YOUR HOMETOWN NEWSPAPER SINCE 1937
Illinois Valley News
Wednesday, August 30, 2017, 1 Section, Volume LXXX No. 23
Published weekly for the residents of the Illinois Valley
Chetco declared conflagration
(Photo by Laura Mancuso, Illinois Valley News)
Two Chinook helicopters stationed at the I.V. Airport Runway 18/36 Monday, Aug. 28. The
airport will be closed for firefighting operations starting Tuesday, August 23, until further notice.
I.V. Senior Center
buys county building
Anita Savio
IVN Contributing Writer
The Illinois Senior Center has
negotiated the purchase from the
county of the Cave Junction Josephine
County Building for $340,000. The
senior center made the decision to
purchase the building because it is
being forced to find a new home for its
thrift store, where they currently rent
at 321B S. Redwood Ave. The owner
of that property is requiring them to
vacate, as she has other plans for the
building.
With the purchase of the county
building, a long time local resource
will now pass into new hands, with
both the county and the senior center
asserting benefits to the community,
though also leaving some uncertainty
about what will happen to current
occupants.
According to County
Commissioner Simon Hare, the
conversion of this physical asset into
cash will allow the county to address
two new investment priorities:
“The I.V. airport lacks a fire
suppression reservoir that holds water.
It’s the last infrastructure element the
industrial park needs in place to be
shovel-ready for development.” Hare
added that a budget for that project has
not been developed.
“And I’m going to suggest to
the Board [of County Commissioners]
the creation of a small working
group from the Valley or a taskforce
to address ways the county can
help improve internet and vital
communication services to the Illinois
Valley. This is a high priority for me
and the Board.”
Sam Nichols, senior center
board director and building committee
chairman commented, “It’s quite an
accomplishment for the senior center
to buy this building.”
He added that that the new
location will accommodate a larger
thrift store, with the money coming
out of it going to the benefit of the
community.
A senior center press release
enumerated the many ways in which
the organization serves the Illinois
Valley: Numerous enrichment
activities for seniors at the senior
$1.00
center facility on River Street;
availability of the facility on River
Street for use by other organizations,
such as the Valley Girls annual quilt
show and the Red Cross monthly
blood drive; sponsor of the Little
League and youth soccer; vouchers to
needy families redeemable at the thrift
store; lunch for veterans on Veterans
Day; participation in the Evergreen
School fundraiser; and sponsor of high
school student organizations through
the senior center monthly breakfasts.
The county building currently
houses five tenants: Illinois Valley
Soil and Water District, Illinois Valley
Watershed Council, Illinois Valley
Baptist Church, Josephine County
Public Health, and Food and Friends.
All tenants have 60 day notice clauses
in their leases.
Nichols stated the senior center
has the intent to rent out some offices
but, beyond that, will be using the rest
of the building.
“But,” he added, “we haven’t
had a chance yet to measure and figure
out what we have.”
“The I.V. airport lacks a fire suppression
reservoir that holds water. It’s the last
infrastructure element the industrial park
needs in place to be shovel-ready for
development …” Simon Hare, Josephine County Commissioner
.
KXCJ’s Mother Earth Connections centers itself on environmental news
Read about it on A-8
Fires rage
north and
south of C.J.
The Chetco Bar fire is approximately 18 miles northwest
of Cave Junction. The Chetco Bar Fire operations team
announced early the morning of Aug. 29 the following
information:
Weather and fire behavior: The trend of warm overnight
temperatures and poor humidity recovery has set the Chetco
Bar Fire up for another active fire day Aug. 29. Humidity
levels are expected to begin climbing this afternoon. Ridgetop
temperatures could reach the 90s. Fire burning in the tops of
single trees and groups of trees is anticipated, with the potential
for embers to fly up to 0.4 miles ahead of the fire. There is a
high potential for large fire growth in areas where wind and
terrain align.
Aug. 28, while shading from smoke helped moderate fire
activity Monday, it also presented challenges to aerial attack
due to poor visibility. In the afternoon, smoke cleared enough
that helicopters were able to work the northwest edge of the
fire to support of crews and heavy equipment. The most active
burning occurred in the Emily Creek drainage, the East Fork of
the Pistol River and along the eastern flank in the Kalimiopsis
Wilderness.
As of Aug. 29, there was a reported 5 percent containment
on the fire’s west edge. Crews will continue scouting for and
constructing primary and alternate containment lines and setting
up hose-lays and water sources to be used in securing those
lines. Constructed fireline includes a mix of line directly along
the edge of the fire and some that is further from the fire’s edge
in strategic locations. Firefighters will scout for and build direct
and indirect lines along the north and east perimeter.
The risk to the Brookings area has diminished enough
that larger structural engines are no longer needed. Chetco
Bar Fire’s Unified Command continues to utilize structural
task forces that have the smaller engines. Oregon State Fire
Marshal’s Office is working on a re-engagement plan with local
fire departments and districts to be prepared with structural
resources should conditions change. Additional structural
resources will be demobilized as the threat to structures
diminishes. Our mission to protect the community and
surrounding area remains the same.
More than 100 National Guard firefighters are coming to
assist with mop up operations on the fire’s western perimeter.
Evacuations/Closure information: Residences within
parts of the Level 3 evacuation zone starting at the junction of
Shady Lane and South Bank Chetco Road east, and including
Freeman Rock and Salmon Run Golf Course have been reduced
to a Level 2 Evacuation.
To the south we have the Eclipse Complex southeast of CJ
about five miles west of Happy Camp. According to Inciweb,
the Eclipse Complex is now 60,533 acres and 24 percent
contained.
The western flank of the Oak Fire remains east of the
South Fork of Smith River. Crews are scoping potential
contingency lines between Bear Basin Butte and Sugarloaf
Mountain in case fire activity does cross the Smith River.
There will continue to be one-way controlled traffic
and/or occasional temporary closures of Highway 96 from west
(south) of Happy Camp to The Clear Creek Ranch due to fire
activity. From 7 a.m. to 8 a.m. and 7 p.m. to 8 p.m. the road will
be shut down for fire and emergency vehicles only during these
times. There may be longer delays due to dense smoke and/or
debris on Hwy. 96 in the fire area.
SEE FIRE ON A-5
Lions announce
Labor Day music and
talent show line up
Jason McMillen
IVN Contributing Writer
Although the parade, entertainment and vendors are the
mainstay of the Illinois Valley Lions Club Labor Day Festival,
there is one culminating moment that defines it; the motorcycle
raffle. The tradition, according to an estimate, is now 21 years
old.
Steve Lyons, a longtime member of the club, said that
he, John Waltermeyer and Shawn Jewett have been working
diligently all year, from January to September, to make this
incredible raffle take place. The bike is a 2005 Pro Street
Custom with 180 horsepower, an S&S 124 inch motor and
even includes a nitrous oxide supercharging system. Lyons
summarized the motorcycle’s power by simply saying that it’s
“scary fast.”
The bike was built for Easyriders Magazine back in
2005 and although its appraised value is $37,000, the Lions
Club acquired it for $20,000. The club typically only commits
$15,000 to the raffle so this year’s event is quite a bit more
tantalizing than average. Because of the bike’s increased cost,
the Club tacked on another 100 potential tickets, up from the
usual 300, for a grand total of 400. Reportedly, the current
owner of the bike, the builder’s brother, was in possession of
it for many years and was finally ready to get rid of it. He was,
according to Lyons, happy to sell it to the Club at a reduced
cost rather than wait indefinitely for a higher bid.
SEE LIONS ON A-8