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About Illinois Valley news. (Cave City, Oregon) 1937-current | View Entire Issue (Dec. 17, 2003)
Underground grow sites yield huge marijuana crop Law enforcement offi- cers last week raided four locations – two in Illinois Valley – and uncovered three underground mari- juana grow sites; seizing some 5,440 plants, said Josephine Interagency Narcotics Team (JOINT). The illegal weed will be destroyed by burning, but not in the form of ma r i j u a n a c i ga r e t t e s known as joints. On Thursday, Dec. 11 at 7:30 a.m. 60 lawmen from 12 agencies raided two locations in Illinois Valley and one in Wolf Creek, and uncovered three underground sites for growing marijuana. At 1620 Reeves Creek Road in Selma, officers found a 50-by-50-foot be- low-ground grow site with more than 3,500 plants. They also found a three- story underground grow site under construction, and investigators estimate it would have been capable of growing another 5,000 to 7,000 marijuana plants, said JOINT. Investigators believe that the confiscated mari- juana was destined for an organized crime distribu- tion network in California. The case represents one of the largest during the past several years in Josephine County. Flu season hits valley fairly hard By MICHELLE BINKER ‘Tis the season. For the flu, that is. And this year’s strain is wreaking havoc through- out the northern hemi- sphere. Illinois Valley is not immune. This rampaging virus, a Fujian strain of Influ- enza A, has sent thousands of people to hospitals, and is responsible for the deaths of several children in the western United States, and six children in England and Scotland. In Illinois Valley, health workers are dealing with a fair number of peo- ple with flu and flu-like symptoms. Eve Marsh, a regis- tered nurse who works at Siskiyo u Communit y Health Center (SCHC) in Cave Junction, reported that only a few children from the valley have been sent to hospitals, and they have recovered quickly. Marsh noted that underly- ing asthma may have con- tributed to the severity of those cases. School absences in- creased considerably dur- ing the past week. At Lorna Byrne Middle School’s Health Center, registered nurse Ruth McBride said they’ve been sending a few students home every day. Ever- green Elementary had 150 (nearly one-third of the student population) out sick on Monday, Dec. 8 although attendance has improved since. Principal Lise Van Brunt credits parents for being very aware of the outbreak, and keeping sick kids home. “We haven’t really had too many feverish kids in class,” she said, though during one point early in the week there may have been “20 or 30 kids per hour” in the office having temperatures taken. Cathy Zook, adminis- trator at Dome School, said they “have definitely been hit. Fortunately, we have- n’t had too many absences all at once.” Sudden onset of a fe- ver is a typical flu symp- tom, as are severe body aches, headache, weak- ness, dry cough and nasal discharge. In the event of illness, it is important to prevent dehydration, and to contact a physician if the condition lasts for (Continued on page 3) Mentioned in connec- tion with the three search warrant services are Rex Denham, 26, of the Reeves Creek Road address; Freddie Tamayo, 34, of 5565 Westside Road; and James Conn, 34, of 4201 Coyote Creek Road in Wolf Creek at the north end of Josephine County. No arrests were made, and investigation is continuing. JOINT said that its detectives have been work- ing for two years on leads to develop information about “several under- ground grow sites in op- eration in Josephine (Continued on page 6) New I.V. Fire Chief Rich has 34 years under belt HOLIDAY HOOPS - Glide High School cap- tured first place in the girls and boys categories at the annual Holiday Tournament hosted by Illinois Valley High School in Ken Mann Me- morial Gym on Friday and Saturday, Dec. 12- 13. Named to the girls all-tourney team: Kim Hamilton and Emily Dud- ley of I.V. High, Katie O’Brien of Cascade Christian, Krista Meeks of Gold Beach, and Brooke Smith of Glide. Glide’s Amy Croll was named Most Valuable Player. On the boys side, the Cougars’ Jon Riley attained the all- tournament team, along with Brandon Fair from Cascade Christian, Nic McNair and Wil Price of Gold Beach, and David Hill of Glide. The boys MVP was listed as Brandt Petersen, also from Glide. Early ‘I.V. News’ deadline for the next two issues (Dec. 24 and 31): *Noon Thursday, Dec. 18; paper comes out Tuesday, Dec. 23 *Noon Wednesday, Dec. 24; paper comes out Tuesday, Dec. 30 By MICHELLE BINKER Harry Rich, who has 34 years of fire fighting experience in California, will start as chief of Illi- nois Valley Fire District on March 1. District directors con- vened for a special, one- hour meeting on Sunday night, Dec. 14 in Cave Junction City Hall. After brief discussion of the compensation package and probationary period, Direc- tor Joe Malcolm moved to accept Rich as the dis- trict’s new fire chief. The board approved the motion 5-0. Rich was among six candidates; five of whom were interviewed by the board Saturday, Dec. 13. Rich, who has 34 years experience as a firefighter and EMT in the city of Los Angeles and Big Bear City fire departments, brings to the job a goal-oriented ap- proach and a resolve to work in concert with the policies set by the board to shape the future of the dis- trict. “I want to bring the board solutions, not prob- lems,” he said, accepting the board’s approval. “I look forward to the chal- lenge, and the opportu- nity.” The first item on the new chief’s agenda is to bring more volunteers on board. Board Chairman Joel Downing concurred on this issue. “We would all support a more active drive” to recruit more vol- unteers, Downing said. Additionally, Rich said he would like to have a school program to get youth involved in the fire service. Rich cited his exten- sive experience in risk management, and proposed a “support team” to ana- lyze and mitigate risks to district firefighters. Fur- thermore, Rich said he would pursue funding through bonds, obligation grants, or state funds, to replace old equipment. Rich, 56, and his wife, Lorraine, are building a home in Cave Junction, and are committed to stay- ing for the long haul. “This is where I want to finish my life; this is where I want to raise my dog,” said Rich, smiling. The couple have four grown daugh- ters. When he retired from his position as a fire cap- tain in L.A., Rich said his wife, who is originally Harry Rich from Grants Pass, allowed him to choose “anyplace within a 100-mile radius” of GP. He chose Cave Junction. After reading about the fire district’s need to hire a new chief in the “Illinois Valley News” and elsewhere, he decided to apply. “I take great pride in having been an L.A. city firefighter,” said Rich. “I will take great pride as a firefighter for the Illinois Valley.” Board member Larrick Jones was enthusiastic about the new hire. “He’s very sharp,” said Jones. “He’ll make a good chief.” The district’s training officer, Jeff Gavlik, who has been serving as interim fire chief since March, when Kyle Kirchner re- signed, is pleased with the new hire. “This is a posi- tive movement for the dis- trict,” he said. Rich asked the board for 65 days to finish work on his house and wrap up business in L.A. before getting down to work in Illinois Valley on March 1. The fire chief’s salary will start at $55,000, and after a six-month review could rise to $65,000. Biscuit comments extended Jan. 20 is the new deadline for public com- ments on the Biscuit Fire Recovery Project Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS), accord- ing to the U.S. Forest Ser- vice. The Jan. 20 date is the result of a 15-day exten- sion announced by the for- est service’s Rogue River- Siskiyou National Forest office in Medford on Fri- day, Dec. 12. In choosing the length of the extension, Forests Supervisor Scott Conroy (Continued on page 3)