FRIDAY, OCTOBER 19, 2018
143rd Year, No. 3
One dollar
WINNER OF THE 2018 ONPA GENERAL EXCELLENCE AWARD
Stampede in the sky
PENDLETON
NASA
to join
testing
at range
Hot air balloons take off from Walla Walla for 44th year
Drone company
working to
integrate airspace
By ANTONIO SIERRA
East Oregonian
Amid a year of growth
in operations at the Pendle-
ton Unmanned Aerial Sys-
tems Range, drone com-
pany PAE ISR signed a deal
with NASA to develop and
demonstrate sensory tech-
nology on its Resolute Eagle
drone.
Jake Jacobs, the chief
technology officer at PAE
ISR, said the company
is expected to utilize the
drone’s sense and avoid
capabilities for a demonstra-
tion in 2020.
Pendleton UAS Range
Manager Darryl Abling said
a drone’s ability to either
autonomously avoid or send
information to a pilot about
other potential aircraft or
obstacles will be critical to
the integration of UAS into
the national airspace.
While the Federal Avi-
ation Administration has
usually been the primary
agency involved with bring-
ing unmanned aircraft into
See NASA/8A
The Walla Walla Balloon Stampede is a five-day event
featuring dozens of hot air balloons. Takeoff is at 7:15
a.m. and 4 p.m. each day at Howard-Teitan Park, and
Friday features a 7 p.m. Nite Glow Spectacular. On
Sunday, all 30 balloons will attempt to launch in 30
seconds at 7:15 a.m.
Top: Ballooning enthusiasts take to the skies on Thurs-
day for the 44th annual Walla Walla Balloon Stampede.
Left: Balloons rise into the morning air over downtown
Walla Walla. Above right: Keenan VanOrden, left, of Col-
lege Place and Lauren Larsen of Walla Walla hold open
the balloon envelope as pilot David Burr of Salt Lake
City, Utah, fires the burner to fill the ballon. Right bot-
tom: Balloons are inflated Thursday morning.
Staff photos by E.J. Harris
INSIDE: More photos from Thursday’s launch / 8A
Weekend Weather
Fri
69/41
Sat
69/40
Sun
68/40
Watch a football game
Grant Union at Heppner
Friday, 7 p.m.,
Morrow County Fairgrounds
For more weekend events,
visit eastoregonian.com
VIDEO: See the flight from the air at eastoregonian.com
Great Shakeout points to preparation
Hermiston schools learn about
earthquake preparation with
statewide drill
By JAYATI RAMAKRISHNAN
East Oregonian
On Thursday morning, students
at Highland Hills Elementary School
scrambled under their desks and
waited for instructions. As Princi-
pal Jake Bacon directed them, they
learned important tips for what to do
in an earthquake.
Students throughout Hermiston
School District participated Thurs-
day morning in the “Great Ore-
gon Shakeout,” a statewide drill to
encourage schools to prepare their
students for an earthquake. At 10:18
a.m., Bacon came on the intercom
and talked students through the drill,
telling them that if a real earthquake
happens, things might be different.
“An earthquake is likely to cause
damage to the intercom,” he said.
“Things may fall off the walls.
Remain calm, and when the earth-
quake stops, be prepared to evacuate
the building.”
He added that there may be after-
shocks, and that if they are outside, to
go to a clear area away from power
lines and buildings.
“You need to be alert,” Bacon
said.
Students listened, crouching under
the desks. When the drill ended, they
emerged, and discussed with their
teachers other things to be aware of
during earthquakes.
Teacher Emily Adams told her
first-grade students the most import-
ant thing to do in an earthquake is to
protect their heads.
“What do you do when an earth-
quake happens?” she asked students.
“Get under a table, and don’t move
anything.”
Earthquake
preparation
has
become more of a focus across the
state recently — from drills to seis-
See SHAKEOUT/8A