REGION
Saturday, February 12, 2022
East Oregonian
A3
Andy Nicolais/East Oregonian
The number of new reported cases of COVID-19 is dropping quickly in Umatilla County, from 788 last week to 315 this week. Due to the increasing availability of rapid home tests — which
are not always reported to the county public health department — these numbers underrepresent the actual number of cases in the county. Statewide, hospitalizations are decreasing from
the peak of 1,130 on Jan. 27. Oregon Health & Science University forecasts that hospitalizations will continue to decrease to pre-omicron levels by late March.
Umatilla offi cer was among locals
to help in Richland shooting
By ERICK PETERSON
East Oregonian
RICHLAND, Wash. — Follow-
ing a deadly shooting in Richland,
Washington, the Umatilla Police
Department sent one of its own to
help.
Lt. Keith Kennedy rushed to the
scene of the shooting on Monday,
Feb. 7. Two people had been shot,
and one had died, at the Fred Meyer
store in Richland. Officers from
numerous agencies were present.
Kennedy’s job was to perform a
“perimeter watch” as it was then
unknown if the suspect remained
nearby, according to the Umatilla
Police Department.
“They wanted anyone who
could come to come,” Kylie Baker
Umatilla police administrator said.
“They really didn’t know at that with a pair of other offi cers from
point what the scale of this event diff erent departments.
was going to be.”
Baker said it is uncommon for
Her department, Baker said, only her department to send offi cers to
had two or three offi cers on duty at locations as far away as the Richland
the time. As one of those offi cers Fred Meyer, which is more than 40
was the school resource
miles away.
offi cer, charged to look over
“I’ve worked here about
Umatilla schools. That left
10 years, and normally
Kennedy as the only person
that’s not standard proto-
available to assist, Baker
col,” Baker said. “But
said.
normally, we don’t really
“ B a s i c a l l y, w h a t
have five-scale events
occurring in our area, fortu-
happens f rom a law
Kennedy
nately. So, it doesn’t happen
enforcement perspective,
is once they get on scene at
very often, but when agen-
a major event like that, they check cies call and say ‘We need help,’ if
in with a command post,” Baker we have someone available, we’ll
said. “Whatever the most immedi- defi nitely go.”
Baker said there were “defi nitely
ate need is at that time, that’s what
people from other departments in
they get assigned for that event.”
Kennedy’s perimeter watch was this area, as well” to assist.
Semitrailer crash spills hazardous, closes I-84
East Oregonian
PENDLETON — A semitrailer
crash the morning of Thursday,
Feb. 10, on Interstate 84 near Pend-
leton shutdown the westbound free-
way early into Feb. 11.
The tanker truck overturned
before 6 a.m. near milepost 219,
about 10 miles east of Pendleton, the
Oregon Department of Transpor-
tation reported, spilling hazardous
material. The hazmat team from
Umatilla County Fire District No.
1 responded, and ODOT reported a
hazmat transfer tanker truck had to
come from Seattle.
The clean-up crews worked at
the crash site into the evening.
The crash led to the closure of
westbound lanes of I-84 at Exit 302
near Baker City and Exit 374 near
Ontario due to backed up traffi c on
detour routes.
In addition, U.S. Highway 30
was closed westbound to through
traffi c at Haines and Oregon High-
way 245 was closed to through traf-
fi c. Oregon Highway 204, Tollgate
Highway, was closed westbound
between Elgin and Weston.
Only local freight and passen-
ger vehicles were allowed on the
highway with no access to I-84 for
commercial vehicles.
The state transportation depart-
ment a little before 3 a.m. Feb. 11
reported the westbound lanes were
again open.
LOCAL BRIEFING
Hermiston silage
fi re still burns
HERMISTON — Umatilla
County Fire District No. 1 is
asking for state help to extin-
guish the silage fi re still burning
in southwest Hermiston.
The district on Thursday,
Feb. 10, reported Columbia Basin
Ag Management on Highway 207
scaled back eff orts to extinguish
the fi re but were continuing to
work the materials.
An inspection on Jan. 26
showed the fi re mostly suppressed
with a small amount of material
still smoldering. Prior site visits
showed employees actively work-
ing to suppress the smoldering
fi re with heavy equipment and
water.
“It appears fi re extinguishment
eff orts and removal of unburned
materials were either minimized
or ceased by the company and
recent winds pushed the fi re into
unburned material.”
The fire district reported it
contacted Oregon Department
of Environmental Quality and
requested its assistance with a
resolution for this fi re. The fi re
district also has been in contact
with the city of Hermiston
throughout the monitoring of this
situation with regard to the agri-
cultural materials storage at this
place of business.
The fire district posted the
update on its Facebook page, and
comments indicate locals want
this fi re out.
“The whole area stinks and air
quality suff ers (some days more
Now
!
g
n
i
r
i
H
than others),” one commenter
said. “Can we please get this
thing extinguished once and for
all?”
Another thanked the district
for the update and added “it has
been very bad the last couple
mornings to the point where it’s
choking you out in your car.”
Another described the situa-
tion as “So irritating.”
Umatilla County’s
COVID-19 death toll
rises to 198
UMATILLA COUNTY —
Umatilla County Public Health on
Wednesday, Feb. 9, reported two
more county residents died with
COVID-19, increasing the coun-
ty’s death toll to 198.
The county’s 197th death
related to the disease is a 71-year-
old man who tested positive on
Dec. 3 and died Dec. 28, accord-
ing to the county health depart-
ment, and the 198th death is a
62-year-old man who tested posi-
tive on Jan. 4 and died Jan. 27 at
Good Shepherd Medical Center,
Hermiston.
The report of the fatalities
came a day after the county
reported two other deaths related
to COVID-19.
The county health department
also reported the total number of
cases as of Feb. 10 stood at 21,846
since the start of the pandemic.
The Oregon Health Authority
as of Feb. 10 reported a total of
671,923 cases statewide includ-
ing 6,344 deaths.
— EO Media Group
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