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HOOD RIVER, OREGON
Official Newspaper, City of Hood River and Hood River County
■
M IDWEEK E DITION
Vol. 109, No. 52
WEDNESDAY, JULY 1, 2015
75 cents
2 Sections, 24 Pages
www.hoodrivernews.com
Fire
watch
MARIJUANA MECHANICS
What to know about marijuana law change on July 1
“My biggest worry
about this is the
DUI side of it.
I do think that the
number for DUIs
of marijuana
are going to go up.”
– SGT. DON CHELI
The following is now
legal under Oregon law:
■ Possession of recre-
ational marijuana for
users who are 21 and
older.
■ Possession of up to
8 ounces of marijuana,
or 1 ounce away from
home.
■ Growing up to four
plants of marijuana at
home, as long as they re-
main out of public view.
However, public use
remains illegal, as does
driving under the influ-
ence of marijuana.
Most notable on the
list of what’s illegal is
commercial marijuana
sales. T he Ore gon
Liquor Control Commis-
sion, which has been
tasked with regulating
the burgeoning industry,
hasn’t established a way
for stores to sell their
product — so it remains
against the law to buy or
sell marijuana.
Hood Ri v er Ne ws
takes a closer look at the
dispensary side, and law
enforcement concerns —
page A9
High speed chase and shooting on I-84
The Hood River County Sheriff ’s
Office reported a high speed chase
on I-84 at Hood River at 7 p.m. Mon-
day night, which ended in the sus-
pect shooting himself.
Yesterday, Hood River County
Deputies were advised of a domes-
tic violence incident that had oc-
curred in The Dalles involving
Jerome Hawk Matilton of St. He-
lens. Following the incident, Matil-
ton fled the scene in a silver Ponti-
ac. He was believed to be headed
westbound on Interstate 84 towards
Portland. According to witnesses,
Matiliton was armed and had made
threats towards law enforcement,
should they try to intervene.
Just after 7 p.m., an Oregon State
Police trooper spotted Matilton’s
vehicle on I-84 east of Hood River.
While the Hood River County Sher-
iff ’s Office and Hood River Police
Department responded as backup,
the state trooper attempted to stop
the vehicle at Exit 62. A short pur-
suit followed, reaching speeds of 85
miles per hour. The suspect vehicle
yielded to police at Milepost 61.
When police stopped behind the
Pontiac, they heard a gunshot.
After getting no response from the
car, officers approached and found
Matilton, the driver and lone per-
son in the vehicle, suffering from
an apparent self-inflicted gunshot
wound.
Troopers and Deputies were able
Photo courtesy of Hood River County Sheriff’s Office
A HIGH SPEED CHASE on I-84 near Hood River Monday night ended with the
suspect shooting himself, the Sheriff’s Office said.
See CHASE, Page A11
Farmers Irrigation asks users to reduce water use
By KIRBY NEUMANN-REA
News editor
Farmers Irrigation District is
making it official: keep your lawn
brown for much-needed conserva-
tion of water.
“We are urging every user not to
water their lawns. If you can let
anything go dormant we would ap-
preciate it,” said FID’s June Brock
following Thursday’s emergency
meeting of the FID board to dis-
cuss the low water in the district
reservoirs and likely future mea-
sures such as user rotation.
“Our reservoir isn’t going to
make it,” without immediate user
cutbacks, said Jer Camarata, FID
general manager. “We need to
make some pretty aggressive
moves now until we can make it
through harvest. Otherwise the or-
chardists will be in pretty tough
shape.”
The Hood River Board of Com-
missioners last week passed a
drought declaration resolution,
which is expected to be signed next
week by Gov. Kate Brown. Hood
River joins 20 other Oregon coun-
ties that have issued a drought dec-
laration this year, including neigh-
boring Wasco, Sher man and
Gilliam counties.
The County hopes their formal
declaration to the state will allow
for smoother local water manage-
ment, and will qualify Hood River
County for state and federal
grants.
At last week’s meeting, Barb
Ayers, Hood River County Emer-
gency Programs Manager, said
“Every single forecast at the state
and federal level shows this is a
long-term drought.
“They’re our lowest levels since
the early ‘80s and unless some mir-
acle comes along, it’s not gonna go
away soon.”
See WATER, Page A11
Your guide to July 4 weekend celebrations
Two parades, two flyovers, two
fireworks shows.
Between Hood River, Cascade
Locks, Odell, Bingen and White
Salmon, Independence Day week-
end in the mid-Columbia will be a
busy time.
A new event, “Independence
Eve”, happens July 3 at 7 p.m. in
The Bingen Theate, 210 Main St.,
Bingen. This is a live radio show
featuring songs about patriotism
and love, and musicians including
The Columbiaires, Alonzo Garbon-
zo, and Los Temerosos, William
Stafford poetry readings, and other
extras. It’s a fundraiser for local
groups, and will be broadcast live
on Radio Tierra (KZAS FM, 95.1)
Other highlights are the 4 p.m.
parade in Odell (form at 3:30 at Mid
Valley Elementary) and fireworks
at dusk in Hood River and Cascade
Locks – see page A10.
Meanwhile, White Salmon’s pa-
rade starts at 1 p.m. and includes a
flyover; A concert in the park fol-
lows, featuring White Salmon Jazz
Band, Harmony of the Gorge, and
Gorge Winds, along with kids
games at 2 p.m. and rootbeer floats,
food and beer.
July 4 fun opens with the 40th
annual Kollas-Cranmer Memorial
Run/Walk from Odell to Jackson
Park in Hood River. Registration
starts at 7 a.m. at Mid-Valley Ele-
mentary School. Walkers start at 8
a.m. and runner begin their con-
test at 9 a.m. www.4thof
julyrun.com
The Hood River parade, with the
theme of “Beautiful Bounty,” will
start at 10 a.m. with the line up on
Eliot Drive beginning at 8:30 a.m.
To speed up the registration, forms
and instructions can be obtained
by linking to “gorgelions.org.” The
parade fee is $10 and there will be
monetary prizes for the best en-
tries.
See FOURTH, Page A11
Lightning storm
Illuminates the fact
that Gorge fuels
remain tinder-dry
By KIRBY NEUMANN-REA
News editor
Like flash pots in a stadium rock
show, the lighting and thunder im-
pressed with nature’s power Sun-
day night.
Oregon Department of Forestry
reports a total of 411 separate light-
ing strikes touched down in Hood
River an d Wasco counties between
the Columbia River and Warm
Springs Reser-
vation Sunday
night.
Forest fire talk
The booms
July 11, see
and blinding
page A11
flashes started
at about 11
p.m., subsided
until about 3 a.m., and then bom-
barded the Hood River area for over
a solid hour. A drenching rain im-
mediately followed the lighting
storm but officials said it has no
impact on the overall, over-dry, con-
ditions of fuels – grass, under-
growth, debris, and trees.
Lightning caused five small fires
of one acre or less in the mid-Co-
lumbia, but all have been extin-
guished, according to DOF
spokesman Cynthia Orlando.
On Friday morning, a 12-15 acre
wildfire broke out just west of The
Dalles at Gorge Discovery Center,
threatening Pinewood Mobile
Court, spreading smoke over Inter-
state 84 and causing the closure of
Highway 30. The fire is under in-
vestigation.
“We have unseasonably dry full
conditions and extremely hot tem-
peratures around the state,” Orlan-
do said, and with this lightning we
have seen some really active fire
weather.
“We are really encouraging peo-
ple to be cautious, especially in the
woods and grassy areas. The fuels
are extremely dry in the area. Of
particular concern at this time is
the use of fireworks in the forest.”
“In The Dalles, the fuel loads are
way up,” she said. “The energy re-
lease component (ERC) is off the
charts.” The ERC, as defined by
Wikipedia, looks at the fuels and
their likelihood of igniting and at
what rate and temperature. (See
sidebar.)
■
Meanwhile, the burn ban is in ef-
fect as of July 1: that means no out-
door burning allowed, though some
allowances are made for agricul-
tural purposes.
Due to exceptionally dry land-
scape and drought conditions, hot
weather and forecasted lightning,
the risk of extreme fire activity has
remained high through the week-
end and into this coming week.
ODF, forestland owners and agency
partners are prepared to manage
conditions usually experienced in
late July or early August, according
to a Monday DOF press release.
Saturday, an excessive heat
warning was in effect for the
Willamette Valley including the
greater Portland and Vancouver
area, the lower Columbia and the
See HEAT, Page A11
Four To Go
Anson’s Bike Buddies at Windance
Beat the heat at the library
Anson’s Bike Buddies will hold a Swap,
Shop and Drop Off on July 5 from 7:30 a.m.
to noon at Windance Boardshop, 108 OR-35,
Hood River. Sell your bike on consignment,
shop for a bike, or drop off your used bikes
for a tax write-off; Anson’s Bike Buddies
will fix it up and give it to a kid in need.
Consignment fee of 25-percent goes to
Anson’s Bike Buddies.
Anson’s Bike Buddies will also be accept-
ing donations of bike parts and cash.
Beat the heat at the Hood River
Library — which also serves as a
cooling shelter — with some fun
family activities. On July 1, Curtis
Carlyle will perform “seriously
funny juggling” at 5:30 p.m. Expect
flying yo-yos, 8-foot unicycles, ax
juggling and more.
Thursdays in July — like July 2
— are designated Crafternoons at 2
p.m. Come in and cool off with a
fun, free project.
The Hood River Library is locat-
ed at 502 State St.
7
05105 97630
3
Sunday Street
Party July 5
Head to Double Moun-
tain Brewery, 8 Fourth
St., for a Sunday Street
Party from noon to 6
p.m. Kids activities, food
and fun — including a
Gorge Roller Girls dunk
tank. The Hazelnuts per-
form at noon, The Barn
Burners at 2 p.m., and
Ben Rice at 4 p.m.
For more info call the
brewery at 541-387-0042.
Check out downtown art
First Friday is July 3, and
there will be plenty of art to be
found downtown, including the
new Art on Oak, 210 Oak, a co-
operative gallery in the former
2nd Wind building; Emporium
monthly pop-up at 301 Oak St.;
The Remains (on Industrial
below Full Sail); Made in the
Gorge, 108 Oak St., and Colum-
bia Center for the Arts, 213 Cas-
cade, where you can see who
won prizes and Peoples’ Choice
in the annual “Best of the
Gorge” exhibit.
Photo by Kirby Neumann-Rea
“SISTERS OF SERENITY” (detail)
a two-foot glass sculpture by Odell
artist Laurel Marie Hagner, catches
the light in the Cascade Street win-
dow at Columbia Center for the
Arts, home of “Best of the Gorge”
exhibit, through Aug. 2.