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About East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current | View Entire Issue (Jan. 17, 2018)
NORTHWEST East Oregonian Page 2A Wednesday, January 17, 2018 Washington town wary of slow-moving landslide BRIEFLY Business group asks Congress for protection for marijuana By ELAINE THOMPSON and NICHOLAS K. GERANIOS Associated Press UNION GAP, Wash. — A slow-moving landslide in a fertile farming region in Washington state has forced evacuations as officials prepare for what they say is inevi- table — the collapse of a ridge that sits above a few dozen homes and a key highway. People in Washington are espe- cially wary of landslides following one in 2014 north of Seattle that swept through a tiny community and across a state road, killing dozens. Experts say the slide could happen as soon as late January or early February above Union Gap, a small agricultural town in the rolling brown foothills of the Cascade Range. A chunk of one ridge about the size of 24 football fields is expected to break off, spilling an estimated 4 million cubic yards of rocks and dirt. Opinions on the impact vary widely, ranging from little damage to widespread flooding, especially in Union Gap. Some worry flood- waters will stretch into Yakima, which has 94,000 residents and sits just a few miles away. Also nearby are the Yakima River and Interstate 82, which connects Oregon to busy Interstate 90. I-82 is the main route through central Washington’s Yakima Valley, which produces many of America’s hops, cherries, apples and mint. The state has deemed it safe to remain open but has placed 44 shipping containers — filled with concrete barriers and weighing 9 to 14 tons each — at the bottom of the ridge to keep random rocks from tumbling into traffic. The hillside has been sliding since at least October, when SEATTLE (AP) — A group representing marijuana business owners in the West is urging Congress to include language in a government spending bill that would protect pot operations. The Western Regional Cannabis Business Alliance said Tuesday it is asking for legislative protection after Attorney General Jeff Sessions’ signaled a tougher approach to federal pot enforcement. Earlier this month Sessions said he was ending an Obama-era policy that kept federal authorities from cracking down on the pot trade in states where the drug is legal. The marijuana business group wants lawmakers to include language in an appropriations bill that would prohibit the Justice Department from spending money to thwart marijuana businesses in states where it is legal. The Western Regional Cannabis Business Alliance represents marijuana businesses in Washington, Oregon, Alaska, Hawaii, Montana and Arizona. Shawn Gust/Yakima Herald-Republic via AP, File In this Jan. 3 file photo, a crack in Rattlesnake Ridge is seen extending from a gravel pit up and across the ridge near Union Gap, Wash. five weeks, although their future accommodations are up in the air. Alejandro Mejia has lived below the ridge for about 14 years, and last week helped family members move some of their belongings. “I feel kind of terrible ... that the hill is going to fall,” Mejia said, calling it a “life or death situation.” Mejia said he has climbed up the ridge to look at the fracture in the ground. “It’s pretty wide, the crack up there,” Mejia said. “It’s way, way deep.” Flooding is a worst-case scenario, said Washington Gov. Jay Inslee, who toured the site earlier this month. “It is not predicted for this to authorities began monitoring huge cracks in Rattlesnake Ridge’s western slope. At that time, the landslide was moving at less than an inch per day. More recently, it has been measured sliding at 2.5 inches per day. Looming over all this are memories of a massive March 22, 2014, landslide in the community of Oso. That slide killed 43 people and covered 1 square mile with mud and debris. And more recently this month’s deadly landslide in Southern California. Authorities have already evac- uated about 60 residents who live in trailers and a few buildings near Union Gap, population 6,000. They are staying in paid hotel rooms for happen,” Inslee said, noting emer- gency preparations are nonetheless in place for Union Gap. Asked about the possibility of the slide reaching and damming the Yakima River, Inslee said geolo- gists have indicated that is unlikely. Still, “we have to make sure we monitor this on an hourly basis because if something changes, we want to be able to respond on a minute-by-minute response plan,” the governor said. “That is the very, very worst case scenario,” Lisa Freund, spokes- woman for the Yakima Valley Office of Emergency Management, said of the river being dammed by a slide. Freund said officials do not know what triggered the cracking. Family of man shot holding pen sues King County sheriff SEATTLE (AP) — The family of an unarmed 20-year-old man who was shot to death by a deputy has filed a federal lawsuit against the King County sheriff’s office. Deputy Cesar Molina shot Tommy Le last June while responding to reports that Le was threatening people with a knife, prompting one homeowner to fire a shot to try to scare him off. The sheriff’s office later said Le was holding a black ballpoint pen, not a knife, when he was shot. The King County Medical Examiner’s Office determined Le had been shot twice in the back and once in the back of the arm. The family’s attorney, Jeffery Campiche, says the 120-pound Le posed no threat. The lawsuit said Le was facing a mental health crisis and needed help. Le had a trace amount of LSD in his system, but the lawyer says it wasn’t enough to cause impairment. The King County Sheriff’s Office declined to comment. Oregon partygoer says no argument preceded triple shooting SPRINGFIELD (AP) — A man whose brother was among three people shot at an Oregon birthday party says the alleged gunman was probably struggling with a combi- nation of “drugs, alcohol and bad feelings.” Dakota Pander, 21, said no argument preceded the gunfire at Saturday’s party in Springfield. People were laughing and playing video games when party host Jordan Ledbetter nonchalantly went into his bedroom and returned with a gun. “We were having fun,” Pander he didn’t specify the drug. Ledbetter has been charged with murder, assault and unlawful use of a weapon. Court records did not list an attorney to speak on his behalf before Tuesday’s arraign- ment in Eugene. Pander said everyone at the party was friends with Ledbetter. Pander said he was sitting on the couch playing video games when he heard someone say, “Woah, he’s got a real gun!” Then, the first shot rang out. “I froze,” he said. “I thought, ‘What the hell is going on?’” told The Register-Guard. “It just started off completely normal. We had a perfectly normal day. And then Jordan I guess decided that he was going into his room to get his gun.” Pander’s brother, 24-year-old Garrett Petersen, died in the attack and two others were wounded. Toxicology results are pending, but Springfield Police Lt. Scott McKee said Tuesday it’s believed that Ledbetter was under the influence of LSD. Pander told the newspaper that Ledbetter had been drinking and using drugs, though 211 S.E. Byers Ave., Pendleton 541-276-2211 333 E. 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Circulation Manager: Marcy Rosenberg • 541-966-0828 • mrosenberg@eastoregonian.com Copyright © 2018, EO Media Group REGIONAL CITIES Forecast TODAY THURSDAY Mostly cloudy A little rain in the morning 54° 45° 49° 35° FRIDAY SATURDAY Mostly cloudy Mostly cloudy SUNDAY A passing morning shower PENDLETON TEMPERATURE FORECAST 50° 36° 48° 38° 53° 39° HERMISTON TEMPERATURE FORECAST 52° 34° 49° 43° PENDLETON through 3 p.m. yesterday TEMPERATURE HIGH LOW 51° 41° 63° (1976) 35° 27° -5° (1950) 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 0.26" 0.79" 0.85" 0.79" 1.06" 0.85" HERMISTON through 3 p.m. yesterday TEMPERATURE HIGH Yesterday Normals Records LOW 50° 42° 63° (1961) 38° 28° -9° (1957) 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 0.21" 0.64" 0.66" 0.64" 0.61" 0.66" SUN AND MOON Sunrise today Sunset tonight Moonrise today Moonset today First Full Jan 24 Jan 31 Last Feb 7 50° 39° 56° 40° Seattle 55/44 ALMANAC Yesterday Normals Records 51° 36° Today Spokane Wenatchee 41/38 37/31 Tacoma Moses 57/43 Lake Pullman Aberdeen Olympia Yakima 43/39 44/40 53/44 55/42 46/39 Longview Kennewick Walla Walla 55/44 53/44 Lewiston 46/40 Astoria 47/42 55/45 Portland Enterprise Hermiston 59/45 Pendleton 47/41 The Dalles 49/43 54/45 50/43 La Grande Salem 47/43 61/44 Albany Corvallis 59/45 59/43 John Day 52/45 Ontario Eugene Bend 46/35 60/42 56/39 Caldwell Burns 48/39 47/31 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 55 44 56 58 47 47 60 54 49 52 54 47 46 59 57 61 46 45 54 59 59 61 41 50 57 53 46 Lo 45 35 39 48 31 41 42 44 43 45 41 43 40 43 46 47 35 39 45 45 37 44 38 39 46 44 39 W r c c r c c r c c c c c c c r r c c c r c r c c r c r Today Beijing Hong Kong Jerusalem London Mexico City Moscow Paris Rome Seoul Sydney Tokyo Lo 17 61 46 40 37 16 41 38 28 61 45 W pc s pc pc pc c pc sh pc s r Lo 42 28 29 41 25 28 37 33 34 31 25 30 30 33 42 41 34 35 35 40 27 40 31 28 41 35 32 W sh sf r r sf sf sh r r r sh r r r sh r sh r r sh sn sh r sf sh r c Thu. Hi 42 71 55 48 67 24 53 58 41 81 57 Lo 19 64 40 35 41 13 37 50 23 64 42 W s pc s pc pc sn r s pc pc s WINDS Medford 59/43 Klamath Falls 54/41 (in mph) Today Thursday Boardman Pendleton NNE 4-8 SE 4-8 SW 6-12 SW 4-8 UV INDEX TODAY Shown is today’s weather. Temperatures are today’s highs and tonight’s lows. REGIONAL FORECAST 7:31 a.m. 4:40 p.m. 7:50 a.m. 5:32 p.m. New Coastal Oregon: Breezy today. Rain; any time across the north, during the afternoon elsewhere. Eastern and Central Oregon: Mostly cloudy today. Eastern Washington: Cloudy today. A bit of snow in the north; rain and drizzle toward the Cascades and in central sections. Cascades: Considerable cloudiness today; rain, but dry in the south. Northern California: Mostly cloudy today; a little rain at the coast during the afternoon. Feb 15 Western Washington: Rain today; arriving in the afternoon across the south. Periods of rain tonight. 0 1 1 1 0 Business Office Manager: Janna Heimgartner 541-966-0822 • jheimgartner@eastoregonian.com 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 44 72 50 46 66 20 46 60 46 76 59 NEWS • To submit news tips and press releases: call 541-966-0818 or 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 sports or outdoors information or tips: 541-966-0838 • sports@eastoregonian.com NATIONAL WEATHER TODAY Thu. Hi 50 46 44 50 45 44 49 48 52 48 44 46 43 47 50 51 49 51 49 50 46 51 41 42 50 50 50 Corrections 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. Classified & Legal Advertising 1-800-962-2819 or 541-278-2678 classifieds@eastoregonian.com or legals@eastoregonian.com ADVERTISING Advertising Director: Marissa Williams 541-278-2669 • addirector@eastoregonian.com Advertising Services: Laura Jensen 541-966-0806 • ljensen@eastoregonian.com Multimedia Consultants: • Kimberly Macias 541-278-2683 • kmacias@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 • Grace Bubar 541-276-2214 • gbubar@eastoregonian.com Subscriber services: For mail delivery, online access, vacation stops or delivery concerns call 1-800-522-0255 ext. 1 — Founded Oct. 16, 1875 — He heard two more shots before grabbing the assailant from behind. He said another partygoer — one with a gunshot wound to a bicep — took the weapon away. Pander held Ledbetter down until police arrived: “I can’t remember what he was saying, but a bunch of things, nonsense.” Police said it took four officers to detain Ledbetter. Pander’s brother died during surgery several hours later. McKee said the victims who survived have been released from the hospital. 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. ©2018 -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: Snow will fall from the Carolinas to Maine today. More rain and moun- tain snow are forecast to move into Washington and western Oregon. Most other areas will be dry as cold air lingers in the East. Yesterday’s National Extremes: (for the 48 contiguous states) High 78° in Thermal, Calif. Low -30° in Havre, Mont. 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 45 30 36 30 39 31 51 36 48 21 22 23 36 48 27 46 27 30 82 38 20 51 26 66 29 77 Lo 24 20 21 16 31 16 41 20 24 10 17 16 21 26 17 26 4 21 72 23 12 25 16 47 18 55 W pc s sn sf pc s c sn c sf s c s s pc pc pc s pc pc pc pc s pc s pc Thur. Hi 51 43 38 41 47 42 55 32 48 36 32 31 48 59 31 55 11 34 82 44 30 50 40 66 42 74 Lo 26 25 28 24 29 21 36 23 29 21 23 22 31 35 22 30 4 24 72 35 19 27 26 49 24 54 W pc s s s c s sh pc s s s s s pc s s c pc pc pc s s s pc s pc 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 25 25 76 23 26 25 37 36 33 30 34 72 32 37 34 47 61 61 25 49 73 60 55 70 30 33 Lo 12 12 48 18 21 13 26 20 18 13 20 48 14 19 16 25 41 48 18 32 54 52 44 43 21 17 W pc s pc s s pc s sn s s sf pc sn sn sn s pc c s pc pc pc r pc sf s Thur. Hi 34 37 66 33 37 38 44 34 47 43 37 73 30 33 42 53 58 58 42 56 70 57 49 73 43 48 Lo 21 23 54 23 25 21 30 26 28 26 26 49 16 21 20 33 34 44 26 45 56 48 42 44 26 26 Weather (W): s-sunny, pc-partly cloudy, c-cloudy, sh-showers, t-thunderstorms, r-rain, sf-snow flurries, sn-snow, i-ice. W s s pc s s s pc s s s s pc pc s s c r r s c pc r sh s s s