COVID-19: State reports nine workplace outbreaks in Umatilla, Morrow counties | PAGE A3
E O
AST
145th Year, No. 128
REGONIAN
SATURDAY, AUGUST 14, 2021
WINNER OF THE 2020 ONPA GENERAL EXCELLENCE AWARD
A NEW GENERATION OF
FIREFIGHTERS
$1.50
COVID-19
floods
local
hospitals
Transferring patients
is nearly impossible
as pandemic ravages
state’s health system
By BRYCE DOLE
East Oregonian
Umatilla Fire District’s
4 interns near graduation
By NICK ROSENBERGER
East Oregonian
H
ERMISTON — The day starts
as the sun rises for the new resi-
dent interns at Umatilla County
Fire District 1. With darkness slowly
fading around 5:45 a.m., the interns tug
on their shoes and head out the door
for an hour at the gym before getting
ready to face the grueling 10-hour day
in front of them.
The long hours might dispel some
from even trying to become a fi re-
fi ghter, but for Tyler Couch, Dillon
Tucker, Nick Donahue and Rylee
Geddes, the hours are just a part of
pursuing their dreams as they approach
graduation from the fi re district’s acad-
emy on Aug. 20.
Nick Donahue, a recent grad of
University High School in Spokane
Valley, has wanted to become a fi re-
fi ghter since his sophomore year of high
school. He knew he didn’t want to sit
at a desk job all day and desired some-
thing more exciting.
“I’ve also loved helping people and
I’ve grown up helping people,” Dona-
hue said. “And whether that’s just my
See Firefi ghters, Page A10
ABOVE: Nick Donahue, a resident intern with Umatilla County Fire District 1,
practices hose handling skills Tuesday, Aug. 10, 2021, at a Hermiston
training facility. BACKGROUND: Interns Rylee Geddes, right, Tyler
Couch and Dillon Tucker load hoses onto
a fi re engine Tuesday, Aug. 10, 2021.
Ben Lonergan/East Oregonian
PENDLETON — In many
parts of Eastern Oregon, the
pandemic never has been worse.
COVID-19 infection is spread-
ing at an unprecedented rate in
Umatilla and Morrow counties.
Week after week, both counties
report COVID-19 case counts that
dwarf previous pandemic surges.
And as the latest surge continues
unabated, commissioners in the
two counties declared a state of
emergency this week, opening the
door for state help as area hospi-
tals fi ll with patients.
“With the new delta variant,
it’s much more transmissible and
many more people are getting sick
with COVID than we’ve ever seen
in the past,” said Morrow County
Commissioner Don Russell, who
added, “There’s a lot of people
who have been vaccine resistant.
With the new delta variant, they
have to reconsider that. You need
to put your personal biases behind
you and look at the science.”
Hospitals in both counties are
facing a serious infl ux of patients
and are fi nding it nearly impos-
sible to transfer patients to other
medical facilities for a higher
level of care, offi cials say.
“Plainly put, there are little to
no beds to transfer patients to,”
Caitlin Cozad, a spokesperson
with Good Shepherd Medical
Center in Hermiston, said in an
email.
And if the surge doesn’t dimin-
ish soon, offi cials are worried the
hospitals could be overwhelmed.
Umatilla County Public Health
Director Joe Fiumara pointed to
Jackson and Josephine counties,
where COVID-19 patients are
exceeding hospital capacity and
health care workers are treating
people in the hallways because
they’ve run out of beds. Fiumara
said he is worried the same could
happen in Umatilla County.
“We could end up with people
who need care and can’t get in
to receive it, whether it’s a vehi-
cle accident or a heart attack,”
Fiumara said. “I’m dreading
when we get to the point when
somebody dies in the parking lot
or the waiting room because there
wasn’t anywhere for them to go.
We’re not there yet. I just don’t
want to get there.”
As of Thursday, Aug. 12,
only two intensive care unit
beds were available in hospitals
See Hospitals, Page A10
2020 CENSUS
Umatilla, Morrow counties lead region in growth
Hermiston grew 15.6%
from 2010 to 2020
By ANTONIO SIERRA
East Oregonian
UMATILLA COUNTY — In defi -
ance of national trends, Umatilla and
Morrow counties grew in the 2020
census.
The U.S. Census Bureau released
city and county population data Thurs-
day, Aug. 12, revealing Umatilla
County grew by 5.5% between 2010
and 2020 and Morrow County by
9.1%. But the overall rate for each
county masks growth disparities
between communities, with larger
population hubs continuing to grow
while some smaller towns struggle to
keep up.
In Umatilla County, Pendleton
and Hermiston were neck-and-neck
for the title of the largest city in East-
ern Oregon in 2010. By 2020, Herm-
iston turned its slight advantage into
a solid lead, its 19,354 people edging
out Pendleton’s 17,107. Hermiston’s
15.6% population increase prompted
a celebratory email from Hermiston
Assistant City Manager Mark Morgan
to the Hermiston City Council.
“From the raw population perspec-
tive, the (data) means that 62% of all
growth in Umatilla County since 2010
has occurred within the City Limits of
Hermiston, and 73% within Hermiston
and Umatilla,” he wrote. “My guess is
See Census, Page A10
Ben Lonergan/East Oregonian
The population of the city of Hermiston has grown 15.6% over the past de-
cade, from 16,745 residents in 2010 to 19,354 in 2020, according to data from
the 2020 Census.