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About East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 4, 2019)
FORMER RANCHER LOVES COOKING FOR KIDS MCC VOLLEYBALL: HERMISTON FALLS TO KAMIAKIN IN 4 NORTHWEST, A2 SPORTS, B1 E O AST 143rd year, No. 251 REGONIAN Friday, OctOber 4, 2019 WINNER OF THE 2019 ONPA GENERAL EXCELLENCE AWARD Your Weekend Vaping illness causing anxiety • Morrow County Harvest Festival, SAGE Center, Boardman • Hermiston Oktoberfest, Maxwell Pavilion • Fire Station 1 public tours, Pendleton Oregon business owners nervous over mystery vaping illness, possible ban FOR TIMES AND LOCATIONS CHECK COMING EVENTS, A6 Weekend Weather FRI SAT SUN Staff photo by Ben Lonergan Airbus’ Project Vahana sits in a hanger at the Pendleton Army Airfield during the AUVSI Cascade Chapter Fall Symposium on Thursday afternoon. 62/42 64/38 70/43 Investigation completed into loss of fire truck By JADE MCDOWELL East Oregonian UMatiLLa — board- man Fire chief Marc rogels- tad reported his findings to the Umatilla rural Fire Protection district board on Wednesday after completing an indepen- dent investigation into a brush truck that burned up during a fire in July. the district responded to a natural cover fire started by a cigarette, near the intersection of Highway 730 and Highway 395 on July 21 at approximately 1 p.m. during that incident, a fire truck known as Brush 11 caught fire while unattended. “People there didn’t fully recognize the danger,” rogels- tad said, chalking the incident up to inexperience and “tunnel vision.” according to rogelstad’s report and an internal report by Umatilla Fire chief Steve Potts, responding personnel parked $1.50 Vahana soars into the open developers offer glimpse of what they think is the future of transportation By ANTONIO SIERRA East Oregonian P eNdLetON — it was decidedly ground- bound, but Project Vah- ana was still the star of the drone show. On the final leg of the Asso- ciation for Unmanned Vehi- cle Systems international cas- cade chapter’s fall symposium on thursday, attendees gath- ered at the hangar at the Ore- gon National Guard armory in Pendleton to snap photos and selfies of the aircraft. developed by a team from a%5e3, the Silicon Valley sub- sidiary of French aviation giant airbus, the developers offered a glimpse of what they think is the future of transporta- tion: a “vehicle demonstrator” that will eventually lead to an autonomous air taxi that will transport people across dense urban areas. “IT’S NOT ABOUT REMOVING TRAFFIC. IT’S ABOUT URBAN MOBILITY.” – Matt Deal at a keynote speech thurs- day morning, Matt deal, the head of flight test for Project Vahana, explained what Airbus was trying to accomplish. as he displayed overhead maps of New york, Los ange- les, and Paris, deal said major cities were becoming too pop- ulated to accommodate all the cars people were using to get around. “it’s not about solving con- gestion,” he told the crowd at the Pendleton convention center. “it’s not about remov- ing traffic. It’s about urban mobility.” deal said airbus started a%5e3 and Project Vahana in 2016, with the thought the sub- sidiary could combine the tech industry’s speed with the flight industry’s fastidiousness. With the price of electric batteries, sensors and mainte- nance falling, deal said it was the right time to pursue the project. Project Vahana started flight testing in Pendleton in late Jan- uary 2018 and have since con- ducted more than 100 flight tests. by May, deal said the Vahana drone was able to travel at more than 100 miles per hour. besides battery life and autonomy, one of the key fea- tures a%5e3 wants to demon- strate is Vahana’s vertical take- off and landing, or its capability By KRISTIAN FODEN-VENCIL Oregon Public Broadcasting POrtLaNd — at the Lit- tle amsterdam Wellness dis- pensary in Southwest Portland, store manager Monica Gayda said she’s contacted all her vape product vendors to learn what’s in their products — especially if they contain the additive Vita- min e acetate. “We’ve kind of put a halt on ordering flavored distillates as of now … every single one of our vendors sent us a letter, call- ing out specifically the vitamin e (addtive), that they do not put in their cartridges. test results included. i have them posted in our med room in case any customers want to see them,” Gayda said. the number of Oregonians sickened by the mystery vap- ing illness has now climbed to eight. two people have died. in Washington, seven have been sickened and Gov. Jay Inslee is planning a ban on flavored vape products. Oregon Gov. Kate Brown also is looking into a six- month ban of all vaping-related products. Gayda said she’s not seeing a big drop in sales because of this illness, but customers are choos- ing different products. “i’m seeing a lot of people drop their flavored distillates for a healthier selection.” Kind Leaf in Pendleton removed more than five dozen vaping products from its shelves in early September. Owner brandon Krenzler said it was about consumer safety. “We found a number of them contained non-cannabis ingre- dients,” Krenzler, such as sta- bilizing oils, terpenes and See Vahana, Page A8 See Fire truck, Page A8 See Vape, Page A8 New nonprofit kicks off with dinner for veterans conrad Skinner Veterans Memorial Program wants to provide opportunities, support for veterans, families By JADE MCDOWELL East Oregonian HerMiStON — as Sue Long-Hosek watched veterans bond with each other after a golf fundraiser last year, she knew she wanted to cre- ate more opportunities like the one unfolding before her eyes. Long-Hosek’s first husband was a Vietnam veteran who struggled with severe post-traumatic stress disorder from the time he returned home up to when he took his own life in 2014. afterward, she tried to do what she could to help veterans like him by hosting golf tournament fundraisers to benefit national veterans organiza- tions and the local american Legion. “that’s why this is a passion of mine,” she said. “that’s why i want to help in any way i can.” She and her current husband, ron Hosek, have started the conrad Skin- ner Veterans Memorial Program, with the goal of acting as a “stopgap” for veterans and their families in Uma- tilla, Morrow and Union counties if they have needs that aren’t being met by other organizations. their mission statement says they plan to provide “opportunities and support for Veter- ans and their families in time of crisis or need.” “this is not in conjunction with the Va, it is not to take the place of the Va, but it is kind of a supplement for things that the Va might not be able to address on an immediate basis,” Long-Hosek said. They will announce specific ser- vices they have in mind at a Veterans appreciation dinner cosponsored by the new nonprofit, American Legion Post #37, Greater Hermiston area chamber of commerce and Hermis- ton parks and recreation department. the dinner is on Sunday, Oct. 20 at 3 p.m. at the Hermiston commu- nity center, 415 S. Highway 395. it is free for all veterans and their immedi- ate family, and community members who wish to attend and show their appreciation for veterans are asked to make a donation in an amount of their choosing. everyone planning to attend is asked to rSVP to Hermiston Parks and recreation, 541-667-5018 or gwicks@hermiston.or.us. the conrad Skinner Veterans Memorial Program is run by a board of 11 people, most of which are vet- erans or their spouses. it is a 501©3 nonprofit that accepts tax-deductible contributions. conrad Skinner grew up in Herm- iston and served in the United States Marine corps before taking his own life in april at age 23. Hosek said two of Skinner’s relatives sit on the non- profit’s board, and he and his wife met with Skinner’s parents and grandpar- ents to get their blessing before dedi- cating the project to his memory. “We are losing 20 to 22 veterans a day to PtSd and suicide,” Hosek said. He said he and Hosek-Long and other members of the board want to reduce those numbers locally, and also support family members who may be at a loss to know how to deal with their love one’s struggles. Hosek said they already have books they can loan out to help children understand that “mom or dad are not angry at them, it’s an illness.” Long-Hosek said she is open to suggestions for what needs are not being met elsewhere, and how they can best help veterans with their limited resources.
