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About The daily Astorian. (Astoria, Or.) 1961-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 29, 2019)
THE ASTORIAN • TUESDAY, OCTOBER 29, 2019 • B1 WATER UNDER THE BRIDGE COMPILED BY BOB DUKE From the pages of Astoria’s daily newspapers 10 years ago this week — 2009 I n a crowd of around 30 people marching down Com- mercial Street Friday, an Astoria woman carried a lit candle and a sign calling for an end to domestic violence. But for her there is no end in sight. Physically abused as a child, she is now trying to leave a verbally abusive boyfriend. “I have a hard time getting out of relationships,” she said. “I cry sometimes. Sometimes I cry a lot.” The horrors of her past haunt her daily. “I’m still hiding from my dad,” she said. “He’s come after me with a gun.” On Friday, she walked alongside dozens of supporters who are working to break the cycle of abuse and protect victims of domestic violence in Clatsop County. Together they chanted: “Men, women, children alike, stop domestic violence tonight.” The Duncan Law Seafood Consumer Cen- ter is closing the Astoria Seafood School facility indefi nitely on Nov. 6 for fi nancial reasons. Leaders at the center say the Seafood School — which hosts cooking classes and caters meals — has suffered from the downturn in the economy, and the cost of maintaining it would threaten the viability of other valuable programs. The U.S. Coast Guard will come to the rescue of over 300 shorebirds threatened by an algae bloom that has spread over the Long Beach Peninsula and parts of the North Oregon Coast. Today’s rescue is the second time that birds have been transported from the Wildlife Center of the North Coast in Olney to the International Bird Rescue r esearch c enter in Fairfi eld, California. Volunteers from the research center fl ew to Asto- ria Saturday, rented a moving van and drove 150 loons, murres and grebes to the Northern California facility that specializes in rehabilitating birds debilitated by oil spills and natural disasters. For the local fi shing fl eet, the sight of the famous “El Tiburon Blanco,” or White Shark, U.S. Coast Guard c utter Steadfast in the dis- tance, steaming closer, might not quite inspire fear off the coasts of Oregon and Washington. But just a glimpse of the famed vessel’s white hull off the coast of Mexico and Central America is enough to rattle any drug runner’s confi dence. And it should — the Steadfast’s patrols fre- quently focus on detecting and interdicting drug and migrant smuggling activity along the South- ern California c oast and farther south. Since its commissioning in 1968, it has completed over 330 search-and-rescue cases, interdicted over 1.6 million pounds of marijuana and 27,700 pounds of cocaine, seized over 65 vessels and stopped over 3,500 undocumented migrants on the high seas from entering the United States. Marchers take to the streets walking from the Clatsop County Courthouse to the Clatsop Community College Performing Arts Center in honor of domestic violence victims. The march was followed by a short play ‘He Loves Me, He Loves Me Not,’ written and directed by Astoria High School senior Stella Spracklin-Link. The U.S. Coast Guard cutter Steadfast took a break from fi sheries enforcement to visit Victoria, British Columbia, during its most recent patrol. 50 years ago — 1969 A state highway offi cial told Astoria civic leaders today that the state “is not seriously considering” rerout- ing Highway 30 around Astoria, although he thought the day would come when a bypass would be called for. Ray Asberry, area engineer for the s tate h ighway d ivi- sion, said that the division would consider all alternatives, including those proposed by Astoria leaders, in arriving at a plan for reducing traffi c congestion in the city. He said that he couldn’t forecast when the state agency would get down to fi guring out just how traffi c ought to be handled on Marine Drive and Commercial Street. An emergency plan for fi re protection at Blue Ridge, pending possible annexation to Astoria, was mapped Tuesday night at a meeting of own- ers and tenants in the area. Al Miksis, 41 Blue Ridge Drive, said today that the board of directors of Blue Ridge c ondo- miniums was attempting to purchase a fi re hose from Tongue Point and Astoria fi re departments. The board hopes to obtain a siren from the Clatsop County S heriff’s O ffi ce and in the meantime automobile horns will be used as a fi re signal. Miksis said most of the 30 to 35 peo- ple attending the meeting said they would serve as volunteer fi re fi ghters. No formal organization is planned now, according to Miksis, and no training program was discussed. One problem, he noted, in a vol- unteer fi re department is that few property own- ers live in Blue Ridge and there is considerable turnover in tenants. Astoria State Police Sgt. F. C. “Jim” Mink was pinned against the door of a machine shed by a rolling tractor at his Olney home Saturday. He was saved from a possibly fatal injury, according to other state police offi cers when a companion, Floyd Coons of Lewis and Clark, who was inside the shed, heard a sound, ran outside and pushed the tractor away. Cpl. Kenneth Moore said Mink was cranking the trac- tor, parked in front of the machine shed, in order to move it. The tractor “got in gear,” he said, and backed Mink up against the door of the building. Coons heard the tractor start and saw the doors crumple inward. Secretary of Defense Melvin R. Laird says the Nixon administration is reviewing foreign commitments with an eye to cutting back Amer- ica’s role as “world policeman.” The Astoria School Board was out in force Monday night for the fi rst of a series of citizens’ meetings but par- ents in Gray Elementary district were not. The o nly parent on hand for the meeting was Mrs. Jack Webb, 900 Gara Place. George Vanover, left, and Robert Cutting escort Queen Debbie Weyl during the crowning ceremonies at the Ilwaco High School Homecoming ceremonies. Two ‘trick or treaters’ ready to start making the neighborhood rounds on Halloween. She commented, in answer to a question from Board Chairman Art Stangland on what she thought the board could do to get the public involved, “I don’t know. We came tonight with the expectation of meeting with these people and I’m very disappointed in the people I know who should be here.” 75 years ago — 1944 The 500-bed U.S. n aval hospital near Astoria was commissioned this morning — the only naval hospital in Oregon. Capt. H.E. Ragle assumed command and the fi rst watch was set as sun began streaming through the win- dows of the low-lying buildings dedicated to caring for sick and wounded N avy personnel from the world’s far corners. An a nnouncement that Fred Meyer Inc. would close its grocery and drug business in Astoria was made this morning by Fred Meyer of Portland. The company expects to dispose of its stocks by the end of November. The Fred Meyer building was sold several months ago to a California corporation. “We are closing our grocery and drug sec- tions after many years of pleasant business rela- tions and wonderful friendships,” Fred Meyer said in his formal announcement. “We wish to thank the people of this community for their fi ne patronage and good will and friendships. We came to Astoria shortly after your great fi re in 1922, then bought the property we occupied. During these years we have seen Astoria recover from her catastrophe and we hope our taxes and efforts have contributed to that recovery and to the present prosperity and growth.” United Air Lines’ proposal to give direct airline ser- vice to Astoria as part of its nation wide system and to link this city with 40 other cities on the Pacifi c slope will be heard by the C ivil A eronautics B oard at the San Fran- cisco hearing in November, the airlines company today advised the Astoria Chamber of Commerce. United will present testimony at the San Francisco hearing showing that if the board approves its applica- tion, it will give Astoria service with three-mile-a-minute, twin-engined, 21 passenger transports on the new Seat- tle-Olympia-Aberdeen-Hoquiam-Astoria-Portland route, joining the existing services down the coast, or service to the east, including points as distant as Chicago, Cleve- land, Philadelphia, Washington, New York and Boston. Registration of voters in Clatsop County jumped 717 this year over that of the last pres- idential election. The Republican P arty, which gained 89 voters throughout the county, remains in the lead by 688, althoug h the Democratic Party gained 593 new members. Verne Stratton, county clerk, said today that he believes the 14,135 total registration is the “highest in the county’s history.” Total Democratic registration is 6,636 and total Republican is 7,324.