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About East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current | View Entire Issue (Aug. 31, 2017)
NORTHWEST East Oregonian Page 2A Thursday, August 31, 2017 Governor celebrates transportation package with statewide tour By PARIS ACHEN Capital Bureau PORTLAND — Gov. Kate Brown’s tour of the state Monday and Tuesday to celebrate signing into law a $5.3 billion transportation funding package possessed the energy of a campaign blitz. Oregon’s 38th governor stopped in Ontario, Bend and Medford Monday and Eugene and Portland Tuesday to reenact signing the bill and to highlight projects that will benefit those areas. Her last stop was at Port- land Community College’s Southeast campus at 82nd Avenue and Division Street Tuesday. “The transportation package is truly a roadmap to Oregon’s future,” Brown told a crowd of about 200 at the campus. “Not only will it improve the safety and condition of our roads and bridges, it will support thou- sands of family-wage jobs and help local businesses get their goods to market more efficiently.” Brown actually signed the legislation into law Aug. 18, the deadline to enact bills from the 2017 Legisla- ture, which adjourned early last month. The transportation package was a chief victory for both Democratic and Republican lawmakers during the legislative session. As the bill appeared ready to combust over discontent among interest groups, Brown intervened to help negotiate a deal that would save the package she’d been promising to constituents for the past two years. “Passing the transporta- tion package was no easy feat,” Brown said Tuesday. “We faced some significant challenges this last legisla- tive session but we worked across the aisle and toward a shared vision for a better Oregon.” Brown, just two years into her position, already faces a challenge to her incumbency in 2018. Moderate Republican Tom Story/Inciweb via AP This Aug. 28 photo provided by Inciweb shows the Milli Fire near Sisters. The two dozen blazes around the state Wednesday are affecting air quality and have forced the evacuations of more than 4,500 people. 4,500 people evacuated due to Oregon wildfires By GILLIAN FLACCUS Associated Press PORTLAND — Wildfires in Oregon are burning an area roughly equivalent to half the state of Rhode Island, affecting air quality throughout the state and forcing the evacuations of more than 4,500 people, fire authorities said Wednesday. Two dozen fires in southern, eastern and central parts of the state had scorched a total of 571 square miles. And although fire crews appreciated cooler weather and some fog on some fire lines, they are bracing for triple-digit temperatures and the return of windy conditions and extremely low humidity later this week and into the weekend, said Terry Krasko, a U.S. Forest Service spokesman. The largest fire is near the coastal town of Brookings near the California border. That 196-square-mile blaze is 5 percent contained and 4,568 people have fled their homes. Firefighters have managed to carve out a containment line along the southwestern edge of the fire to protect the 6,500-person town that will be bolstered by the arrival Wednesday of six Oregon National Guard teams. Fedor Zarkhin/The Oregonian via AP In this Aug. 27 photo, a plume of smoke rises from a wildfire west of Sisters. The fire started July 12 from a lightning strike in the Rogue River-Siskiyou National Forest but grew rapidly last week. “That 5 percent doesn’t sound like a lot but it’s very critical to this town and we feel very good about that. There have been people asking, ‘What about the other side of the fire, what about the east?’” Krasko said. “But we have to put our efforts first where the homes and busi- nesses are — where people live. These are our family and friends.” Also in the Rogue River-Siskiyou National Forest, but further east, a complex of fires forced the evacuation of six homes Tuesday in a rural community called Joe Bar near the Apple- gate River Valley. Several of the fires have merged and firefighters have divided the largest ones into three areas of attack, fire authorities said. About two dozen blazes all began on Aug. 12 after a lightning storm in the area but most were put out quickly by crews. In central Oregon, a 34-square-mile fire west of Sisters is now 44 percent contained. No mandatory evacuations are in effect. Fires statewide continue to generate thick smoke that’s affecting air quality in southern and central Oregon. 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 211 S.E. Byers Ave., Pendleton 541-276-2211 333 E. Main St., Hermiston 541-567-6211 Office hours: Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Closed major holidays SUBSCRIPTION RATES Local home delivery Savings off cover price EZPay $14.50 41 percent 52 weeks $173.67 41 percent 26 weeks $91.86 38 percent 13 weeks $47.77 36 percent *EZ Pay = one-year rate with a monthly credit or debit card/check charge www.eastoregonian.com To subscribe, call 1-800-522-0255 or go online to www.eastoregonian.com and click on ‘Subscribe’ East Oregonian (USPS 164-980) is published daily except Sunday, Monday and Dec. 25, by the EO Media Group, 211 S.E. Byers Ave. Pendleton, OR 97801. Periodicals postage paid at Pendleton, OR. Postmaster: send address changes to East Oregonian, 211 S.E. Byers Ave. Pendleton, OR 97801. Rep. Knute Buehler, a surgeon from Bend, announced his candidacy earlier this month and is expected hit $1 million in campaign funds by the week’s end. Brown has about $1.5 million cash on hand for her campaign. Political insiders say the transportation package gives the governor a bipartisan triumph to tout in her presumed reelection bid. (She has yet to official announce her intentions.) Her tour of the state shows she can turn political rhetoric into results, said one statewide political operative unassociated with Brown’s campaign. “I was very committed to delivering on a transpor- tation package because I saw the critical importance for keeping Oregon moving and keeping our economy humming,” Brown said. “I was pleased we were able to get bipartisan support: Republicans, Democrats, urban and rural working together to deliver on this package to make Oregon a better place for all of us.” Jim Moore, director of the Tom McCall Center for Policy Innovation at Pacific University, said transporta- tion is unlikely to be a Top 10 issue in the gubernatorial campaign. That’s because most voters aren’t in tune with legislative develop- ments or even whether the state or local government Single copy price: $1 Tuesday through Friday, $1.50 Saturday Corrections Classified & Legal Advertising 1-800-962-2819 or 541-278-2678 classifieds@eastoregonian.com or legals@eastoregonian.com NEWS • To submit news tips and press releases: • call 541-966-0818 • fax 541-276-8314 • email news@eastoregonian.com • To submit community events, calendar items and Your EO News: email community@eastoregonian.com or call Tammy Malgesini at 541-564-4539 or Renee Struthers at 541-966-0818. • To submit engagements, weddings and anniversaries: email rstruthers@eastoregonian.com or visit www.eastoregonian. com/community/announcements • To submit a Letter to the Editor: mail to Managing Editor Daniel Wattenburger, 211 S.E. Byers Ave. Pendleton, OR 97801 or email editor@eastoregonian.com. • To submit sports or outdoors information or tips: 541-966-0838 • sports@eastoregonian.com COMMERCIAL PRINTING Production Manager: Mike Jensen 541-215-0824 • mjensen@eastoregonian.com Copyright © 2017, EO Media Group REGIONAL CITIES Forecast TODAY FRIDAY Pleasant with plenty of sunshine Very warm with plenty of sun 87° 58° 94° 60° SATURDAY SUNDAY Very hot Mostly sunny PENDLETON TEMPERATURE FORECAST 99° 68° 101° 66° 97° 60° HERMISTON TEMPERATURE FORECAST 96° 56° 89° 53° PENDLETON through 3 p.m. yesterday TEMPERATURE HIGH LOW 93° 84° 103° (1967) 63° 54° 37° (1924) 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 0.00" 0.07" 0.41" 11.37" 7.34" 8.36" HERMISTON through 3 p.m. yesterday TEMPERATURE Yesterday Normals Records HIGH LOW 92° 84° 102° (2007) 58° 54° 39° (1965) 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 0.00" 0.06" 0.19" 6.65" 4.99" 6.11" SUN AND MOON Sunrise today Sunset tonight Moonrise today Moonset today Full Last Sep 5 Sep 12 6:15 a.m. 7:35 p.m. 4:10 p.m. 12:51 a.m. New First Sep 19 104° 65° 101° 60° Seattle 77/56 ALMANAC Yesterday Normals Records 102° 66° Sep 27 Today MONDAY Very hot Spokane Wenatchee 83/57 86/59 Tacoma Moses 78/49 Lake Pullman Aberdeen Olympia Yakima 87/54 81/51 69/52 79/48 90/53 Longview Kennewick Walla Walla 79/54 88/62 Lewiston 90/54 Astoria 89/58 69/51 Portland Enterprise Hermiston 82/58 Pendleton 83/48 The Dalles 89/53 87/58 89/59 La Grande Salem 83/47 85/57 Albany Corvallis 85/54 85/53 John Day 86/53 Ontario Eugene Bend 93/57 83/52 85/52 Caldwell Burns 91/57 87/44 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 69 87 85 74 87 83 83 85 89 86 86 83 80 91 65 68 93 90 87 82 87 85 83 81 81 88 90 Lo 51 46 52 59 44 48 52 57 53 53 51 47 44 58 48 52 57 52 58 58 46 57 57 45 56 62 53 W pc s pc pc s s s s s s pc s s pc s s s s s pc pc s s s pc s s NATIONAL WEATHER TODAY Fri. Hi 78 93 95 76 92 89 92 93 96 95 94 91 89 103 70 73 94 93 94 91 96 94 88 91 91 93 94 Lo 56 47 57 59 48 54 54 61 56 61 53 53 51 63 52 54 55 54 60 61 51 59 59 51 58 65 57 Shown are noon positions of weather systems and precipitation. Temperature bands are highs for the day. W s s pc pc s s s s s s pc s s pc s s s s s s pc s s s s s s WORLD CITIES Today Beijing Hong Kong Jerusalem London Mexico City Moscow Paris Rome Seoul Sydney Tokyo Hi 83 93 82 65 69 65 69 85 80 60 74 Lo 66 81 63 49 56 45 51 70 60 47 65 W pc t s pc c s pc s s pc r Fri. Hi 84 91 82 67 70 69 67 82 82 63 74 Lo 65 81 65 51 59 50 52 66 62 45 67 W pc t s pc pc s t t s s r WINDS Medford 91/58 (in mph) Klamath Falls 86/51 Boardman Pendleton REGIONAL FORECAST Coastal Oregon: Mostly sunny today; how- ever, some clouds across the north; smoky in the south. Eastern and Central Oregon: Plenty of sunshine today, but hazy sun near the Cascades. Western Washington: Areas of low clouds early today; otherwise, mostly sunny. Mainly clear tonight. Eastern Washington: Mostly sunny today. Mainly clear tonight. Plenty of sun tomorrow. Cascades: Mostly sunny today. Smoky in the south; pleasant across the north. Clear tonight. Northern California: Mostly sunny today; hot in central parts. Clear tonight. Very hot tomorrow. Today Friday WSW 4-8 W 6-12 NE 3-6 N 4-8 UV INDEX TODAY Shown is today’s weather. Temperatures are today’s highs and tonight’s lows. 1 fixes the roads they traverse, he said. “Transportation is kind of a political nerd sport,” Moore said. “Because of that it may or may not make a good issue at the center of that campaign.” However, the statewide tour still gives some momentum to her campaign. “Her face is being seen out there; she is talking to people,” Moore said. “It gives you a reason t... to go around the state. Transporta- tion is good because it is not a natural disaster. It is: “Hi, here I am, your emissary from Salem. I have brought you something. It is classic incumbent behavior.” Brown’s campaign funds were not used to pay for the statewide tour, said Bryan Hockaday, a press secretary in Brown’s office. He said last week he did not yet know the cost of the tour to taxpayers and was not immediately available for comment Tuesday. The eight-year trans- portation plan includes staggered hikes in the gas tax, increases to registration and title fees, and new taxes on payroll, new vehicle purchases and bicycles priced more than $200. The package also calls for congestion-priced tolling at some of Portland’s bottle- necks, which could include certain lanes on Interstate 5 and Interstate 205, to pay for congestion-busting projects. 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 Advertising Director: Marissa Williams 541-278-2669 • addirector@eastoregonian.com Advertising Services: Laura Jensen 541-966-0806 • ljensen@eastoregonian.com Multimedia Consultants: • Danni Halladay 541-278-2683 • dhalladay@eastoregonian.com • Jeanne Jewett 541-564-4531 • jjewett@eastoregonian.com • Dayle Stinson 541-278-2670 • dstinson@eastoregonian.com • Angela Treadwell 541-966-0827 • atreadwell@eastoregonian.com • Audra Workman 541-564-4538 • aworkman@eastoregonian.com Subscriber services: For home delivery, vacation stops or delivery concerns: 1-800-522-0255 — Founded Oct. 16, 1875 — Jaime Valdez/Pamplin Media Gov. Kate Brown holds up copies of the signed trans- portation funding bill during a signing ceremony at Portland Community College Southeast Tuesday. 3 5 5 3 1 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: Harvey will bring a risk of isolated flash flooding to the lower Mississippi Valley today. Severe storms will dot the Southeast as showers extend from Maine to Illinois. Much of the West will be sunny. Yesterday’s National Extremes: (for the 48 contiguous states) High 115° in Needles, Calif. Low 34° in Leadville, Colo. 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 88 82 82 84 90 84 91 81 88 82 72 73 89 88 71 90 66 78 87 90 81 93 82 102 77 98 Lo 64 72 59 59 60 69 59 54 76 63 56 53 69 59 51 66 43 60 74 70 59 76 61 82 66 76 W s t pc pc pc t s pc t c pc pc pc t pc s pc s pc pc c t pc pc r s Fri. Hi 89 82 69 65 89 81 93 69 91 70 71 68 91 85 66 91 60 77 85 91 67 91 78 104 84 100 Lo 62 63 58 55 60 62 63 52 75 59 52 54 71 59 52 66 41 56 73 71 52 73 58 82 65 76 Today W pc t pc sh s t s s t r s pc pc pc pc s sh t pc pc c t s pc pc s Hi Louisville 82 Memphis 77 Miami 93 Milwaukee 69 Minneapolis 74 Nashville 80 New Orleans 86 New York City 83 Oklahoma City 85 Omaha 84 Philadelphia 84 Phoenix 109 Portland, ME 77 Providence 83 Raleigh 79 Rapid City 88 Reno 94 Sacramento 102 St. Louis 82 Salt Lake City 88 San Diego 86 San Francisco 80 Seattle 77 Tucson 102 Washington, DC 84 Wichita 86 Lo 62 67 80 56 52 68 73 56 61 62 57 85 47 52 69 60 62 68 62 65 71 62 56 72 62 62 W c r pc pc pc r t pc s s pc pc c pc t t s s pc t s s pc s pc s Fri. Hi 62 80 90 67 72 69 87 69 87 81 69 109 68 70 79 91 96 109 77 91 83 90 80 102 66 86 Lo 55 62 79 53 61 55 73 58 64 64 57 84 44 49 67 57 64 70 53 66 72 66 60 73 57 65 Weather (W): s-sunny, pc-partly cloudy, c-cloudy, sh-showers, t-thunderstorms, r-rain, sf-snow flurries, sn-snow, i-ice. W r c t s pc r t pc pc s pc pc pc s t s s s pc s s s s pc sh pc