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