REGION
Friday, February 17, 2017
Gilliam County picks
new commissioner
going on and help as best I
can.”
Wetherell
described
A new commissioner Gronquist as a father
has been appointed to the figure to her, and talked
about growing up friends
Gilliam County Court.
Leslie Wetherell, of with Gronquist’s daughter,
Arlington, was chosen Megan. Later in life,
Wetherell
said
Wednesday to fill
she continued to
the seat of Dennis
lean on Gronquist
Gronquist, who
for advice and
died Jan. 23 after
really respected
suffering a stroke
his opinions.
six months prior.
“ W h e n
We t h e r e l l
commissioner
was
one
of
Gronquist passed
three candidates
away, I just
nominated by the
kept thinking I
newly
restruc-
wanted to help,”
tured
Demo- Wetherell
Wetherell said.
cratic
Central
Committee of Gilliam “I thought if I could fill his
County. Her first court term, I would be very proud
meeting will be Wednesday, and honored to do so.”
Gronquist, a Demo-
March 1.
“I was just excited and crat, was re-elected last
happy,” Wetherell said. November, before his death.
“This is something that I’ve Gilliam County Democrats
always thought I wanted to formed a new central
committee to come up with
do.”
Wetherell, 47, works as candidates for Gronquist’s
the operations and finance replacement, and the court
manager for the Maryhill chose Wetherell during a
Museum of Art in Golden- special session Wednesday
dale, Washington, though afternoon.
Commissioners
typi-
she continues to live in
Arlington. She previously cally serve four-year terms,
spent six years as city though in this case the seat
recorder and said she will will be up for election in
bring a fresh perspective to 2018 and again in 2020.
———
the county court.
Contact George Plaven
“I didn’t come in with
an agenda,” she said. “I just at gplaven@eastoregonian.
want to see what things are com or 541-966-0825.
By GEORGE PLAVEN
East Oregonian
BRIEFLY
Brief lockdown at Agriculture and
Pendleton schools Energy Job Fair
PENDLETON — A
coming March 1
false alarm trigged a
lockdown for nearly an
hour at Pendleton High
School Thursday morning.
A Pendleton School
District press release states
that the lockdown was
inadvertently triggered
from inside the building,
causing the school to start
a lockdown around 9:40
a.m.
After police swept the
high school and deter-
mined that there was no
threat, the school lifted the
lockdown at 10:30 a.m.
In accordance with the
district’s safety protocol,
the district’s other schools
were put on lockout as
a precaution. Unlike the
high school’s lockdown,
where students and staff
are confined to classrooms
as authorities deal with
the potential threat, a
“lockout” seals the outside
entryways while school
activities go uninterrupted.
Pendleton Police Chief
Stuart Roberts said law
enforcement officers had
their firearms out when
securing the campus, in
accordance with police
protocol for lockdown
situations.
According to the press
release, law enforcement
and district staff are
reviewing the incident to
see if the best procedures
were used.
Pendleton woman
struck by pickup
PENDLETON — A
Pendleton woman is in a
Washington hospital after
she was hit by a pickup
Wednesday.
Pendleton police and
emergency services at
about 2:30 p.m. responded
to the front of the U.S.
Post Office, 104 S.W.
Dorion Ave., on a report
of a vehicle striking a
pedestrian. Pendleton Fire
Chief Mike Ciraulo said an
ambulance transported one
woman with head trauma
to St. Anthony Hospital,
Pendleton.
Pendleton Police Chief
Stuart Roberts identified
the woman as Haley
Flemmer, 32, of Pendleton.
Hospital spokesman Larry
Blanc said medical staff
stabilized her and sent
her to Kadlec Regional
Medical Center, Richland,
Washington. The East
Oregonian has been unable
to confirm her condition.
Roberts said Jonathan
Quinlin, 21, of Pendleton,
drove a 2015 Nissan
Frontier pickup that hit
Flemmer, and police cited
Quinlin for failing to yield
to a pedestrian.
BOARDMAN — The
fourth annual Agriculture
and Energy Job Fair is
coming Wednesday, March
1 to the SAGE Center.
Students and job seekers
are invited to visit and
network with local food
processors, utilities, data
centers, farms and colleges
to learn more about career
opportunities.
“This event gives
people the opportunity to
connect with the region’s
leading agriculture
and energy industries
to discover rewarding
careers,” said Kalie Davis,
SAGE Center manager.
Blue Mountain
Community College, Walla
Walla Community College,
Perry Technical Institute,
Oregon State University
and Eastern Oregon
University will also be on
hand to provide informa-
tion about educational
programs for students.
The SAGE Center is
located at 101 Olson Road
in Boardman. For more
information, call 541-481-
7243.
Goal setting
workshop set
for March 4
BOARDMAN —
Boardman city officials
will discuss setting goals
and direction for the
coming year during an
annual workshop sched-
uled for Saturday, March 4.
City councilors and
department heads will
meet at 7:30 a.m. at the
Boardman Senior Center
for a community breakfast,
then move over to city hall
at 8:15 a.m. to begin their
meeting. The public is
invited to attend, however,
there may not be opportu-
nity for public comment.
No specific delibera-
tions or decisions will be
made during the session.
For more information,
call 541-481-9252.
East Oregonian
Page 3A
HERMISTON
Semi truck falls 120 feet into canal
Driver safe after jumping
out of passenger door
East Oregonian
A semi-truck loaded with empty
propane tanks crashed over an embank-
ment and slid 120 feet down into South
Cold Springs Creek Wednesday morning
on Highway 37 northeast of Hermiston.
The wreck happened at milepost 10
at about 8 a.m., according to Umatilla
County Fire District 1 chief Scott
Stanton, though it wasn’t reported until
9:15 and responders didn’t know about
a potential hazardous material leak until
9:45.
No one was hurt, though Oregon State
Police reported the truck driver jumped
out of the passenger door just before the
tractor slid down the steep embankment.
Mike Renz, on-scene spills coor-
dinator for the Oregon Department
of Environmental Quality, said an
estimated 10 gallons of motor oil leaked
from the truck into the creek.
A hazmat team from Hermiston
responded and began setting up booms
of absorbent pads downstream to collect
any spillage.
“They saw no sheen more than a
quarter mile downstream,” Renz said.
Photo contributed by Umatilla County Fire District 1
A hazardous materials crew from Umatilla County Fire District 1 responds
to a semi truck crash Wednesday morning on Highway 37 northeast of
Hermiston.
The team also began pumping
diesel from the truck’s fuel tank into
drums, removing about 125 gallons
from the lower tank. The upper fuel
tank was empty, Renz said.
Stanton said his department did not
make contact with the driver, who was
in Pasco by the time they arrived. The
truck remained at the site as of Thursday
morning and will be difficult to remove,
Stanton said.
The crash was caused by icy road
surfaces Wednesday morning. The fire
department has since turned the incident
over to the Oregon Department of
Transportation.
PENDLETON
Boutique boasts strong numbers out of the gate
By ANTONIO SIERRA
East Oregonian
The skies haven’t always been clear
for take off, but that hasn’t stopped
Boutique Air from taking off with Pend-
leton customers.
In January, the first full month
Boutique has operated direct flights
to Portland, the San Francisco-based
company boarded 469 people even
though there were 13 weather-related
flight cancellations.
That’s the most in a month since
2008, which has excited officials from
the city and Boutique.
“It’s certainly been a warm welcome,”
said Michelle McNulty, Boutique’s
marketing and community manager.
One significant reason Pendletonians
are flocking to Boutique so early in its
tenure is it’s ticket prices.
With an introductory price of $49 for
some one-way tickets, the cost of airfare
isn’t that much more expensive than the
gas it would take to drive to Portland.
In new markets, McNulty said
Boutique typically keeps the $49 fare
in place for the first few months before
raising the price.
According to its bid presentation,
Boutique eventually expects the average
ticket price will be $99.
McNulty said Boutique expects to
maintain momentum after ticket prices
rise by focusing on customer service
and stepping up its marketing efforts in
Pendleton, Portland and surrounding
communities like Walla Walla.
Boarding numbers are important to
Pendleton in multiple ways.
If Pendleton’s air service has too
few boardings, the U.S. Department of
Transportation can strip the airport of its
subsidy, something the DOT threatened
to do last year when the now-defunct
SeaPort Airlines was in charge of service.
On the opposite end of the spectrum,
if the Pendleton airport can exceed
10,000 boardings, it would automati-
cally receive a $1 million grant from the
DOT.
If Boutique maintains its current
pace, Pendleton would finish the year
with 5,628 boardings, which would be
better than any full year in SeaPort’s
seven-year tenure, according to the
Federal Aviation Administration.
But Boutique still has a ways to go
if it wants to beat the 2008 mark, when
SeaPort and Horizon combined to trans-
port 7,217 passengers.
Getting to 10,000 boardings would be
an even steeper climb still — Pendleton
hasn’t hit that threshold since 2002.
While reaching 10,000 boardings
with an eight-seat plane that goes to
Portland three times a day might be a tall
task, Boutique officials have said that a
sustained level of high demand could
bring more flights or larger airplanes to
Pendleton.
———
Contact Antonio Sierra at asierra@
eastoregonian.com or 541-966-0836.
COMING EVENTS
FRIDAY, FEB. 17
ADULT OPEN GYM, 6 a.m.,
Pendleton Recreation Center, 510
S.W. Dorion Ave., Pendleton. Half-
court basketball. Adults only.
WALKING FOR WELLNESS,
8:30-9:30 a.m., Pendleton Recre-
ation Center, 510 S.W. Dorion Ave.,
Pendleton. (541-276-8100)
HEALTHY FRIDAYS, 9:30-
11:30 a.m., Good Shepherd Med-
ical Center conference room 7,
610 N.W. 11th St., Hermiston. Free
health screenings including choles-
terol, blood sugar, BMI, blood pres-
sure checks, weigh-ins and health
information. For cholesterol and
glucose tests, fast 10-12 hours prior
to blood draw. Open to all commu-
nity members. (541-667-3509)
STORY TIME, 10:15 a.m.,
Hermiston Public Library, 235 E.
Gladys Ave., Hermiston. (541-567-
2882)
TODDLER STORY TIME,
10:15-11 a.m., Pendleton Public Li-
brary, 502 S.W. Dorion Ave., Pend-
leton. (541-966-0380)
TILLAMOOK CHEESE DAYS,
11 a.m.-2 p.m., SAGE Center, 101
Olson Road, Boardman. Enjoy a
hearty plate of lasagne with Cae-
sar salad, bread, cookie and drink.
Squeaky cheese curds and spe-
cialty cheeses will be available for
purchase. $5 per person includes
center admission. (541-481-7243)
WILLOW CREEK VALLEY
ECONOMIC
DEVELOPMENT
GROUP ANNUAL LUNCHEON,
12-1 p.m., St. Patrick’s Senior Cen-
ter dining room, 190 N. Main St.,
Heppner. Annual luncheon features
guest speaker Rep. Greg Smith,
who will give a legislative update.
Catered lunch is free, but RSVP is
requested. (Sheryll Bates 541-676-
5536)
STORY AND CRAFT TIME, 2
p.m., Echo Public Library, 20 S. Bo-
nanza, Echo. (541-376-8411)
NIGHT AT THE CHILDREN’S
MUSEUM, 5-8:30 p.m., Children’s
Museum of Eastern Oregon,
400 S. Main St., Pendleton. In-
cludes dinner, games, crafts and
a movie. Costs $20 members/$25
non-members, $10 for each ad-
ditional child. Preregistration re-
quired. (541-276-1066)
VFW BINGO, 6 p.m., Hermis-
ton VFW, 45 W. Cherry St., Herm-
iston. Doors open at 6 p.m., games
begin at 7 p.m. Everyone welcome.
(541-567-6219)
SAGE
CENTER
MOVIE
EVENT, 7:15 p.m., SAGE Center,
101 Olson Road, Boardman. Enjoy
a family-friendly movie and a bag
of popcorn. $5 admission. Bottled
water and concessions available
for cash purchase. (541-481-7243)
SATURDAY, FEB. 18
INDOOR YARD SALE, 9 a.m.,
215 W Orchard Ave, 215 W. Or-
chard Ave., Hermiston. Stay out of
the winter weather and find trea-
sures. Tables are $10 each. Free
admission. (ARC office or Jan 541-
567-7615 or 541-567-6172)
FREE FOR ALL, 9:30-10:15
a.m., Pendleton Center for the
Arts, 214 N. Main St., Pendleton.
Free art classes for children up to
age 12. Children under 8 should be
accompanied by an adult. (Roberta
Lavadour 541-278-9201)
SATURDAY CRAFT TIME,
10 a.m.-2 p.m., Hermiston Public
Library, 235 E. Gladys Ave., Herm-
iston. Free craft projects for children
in 5th grade and younger. (541-
567-2882)
HIP & HANDMADE, 11 a.m.-12
p.m., Pendleton Center for the Arts,
214 N. Main St., Pendleton. Free
drop-in project class for adults. (Ro-
berta Lavadour 541-278-9201)
TILLAMOOK CHEESE DAYS,
11 a.m.-2 p.m., SAGE Center, 101
Olson Road, Boardman. Enjoy a
hearty plate of lasagne with Cae-
sar salad, bread, cookie and drink.
Squeaky cheese curds and spe-
cialty cheeses will be available for
purchase. $5 per person includes
center admission. (541-481-7243)
ARTWORKZ 2017 ARTISTS
RECEPTION, 1 p.m., Tamastslikt
Cultural Institute, 47106 Wildhorse
Blvd., Pendleton. The winners of
the annual young artist competition
will be honored, including grand
prizes, awards of excellence and
merit, honorable mentions and Best
Emerging Artist. Public welcome.
(Randall Melton 541-429-7720)
STRAIGHT
TALK
WITH
BECKY MARKS, 2-4 p.m., The
Saddle Restaurant, 2220 S.E.
Court Ave., Pendleton. Share
thoughts with Ward I councilwom-
an. (541-276-9147)
SAGE
CENTER
MOVIE
EVENT, 2:15 p.m., SAGE Center,
101 Olson Road, Boardman. Enjoy
a family-friendly movie and a bag
of popcorn. $5 admission. Bottled
water and concessions available
for cash purchase. (541-481-7243)
SUNDAY, FEB. 19
PAUL GORHAM MEMORIAL
SCHOLARSHIP BREAKFAST, 8
a.m.-12 p.m., Pendleton Masonic
Lodge, 1350 N.W. Carden Ave.,
Pendleton. Cost is $6 for adults and
$4 for ages 6-12. Call-in orders wel-
come. (541-276-3760)
FAMILY BREAKFAST, 8:30-
9:15 a.m., First Christian Church,
516 S. Main St., Milton-Freewater.
PART-TIME
DRIVER
CONCEALED CARRY
PERMIT CLASS
Multi-State 35-States / Oregon
HERMISTON
Pick up an application at
Best Western: 2255 Highway 395 South
February 21 st • 1:00 pm & 6:00 pm
211 SE Byers, Pendleton
or e-mail resume and
cover letter to
hr@eomediagroup.com
Walk-Ins Welcome!
Mult i - State: $80.00 or Oregon only: $45.00
www.FirearmTrainingNW.com • FirearmTrainingNW@gmail.com
360-921-2071
Cost is by donation. Everyone wel-
come. (541-938-3854)
SPECIAL NEEDS OPEN
GYM, 12-1:30 p.m., Pendleton
Recreation Center, 510 S.W.
Dorion Ave., Pendleton. Free for
special needs children and families.
(541-276-8100)
“TIL DEATH DO US PART...
AND WE PART TONIGHT”, 2
p.m., Agape House, 500 Harper
Road, Hermiston. A Valentine’s Day
theme murder mystery fundraiser
for Agape House. Enjoy several
desserts and try to figure out who-
dunnit. (Dave Hughes 541-567-
8774)
Part-time driver needed
to deliver East Oregonian
publications throughout
Eastern Oregon. Must be
able to lift up to 50 pounds,
have a valid driver’s license
and a good driving record.
Shifts vary but will regularly
include Tuesday nights.
Duties may include non-
driving work if extra hours
are desired. Drug test,
driving record and criminal
background checks will be
completed before hire.