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A special good morning to subscriber Bryson Voth
@RedmondSpox
Dean Guernsey/The Bulletin
Water from a breach in the Pilot Butte Canal flooded property Thurs-
day along SW Young Avenue south of Redmond.
Above photo by Tim Trainor; Below phoot Bulletin file
ABOVE: Crews work to repair the Pilot Butte Canal after it gave way Wednesday night, flooding fields, homes and Young Avenue. BELOW: A yel-
low-bellied marmot, also known as a rockchuck.
ROCKCHUCKS
WREAK HAVOC
Common rodent blamed for
damaging canal, causing flood
By SPOKESMAN STAFF
ockchucks, the large ro-
dents that are common
in Central Oregon,
are being blamed for a breach
in the Pilot Butte Canal that
caused flooding along a road
and several properties halfway
between Bend and Redmond
on Wednesday night.
The rockchucks allegedly
weakened the canal wall by
R
tunneling into it, causing a 30-
foot section to collapse.
Central Oregon Irrigation
District, which operates the
Pilot Butte Canal, responded
to reports of the breach at
around 9 p.m. Wednesday.
The district shut down the
canal in Bend, but water con-
tinued to flow through the
breached area for an addi-
tional four hours, said Craig
Eco-activist pleads guilty to
1997 slaughterhouse arson
Associated Press
A Seattle man has pleaded guilty to federal
arson charges involving a fire that destroyed a
Redmond horse slaughterhouse in 1997.
Joseph Dibee, 54, pleaded guilty Thursday
in Portland to federal arson and conspiracy to
commit arson charges for his role in the fire
that destroyed Cavel West, a slaughterhouse
that processed and sold horse meat in Europe,
Oregon Public Broadcasting reported.
Horrell, the district’s general
manager.
Two earthmovers were at
the location of the breach on
Thursday, restoring the wall
with clay and and rock. The
breach occurred in the canal
close to SW Young Avenue, be-
tween the Old Bend-Redmond
Highway and 61st Street.
Canal breaches are rare in
Central Oregon but not un-
See Arson / A4
SW Young Avenue, said she
noticed water on the road after
coming home from dinner on
Wednesday and immediately
called her husband and some
neighbors to investigate. Res-
idents found the breach and
called the Central Oregon Irri-
gation District.
“It was coming quite quickly
after we noticed it. You could
hear the rushing water and
see it coming,” said Morgan,
a project manager for Hy-
dro Flask. “It was inconve-
nient, but we rolled with the
punches.”
Morgan said she and her
husband started moving items
out of the garage when it be-
came clear that the water was
approaching their property.
She also bought sandbags
from Fred Meyer to surround
her home. The irrigation dis-
trict placed pumps in the ga-
rage to start removing water.
Irrigation district workers
were at the property on Thurs-
day helping with cleanup.
According to Horrell, the
breach occurred because rock-
chucks create tunnels in the
canal walls, which are then
susceptible to failure when wa-
ter enters them.
“They take out all the struc-
tural ability. The water finds
the path of least resistance,
and it just starts moving in
there,” said Horrell.
Rockchucks, also known as
yellow-bellied marmots, are
the largest members of the
squirrel family. They hiber-
nate for about eight months
of the year starting in Septem-
ber, usually emerging in April
to fatten up on grass, plants,
flowers and the occasional in-
sect.
See Flood / A4
Police, behavioral health field
spike in mental health crisis calls
BY JOE SIESS
For The Spokesman
Dibee
heard of. In May last year, a
large sinkhole appeared in a
canal belonging to Arnold Ir-
rigation District, forcing that
district to shut down its canal
for a week. Horrell said the last
major canal failure in his dis-
trict occurred in Bend in 2005
when around 10 homes were
flooded after a canal failed
near Silver Lake Boulevard.
Jess Morgan, a resident on
Photo by Tim Trainor
Water sits on Young Avenue, which is currently closed, as crews repair
the nearby Pilot Butte Canal.
From 2020 to 2021, men-
tal health crisis calls to the
Redmond Police Department
increased by 21.1%, a num-
ber that has trended upward
for the past five years, leading
to a tighter focus on mental
health among law enforce-
ment and behavioral health
professionals in the region.
Police Chief Devin Lewis
said there were 904 mental
health calls in 2021 — up
from 719 in 2020 — but the
number could actually be
higher, because other calls
often turn out to be mental
health crisis calls once of-
ficers arrive. In data Lewis
shared Tuesday with the
Redmond City Council, do-
mestic related calls, trespass,
unwanted subjects, prowlers,
and welfare checks — which
all overlap at times with men-
tal health calls — also saw
increases. Welfare checks in
particular increased by 11.5
% between 2020 and 2021,
the data showed.
Mental health profession-
als said it is hard to blame the
increase in mental health calls
on one problem. But factors
that come into play include the
effects of the COVID-19 pan-
demic and substance abuse.
See Crisis / A4
The Spokesman uses
recycled newsprint
Tuesday 4/26
Events in and around Redmond
The Redmond Spokesman welcomes event information for
its community calendar. Submissions are limited to nonprofit,
free and live entertainment events. Deadline is 5 p.m. Thursday
for the following Wednesday’s paper. Items are published on a
space-available basis and may be edited. Contact us at
news@redmondspokesman.com or fax 541-548-3203.
Writers Writing — Quiet Writing Time: Enjoy the focus of
a quiet space with the benefit of others’ company; 10:30 a.m.-
12:30 p.m.; free; Redmond Public Library, 827 SW Deschutes
Ave., Redmond; deschuteslibrary.org or 541-312-1050.
Ichishkín Language Revitalization: Learn about local Na-
tive language revitalization that counters historical damage;
6-7 p.m.; free; Redmond Public Library, 827 SW Deschutes
Ave., Redmond; deschuteslibrary.org or 541-312-1029.
City Council Meeting: A regular meeting will be held;
6-8 p.m.; free; Redmond City Hall Council Chambers, 411 SW
Ninth St., Redmond; redmondoregon.gov or 541-923-7710.
Trivia Tuesday: Go with a team or team up there to play
genuine UKB Trivia live and possibly win gift certificates; 6:30-
8:30 p.m.; free; Initiative Brewing, 424 NW 5th, Redmond;
facebook.com/InitiativeBrew or 541-527-4380.
Wednesday 4/27
Hemp Education Workshop: If you’re interested in hemp
production, business & economics join this two day work-
shop; 8:30 a.m.-Noon; free; OSU Extension Service, 3893 SW
Airport Way, Redmond; extension.oregonstate.edu or 541-
548-6088.
See Calendar / A4
INDEX
Puzzles ............. 2 Opinion ........... 3
Flashback ........ 5 Classifieds ....... 5
Volume 112, No. 35
USPS 778-040
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