slated for the ballot in Baker County. New Councilman Loren Joseph has been appointed to ﬁll a va- cated term on Baker City Council. Armstrong nugget’s new display Thursday, July 21, US Bank in Baker City unveiled their new gold display, including every- thing from the old scales to a new case. The company began the redesign process for the display three years ago. CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 Ratliff explained that the depth of the water at such a distance from shore prevented them from moving in any heavy equipment to help break up the ice so the elk might swim to shore, or from ﬁnding another way to reach them that wouldn’t jeopardize human lives. The elk had broken through at four separate locations. “We had to assess the situation and just let them be,” Ratliff said. “Sometimes these things are hard to under- stand.” Ratliff said as they watched, he knew the remain- ing elk would, sadly, eventually succumb and simply become “part of the reservoir.” Upon closer inspection Ratliff said it appeared that the elk had crossed the same ice several times in the past, and there were signs that the 41 had bedded down along the edge of the waters nearby. It didn’t appear to him that the elk had been startled, but instead had simply been walk- ing calmly across the ice—until it began to crack. Ratliff said it appeared as though the ice had shifted that morning, with evidence of water flowing up over the edges where it hadn’t previously. In addition to the two men from ODFW, one Oregon State Police ofﬁcer responded. Ratliff said he spoke to seven different residents. Sharon and Harold White were two residents who trudged through the 18” of snow along the banks trying to get a better look at the scene unfolding. “I was heartbroken all day,” said Sharon White. She noted that no one had seen the lone survivor—that one elk calf—perish, and that citizens hoped it had been picked up in the herd of 150 that passed safely across the ice Wednesday morning. Wildlife perishing either on top of, or falling through thin ice, is not uncommon in the winter months of eastern Oregon, Myatt said; however, an event of this scale is rare. “There was an incident in Colorado just last year when 20 elk fell through,” Myatt said. Powder CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 “The snow isn’t quite as deep as usual up high in the mountains but it is off to a good start especially in the northern Blue Mountains,” stated Sather. The La Grande Ride team, which includes Sather and Hurd, continues to be diligent in leading the region in snow safety data. The most comprehensive winter recreation information is available on the website, www. LaGrandeRide.com, along with the Regional Snow Fore- cast, where “we have your mountain weather dialed.” So far this year, the forecasts have been spot on for where to go, and when to go, to ﬁnd fresh powder. The mountain snow may be soft and playful, yet the hidden danger of avalanches lurks—especially with all the new snow. On December 19th, an avalanche closed Highway 204 between Tollgate and Elgin. There have been some other signs of instability including road cut avalanches we have reported. While attempting a side hill during a regular snow and avalanche study outing, Hurd triggered a small slide beside the road. Simple tests like side-cutting on a safe small slope can be a telling indicator of instability on the bigger slopes. When red flags like this exist, you should stay away from slopes above 30 degrees. “The snowpack is growing steadily—since the storms have been coming every three to ﬁve days—and there’s been little melting of snow surfaces at higher elevations, which is unusual compared to this time last year,” said Hurd. “The threat of avalanches will remain high over the next several weeks, including for the Blue Mountains in Baker and Union County.” Current forecast models are anticipating the arrival of yet another winter storm in the next three or four days. New snow will be likely for all areas of Baker, Union, and Wallowa Counties. The future of winter 2016-17 is still unknown, but if it continues at the current trend a lot of snow still has yet to fall. Sky lanterns now illegal As of January 1, 2017, sky lanterns (also known as aerial luminaries, Chinese lanterns, mini hot air balloons, UFO balloons, wish lanterns, etc.) are illegal to release into Oregon airspace. A sky lantern is a paper sack suspended over a flame, usually from a small candle or other lit device. The hot air from the flame causes the balloon to rise into the air and be carried off by the wind. "Although they are pretty, sky lanterns are uncontrolled, open-flamed devices that pose an extreme ﬁre hazard to people, property, and the environment" said Oregon Chief Deputy State Fire Marshal Mariana Ruiz-Temple. "Once released you have no control over where they may land. They could end up on someone's rooftop, in a tree, or a pile of debris and cause an unwanted ﬁre." A number of states, as well as countries such as Ger- many, Australia, and Brazil have outlawed sky lanterns. As of January 1, 2017, releasing a sky lantern into Oregon airspace will be a Class A violation subject to a maximum penalty of $2,000.