REGION
Thursday, August 5, 2021
East Oregonian
A3
HAPO reopens
Weston branch
By ANTONIO SIERRA
East Oregonian
Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife/Contributed Photo, File
The Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife on Tuesday, Aug. 3, 2021, authorized the lethal removal of one wolf from the
OR30 wolves in the Mount Emily Unit, according to a press release.
ODFW authorizes lethal removal
of wolf from Mount Emily area
East Oregonian
MEACHAM — The
Oregon Department of Fish
and Wildlife on Tuesday,
Aug. 3, authorized the lethal
removal of one wolf from the
OR30 wolves in the Mount
Emily Unit, according to a
press release.
The decision comes after
ODFW confirmed three
depredations in a two-month
period in the wolves’ known
area of activity, the release
said. The state authorized
lethal action and will provide
a kill permit to a livestock
producer who requested the
option after the depredations
were confi rmed.
The permit allows the
producer or their agent to
kill one wolf on 4,000 acres
of private land they own
or lawfully occupy in the
Mount Emily Unit within
the wolves’ known area of
activity. The permit expires
Aug. 31 when the one wolf is
killed, or when the producer’s
livestock are removed from
the area, whichever comes
fi rst.
The depredations were
confirmed on private land
pastures on June 2, July 21
and July 23, resulting in the
death or injury of fi ve sheep
and two calves. Lethal take
can be authorized by ODFW
in chronic depredation situ-
ations when there is signifi -
cant risk to livestock present
in the area.
The method of take under
the permit is restricted to
shooting the wolf from the
ground. Foothold trapping
could also occur but requires
the landowner or agent to
undergo training and fi nal
approval from ODFW on
required trapping protocols
and demonstrated abilities.
According to the state’s
wolf management plan,
ODFW can issue a kill permit
only if the aff ected ranch-
ers have used, and docu-
mented, nonlethal methods
to try to avoid wolf attacks.
Also, there can be no iden-
tifi ed circumstances on the
property, such as bone piles
or carcasses, that could be
attracting wolves. Fish and
wildlife found no attractants,
the release said adding that
during each livestock investi-
gation and visits to the inves-
tigation sites, the ODFW
searched the immediate area
for any bone piles, carcasses
or other attractants and found
none.
Wolves have made Mount
Emily their home for almost
a decade, but, according
to Roblyn Brown, Fish and
Wildlife state wolf biologist,
OR30 and his companions
are the only wolves known
to be in the Meacham area
right now.
OR30 was fi rst observed
with another wolf in the
Mount Emily Unit within the
present known area of activ-
ity in spring 2020. The new
pair bred but only one pup
survived through the end of
the year. The group was not
designated as a pack during
the 2020-21 winter count
because there were only
three wolves. A pack is four
or more wolves.
OR30’s radio collar failed
in early 2020 so there are no
functional radio collars and
lack of access to private land
has made monitoring this
group a challenge this year.
It is unknown if the pair bred
this year or the number of
wolves in the group.
This is just the second
lethal take permit ODFW
has issued since June 2018,
for a wolf pack in Wallowa
County, but the second issue
ordered in less than a week.
Employees from ODFW,
fi ring rifl es from a helicopter,
shot and killed two wolf pups
from the Lookout Mountain
Pack in Baker County on
Aug. 1, after a removal order
was authorized late last week.
The two wolves killed
Aug. 1 are 3-1/2-month-old
pups, according to an ODFW
spokesperson.
Commissioners to require masks on county grounds
East Oregonian
PENDLETON — The
Umatilla County Board of
Commissioners announced
it is reinstating mask require-
ments for county employees
and residents visiting county
buildings.
The com mission-
ers announced the direc-
tive Monday, Aug. 2, citing
concerns over the growing
number of COVID-19 infec-
tions in the county.
The county will require
all its employees to don face-
masks anywhere outside their
private work space and when
someone visits their desk,
according to a county docu-
ment describing emergency
guidelines.
In addition, security will
deny access to people attempt-
ing to enter county court-
houses without masks on.
Anybody receiving services
from the county must wear
their mask, according to the
county.
The county also is encour-
aging its employees to socially
distance themselves as much
as possible. Employees who
feel ill or have COVID-19-
like symptoms are directed to
not come to work. The county
will continue conducting daily
symptoms and temperature
checks until further notice.
WESTON — It may
have come later than many
other banks, but the Weston
branch of HAPO Commu-
nity Credit Union has
reopened.
According to a HAPO
spokesperson, the bank
branch reopened Monday,
Aug. 2, after moving to an
appointment-only format in
March 2020 as the COVID-
19 pandemic began to take
hold. The lobby now is open
from 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.,
Monday through Friday,
with the branch closed from
12:30-1:30 p.m. for lunch.
In an email, HAPO
community relations direc-
tor Crystal Contreras wrote
that during its closure to the
general public, the branch
was converted to a second-
ary call center to handle a
30-50% uptick in customer
service calls. Some employ-
ees also were relocated
to Walla Walla to back-
fill some open positions.
Contreras added that HAPO
customers could continue
to access their accounts at
the bank machine outside
the Weston Branch, on the
HAPO website or in person,
either by scheduling an
appointment in Weston or
visiting locations in College
Place or Walla Walla.
“We want to thank the
Weston team for their fl ex-
ibility and commitment to
serve our membership over
the phone and as needed,”
she wrote. “We commend
them for their resilience
and dedication to provide
the best service. We also
thank our membership and
the entire Weston commu-
nity for their trust, loyalty
and patience through the
pandemic. We are thrilled
to reopen our doors to
the community and look
forward to continuing to
off er relevant and conve-
nient fi nancial solutions.”
HAPO is one of the only
banks in the Athena-Weston
area. Athena went with-
out an in-person banking
option for several months
after its U.S. Bank branch
closed in 2016. The Bank
of Eastern Oregon soon
fi lled the gap in Athena the
following year.
LOCAL BRIEFING
One cited,
Rep. Bentz
one injured in
announces town
Highway 11 crash hall in Pendleton
MILTON-FREEWA-
TER — One man from
Walla Walla was injured
and another was cited for
his reported involvement
in an Oregon crash last
week, police reported.
According to Oregon
State Police, the crash
h ap p e ne d at a rou nd
12:15 p.m. Friday, July 30,
on Highway 11 at its inter-
section with Highway
332, north of Milton-Free-
water.
Conner Girardin, 41,
of Walla Walla, was trav-
eling south on the high-
way and slowed to make
a left turn onto Highway
332, according to the OSP
report.
Traveling behind him
was Carlos N. Luciano,
26, of Walla Walla.
Luciano rear-ended
Girardin’s vehicle as
Girardin attempted the
turn, the report stated.
Girardin was taken to
a local hospital for treat-
ment of neck pain.
Luciano was cited for
allegedly driving without
a license and following
too closely.
Both vehicles received
minor damage and neither
needed to be towed.
PENDLETON — Rep.
Cliff Bentz announced he
is holding an in-person,
indoor town hall Monday,
Aug. 9, in Pendleton.
Bentz is going to
provide an update on his
work in Washington, D.C.,
according
to the press
release
from his
office.
After brief
remarks,
Bentz will
hold
a
Bentz
Q&A with
constituents.
The town hall starts
at 9 a.m. at the Pendleton
Convention Center, 1601
Westgate.
“At the time of this
advisory,” according to the
press release, “the state of
Oregon recommends mask
wearing in public, indoor
settings regardless of vacci-
nation status.”
Nick Clemens, spokes-
person for Bentz, said the
congressman “takes seri-
ously his duty to hear
directly from his constit-
uents” and “continues to
advocate for folks to get
vaccinated if they can.”
— EO Media Group
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Cineplex Show Times
Theater seating will adhere to social distancing protocols
Every showing $7.50 per person (ages 0-3 still free)
Ben Lonergan/East Oregonian
A sign Wednesday, Aug. 4, 2021, on the door of the Umatilla County Courthouse, Pendleton,
advises courthouse visitors of the mask requirement for county buildings.
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