NORTHWEST
East Oregonian
Page 2A
Wednesday, January 18, 2017
Ocean tragedy underscores need for awareness
By ANDREW SELSKY
Associated Press
SALEM — One moment,
Jayson Thomas was on
the Oregon beach with his
3-year-old son. The next,
they were gone, swept away
by a “sneaker wave” as his
wife looked on.
The man and his boy
were but the latest to be lost
to a sneaker wave, which
are prevalent in the Pacific
Northwest. A leading expert
says there needs to be greater
awareness to prevent future
tragedies.
In fact, Tuba Ozkan-
Haller of Oregon State
University has just finished
the first year of a three-year
research project to devise a
sneaker-wave early warning
system, a project funded by
the National Science Foun-
dation. She hopes the warn-
ings will be sent out by the
National Weather Service.
The seas off Cape Blanco
were not particularly rough
on Sunday afternoon when
Thomas, his wife and their
son, who lived near Eugene,
were on the beach, Ozkan-
Haller noted.
But appearances can be
deceptive.
“People make up their
minds about how safe an
area is pretty quickly, after
watching the beach for five
minutes,”
Ozkan-Haller
said Tuesday in a telephone
interview from Corvallis.
“That doesn’t give you the
information you need to
assess that an area is safe.”
While the weather might
be fine, a storm far out to sea,
even across the Pacific, often
generates such a wave. As
it moves through the broad
surf zone and over the gentle
slope approaching Oregon’s
coast, one wave can catch
up with another, combining
forces and allowing it to run
Police say Oregon
boy, 12, strangled
by mother
Monday with two helicopters
and a 47-foot motorized life
boat while state police and
other rescuers used ATVs.
They found only Thomas’
jacket and a child carrier he
had been wearing.
The Coast Guard, state
police and local sheriff’s
office will continue to search
for the bodies, Fugate said.
Messages of prayer and
condolences were filling
Thomas’ Facebook page on
Tuesday, which featured a
photo of him and his son on
another beach.
One woman wrote: “as a
person who has before lost
a dear friend to the same
waters, my heart breaks for
this precious family.”
Rick Warren, a host at
Boice Cope Park not far from
Cape Blanco, said: “The
beaches here are awesome,
but they can be dangerous ...
You never turn your back on
the ocean.”
“They’re called sneaker
waves because people essen-
tially don’t watch them,” he
said. “People go to the beach,
not paying attention, looking
for agates and walking.”
A sign along the trail to
the beach warns of sneaker
waves and high surf, though
it was not immediately clear
if warning signs are posted
where Thomas and his family
were.
Ozkan-Haller
recom-
mends that when people
go to the beach in Northern
California, Oregon and
Washington state, which
because of the nature of the
coastline are susceptible to
sneaker waves, they study
the wave action and ensure
escape routes aren’t blocked
by rocks or cliffs.
“The more people learn
and have a healthy respect
for the ocean, the more that
we can avoid these occur-
rences,” Ozkan-Haller said.
Oregon State Police via AP
In this photo provided by the Oregon State Police tak-
en Sunday, a U.S. Coast Guard helicopter searches a
beach about two miles north of Cape Blanco, where a
father and his young son were swept out to sea Sun-
day as they walked near the surf.
up further on the beach, said
Ozkan-Haller, who is with
OSU’s College of Earth,
Ocean, and Atmospheric
Sciences.
Six years ago, a sneaker
wave knocked two high
school students from Eugene
off a rock near Yachats,
sending them into the
turbulent waters where they
drowned.
Stormier winter weather
produces more sneaker
waves, and victims are
often bundled up in winter
clothing, which weighs them
down when they’re soaked,
Ozkan-Haller said.
When the sneaker wave
came on Sunday, the tide was
high “so that means the dry
BRIEFLY
beach was very narrow and
there was not much space to
run away,” she said.
The Oregon State Police
said Thomas’ wife, Charity
Woodrum, who is studying
astrophysics at the Univer-
sity of Oregon, was an
arm’s distance away when
her husband and her son
were struck by the wave.
Witnesses indicated the two
were the only ones who
were hit, Oregon State Police
Capt. Bill Fugate said.
No one, even in a survival
suit, would be expected to
survive the high seas and
cold water temperatures this
long, Fugate said.
The U.S. Coast Guard
searched
Sunday
and
PORTLAND
(AP) — Authorities say
a 12-year-old boy was
strangled by his mother
before being found dead in
their Oregon home.
The Oregonian/
OregonLive reports that
autopsy results released
Monday show that Caden
Berry of Keizer was
strangled. His 38-year-old
mother is charged with
aggravated murder in
his death, which was
discovered Saturday.
The boy's oldest brother,
Colby, killed himself in
2011. He was 12.
Matt Castro of Coquille,
father of Berry's two older
brothers, secured custody
of his second son last year.
In court documents, he said
the boys' mother displayed
extreme mood swings and
was placing his son in
"serious danger."
Castro says he shared
concerns about Berry's
home life with authorities
in his county, although
Keizer police say they have
no record of receiving any
reports of abuse in Berry's
household.
Stillborn Portland Vineyard worker
killed in ATV
infant highlights
Oregon homeless accident
JUNCTION CITY
problem
(AP) — A 33-year-old
A stillborn infant was
found with his homeless
mother at a street side
bus stop during unusually
cold weather. And while
the infant’s death was not
blamed on below-freezing
temperatures it has driven
home just how ruthless
this winter has been for
Portland’s homeless
population, with four
recent deaths attributed to
exposure.
The infant was found
Jan. 9 after emergency
responders were called
about a woman standing
in the cold with a baby.
The Multnomah County
William Hilliard, former Oregonian editor, dies at 89
PORTLAND (AP) —
William A. Hilliard, who
became the first black
reporter at The Oregonian
newspaper and later its editor
in a pioneering 42-year
career, has died at age 89.
The Oregonian/Oregon-
Live report that Hilliard,
who died Monday, was
the first black city editor
of a major newspaper and
later the first black editor
of one, and his promotions
invariably garnered national
attention.
He was once denied a
paper-route at The Orego-
nian because managers said
whites did not want blacks
delivering their paper. But
after serving in the Navy and
graduating from college, he
was hired as a copy boy at
age 25. Through talent and
hard work he made his way
up from there, becoming
executive editor in 1982.
In 1993 he served as presi-
dent of the American Society
of Newspaper Editors, the
first African American to
hold the post. He retired in
1994.
“Every day was exciting,”
he said in a 2010 interview.
“It was a heck of a job.”
He was always aware that
he was being judged twice,
he said: once as a journalist
and again as a black man in a
white world.
No funeral is planned, a
celebration of life is Feb. 25.
Didn’t receive your paper? Call 1-800-522-0255
before noon Tuesday through Friday
or before 10 a.m. Saturday
for same-day redelivery
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Copyright © 2017, EO Media Group
TODAY
THURSDAY
Not as cold with
showers around
Times of clouds
and sun
41° 35°
41° 29°
FRIDAY
Cloudy with a
snow shower
SATURDAY
A stray afternoon
shower
PENDLETON TEMPERATURE FORECAST
39° 29°
42° 33°
43° 28°
HERMISTON TEMPERATURE FORECAST
40° 25°
36° 32°
PENDLETON
through 3 p.m. yesterday
TEMPERATURE
HIGH
LOW
14°
0°
42°
28°
64° (1919) -17° (1930)
PRECIPITATION
24 hours ending 3 p.m.
Month to date
Normal month to date
Year to date
Last year to date
Normal year to date
Trace
1.06"
0.89"
1.06"
0.94"
0.89"
HERMISTON
through 3 p.m. yesterday
TEMPERATURE
HIGH
Yesterday
Normals
Records
LOW
18°
-1°
42°
29°
62° (1974) -21° (1930)
PRECIPITATION
24 hours ending 3 p.m.
Month to date
Normal month to date
Year to date
Last year to date
Normal year to date
Trace
0.61"
0.70"
0.61"
0.50"
0.70"
SUN AND MOON
Sunrise today
Sunset tonight
Moonrise today
Moonset today
Last
New
Jan 19
Jan 27
7:30 a.m.
4:42 p.m.
11:52 p.m.
10:54 a.m.
First
Full
Feb 3
37° 27°
41° 27°
Seattle
54/44
ALMANAC
Yesterday
Normals
Records
35° 26°
Feb 10
Today
SUNDAY
Cloudy with a
shower in spots
Spokane
Wenatchee
40/35
31/26
Tacoma
Moses
56/41
Lake
Pullman
Aberdeen Olympia
Yakima 34/30
38/34
52/43
53/41
36/26
Longview
Kennewick Walla Walla
49/42
40/33 Lewiston
35/32
Astoria
42/35
53/43
Portland
Enterprise
Hermiston
48/40
Pendleton 35/28
The Dalles 36/32
41/35
38/27
La Grande
Salem
35/32
53/43
Albany
Corvallis 51/43
51/43
John Day
41/36
Ontario
Eugene
Bend
27/23
52/41
40/30
Caldwell
Burns
32/29
32/22
Astoria
Baker City
Bend
Brookings
Burns
Enterprise
Eugene
Heppner
Hermiston
John Day
Klamath Falls
La Grande
Meacham
Medford
Newport
North Bend
Ontario
Pasco
Pendleton
Portland
Redmond
Salem
Spokane
Ukiah
Vancouver
Walla Walla
Yakima
Hi
53
26
40
52
32
35
52
41
36
41
38
35
34
48
52
54
27
35
41
48
43
53
40
39
46
40
36
Lo
43
23
30
43
22
28
41
35
32
36
28
32
31
36
45
45
23
27
35
40
29
43
35
32
41
33
26
W
r
sn
sh
r
sn
c
r
r
r
sh
sn
sn
sn
r
r
r
i
i
r
r
sh
r
i
r
r
i
i
Hi
50
31
39
50
33
35
49
41
40
39
38
37
35
47
50
52
34
39
41
48
41
50
38
38
47
41
39
Today
Beijing
Hong Kong
Jerusalem
London
Mexico City
Moscow
Paris
Rome
Seoul
Sydney
Tokyo
Lo
22
65
44
32
45
16
23
36
21
69
38
W
s
c
pc
c
pc
pc
s
c
pc
s
pc
Lo
42
16
27
43
12
23
39
29
25
29
27
26
25
37
42
43
22
24
29
38
25
39
27
25
39
31
26
W
r
sn
sn
r
pc
sn
r
pc
pc
pc
sn
pc
c
r
sh
r
sn
pc
pc
r
pc
r
r
pc
r
pc
pc
Thu.
Hi
34
72
57
44
75
27
35
51
37
76
51
(in mph)
Klamath Falls
38/28
Boardman
Pendleton
Lo
12
58
40
37
46
24
23
35
25
71
37
W
s
pc
s
pc
pc
c
s
pc
c
sh
pc
REGIONAL FORECAST
Coastal Oregon: Windy today with down-
pours; watch for fl ooding. Rain continuing
across the area tonight.
Eastern and Central Oregon: Showers
around today; however, rain and ice in the
south and upper Treasure Valley.
Western Washington: Rain, some heavy
today; watch for fl ooding. Rain tonight. A
touch of rain tomorrow.
Eastern Washington: A wintry mix today.
Morning snow in the north. Rain near the
Idaho border.
Cascades: Today: snow and rain, accumulat-
ing 1-3 inches across the north and in
central parts.
Northern California: Downpours today;
heavy snow, accumulating 4-8 inches in the
interior mountains.
Today
Thursday
ESE 4-8
SSE 8-16
SW 4-8
SSW 6-12
UV INDEX TODAY
Shown is today’s weather. Temperatures are today’s highs and tonight’s lows.
0
0
1
0
0
NEWS
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COMMERCIAL PRINTING
Production Manager: Mike Jensen
541-215-0824 • mjensen@eastoregonian.com
Shown are noon positions of weather systems and precipitation. Temperature bands are highs for the day.
WORLD CITIES
Hi
36
71
61
41
74
20
34
51
42
99
49
Classified & Legal Advertising
1-800-962-2819 or 541-278-2678
classifieds@eastoregonian.com or legals@eastoregonian.com
NATIONAL WEATHER TODAY
Thu.
WINDS
Medford
48/36
Corrections
REGIONAL CITIES
Forecast
vineyard worker from
Corvallis is dead after he
was found trapped under a
utility vehicle at a winery
near Junction City.
The Register-Guard
reported Tuesday that
Bentley Hart Chappell
was pronounced dead at
the scene on Saturday at
Brigadoon Wine Company.
He was found by
another employee at the
bottom of a dirt road.
The cause of death is
being investigated by the
Lane County Medical
Examiner’s Office and
the Lane County Sheriff’s
Office.
The East Oregonian works hard to be accurate and
sincerely regrets any errors. If you notice a mistake in
the paper, please call 541-966-0818.
Advertising Director: Marissa Williams
541-278-2669 • addirector@eastoregonian.com
Advertising Services: Laura Jensen
541-966-0806 • ljensen@eastoregonian.com
Multimedia Consultants:
• Terri Briggs
541-278-2678 • tbriggs@eastoregonian.com
• Elizabeth Freemantle
541-278-2683 • efreemantle@eastoregonian.com
• Jeanne Jewett
541-564-4531 • jjewett@eastoregonian.com
• Chris McClellan
541-966-0827 • cmcclellan@eastoregonian.com
• Stephanie Newsom
541-278-2687 • snewsom@eastoregonian.com
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541-278-2670 • dstinson@eastoregonian.com
• Audra Workman
541-564-4538 • aworkman@eastoregonian.com
Subscriber services:
For home delivery, vacation stops or delivery concerns: 1-800-522-0255
Medical Examiner’s Office
said Tuesday that the baby
boy was stillborn.
The mother was unable
to provide investigators
with coherent information,
including where she
had been living, and is
undergoing a mental health
evaluation at a hospital,
said Sgt. Pete Simpson,
spokesman for the Portland
Police Bureau.
The infant’s death was
first reported Monday by
Willamette Week, a weekly
Portland newspaper, after
four homeless adults died
this month, which has
brought snow, ice and
bone-chilling temperatures
to a city more accustomed
to mild temperatures and
rain.
The deaths occurred
during the first 10 days
of 2017. The first was
a 68-year-old homeless
man taken to a hospital
on New Year’s Day. The
others were a 51-year-old
man found dead under a
blanket at the doorway of
a business, a 52-year-old
woman with schizophrenia
discovered in a parking
garage and a 29-year-old
man whose body was
found in woods where he
had been living.
0
8 a.m. 10 a.m. Noon 2 p.m. 4 p.m. 6 p.m.
0-2, Low
3-5, Moderate 6-7, High;
8-10, Very High;
11+, Extreme
The higher the AccuWeather.com UV Index™ num-
ber, the greater the need for eye and skin protection.
Forecasts and graphics provided by
AccuWeather, Inc. ©2017
-10s
-0s
showers t-storms
0s
10s
rain
20s
flurries
30s
40s
snow
ice
50s
60s
cold front
70s
80s
90s
100s
warm front stationary front
110s
high
low
National Summary: A storm responsible for rain, ice and snow will exit the Northeast states
today. Showers will extend from Texas to the Carolinas. A storm will spread rain, ice and
snow inland over the Northwest.
Yesterday’s National Extremes: (for the 48 contiguous states)
High 87° in McAllen, Texas
Low -24° in Randolph, Utah
NATIONAL CITIES
Today
Albuquerque
Atlanta
Atlantic City
Baltimore
Billings
Birmingham
Boise
Boston
Charleston, SC
Charleston, WV
Chicago
Cleveland
Dallas
Denver
Detroit
El Paso
Fairbanks
Fargo
Honolulu
Houston
Indianapolis
Jacksonville
Kansas City
Las Vegas
Little Rock
Los Angeles
Hi
49
69
52
56
42
66
34
41
78
49
44
43
56
49
43
55
-32
38
83
74
44
80
50
57
50
62
Lo
29
53
39
37
30
57
30
35
51
36
32
35
43
31
31
40
-41
23
70
58
34
55
35
45
46
50
W
pc
c
sh
c
c
c
sn
r
pc
c
pc
c
sh
s
pc
pc
pc
s
s
r
c
pc
pc
s
r
pc
Thur.
Hi
50
68
51
54
41
68
37
45
68
56
45
48
71
51
46
58
-32
37
83
72
50
76
50
53
57
60
Lo
31
58
38
34
31
57
26
32
54
45
37
36
46
29
32
42
-38
33
68
55
42
57
39
39
45
48
W
pc
c
pc
pc
c
r
c
c
pc
pc
c
c
pc
s
pc
s
pc
s
s
r
sh
pc
c
r
c
sh
Today
Louisville
Memphis
Miami
Milwaukee
Minneapolis
Nashville
New Orleans
New York City
Oklahoma City
Omaha
Philadelphia
Phoenix
Portland, ME
Providence
Raleigh
Rapid City
Reno
Sacramento
St. Louis
Salt Lake City
San Diego
San Francisco
Seattle
Tucson
Washington, DC
Wichita
Hi
51
53
83
43
39
55
76
46
52
47
54
65
34
43
65
43
46
53
52
33
63
56
54
63
59
51
Lo
39
51
64
32
31
48
64
38
40
32
39
48
27
35
40
22
35
46
41
24
56
49
44
42
41
37
W
c
c
s
pc
s
pc
c
r
pc
s
sh
s
sn
r
pc
s
r
r
pc
pc
pc
r
r
s
pc
pc
Thur.
Hi
54
63
83
44
42
62
72
50
58
45
53
63
39
49
60
42
42
56
49
39
63
57
50
62
56
53
Lo
49
53
65
36
35
55
58
36
37
36
35
46
25
29
46
15
31
48
44
28
54
49
39
48
39
37
Weather (W): s-sunny, pc-partly cloudy, c-cloudy, sh-showers, t-thunderstorms, r-rain,
sf-snow flurries, sn-snow, i-ice.
W
r
r
s
pc
c
r
t
pc
c
c
pc
pc
c
pc
s
s
sn
sh
sh
sn
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sh
r
pc
pc
c