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About East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 24, 2019)
NORTHWEST East Oregonian A2 Thursday, October 24, 2019 Winter outlook leans toward the mild side By DON JENKINS Capital Press PORTLAND — Odds modestly favor above-aver- age temperatures in Wash- ington, Oregon, Idaho and Northern California this winter, the National Oce- anic and Atmospheric Administration’s Climate Prediction Center said Thursday. Without a strong sig- nal from Pacific Ocean temperatures, forecasters relied on a trend toward milder winters and long- term climate forces for their outlook for November, December and January. Sea-surface tempera- tures at the equatorial Pacific Ocean are neutral — neither unusually warm, as in an El Niño, nor unusu- ally cool, in a La Niña. Even though conditions are neutral, extreme events are possible, NOAA said. “Without either El Niño or La Niña conditions, short-term climate patterns like the Arctic Oscillation will drive winter weather and could result in large swings in temperature and precipitation,” Climate Prediction Center deputy director Mike Halpert said in a statement. Forecasters said they Capital Press Photo/Brad Carlson, File The outlook for this winter calls for a modest chance of above-average temperatures. have even fewer clues as to how much precipita- tion will fall. Washington, most of Oregon and most of Idaho have equal chances of normal, above-normal and below-normal amounts of precipitation. Odds slightly favor below-average precipi- tation in southwest Ore- gon and Northern Califor- Forecast for Pendleton Area TODAY FRIDAY SATURDAY SUNDAY MONDAY Sunny to partly cloudy Mostly sunny; breezy in the p.m. Mostly sunny and cooler Cool with sunshine Plenty of sunshine nia. Odds are tilted toward above-average precipita- tion in the Idaho Panhandle. Climate norms are based on regional median precip- itation and temperatures Brown appoints panel to address health care costs Associated Press PENDLETON TEMPERATURE FORECAST 70° 38° 65° 43° 54° 30° 52° 27° 53° 31° HERMISTON TEMPERATURE FORECAST 74° 40° 66° 39° 59° 33° 57° 26° OREGON FORECAST 57° 32° ALMANAC Shown is today’s weather. Temperatures are today’s highs and tonight’s lows. PENDLETON through 3 p.m. yest. HIGH LOW TEMP. Seattle Olympia 62/48 56/41 62/37 Longview Kennewick Walla Walla 63/46 Lewiston 65/45 66/38 Astoria 64/48 Pullman Yakima 61/35 62/44 60/41 Portland Hermiston 68/47 The Dalles 66/39 Salem Corvallis 66/45 Yesterday Normals Records La Grande 59/38 PRECIPITATION John Day Eugene Bend 65/43 69/42 63/39 Ontario 60/29 Caldwell Burns 62° 34° 62° 37° 80° (1933) 20° (1935) 24 hours ending 3 p.m. Month to date Normal month to date Year to date Last year to date Normal year to date Albany 66/43 0.00" 0.18" 0.46" 4.94" 6.29" 7.02" Today 76/39 Fri. SE 3-6 SW 4-8 Boardman Pendleton Medford WSW 10-20 WSW 8-16 SUN AND MOON Klamath Falls 66/28 Forecasts and graphics provided by AccuWeather, Inc. ©2019 Sunrise today Sunset tonight Moonrise today Moonset today 7:23 a.m. 5:55 p.m. 2:40 a.m. 4:40 p.m. New First Full Last Oct 27 Nov 4 Nov 12 Nov 19 NATIONAL EXTREMES Yesterday’s National Extremes: (for the 48 contiguous states) High 99° in Palm Springs, Calif. Low 11° in Lake George, Colo. NATIONAL WEATHER TODAY Shown are noon positions of weather systems and precipitation. Temperature bands are highs for the day. -10s -0s 0s showers t-storms 10s rain 20s flurries 30s snow 40s 50s ice 60s cold front E AST O REGONIAN — Founded Oct. 16, 1875 — 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 EastOregonian.com To subscribe, call 1-800-522-0255 or go online to EastOregonian.com and click on ‘Subscribe’ East Oregonian (USPS 164-980) is published daily except Sunday, Monday and postal holidays, 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. Copyright © 2019, EO Media Group SALEM — Oregon Gov. Kate Brown has announced the members of a new com- mittee tasked with con- trolling rising health care costs. The Statesman Journal reported the committee — made up of government offi- cials, union representatives and health care professionals — is responsible for creating an annual target for health care cost growth and provid- ing recommendations to the Legislature on how to man- age unreasonable costs. Insurance companies, hospitals and health care pro- viders will be required to stay within that growth target. The first benchmark 70s 80s 90s 100s warm front stationary front 110s high low Man suspected of breaking into Ochoco Ranger Station BEND — A large sign alongside U.S. Highway 97, hung on a chain-link fence Tuesday next to Kohl’s, proclaimed that In-N-Out Burger would be “here soon” in Bend. But an executive with the wildly popular California burger chain said the sign was fake, and In-N-Out has no current plans to open a Bend location. “Unfortunately, the sign must have been placed there by a prankster, or someone suggesting that we will soon be opening a restaurant in Bend,” wrote Carl Arena, In-N-Out’s vice president of real estate and development, in an email to the Bend Bul- letin on Tuesday. “Our real estate team is always evaluating new sites, and we con- tinue to look at opportunities in Oregon. However, we have not yet looked at any sites in Bend.” Phyllis Cudworth, a marketing coor- dinator with the fast-food chain, said in a phone interview that sometimes people take In-N-Out’s signs from legitimate con- struction sites and hang them up in other locations. Arena wrote that although there are no current plans to build a location in Bend, In-N-Out has its eye on Central Oregon for future development — maybe. “We do believe that Bend is a great area and we do hope to be there in the future, but we are unable to speculate when or even if we will open a restaurant there,” he wrote. BEND — An 18-year-old Prineville man was arrested for allegedly breaking into the Ochoco Ranger Station and stealing explosives. Kaden Michael Bernard is being held in the Crook County Jail on suspicion of first-degree burglary, first-degree theft, first-degree criminal mischief and other charges. On Sept. 21, Bernard allegedly used bolt cutters and a power saw to illegally enter the Ochoco Ranger Station warehouse on state Highway 42, according to his indictment in Crook County Circuit Court. Inside, he allegedly stole blasting caps, an explosive belonging to the U.S. Forest Service, and caused more than $1,000 dam- age to explosive storage magazines. Bernard was arrested and booked into jail Sept. 22, according the jail website. He was arraigned Sept. 26. His next court hearing is a pretrial conference Oct. 30. The Forest Service maintains a blasting program for tree removal and trail and road maintenance, according to USFS Spokes- man Patrick Lair. “They are kept secured and monitored,” Lair said. USFS Ranger Stations in the Rocky Mountain region occasionally use dynamite to dispose of grizzly or horse carcasses, Lair said. — EO Media Group SUBSCRIPTION RATES Local home delivery Savings (cover price) $13/month 60 percent $173.67 41 percent $91.86 38 percent $47.77 36 percent *EZ Pay = one-year rate with a monthly credit or debit card/check charge Single copy price: $1.50 Tuesday through Saturday Circulation Dept. 800-781-3214 insurance deductibles in Ore- gon are the third-highest nationally. The state is also in the top 10 for percent of fam- ily budgets spent on out-of- pocket health costs. A 3.4% growth rate for public programs already exists, but this new bench- mark would target the private market. It’s modeled after a pro- gram in Massachusetts that has saved consumers $5.5 billion between 2013 and 2017 compared to the national average. Oregon was the fourth state to implement a spending benchmark. It was created by the Leg- islature this year through Senate Bill 889, which received bipartisan support in both chambers. In-N-Out not coming to Bend; sign off Highway 97 is fake Subscriber services: For mail delivery, online access, vacation stops or delivery concerns call 1-800-522-0255 ext. 1 EZPay 52 weeks 26 weeks 13 weeks from the committee will be reported to the Ore- gon Health Policy Board for approval by Sept. 15, 2020. The committee’s report will include a legislative concept for implementation and pos- sible enforcement actions if a provider or payer exceeds that target. “All Oregonians should have access to the health care services they need to live healthy and productive lives,” Brown said in a statement. “If we do not control the rising costs of health care, too many Oregon families, particularly those in historically under- served communities, will again find the care they need is beyond their reach.” According to the Ore- gon Health Authority, health BRIEFLY WINDS (in mph) 58/30 60/23 Trace 0.46" 0.75" 11.31" 7.91" 9.69" through 3 p.m. yest. HIGH LOW TEMP. Pendleton 57/37 66/45 24 hours ending 3 p.m. Month to date Normal month to date Year to date Last year to date Normal year to date HERMISTON Enterprise 65/43 65/42 60° 36° 60° 38° 82° (1933) 19° (1916) PRECIPITATION Moses Lake 62/43 Aberdeen 55/38 58/40 Tacoma Yesterday Normals Records Spokane Wenatchee 62/48 between 1981 and 2010. Some forecasting mod- els predict a weak La Niña will form by late winter, while other models fore- see a weak El Niño. For the winter outlook, NOAA assumed neutral conditions will prevail through the winter and into the spring. Above-average tem- peratures are favored in most of the U.S. Tempera- tures in the Upper Plains are Great Lakes are a toss-up. Nowhere do the odds favor below-average temperatures. The best odds for a warmer than average win- ter are in western Alaska, according to NOAA. The ocean around Alaska is unusually warm, and there has been a trend toward later frosts and less sea ice. The warm water near Alaska could heat air enter- ing the Western U.S. early in the winter, but the uncer- tainty of whether the water will stay warm limits its value in looking ahead, according to NOAA. The Northwest will enter the winter fairly wet. There are no drought con- ditions in Washington, Oregon, Idaho and North- ern California, the U.S. Drought Monitor reported Thursday. Parts of Western Wash- ington and Oregon are still classified as “abnormally dry” after a summer of being in a “moderate” or “severe” drought. 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