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About The daily Astorian. (Astoria, Or.) 1961-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 29, 2019)
A2 THE ASTORIAN • TUESDAY, OCTOBER 29, 2019 SPLAT! IN BRIEF Emergency test set for Wednesday A test of the ClatsopALERTS! emergency notifi ca- tion system will take place on Wednesday. The test will send messages to residential and busi- ness landline phones, cellphones, email addresses and social media sites registered with the system. Clatsop County plans to have quarterly tests. The message will ask recipients to acknowledge receipt, but not to call 911. Road to Indian Beach closed The segment of Ecola State Park Road that leads to Indian Beach will be closed through Thursday. Crews are removing trees that are at risk of falling into the roadway during stormy weather. The section of road leading to the Ecola viewpoint and the day-use parking area will remain open. — The Astorian Earthquakes strike off the Oregon Coast Jeff Ter Har/For The Astorian The aftermath of a pumpkin drop in Seaside. BROOKINGS — Two earthquakes hit within 45 minutes of each other off the coast of the Oregon-Cal- ifornia border. KOIN reported the fi rst of the earthquakes hit west of Brookings around 4 a.m. Monday. It had a 4.9 mag- nitude. The second occurred about 45 minutes later, west of Gold Beach. It had a magnitude of 3.6. Both earthquakes were roughly 75 miles west of the coast. Lone Oregon Republican in Congress will retire U.S. Rep. Greg Walden, the lone Republican in Oregon’s congressional delegation, won’t seek reelec- tion to a 12th term, throwing a huge district covering a conservative part of the state up for grabs. With less than seven months to go before the 2020 primaries, Walden’s videotaped announcement on Monday sets up further changes in the U.S. House of Representatives, which Democrats regained control of in the 2018 midterm elections. Walden is the 19th House Republican to announce he or she will not seek reelection. Three other GOP lawmakers have resigned. Walden is a former chairman of the powerful House Energy and Commerce Committee and now serves as the top Republican on the energy panel. He was a key player in GOP efforts to replace President Barack Obama’s health care law but was considered a moder- ate by many. — Associated Press DEATHS Oct. 25, 2019 MALCOLM, Ned Irwin, 92, of Seaside, died in Sea- side. Caldwell’s Funeral & Cremation Arrangement Center of Seaside is in charge of the arrangements. A 900-pound pumpkin drops in Seaside By R.J. MARX The Astorian SEASIDE — Seven- ty-three feet, 4 inches. For those who turned out to the “Big Pumpkin Drop” on Sunday in Seaside, that’s how far a more than 900- pound pumpkin will shatter from 40 feet. This year’s drop attracted a crowd to the public parking lot by the Seaside Civic and C onvention Center, eager to see how much damage a pumpkin dropped from a great height can make. Motivated by Boomer Barbosa of 94.9 The Bridge and Celeste Kenneally of the Seaside Downtown Devel- opment Association, “The Big Pumpkin Drop” returned for the fi rst time since 2009. The drop was part of a weekend of events presented by local businesses and the downtown association. “The weather was perfect,” Kenneally said. “Everyone seemed really happy, the activities went really well and Trunk or Treat was a huge success for the fi rst R.J. Marx/The Astorian The pumpkin is raised in the air. year. Everything’s been run- ning really smoothly.” This was Barbosa’s sec- ond pumpkin drop, having presided over one in Oran- gevale , California. “We’re doing the big pumpkin drop for charity and for the violence of it,” Barbosa said. “I have been involved with pumpkin drops before, but they have been gutted pumpkins.” Jeff Ter Har/For The Astorian The pumpkin is dropped. The difference then, he said, was the pumpkin was hollowed out. “This pump- kin is full of all of its goo and all of its seeds. It will be a lot messier for sure. I’m not sure how that will play out.” Hundreds of onlookers stood by as the pumpkin was slowly raised in the air and the countdown began. Ten ... nine ... eight ... seven ... six ... fi ve ... four ... three ... two ... one. Splat . Half of the pot went to the Warrenton High School cheerleaders club, the fi rst time they’ve had a cheer- leaders club. The other half went to the winners, Emily and Ricky Fish, of Seaside. The family was only 4 inches off the mark, guessing a dis- tance of 73 feet for the piece of pumpkin that landed the farthest from the center. Oregon strike teams assigned to fi res in California MEMORIALS Saturday, Nov. 2 SIMONSON, Jasmine — Celebration of life at 2 p.m., Pier 39 banquet room, 100 39th St. SKIPPER, Vio- let Grove — Memorial at 11 a.m., Crossroads Community Church, 40618 Old Highway 30 in Svensen. Reception follows in the fellow- ship hall. Committal at 3:30 p.m., Greenwood Cemetery, 91569 Oregon Highway 202 in Astoria. Sunday, Nov. 3 WALKER, Darald Lynn — Potluck at noon, Alderbrook Grange Hall, 5995 Alderbrook Road in Tillamook. ON THE RECORD Harassment • Johnathan Lance Kvale, 26, was arrested Friday at Ninth and Astor Street in Astoria for harassment and disor- derly conduct in the sec- ond degree. DUII • Tyla Allynn Lit- tle, 20, of Warrenton, was arrested Sunday on Jetty Road in Fort Ste- vens State Park for driv- ing under the infl uence of intoxicants. PUBLIC MEETINGS TUESDAY Seaside Planning Com- mission, 7 p.m., City Hall, 989 Broadway. WEDNESDAY Clatsop County Board of Commissioners, 5 p.m., Judge Guy Boyington Building, 857 Commercial St., Astoria. 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 Gearhart Planning Com- mission and City Council, 6:30 p.m., work session, 698 Pacifi c Way. THURSDAY Clatsop County Recre- ational Lands Planning and Advisory Committee, 1 to 3 p.m., fourth fl oor, 800 Exchange St., Astoria. 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. 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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 The Astorian and wire reports Fifteen Oregon strike teams arrived in California on Sunday to help fi ght two wildfi res. One group will assist in fi ghting the Burris Fire, a 250-acre blaze in Mendocino County. Another group will assist in the Kincaid F ire in Sonoma County. A total of 271 personnel have been deployed to the fi res, including three from Seaside Fire and Rescue. This is the third year in a row that the Oregon State Fire Marshal has mobilized strike teams through the m utual a id s ystem to fi ght fi res in California. Firefi ghters battled destructive wildfi res in Northern California’s wine country and on the wealthy west side of Los Angeles on Monday, trying to beat back fl ames that forced tens of thousands to fl ee their homes. California’s biggest util- ity, Pacifi c Gas & Electric, cut off power to an esti- mated 2.5 million people in the northern part of the state over the weekend in yet another round of blackouts aimed at preventing wind- blown electrical equipment from sparking more fi res. And more shut-offs are pos- sible in the next few days. The blaze that broke out last week amid Sonoma County’s vineyards and win- eries north of San Francisco exploded to at least 103 square miles, destroying 96 buildings, including at least 40 homes, and threaten- ing 80,000 more structures, authorities said. Nearly 200,000 people were under Marcio Jose Sanchez/AP Photo A helicopter drops water as the Getty Fire burns on Mandeville Canyon on Monday in Los Angeles. evacuation orders, mostly from Santa Rosa. In Southern California, the Los Angeles fi re erupted before dawn Monday and roared up slopes into well- to-do neighborhoods, threat- ening thousands of homes. Tens of thousands of people were ordered to clear out. Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti said that the fi re had grown to 500 acres and that he had seen fi ve burned homes. Fire Chief Ralph Terrazas said he expects the number to climb. Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James tweeted that he and his family had to evacuate their home in the city’s exclusive Brentwood section. There was no imme- diate word on its fate. “I pray for all the fam- ilies in the area that could be affected,” he tweeted. WANTED Alder and Maple Saw Logs & Standing Timber Northwest Hardwoods • Longview, WA Contact: John Anderson • 360-269-2500 “Pretty please get to safety ASAP.” The fi re was burning in the upper elevations of the Brentwood area. The evac- uation area extended west- ward through Pacifi c Pal- isades down to the Pacifi c Coast Highway, encompass- ing some of the most exclu- sive real estate in California, where celebrities and exec- utives live in mountain and ridgetop retreats that cost tens of millions of dollars but are surrounded by tinder-dry vegetation. David Boyle, 78, said he awoke at 3 a.m. to his door- bell ringing and police offi - cers pounding on the front door. They warned him the wildfi re was advancing toward his Brentwood home near the Getty Center arts complex. “They said, ‘You need to evacuate.’ I’m like, ‘When?’ They said, ‘Now,’” Doyle said. He grabbed dog food and his wife’s jewelry and hustled his dogs out the door. They went to a recreation center. “It’s a fact of life when you live in this area,” he said. “Every place has some problem with disasters. Peo- ple talk about earthquakes here, but I don’t think it’s as bad as hurricane season.” Night-fl ying helicopters made water drops before daybreak, and airplanes unleashing loads of water and bright pink fi re retardant joined the battle after the sun came up. The Getty, with its col- lection of priceless art, was built with special fi re protec- tion features, and Los Ange- les fi re Capt. Erik Scott said it was not threatened. But Mount St. Mary’s University evacuated 450 students from its Chalon campus nearby. And the University of California, Los Angeles, in the city’s Westwood section canceled classes — not because of any direct threat from the fi re but because of road closings and evacuations affecting people on their way to UCLA. Similarly in Northern California, some 40 school districts in Sonoma County canceled classes. And the University of California, Berkeley, called off classes because of the power out- ages there. Fire conditions statewide have made California a “tin- derbox,” said Jonathan Cox, a spokesman for the Califor- nia Department of Forestry and Fire Protection. Of the state’s 58 counties, 43 were under warnings for high fi re danger Sunday, with fl ames driven by gusts that reached more than 102 mph. Gov. Gavin Newsom declared a state of emer- gency over the weekend. The biggest evacuation was in Sonoma County, where some people who were packing up and fl ee- ing Sunday had done so two years ago, when devastat- ing wildfi res swept through Sonoma, Napa and neigh- boring counties, killing 44 people.