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About East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current | View Entire Issue (Dec. 31, 2020)
REGION Thursday, December 31, 2020 East Oregonian A3 PGE donates fi re equipment to Boardman fi re district Brush truck also included in donation By JADE MCDOWELL East Oregonian BOARDMAN — Board- man Rural Fire Protection District got a welcome boost recently with an extensive donation of equipment from Portland General Electric. The energy company closed down the Boardman Generating Station, Ore- gon’s last coal-fi red power plant, in October as part of the deal with the Oregon Department of Environmen- tal Quality. Steven Corson, a PGE spokesperson, said in an email that the plant and fi re district have had a long-standing relationship. “The donated items were previously used for fi re pro- tection and readiness at the coal plant,” he said. “Since it’s no longer needed there or at our other plants, we thought donating it to sup- port the local community Portland General Electric/Contributed Photo Firefi ghting turnouts and SCBA tanks pictured above show a small portion of a donation from Portland General Electric to Boardman Rural Fire Protection District. would be the best thing we could do with it.” Boardman Fire Chief Mike Hughes said the large donation of vehicles, per- sonal protective equip- ment and other supplies was “invaluable.” He said about 90% of it had already been Convention Center hosts COVID-19 testing event inventoried and put to use. “We didn’t waste any time,” he said. Commissioner-elect signs petition to plead guilty Dan Dorran was arrested Sept. 26 for DUII and colliding with another vehicle By BRYCE DOLE East Oregonian Ben Lonergan/East Oregonian Testing staff instruct a driver on how to self-administer a COVID-19 test during a drive-thru testing event at the Pendleton Convention Center on Wednesday, Dec. 30, 2020. Roughly 50 people were preregistered for the event, though preregistra- tion was not required for a test. Brown announces updates to county risk levels East Oregonian SALEM — Six Oregon counties, including Mor- row County, moved out from under the governor’s “extreme risk” designation for spreading COVID-19, according to a press release from Gov. Kate Brown’s offi ce. In addition to Morrow County, Baker, Clatsop, Coos, Douglas and Lincoln counties were moved down to the “high risk” category. “After weeks of dili- gent work by local leaders and public health offi cials to implement health and safety measures in their communi- ties, this week’s county data is a welcome sign that we are making progress in stopping the spread of COVID-19 in Oregon,” Brown said in the press release. The revised ratings go into effect Jan. 1, 2021. There are 23 counties, including Umatilla and Union counties, that remain in the “extreme risk” cate- gory. No counties are consid- ered “moderate risk,” while there are seven counties in the “lower risk” category, including Wallowa County. Counties are assigned one of four risk levels based on the spread of COVID-19 infec- tions: extreme, high, moder- ate and lower. The higher the level, the more restrictions on activities, businesses and gatherings. Brown praised the coun- ties that moved down on the list, but said ratings can move up again if infection rates increase. “If communities let down their guard too early, we could see our hard-won prog- ress unravel just as quickly,” Brown said. The levels are reviewed every two weeks. The next COUNTY RISK CATEGORIES Lower Risk (7) • Gilliam • Grant • Harney • Lake (moved from moder- ate) • Sherman • Wallowa • Wheeler Moderate Risk (0) • No counties High Risk (6) • Baker (moved from ex- treme) • Clatsop (moved from extreme) report will be Jan. 15, 2021. Baker County moved to the “high risk” category on Wednesday, Dec. 30, due to a corrected oversight in the initial risk level calculations for the county. The original data for calculating Baker County’s risk level included nine cases from adults in cus- tody at Powder River Correc- tional Facility in Baker City, which should not have been included in the county’s risk level metrics. Because adults in custody do not interact with members of the broader community, the Oregon Health Author- ity is subtracting these cases from Baker County’s risk level calculation, something that is done with all other counties that have correc- tional facilities. This reduc- tion in number of cases (from 68 to 59), along with the county’s two-week positivity rate of 7.9%, allows for the move in categories. Since February, the Ore- gon Health Authority has reported 110,545 positive tests for COVID-19 and 1,433 deaths. There have been 19.3 million cases nationwide, • Coos (moved from extreme) • Douglas (moved from extreme) • Lincoln (moved from extreme) • Morrow (moved from extreme) Extreme Risk (23) • Benton • Clackamas • Columbia • Crook • Curry • Deschutes • Hood River • Jackson causing more than 335,000 deaths, according to the Johns Hopkins Coronavirus Resource Center. The cen- ter reports over 81.5 million cases worldwide, with 1.78 million deaths. Every classifi cation has different restrictions. When counties jump down in risk, restrictions ease slightly. For example, in high-risk coun- ties, restaurants and bars can serve people indoors with limited occupancy. At the moderate level, restau- rants can seat up to 50% capacity, with a maximum of 150 people. But even at the lowest risk level, coun- ties will face limits on what is allowed. Bars and restaurants can allow up to 50% indoor capacity, which could be up to 300 people. Outdoor ven- ues cannot exceed 300 peo- ple. Retail stores and indoor places of worship area also limited to 75% capacity. The fi rst doses of vac- cines, however, have started arriving in Oregon, with St. Anthony Hospital in Pend- leton and Good Shepherd Medical Center in Hermis- ton beginning vaccinations on Monday, Dec. 28. Ore- • Jeff erson • Josephine • Klamath • Lane • Linn • Malheur • Marion • Multnomah • Polk • Tillamook • Umatilla • Union • Wasco • Washington • Yamhill gon hopes 100,000 people receive their fi rst COVID-19 vaccines before the end of the year. Vaccines are being given fi rst to essential work- ers, communities that have been hit hard by the disease and people who are partic- ularly vulnerable for severe complications. Yellowhawk Tribal Health Center began vaccinations of health care workers on Dec. 18. “Every week, more Ore- gonians are being vacci- nated against this deadly dis- ease,” Brown said in the press release. “But, until vaccines are widely available with high participation rates, the surest way to open our com- munities is to continue prac- ticing the measures we know are effective in reducing the spread of COVID-19 — wear your mask, keep physical distance from others, avoid gatherings, wash your hands often, and stay home when you are sick.” ——— Oregon Capital Bureau Reporter Gary A. Warner and Oregon Public Broadcasting reporter Lauren Dake con- tributed to this report. Among the donations was a brush truck that will be put to use at the dis- trict’s Butter Creek station, and an ambulance that has been outfi tted specifi cally to respond to crashes and traffi c rescues. PGE also donated 40 sets of turnouts, the heavy-duty clothing worn by fi refi ghters for pro- tection at fi res. “It’s about $2,000 per full set, so that’s going to save us a signifi cant amount of money on replacement,” Hughes said. Also on the donation list was dozens of self-con- tained breathing apparatus (SCBA) tanks, and an air compressor to fi ll the tanks, which Hughes said will replace their “very old” and worn-out one. He said PGE has always been a good partner to Boardman Rural Fire Pro- tection District as they have trained together and planned together to keep PGE’s facil- ities in the area safe, and the district is extremely grateful for the generosity of their donation. PENDLETON — Uma- tilla County Commission- er-elect Dan Dorran signed a petition on Monday, Dec. 14, to plead guilty to the charge of driving under the infl uence of intoxicants and declared eligibility for a DUII diversion program that same day, according to court records. Dorran then signed an agreement with the Uma- tilla County Circuit Court on Tuesday, Dec. 22, to take part in the program, according to the records. Dorran was arrested Sept. 26 for DUII and col- liding with another vehicle in the city of Umatilla. No injuries were reported. It has been nearly a month since Dorran pled not guilty in the Umatilla County Circuit Court to charges of DUII, reckless driving, recklessly endan- gering another person and refusal to take a test for intoxicants. Dorran declined to comment on this story. A diversion program prov ides the option for people who have not had a dr un ken driving Dorran arrest in the past 15 years to get their charge dismissed without convic- tion or jail time. To complete the pro- gram, one must pay the required diversion fees and restitution, complete an alcohol and drug abuse assessment and any recom- mended treatment, attend a victim impact panel as ordered by the court, not use alcohol or any other form of intoxicant unless otherwise specifi ed by the court, keep the court-up- to-date on mailing address and, if ordered by the court, install and use an approved ignition interlock device in all their vehicles. Dorran, a Republican, was elected to the non- partisan Umatilla County Board of Commissioners, Position 3, on Nov. 3, tak- ing home 54% of the vote, according to voting data from the Oregon Secretary of State. He is to be sworn in on Saturday, Jan. 2, 2021. Dorran’s next court appearance is a hearing for the diversion petition scheduled for Jan. 11, 2021. LOCAL BRIEFING Umatilla County announces 56th COVID-19 death PENDLETON — The Umatilla County Health Department announced the county’s 56th COVID-19 death in a Wednesday, Dec. 30, press release. The victim is a 72-year- old female who tested pos- itive Nov. 28 and died Dec. 18 at Providence St. Mary Medical Center in Walla Walla, Washington. This individual had underlying medical conditions, accord- ing to the press release. The announcement comes as the health depart- ment reported 56 new cases on Dec. 30, bringing the county’s total to 5,497 con- fi rmed and presumptive coronavirus cases since the pandemic began. Morrow County announced nine new cases on Dec. 30, bringing its total to 805 cases. Mor- row County has had eight deaths since the pandemic started earlier this year. Tree recycling available in Hermiston HERMISTON — As Hermiston residents take down their Christmas dec- orations, they can get rid of their trees at Butte Park. Trees can be dropped off on the south side of the park next to the splash pad, in the marked area, until Jan. 31, 2021. Trees should be real, not artifi cial, and be stripped of all lights, bulbs, tinsel and other decorations. At the end of January, they will be turned into mulch that will be used through- out the city’s park system. — EO Media Group VISIT US ON THE WEB EastOregonian.com