A2 THE ASTORIAN • TUESDAY, JULY 20, 2021 IN BRIEF Westport man dies in Highway 30 crash A Westport man died early Monday morning in a two-vehicle crash on U.S. Highway 30 about 10 miles east of Astoria. Police say Joshua Johns, 36, was heading eastbound when he crossed into the westbound lane and collided into another vehicle. Johns sustained fatal injuries and was pronounced dead at Columbia Memorial Hospital in Astoria. Johns’ passenger, as well as the driver and passenger of the other vehicle, were taken to Columbia Memorial for injuries. The highway was closed while law enforcement investigated and reconstructed the crash, which was reported at about 12:50 a.m. New chairman selected for Seaside school board SEASIDE — Brian Taylor was named the new chair- man at a special meeting of the Seaside School District Board of Directors on Thursday. Taylor, who served as the board’s vice chairman, has represented Cannon Beach’s Zone 2, Position 2 seat since 2013. Taylor is co-owner of Bruce’s Candy Kitchen in Cannon Beach. He replaces Mark Truax, whose term on the board rep- resenting Zone 4, Position 2 in Gearhart runs until 2023. “I just want to say real quick thanks everybody for all the assistance they gave me for the last 2 1/2 years,” Truax said. Michelle Wunderlich was named vice chairman for the board. Wunderlich, owner of the Seaside Coff ee House, represents the at-large Zone 7, Position 1 board seat. She won election to the board in 2017 and was reelected this year. The Zone 3, Position 1 seat remains vacant after the winner of the May election, A.J. Wahl, stepped down to assume a judge position. People wishing to be consid- ered for appointment to the seat have until the end of July to apply. — The Astorian Union workers at Fred Meyer vote to authorize strike Fred Meyer warehouse workers have voted unan- imously to authorize a strike, which could disrupt food distribution at 180 locations across the Pacifi c Northwest. KOIN reported that contract negotiations between Teamsters Local 117 and Fred Meyer have been underway with little progress. Union offi cials say Fred Meyer rejected a proposal to allow workers to refuse a task that would put themselves or the pub- lic in danger. The strike authorization vote was on Saturday. Teamsters Local 117 represents roughly 500 ware- house workers with Fred Meyer, servicing stores in Washington, Oregon, Alaska and Idaho. Fred Meyer offi cials told KOIN they plan to continue negotiations. — Associated Press DEATHS July 17, 2021 In KLAFFKE, Brief Richard 78, of Seaside, died in Seaside. Hughes-Ransom Deaths Mortuary is in charge of the arrangements. PARKER, Scott, 72, of Astoria, died in Sea- side. Ocean View Funeral & Cremation Service of Astoria is in charge of the arrangements. ON THE RECORD LIVING HISTORY Luke Whittaker/Chinook Observer DeWayne Pritchett portrayed U.S. Army Pvt. John Collins as the Pacifi c Northwest Living Historians interpreted the Lewis and Clark Expedition in Knappton this month. Family of drowned Tacoma man appeals for fi nancial help Man’s son needs special care By PATRICK WEBB Chinook Observer LONG BEACH, Wash. — A campaign is under- way to help the family of the Tacoma man who drowned near Beard s Hollow in June . Family friend Andy Anderson is asking people contribute to a $12,000 cam- paign to aid the family of Mark Bishop. An appeal with family photos listing details of expenses has been set up online at GoFundMe. Bishop, 44, and his 21-year-old son, Billy, were vacationing on the Long Beach Peninsula with Mark’s girlfriend and her children in late June . Reports were that they were trying to make their way along the side of the main fi shing rock when they got into diffi culties. Mark Bishop was pulled from the ocean by beachgo- ers who attempted to revive him. Pacifi c County Fire Dis- trict No. 1 personnel took him to Ocean Beach Hospital in Ilwaco. Family members Mark Bishop, of Tacoma, with his son, Billy. said he was fl own by heli- copter to a Portland hospital, where he was pronounced dead . Billy Bishop is a dis- abled and autistic adult who requires legal guardianship, his older brother, Jeremy, notes on the website. He and his partner, JJ Knapp, have committed to provide a home for him with them in Minne- apolis, but seek funds to help provide specialized equip- ment needed to cope with his disability, including sensory soothing items. “They want to get him back and settled with the least amount of grief,” Anderson said. The couple face a gap in state disability fi nancial aid with the transfer from Washington to Minne- sota. Both have lost income while making the arrange- ments and must pay to ship Billy’s belongings. “As a young homeowner I need to make some modi- fi cations and updates to our century-old home in the low- er-income neighborhood of north Minneapolis for basic safety and Billy’s accessibil- ity,” Jeremy Bishop noted. One update is replacing the 1920s newspapers previously used as insulation for the sec- ond-fl oor room where Billy will sleep. Billy Bishop grew up in Washington and recently graduated from high school. He worked at a Walgreen’s drugstore. “Helping Billy recover in a safe and loving environ- ment so he can live his happi- est life will mean so much to our budding little family,” his brother noted. Mark Bishop is survived by his parents, three sisters and seven children. A funeral was held in Lakewood last week . Jeremy Bishop noted that their father had died helping others. “Thankfully, his heart, liver, kidneys and eye tissue were all viable for donation, and he was able to save even more lives,” he noted. “My dad truly died a hero.” Criminal mischief DUII On • Neil the Lincoln Record Fisk, • Lavon Lee Sargent, 51, of Gearhart, was arraigned Monday on charges of criminal mis- chief in the fi rst degree, menacing and recklessly endangering another person. Theft • Debra Lee Reed, 52, of Astoria, was arrested Friday at Walmart in Warrenton for theft in the second degree. 51, of Astoria, was arrested Friday on U.S. Highway 30 for driving under the infl uence of intoxicants, reckless driving and driv- ing while suspended. Driving while suspended • Joseph Efraim Stil- lick, 29, of Warrenton, was arrested on Friday for criminal driving while suspended. PUBLIC MEETINGS TUESDAY Clatsop County Board of Commissioners and Planning Commission, 10 a.m., work session, (electronic meeting). Astoria Historic Landmarks Commission, 5:30 p.m., City Hall, 1095 Duane St. WEDNESDAY Astoria City Council, 1 p.m., work session, City Hall, 1095 Duane St. Seaside Tourism Advisory Committee, 3 p.m., City Hall, 989 Broadway. THURSDAY Columbia River Estuary Study Taskforce Council, noon, (electronic meeting). PUBLIC MEETINGS 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: 800-781-3214 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, 2021 by The Astorian. MEMBER OF THE ASSOCIATED PRESS MEMBER CERTIFIED AUDIT OF CIRCULATIONS, INC. Printed on recycled paper Subscription rates Eff ective January 12, 2021 MAIL EZpay (per month) ...............................................................................................................$10.75 13 weeks in advance ...........................................................................................................$37.00 26 weeks in advance ...........................................................................................................$71.00 52 weeks in advance ........................................................................................................ $135.00 DIGITAL EZpay (per month) .................................................................................................................$8.25 Lawsuit seeks more spill over dams for salmon By NICHOLAS K. GERANIOS Associated Press SPOKANE, Wash. — The record-shattering heat wave in the Pacifi c North- west prompted fi shing and conservation groups to ask a federal court to order more spill from dams on the lower Snake and Columbia rivers next spring, which could aid the migration of endangered salmon and steelhead runs. Earthjustice, on behalf of a coalition of fi shing and conservation groups, asked a federal court in Portland on Friday for more water to be released to help the fi sh nav- igate a series of dams in the river basins. Increasing the amount of water helps fl ush young fi sh along their river migration to reach the ocean where they mature. But increasing spill also means that water is not available later to generate power. The groups are also seek- ing lowered reservoir levels, which are routinely too hot, to help speed fi sh migration. “Right now we’re back in court asking for another stop-gap measure to slow the trend toward extinction of these fi sh,” Earthjustice attorney Todd True said. The Columbia River basin was once the great- est salmon-producing river system in the world. But all remaining salmon on the Snake River, its largest trib- utary, now face extinction. Four dams in eastern Wash- Ted S. Warren/AP Photo The Lower Granite Dam on the Snake River is seen from the air near Colfax. ington state — Ice Harbor, Little Goose, Lower Mon- umental and Lower Gran- ite — slow passage along the lower Snake River, a major migration corridor linking pristine cold-water streams in central Idaho to the Columbia River and out to the Pacifi c Ocean. The dams plus rising water temperatures in the reservoirs make the passage increasingly deadly, con- servation groups contend. Many are calling for the four dams to be breached. In 2015, some of the ear- liest and hottest weather on record produced warm river temperatures that killed more than 90% of all adult sock- eye salmon returning to the basin, conservation groups said. State agencies have since had to limit or cancel fi shing seasons to protect the dwindling population. This summer could be a disaster for Snake River salmon with its record-breaking heat, the groups said. Climate change has made the West much warmer and drier in the past 30 years, and scientists have long warned that the weather will get wilder as the world warms. Special calculations are needed to determine how much global warming is to blame, if at all, for a single extreme weather event. The litigation challenges the most recent plan for dam operations issued by the Trump administration in late 2020. That plan called for the same operations the courts have consistently rejected for more than two decades. Numerous groups that use the river system have opposed breaching the four dams, along with mostly Republican politicians in the region who argue the dams provide many benefi ts, such as electricity to power air conditioners during the heat wave. Kurt Miller, the executive director of Northwest Riv- erPartners, which opposes breaching, said the injunc- tion is poorly timed. “At a time when the Pacifi c Northwest is emerg- ing from the pandemic, expe- riencing historic heat that has led to drought, wild- fi res and signifi cant loss of life, and is faced with ram- pant homelessness, it is dif- fi cult to imagine a group fi l- ing a motion that will greatly increase the electricity costs for millions of residents, decrease our clean energy generation and double the risk of regional blackouts,” he said. The request for a prelim- inary injunction allowing more spill lists the National Marine Fisheries Service, the U.S. Army Corps of Engi- neers and the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation as defendants.