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About The daily Astorian. (Astoria, Or.) 1961-current | View Entire Issue (July 25, 2019)
A2 THE ASTORIAN • THURSDAY, JULY 25, 2019 IN BRIEF Painkillers tracked in Clatsop and Pacifi c counties LONG BEACH, Wash. — Clatsop County in Oregon and Pacifi c County in Washington state were among the highest counties for oxycodone and hydrocodone sales per person in the years when nationwide overuse of pain pills reached deadly proportions. Clatsop County was seventh among Oregon’s 36 counties with about 18 million pain pills supplied between 2006 and 2012, enough for 69.6 per person per year, according to federal Drug Enforcement Admin- istration data obtained by the Washington Post after a yearlong court fi ght. Pacifi c County was fourth among Washington’s 39 counties with nearly 10.2 million prescription pain pills supplied, enough for 68 pills per person per year. Locally, this period largely coincides with Dr. Bran- don Adams’ longtime practice in Long Beach, ending in suspension of his medical license in December 2011. The state Medical Quality Assurance Commission cited numerous examples of improper prescribing, including ceasing to keep records of his prescriptions and issu- ing prescriptions without conducting consultations with patients. Despite these allegations — and others involving sexual improprieties with pain patients — Adams was permitted to voluntarily surrender his medical license in 2012 due to his failing health. Because of their close proximity and due to retail buying patterns, some Pacifi c County pill prescrip- tions were fi lled at Clatsop County pharmacies. Overall, Thrifty Payless/Rite Aid in Warrenton sold 2.85 million oxycodone and hydrocodone pills in seven years. Peninsula Pharmacies in Long Beach sold 2.64 mil- lion, followed by Fred Meyer in Warrenton with 2.53 million. South Bend Pharmacy and Thrifty Payless/Rite Aid in Seaside each sold about 2.25 million. Most pain pills sold in Pacifi c and Clatsop coun- ties were manufactured by SpecGx LLC, with a total of more than 15 million pills over the seven years. Car- dinal Health was the top distributor in Pacifi c County, with about 7.5 million sales, and McKesson Corp. was tops in Clatsop, with 7.22 million. — Chinook Observer Astoria Library lands grant to digitize historic documents By KATIE FRANKOWICZ The Astorian Looking for Capt. George Flavel’s signature? Before too long, you might be able to fi nd it online along with troves of city records, family papers and other documents tied to Astoria’s early history. The Astoria Library announced it landed a $50,000 grant from the Insti- tute of Museum and Library Services to digitize and fur- ther preserve a vast archive of historical documents stored and catalogued in the library’s basement. The institute is the pri- mary source of federal sup- port for the nation’s librar- ies and museums and Astoria is the only library in Oregon out of 30 grantees selected to receive money under an ini- tiative to strengthen small or rural libraries, archives and similar organizations. Grants ranged in size from $10,000 to $50,000, and the institute awarded a total of $1.2 million. For Astoria, the money will pay for the work of pro- fessionals like local histo- rian John Goodenberger and Leather-bound city ledgers and ordinances from Astoria’s earliest period are kept at the Astoria Library. archivist Rachael Woody. It will also pay for equipment like a large format scanner and computers. The Astoria Library plays a dual role in the community, said Library Director Jimmy Pearson. The library stores the usual suspects: books, vid- eos, magazines and news- papers. But the basement is also home to a vast archive of historical artifacts and documents that Gooden- berger and Woody, helped by an army of volunteers, have been working to cata- logue and organize for sev- eral years . “We have 170 years worth of history,” Pearson said. “It’s kind of an honor to be charged with the role of safe- guarding that for the future.” He hopes the archive will become an easily accessible resource, not just for profes- sional researchers, but also for local schoolchildren. “We’re trying to open the access of the material to a larger audience,” he said. Work to digitize the library’s historic archives will begin in earnest in October and likely continue through 2021. Pearson also hopes to conduct some commu- nity events and workshops around the project. Sunset Pool faces fi ve-week closure SEASIDE — The potential for cross-contamination is leading to a fi ve-week shutdown of the Sunset Pool. The pool will be closed from Oct. 20 to Nov. 25. The Sunset Empire Park and Recreation District’s learner pool is in violation of the Oregon Health Author- ity code for public water systems, which states decks shall be sloped to perimeter, and that the drain has to be a certain width and depth. “Unfortunately, our learner pool doesn’t comply with this statute as the water overfl ows to one small drain located in the northeast corner,” Skyler Archibald, the rec district’s executive director, said at a board meeting last week. During a bathing load, water overfl ows the gutter system and can spill over to the drains for the main pool. If the drains were to clog, the potential for cross-con- tamination of the two bodies of water is increased. Project work is estimated at about $90,000, Archibald said. — The Astorian Massive manure spill discharges waste into Tillamook Bay TILLAMOOK — A manure spill at the Port of Til- lamook Bay has discharged about 300,000 gallons of treated liquid waste into waterways in the area. The Oregonian reported Wednesday that the manure had been held in an anaerobic digester tank, which breaks down dung into biogas that can be used for elec- tricity and fertilizer for farms and agriculture. Lauren Wirtis, a spokeswoman for the state Depart- ment of Environmental Quality, says anaerobic diges- tion creates fewer pathogens and makes the manure less harmful than raw sewage. State offi cials are conducting tests on water samples from Tillamook Bay and a tributary of the Tillamook River. They have yet to shut down Tillamook Bay or impose restrictions on commercial and recreational shellfi sh harvesting. The spill was discovered Monday. — Associated Press DEATH July 19, 2019 PIERSON, Doreen, 86, of Seaside, died in Seaside. Hughes-Ransom Mortuary is in charge of the arrangements. PUBLIC MEETINGS THURSDAY Sunset Empire Trans- portation District Board, 9 a.m., Astoria Transit Cen- ter, 900 Marine Drive. Columbia River Estuary Study Taskforce, noon, 818 Commercial St., Suite 203. FRIDAY Clatsop County Planning Commission, 1:00 p.m., Judge Guy Boyington Building, 857 Commercial St., Astoria. Social media post leads deputies to an illegal marijuana grow By ALYSSA EVANS Chinook Observer OCEAN PARK, Wash. — As the saying goes, be careful what you post on the internet. A mother and son are in jail on marijuana-related charges, thanks to the son’s social media activity. Christina Yanez, 38, is charged with unlawfully manufacturing marijuana, a class C felony. Her teenage son is charged with pos- sessing marijuana as a minor. The pair was allegedly caught with a 29-plant marijuana farm at their home after the teen posted a public video of the plants on the app Snapchat. Pacifi c County Sheriff’s Offi ce Deputy Ryley Queener found the video in July . In the video, the teen talks about harvesting the plants and making “pounds to sell.” The teen mentions his stepfather left behind the plants after being booked into jail. Yanez’ boyfriend, Shaun Klein, was booked into jail in late June . He’s charged with rape of a child, distributing narcotics to a minor and unlawfully possessing mari- juana with intent to manufacture. His marijuana-related charge is a result of Queener fi nding the farm. Queener was able to deduce that the home in the video was Klein’s based on the location and views of the home shown in the video. Soon after seeing the video, Queener obtained a search warrant for the home. While deputies searched the home, Yanez told them that she and Klein both had marijuana licenses, but she was unable to pro- vide proof of any licenses, accord- ing to Queener’s incident report. During the search, deputies found the 29 plants, methamphet- amine and a nasal decongestant. Deputies also found methamphet- amine residue in a container and tin foil. The residue was found alongside plastic straws, a glass pipe and a scale. Yanez was home during the search. She was subsequently arrested. She denied knowing about the marijuana plants, but said she had lived at the home on and off the last fi ve years. Yanez’ son came home during the search. He had marijuana with him, which he said he stole from Yanez. The teen was also arrested. Before being taken to juvenile detention, the teen told Queener the marijuana plants had been at the house for about four months, but that Klein had been grow- ing marijuana at the home for fi ve years. He also said Yanez and Klein mostly kept the marijuana for personal use. Recreational use and licensed sale of marijuana is legal in Wash- ington state, but unlicensed grow- ing of marijuana remains against the law. County unemployment rate remains low By EDWARD STRATTON The Astorian Established July 1, 1873 (USPS 035-000) Published Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday by EO Media Group, 949 Exchange St., PO Box 210, Astoria, OR 97103 Telephone 503-325-3211, 800-781-3211 or Fax 503-325-6573. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to The Astorian, PO Box 210, Astoria, OR 97103-0210 DailyAstorian.com Circulation phone number: 503-325-3211 Periodicals postage paid at Astoria, OR ADVERTISING OWNERSHIP All advertising copy and illustrations prepared by The Astorian become the property of The Astorian and may not be reproduced for any use without explicit prior approval. COPYRIGHT © Entire contents © Copyright, 2019 by The Astorian. MEMBER OF THE ASSOCIATED PRESS MEMBER CERTIFIED AUDIT OF CIRCULATIONS, INC. Printed on recycled paper Subscription rates Eff ective May 1, 2019 MAIL (IN COUNTY) EZpay (per month) ...............................................................................................................$11.25 13 weeks in advance ...........................................................................................................$37.00 26 weeks in advance ...........................................................................................................$71.00 52 weeks in advance ........................................................................................................ $135.00 Out of County Rates available at 800-781-3214 DIGITAL EZpay (per month) .................................................................................................................$8.00 Clatsop County added 560 jobs in June, staying at a low summertime unemploy- ment rate of 4.1 percent. The county recorded 19,060 jobs in June, a gain of 210 compared to the year prior. The private sector added 270 jobs over the past year, led by the leisure and hospitality industry with 160 and construction with 90. Local government education lost 160 positions compared to the year prior. Erik Knoder, a regional economist for the state, said Astoria schools reported being down 40 jobs, Warren- ton 40 and Seaside 30. Tom Rogozinski, the new superintendent in the War- renton-Hammond School District , said the drop is related to a change in how substitute teachers are paid rather than any drop in employment. “They used to get paid through each district indi- vidually,” he said. “But as of March, April, the sub- stitute teachers in most county school districts were paid through a third-party contractor.” Food manufacturing, namely seafood processing, also dropped 100 positions over the past year. Knoder said the state doesn’t ask why regional processors report a lower workforce, but said it could have to do with harvests and price negotiations. “I’ve heard about dis- agreements over the starting price, so a lot of people sat out during negotiations,” he said. The county’s unemploy- ment rate climbed slightly from 3.9 percent a year ago, but was still the eighth-low- est of any county in the state, the same as the statewide rate — 4.1 percent — and 0.4 percent higher than the national rate.