Page 8
Illinois Valley News, Cave Junction, OR Wednesday, August 20, 2008
World War II bombing near Brookings recalled
(Photo by Josephine County Sheriff’s Office)
Father, young son dead
in single-vehicle wreck
Alcoholic beverage use
is seen as a contributing fac-
tor in a crash in which a fa-
ther and toddler died, said
Josephine County Sheriff’s
Office (JCSO).
Dead in the accident on
Monday night, Aug. 18 are
James Lee Dahl, 25, and his
son, 2-year-old Mason James
Slawson.
The driver of the 1991
Dodge Caravan that struck a
tree head-on in rural Grants
Pass is identified as Roy Lee
Smith, 59. All three of those
in the van are from rural
Grants Pass, said JCSO.
Investigators said that the
youngster “would have sur-
vived the crash had he been in
an approved car seat.” The
child was in the farthermost
rear seat of the van and “was
only secured with a lap belt,”
reported JCSO.
Smith was wearing a seat
belt; Dahl was not, it added.
A report by detectives
said that Smith, who suffered
a fractured right leg, was
taken to a hospital by Ameri-
can Medical Response. The
report further notes that it
appears that Smith was west-
bound on Dutcher Creek
Road in the 600 block.
He told officers that he
swerved to avoid a wild ani-
mal on the road. The van left
the roadway and hit a tree.
JCSO added, “In the
summer of 2006, Mason
Slawson’s biological mother,
Karlee Christine Slawson,
was killed in a car crash on
Riverbanks Road. James
Dahl was driving the car at
the time, and it was reported
that Karlee ‘jumped’ from the
moving vehicle.”
Oregon State Police in-
vestigated that accident, said
the sheriff’s office.
Republicans state battle
vs. sexual text messages
House Republicans an-
nounced that they’ll introduce
2009 legislation to combat
text messaging by sexual
predators.
The legislation would
strengthen the 2007 “luring”
law, which makes it a
crime for predators to use the
Internet to lure their victims.
“When it comes to catch-
ing predators, technology
continues to outpace state
law,” said Rep. Andy Olson
(R-Albany). “The Legislature
passed an important law in
2007 to crack down on Inter-
net predators, yet the statute
doesn’t address the use of text
messaging for luring.
“We will close this loop-
hole next session, and con-
tinue our efforts to protect
children.”
Rep. Gene Whisnant (R-
Sunriver) said that the legisla-
tion is needed because sexual
predators may increasingly
turn to texting as more chil-
dren use cell phones. A recent
report indicates that nearly
half of children ages 11 to 12
now have cell phones.
“More children are using
cell phones, and text messag-
ing is a favorite way for them
to communicate,” said Whis-
nant, vice chairman of the
House Judiciary Committee.
“Adding text messaging to
Oregon’s anti-luring law
should be a simple task, and
we look forward to passing
this legislation in 2009.”
The proposal is part of
the House Republicans’ 2009
agenda, “Building a Better
Oregon.”
Digital TVs
(Continued from page 5)
To locate a recycler, see
DEQ’s E-waste Website at
deq.state.or.us/1q/ewaste/
resources.htm.
Starting Jan. 1, 2009
Oregonians will be able to
recycle their old TVs (as well
as desktop computers, port-
able computers and monitors)
for free through the DEQ-
administered Oregon Elec-
tronics Recycling Program.
This program will provide
convenient, free electronics
recycling in every county,
including at least one collec-
tion site in every city with a
population of 10,000 or more.
For more information on
the program, visit
deq.state.or.us/1q/
electronics.htm.
Until March 31, 2009,
households can request up to
two $40 coupons from the
federal government toward
the purchase of eligible con-
verter boxes, which cost be-
tween $50 and $70. Con-
verter boxes are available at
consumer electronics retailers
nationwide.
(The bulk of the follow-
ing was printed in The Daily
Triplicate in Del Norte
County).
During the 1940s, the
tensions of war began to
reach Del Norte County. Re-
ports and events in the coastal
areas made it necessary to
protect shores.
In 1941, Japanese sub-
marines off the Mendocino
coast torpedoed the General
Petroleum Corp. tanker, the
S.S. Emido. Five men died
and 31 survived. The un-
manned tanker drifted north-
ward until Christmas Eve and
lodged itself against Steam-
boat Rock off Crescent City.
A portion of the hull was
later raised and placed at
Beachfront Park in Crescent
City in remembrance of the
men aboard.
On Sept. 4, 1942, eyewit-
nesses in Brookings stated
that they saw an unidentified
aircraft entering the area at
the early light of dawn. The
craft apparently was 500 feet
over a beach when sighted,
and there seemed to be no
distinguishing marks, accord-
ing to witnesses.
Later, an employee of the
U.S. Forest Service reported
that he had seen bomb frag-
ments and a sizable crater.
The Associated Press re-
ported that a crater had been
found near what is now Mt.
Emily, up the Chetco River
from Brookings.
The earth was scorched
and markings were seen on
the fragments of the device
that appeared to be Japanese
in origin. In and around the
crater were a number of frag-
ments of varying size. There
were no reported injuries.
(It subsequently has been
noted that the float-plane,
piloted by Nobuo Fujita, was
secured atop a submarine that
surfaced off the Oregon coast.
Fujuta years later donated his
family’s samurai sword to the
Brookings community, and it
was displayed at Brookings
City Hall in a special case.
His coming to the coast
aroused strong sentiments,
but eventually, as the war was
long over, and Japan had lost,
the controversy passed.
Additionally, around
1984, Fujita arranged for four
Brookings-Harbor High
School students to visit Japan
at his expense. He also visited
the Brookings area at least
one other time, besides the
time he passed on the heir-
loom sword in a gesture of
peace.
During WWI, reports of
“balloons” were received.
These devices were hot air
balloons that carried explo-
sives. The weapons would be
controlled by equipment that
enabled then to float via the
jet stream until reaching their
target, at which time the bal-
loon would release its explo-
sive device.
Many of these new
weapons were seen in the
North Coast area of Crescent
City. One device had landed
in an area where a family
reunion was occurring in
1945 in Bly, Ore. When the
party-goers went to investi-
gate there was an explosion,
and tragic consequences that
affected five families.
During the 1940s, these
and other events were being
reported to the government.
In 1943, the San Francisco
Chronicle reported that
sources believed the Japanese
forces were intending to in-
vade the coastline of Crescent
City. As well, a U.S. Coast
Guard station at Port Orford
was ready to detect and de-
fend if necessary.
Kilsoo K. Haan, a Wash-
ington representative re-
ported, “My agents report that
60 percent of the Japanese
navy will be thrown into the
attempt. They have a fleet of
huge submarines about twice
the size of the average de-
stroyer. Each of these carry
more than 1,500 troops.”
Haan predicted the attack
on Pearl Harbor and predicted
a possible attack on Crescent
City; his sources are reported
to be from espionage ops.
Due to all the reports, the
expectation was that there
would be an investigation of
anti-submarine patrols off the
Pacific Northwest and an
increase in naval and air op-
erations in the area. The mili-
tary planned to put the Point
St. George light station to use.
It’s approximately 8 miles off
the coast from Crescent City.
Training operations on
the site were to include robot
bombing at targets set up on
the sand strips and ocean side
of the station.
Arrangements also were
made to remove power lines
on the south side of the sta-
tion due to the danger they
cause to low-altitude flyers
using the airstrip.
Point St. George became
a classified naval installation,
one of three on the entire West
Coast. The station’s main pur-
Andrew Seidler
Sarah Lawrence College
at Yonkers, N.W. awarded a
bachelor’s degree to Andrew
Seidler, son of John & Teri
Seidler, of Cave Junction, on
May 23, 2008.
Seidler is a graduate of
Illinois Valley High School.
While at Sarah Lawrence, he
interned as the editor of a
newspaper, and will be work-
ing as an editor in New York
City.
Aaron Brooks
Aaron Gregg Brooks, of
Cave Junction, has received a
bachelor of science degree in
civil engineering. He was
awarded the degree during
June commencement exer-
cises at Oregon Institute of
Technology at Klamath Falls.
Brooks is the son of
Gregg & Karen Brooks, of
Cave Junction.
Leo K. Chan
Leo K. Chan, son of An-
thony & Kitty Chan, of Cave
Junction, has received a
bachelor of science degree in
geomatics from Oregon Insti-
tute of Technology at
Klamath Falls. The award
was bestowed during June
commencement exercises.
Chelsea Calhoun
The University of
Findlay in Ohio announced
that Chelsea Calhoun, of
Selma, achieved a grade-
point average of at least 3.5
during spring semester 2008.
Calhoun is majoring in
early childhood development/
equestrian studies.
Sewer & Drain Cleaning
Cave Junction
& surrounding area
659-0238
Bonded - Insured
CCB 68033
pose was to intercept radio
transmissions from the Japa-
nese. These were often in code
called Kana, similar to what
we know as Morse Code. The
men reported their findings to
the U.S. government.
Two additional bases
were established in Klamath,
Calif. These bases contained
radar devices to ensure safety
from attack. The buildings
were intentionally built to
resemble farmhouses to avoid
detection from enemy aircraft.
The “farm” remains today and
is registered as a historic land-
mark due to the fact that it is
the only remaining station of
its kind on the West Coast.
During these unsettled
years, Crescent City residents
also played their part in en-
suring safety. Air horns
would blare throughout the
town when a threat was re-
ported. The citizens would
perform “blackouts,” turning
out all their lights at home
and covering windows to
confuse any enemy searching
for the small town.
Many men of the area
also served in the military
forces, risking their lives to
protect freedom and the com-
munity.
Concrete
Remodel
New Construction
592-6609
CCB 174891
Water Wells
Pump Sales
Installation
Service
592-6777
1470 Caves Highway
Licensed • Bonded • Insured
Locally owned and
operated in the valley
for over 25 years.
WWC #1504 • CCB #152266 • CPl #7-113
Member Oregon Ground Water Assoc.
30 years experience in water, sewer & pipeline
construction, brush clearing, septic installation
& utility line trenching
Specializing in
alternative
septic systems
READY TO DIG & AIMING TO PLEASE 24 HOURS A DAY
CCB#159580
D&M ROOTER
20 YEARS
Nobuo Fujita (right) and his Yokosuka
E14Y ‘Glen’ (Photos from Wikipedia)
1-(541) 597-4486
ILLINOIS VALLEY
AND RENTAL CENTER
Save $$$ Rent From Us: lawn tools, paint
sprayers, carpet shampooer, plumbing
tools, construction equipment, power tools
and more!
434 Caves Highway, Cave Junction, OR 97523
Phone (541) 592-3540 Fax (541) 592-6841
Mon-Fri 7:00-5:30, Sat 8:00-5:00, Closed Sunday
• Payments as low as 1%
• Established Credit not required, rent receipts, etc. OK
• New Construction
• Josephine County / Cave Junction
These Government Loans are not always available.
This is a great Opportunity for those who would not
normally qualify to Buy a Home.