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,
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will find nearly every story
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cluding additional photos,
that do not appear in print
due to space limitations.
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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
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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!
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7 DAYS A • Sat 9-5
Mon-Fri 9-6 -4
Sun 10
Rick 503-437-5398
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Father’s Day BBQ June 19th
Full menu also served all day.
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Country Style Pork riBS
Chef Carved roaSt Beef
Scalloped Potatoes
Caesar Salad - Waldorf Salad
Broccoli Salad - Potato Salad
• Eight Flat Screen TVs
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• Pool Tables
• Video Poker
• Oregon Lottery
Baked Beans
assorted desserts
Open Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner
reseruations: 503-623-4494
170 E. Ellendale Ave, Dallas