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About Polk County itemizer observer. (Dallas, Or) 1992-current | View Entire Issue (June 8, 2016)
Polk County News DEADLINES NEWS DEADLINES For inclusion in the Wednesday edition of the Itemizer-Observer: Social news (weddings, engagements, anniver- saries, births, milestones) — 5 p.m. on Thursday. Community events — Noon on Friday for both the Community Notebook and Community Calendar. Letters to the editor — 10 a.m. on Monday. Obituaries — 4 p.m. on Monday. ADVERTISING DEADLINES Retail display ads — 3 p.m. Friday. Classified display ads — 11 a.m. on Monday. Classified line ads — Noon on Monday. Classified ads are updated daily on www.polkio.com. Public notices — Noon on Friday. CORRECTIONS In the June 1 edition, the Itemizer-Observer put that the Polk County Republican Women will meet Wednesday (today). The group will not meet in June, July or August. The I-O regrets the error. The Polk County Itemizer- Observer is committed to pub- lishing accurate news, feature and sports reports. If you see anything that requires a cor- rection or clarification, call the newsroom at 503-623-2373 or send an email to ementzer@polkio.com. Dallas schools test for lead in water, radon in air to increase safety of kids By Jolene Guzman The Itemizer-Observer D A L L A S — Dr i n k i n g fountains and kitchen taps in all six Dallas School Dis- trict schools will be tested for lead contamination this week. Each facility will have 20 drinking fountains, taps and classroom fountains tested based on the amount of use and suspected condition of the pipes at some locations. Facilities Director Kevin Montague said the tests are in response to concerns about the handling of posi- tive lead tests in Portland Public Schools. Like many school districts across the state, Dallas has not tested fountains and taps at its schools regularly. There hasn’t been a require- ment for schools to do so, Montague said. In 2013, the district tested The Polk County Itemizer- Observer website, www.polkio.com, is updat- ed each week by Wednes- day afternoon. There, you will find nearly every story that appears in the print version of the newspaper, as well as some items, in- cluding additional photos, that do not appear in print due to space limitations. The Itemizer-Observer is also on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Watch for breaking news, links to sto- ries, sports scores updates and more. WEATHER RECORDED HIGH LOW May 31.............. 88 June 1................ 83 June 2................ 70 June 3................ 88 June 4................ 99 June 5................ 95 June 6................ 94 RAIN 50 53 57 53 61 65 61 .00 .00 .19 .00 .00 .00 .00 Rainfall during June — .19 in. Rain through June 6 — 20.49 in. RECYCLE A little effort. A big difference. a few classrooms at Lyle Ele- mentary School, mostly checking the condition of the pipes at the school, built in 1950. One classroom faucet tested positive for lead near the end of winter break. It hadn’t been used in two weeks. A second test on the same tap was taken after the Reporter prepares self, cat for disaster By Jolene Guzman The Itemizer-Observer WEBSITE Polk County Itemizer-Observer • June 8, 2016 3A My cat, Boo, is better pre- pared for an emergency than I am. Not that he knows it. Boo was lazily lounging on the floor in the heat while I sort- ed through his stock of sup- plies Sunday. I told him about it, but I don’t think it registered. He just lifted his head, blinked and went back to resting. He has more than 14 days of food because the thought of him being hungry and having nothing to offer breaks my heart. While purchasing extra food for him in past weeks, it occurred to me that I should get started on my kit, too. Can’t take care of him if I don’t take care of myself, right? I finally did, starting with the Week 1 list that appeared in the June 1 edition of the I-O. Two gallons of water, peanut butter, three cans of meat (tuna fish in my case because unlike my cat, I don’t eat “land meat”) and a Sharpie to mark expiration dates. Check! I plan to stick with the 24- week calendar and have a full kit by November. But remember, you can do this at your own pace. The important thing is to get started and keeping working on it. And don’t forget your pets. The American Red Cross has designed a 24-week cal- endar to build a two-week home disaster kit. The fol- lowing is the second week. The I-O will occasionally supplement the checklist with tips from local experts. To see other weeks, go to www.polkio.com. water had been running for 30 seconds and no lead was detected. A follow-up test conduct- ed in March of 2013 also found no contamination. Tests at Whitworth, Morri- son and another classroom at Lyle were added as a pre- caution, and no other taps tested positive. This week’s testing is like- ly to be the new normal for the district as Montague an- ticipates regular testing will become a requirement soon. “Really it makes sense. We test our fire systems every year, so we should,” he said. “We should be doing our due diligence on that.” The tests will cost the dis- trict more than $2,000, and that is with a discount labs are giving schools to con- duct tests in the wake of findings in Portland. Test results should be available within a couple weeks, though they may be delayed due to the number of screenings being con- ducted now, Montague said. Montague didn’t specu- late on what the tests would find, but did say that with buildings 60 or more years old, it is possible to have positive tests. If that happens, the dis- trict will conduct additional tests and complete any nec- essary upgrades to eliminate the problem. “We will follow up on any positive we get,” Montague said. The district will be con- ducting tests of a different type early next fall. Testing for radon, a radioactive gas that can cause lung cancer, is now a requirement for dis- tricts in Oregon. Montague said “short- term testing” over two to seven days will take place in October at all schools. If any Early Bird Specials BREAKFAST SPECIALS 7am - 10am $ 5 00 LUNCH SPECIALS $ 8 00 Hours: 7am - 9pm 154 Main Street, Independence 503-837-0394 • independencegrill.com Summer Celebration Programs 2016 RESERVE BY JUNE 10TH! 4th of July Celebrations Publishes June 29th Summerfest Build your kit: Week 2 • Heavy cotton or hemp rope • Duct tape • Two flashlights with batteries • Matches in waterproof container for outside use only with appropriate camp stove or barbecue. Actions steps: Sign up for First Aid/ CPR class. Optional items: leash or carrier for your pet, extra set of I.D. tags. Source: American Red Cross. Itemizer-Observer of those test show results ex- ceeding federal thresholds, long-term testing — up to nine months — will be con- ducted. Dallas schools were tested in 2001 and the only “hot spots” were found in LaCre- ole Middle School. Subse- quent tests revealed levels lower than the threshold. Based on those tests and upgrades to heating, ventilation and air condi- tioning (HVAC) systems that circulate more out- side air within the build- ings, Montague doesn’t believe radon will be an issue. If not, flushing radon out of the environ- ment may require adjust- ments to air flow patterns. “Most of it can be taken care of with HVAC tweaks,” he said. Results from initial radon testing should return in De- cember. Publishes July 27th Polk County Fair Publishes August 10th Your local news source Hop & Heritage Festival Publishes September 14th A Pleasant Place to Buy or Sell Your RV Contact Heidi, Rachel or Karen by June 10th to be a part of this special! CALL TODAY FOR A NO-CHARGE EVALUATION. Itemizer-Observer 147 SE Court St, Dallas • 503-623-2373 OPEN K! WEE 7 DAYS A • Sat 9-5 Mon-Fri 9-6 -4 Sun 10 Rick 503-437-5398 Ruben 503-915-2080 4075 NE Three Mile Lane, McMinnville, OR www.macrvsales.com Next to the Spruce Goose Aviation Museum macrvsales@gmail.com Father’s Day BBQ June 19th Full menu also served all day. BBQ ChiCken Pencil us in! www.polkio.com Country Style Pork riBS Chef Carved roaSt Beef Scalloped Potatoes Caesar Salad - Waldorf Salad Broccoli Salad - Potato Salad • Eight Flat Screen TVs • 13 Brews on Tap • Pool Tables • Video Poker • Oregon Lottery Baked Beans assorted desserts Open Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner reseruations: 503-623-4494 170 E. Ellendale Ave, Dallas
