Blue Mountain Community College selects next president | REGION A3
E O
AST
145th year, no. 107
REGONIAN
Thursday, June 24, 2021
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WINNER OF THE 2020 ONPA GENERAL EXCELLENCE AWARD
Oregon drier than last year as fire season begins
Nearly 80% of
state listed in
‘severe’ drought
By GEORGE PLAVEN
Capital Press
COrVaLLIs — historically dry
conditions are raising concerns that
another long wildfire season may be
ahead in Oregon.
experts at Oregon state univer-
sity held a virtual forum Monday,
June 21, to discuss this year’s
drought and fire conditions. Mean-
while, several large blazes are
already burning thousands of acres
and temperatures are expected to
reach into the triple digits statewide.
“right now, we are drier at this
point than we were at this point
last year,” said Larry O’neill, state
climatologist with the Oregon
Climate service. “I think we’re in
the thick of it right now, at least in
terms of the drought conditions and
how it projects onto wildfire risk.”
as of June 21, the s-503 Fire was
the largest, burning 6,201 acres near
the Warm springs reservation in
Central Oregon. The fire started
June 18, and was 10% contained. A
cause has not been determined.
In Southern Oregon, the Cutoff
Fire started June 19 and has burned
1,150 acres on state forestland about
6 miles north of Bonanza. It is 12%
contained, and the cause remains
under investigation.
earlier this month, a pair of
lightning-sparked fires in North-
east Oregon — the Joseph Canyon
and dry Creek fires — torched
9,195 acres of timber and range-
land. Those two fires were mostly
contained on June 11.
Meg Krawchuk, an associate
professor at the College of Forestry,
said conditions on the ground are
more characteristic of what fire-
fighters might expect in July, rather
than June.
“When we have early and long-
standing drought, we’re more likely
to have fires burning,” Krawchuk
said.
according to the u.s. drought
Monitor, all of Oregon is listed
in some stage of drought, includ-
ing 77% in “severe” drought, 36%
in “extreme” drought and a little
under 5% in the worst category of
“exceptional” drought.
The driest conditions are spread
over Central and eastern Oregon,
according to O’neill, the state
climatologist. Klamath, deschutes,
Crook, Jefferson and Wasco coun-
ties all experienced their driest or
second-driest spring on record, he
said.
In addition, the usda reports
that 80% of the state’s cropland
and livestock pastures are rated as
either “short” or “very short” of
soil moisture.
See Drought, Page A7
COVID-19
County
remains at
high risk
76 cases reported last
week, the sharpest
increase in weekly
cases since april
By BRYCE DOLE
East Oregonian
endLeTOn — The wheat
harvest started early this year
on starvation Farms, named
for the frequently harsh grow-
ing conditions on the 7,000-
acre plot of land roughly 10 miles north of
Lexington.
Chris rauch, the farm owner, said
conditions are looking grim for this year’s
Ben Lonergan/East Oregonian
PendLeTOn — umatilla
County is one of six counties in
Oregon that remained at high risk in
Gov. Kate Brown’s latest, and final,
coronavirus risk level assessment.
Brown, who announced the risk
levels Tuesday, June 22, said Orego-
nians no longer will hear about risk
levels as the state inches closer to the
70% vaccine threshold. As of June
22, the state was less than 45,000
people shy of the goal, which will
mark the end of pandemic-related
health and safety restrictions in the
state. an Oregonian/OregonLive
tracker says Oregon should reach
the mark by July 3.
among counties in northeast-
ern Oregon, umatilla County is an
outlier when it comes to risk levels.
Baker, union, Wallowa and Morrow
counties all remained at lower risk
for weeks, and some for months.
umatilla County Public health
director Joe Fiumara said there
could be a number of explanations
for this, including the county’s
greater population density and its
industrial facilities increasing the
risk of infection, but it’s difficult to
pin exactly why the county continues
to report relatively high case counts.
The data shows umatilla County
ultimately will be dragged across
the finish line when the state
reaches 70%. But county officials
are worried that reopening may lead
to case spikes in the county due to its
low vaccination rate.
“somehow, being over the
line gives the impression that
COVId is over,” umatilla County
See Wheat, Page A7
Andre Rauch navigates a combine harvester Wednesday, June 23, 2021, across a field
near Lexington while harvesting wheat at Starvation Farms.
See COVID-19, Page A7
Ben Lonergan/East Oregonian
Wheat lines the edge of a field on June 23, 2021, as a combine harvester harvests at Starvation Farms outside of Lexington.
Grim outlook
Wheat farmers,
experts look toward
stark harvest as
drought consumes
most of Oregon
By BRYCE DOLE
East Oregonian
P
‘There were no options’
Owner of chimp credits
deputy with saving her
daughter’s life
By PHIL WRIGHT
East Oregonian
PendLeTOn — Tamara Brogoit-
ti’s voice on the 911 call is clear and
direct.
“My pet chimpanzee has attacked
my daughter,” Brogoitti told a
dispatcher. “she’s bleeding profusely.
and the animal has to be shot.”
The attack occurred sunday morn-
ing, June 20, at Brogoitti’s home and
ranch on rieth road, across from the
entrance to the umatilla County sher-
iff’s Office. Brogoitti, 68, spoke about
the attack and death of Buck publicly
for the first time June 22.
“There are no … he was my son,”
she said. “What I do want to do, I want
to thank the Umatilla County Sheriff’s
Office.”
In particular, she thanked the
deputy who had to pull the trigger.
“he sent Buck to heaven and saved
my daughter,” she said. “It was a horri-
ble thing that happened. For the rest of
my life I will thank that man for what
he did.”
she said the deputy acted with
professionalism in a crisis.
“My daughter was losing blood,
and emergency personnel needed to
get to her,” she said. “There were no
options.”
The body cam video the sheriff’s
office released June 22 of the shoot-
ing shows Buck from a distance in an
This photo from 2015
shows Buck, the adult
male chimpanzee
Tamara Brogoitti
cared for at her ranch
near Pendleton. A
Umatilla County
sheriff’s deputy on
Sunday, June 20,
2021, shot and killed
the primate after it
attacked Brogoitti’s
adult daughter.
People For The
Ethical Treatment
Of Animals in April
warned the state
Brogoitti allowed
the ape to roam
her property and
therefore violated
her permit to keep
Buck.
See Chimp, Page A7
Buck Brogoitti Animal
Rescue/Contributed Photo