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About Baker City herald. (Baker City, Or.) 1990-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 22, 2020)
LOCAL & STATE THURSDAY, OCTOBER 22, 2020 BIGHORNS Continued from Page 1A The ewe also coughed repeat- edly, as sheep almost always do when they have pneumonia. Both the ewe and the lamb were foraging, however, Ratliff said, and he decided not to euthanize the animals to obtain additional samples for testing. The more promising part of the trip was the group of 11 bighorns that were within 2,000 yards or so of the ailing ewe and lamb. Ratliff said all 11 of those sheep appeared healthy. “That’s a good sign, that we don’t have a lot of individuals showing up with (the sickness),” he said. Based on the proximity of the 11 sheep to the ailing ewe and lamb, it’s likely that the two groups have been in contact, Ratliff said. Some types of viruses and bacteria that can cause pneumo- nia are extremely infectious, such that most sheep in any infected herd are likely to get sick, he said. Others are less infectious and less likely to kill sheep. “If we’re lucky this won’t be one of those types that races through the population,” Ratliff said. Determining the precise cause Kathy Orr/Baker City Herald, File Photo Bighorn sheep beside the Burnt River Canyon Road between Bridgeport and Durkee in this photo from 2009. of the pneumonia is vital, Ratliff said, and not only because the confi rmation will give biologists a better sense of how virulent this outbreak is likely to be. The lab results also might help biologists fi gure out whether the Burnt River Canyon bighorns were infected by mingling with bighorns from the Lookout Mountain herd as opposed to other possible sources of infection, including domestic livestock. The Lookout Mountain herd ranges north of Interstate 84 and west of Brownlee Reservoir. The Lookout Mountain herd’s range generally is about 10 miles from the Burnt River Canyon herd, which is south of Interstate 84. On Feb. 13, 2020, ODFW re- ceived a report of a dead bighorn ram from the Lookout Mountain herd lying on the Snake River Road near Connor Creek, about 18 miles north of Huntington. Ratliff said a lab test of tissue samples from that ram confi rmed the animal had been infected with a strain of Mycoplasma ovipneumoniae bacteria that had not been found before in bighorns in Oregon. There are more than 50 strains of that bacteria, and they have varying levels of lethality. The test results prompted ODFW to cancel the two bighorn hunts scheduled this summer and fall in the Lookout Mountain BAKER CITY HERALD — 3A unit. At least a dozen bighorns have died in that area. (ODFW sells one hunting tag per year for a ram in the Burnt River Canyon herd.) Ratliff said it’s not clear where this strain of bacteria falls on the lethality scale. He said there is little evidence that Burnt River bighorns, which are of the California subspe- cies, mingle much, if at all, with Lookout Mountain sheep, which are the larger Rocky Mountain subspecies. Both subspecies are vulnerable to pneumonia from both viral and bacterial infections, Ratliff said. Despite the herds being sepa- rated, in early summer two young bighorn rams, both of the Cali- fornia subspecies and from the Burnt River Canyon herd, tried to cross Interstate 84 from the south side (Burnt River), to the north side (Lookout Mountain), he said. One of the rams was hit by a car and killed. Ratliff said a tissue sample from that sheep was tested, and the animal was not infected with the bacteria found in Lookout Mountain sheep. The second ram was not found. He said young rams are more likely than other bighorns to roam away from a herd. Oregon’s vaccine plan prioritizes health care workers and other essential workers, who will be the fi rst to receive them, State health offi cials could dis- according to a plan submitted by tribute the fi rst doses of COVID-19 the Oregon Health Authority to the vaccinations as early as the end of Centers for Disease Control and this month if it’s approved by the Prevention. U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Nationwide, states were required But those vaccines will most to submit their vaccination plans likely be reserved for health care by Friday, according to the CDC. States have about two weeks to establish distribution systems to meet CDC’s Nov. 1 deadline. It is unknown when the vaccines will be approved, said Jonathan Modie, Oregon Health Authority spokes- man. State health offi cials assume that vaccine supplies will be limited at fi rst and “should be focused on individuals critical to the pandemic response, provide direct care and maintain societal function, as well as those at highest risk for develop- ing severe illness,” Modie said in an email. SUMPTER leave a car before proceeding. There will be two photo spots, and a Tunnel of Terror (one person at a time). Hot cocoa and coffee will be available. Shanks said the community has painted 100 rocks to hide around downtown. Any child who fi nds one can take it to the Rock Station and receive a gigantic candy bar. And keep the rock. The Sumpter Valley Railroad will run this weekend. Due to COVID-19 restrictions, these will be open cars so passengers need to dress warmly. Reservations must be made online at www.sumpter valleyrailroad.org. A costume con- test is planned for the 4 p.m. and 5:30 p.m. trains on Friday. Tickets are available for Saturday at 3:30 p.m., 5 p.m. and 6:30 p.m. By Suzanne Roig The (Bend) Bulletin the celebration, she said. The National Weather Service fore- Continued from Page 1A casts a high temperature of 32 on Shanks said the community Saturday in Sumpter, with snow stepped up to help make the annual showers. event happen in a year marked by To follow current health guide- cancellations. lines, masks are recommended. “No way are these kids having The candy stations — 28 in all — another thing taken away,” Shanks will be spaced at least 20 feet apart said. along the street. Families will walk The frigid forecast won’t affect one way, and wait for others to See Vaccine/Page 5A SEARCH Continued from Page 1A The employee declined to talk to the Herald about her sighting. A search of the grounds by police Tuesday failed to fi nd any signs of the animal, Bates said. Baker City Police and Oregon State Police offi cers responded to the school not long after the report came in, Bates said. They remained on the grounds as the children, in Grades 4-6, began arriving at school about 7:45 a.m. Because of the safeguards in place to protect students and staff against the coronavirus, students are not allowed on the playground when they arrive at school, Bates said. Instead they have specifi c doors to enter on the way to their classrooms. On Tuesday morning they were moved in a little earlier than usual as a precau- tion, Bates said. The cougar reportedly was seen on the grass by a tree at the east side of the playground by the woman as she rode within about 20 yards of the animal, Bates said. He has since heard that a cougar was sighted the day before four to fi ve blocks east of the school in a more residential area. Bates, who is starting his third year as South Baker principal, said the most frequent wild animals to visit the playground in his experience are some of the many deer that roam the community. Bates moved to Baker City in the summer of 2018 from the Hamilton Creek School in the mountains near the western Oregon community of Lebanon. He said cougar sightings were more frequent there because of the school’s location. On Tuesday morning, Bates said he talked with police and scanned the school’s camera system trying to see if the cougar appeared in any of the footage, but it didn’t. Glare from a light blocked one of the camera views, he said. As morning dawned, there was no sign of the cougar, and parents were notifi ed that the grounds had been cleared as safe, he said. School continued as usual and no sightings had been reported before deadline for this report. “I think we’re in good shape right now,” Bates said Wednesday morning. State aid to Malheur County for pandemic has mixed results the state’s biggest COVID-19 chal- lenges. The Malheur County Health The promise of help for Malheur Department has been short of nurses, County came last July as Gov. Kate support staff and testing supplies. Brown put the community on her That’s in part because the county has state watch list. had to compete with health agen- The listing meant state offi cials cies in other counties and across the were alarmed by how fast the coro- country for help and supplies. navirus was spreading in Malheur State and county offi cials acknowl- County and that the source for too edge that meshing their efforts to many infections was a mystery. State rescue Malheur County from CO- offi cials said with the listing, more VID-19 hasn’t always gone smoothly. money and staffi ng would fl ow to the The intent, they say, has always been area. there: To do what can be done to drive A review of state records and inter- down the high infection rate that to views with key health offi cials shows date has killed 33 people, hospitalized that help did come. The Oregon nearly 100 and infected more than Health Authority in particular has 1,600 people. sent in experts, money and equip- Sarah Poe, Malheur County Health ment. Department director, appreciates But the evolution of the help was the help that has come to her small sometimes slow and sometimes agency. disjointed, and the impact is unclear. “I really am getting everything I Malheur County continues to post asked for,” Poe said. the worst infection rates in Oregon. Akiko Saito, director of emer- The onset of the pandemic present- gency operations for the state health ed one of the smallest public health agency’s Public Health Division, said departments in Oregon with one of that “our hearts are there with Sarah By Les Zaitz The (Malheur) Enterprise and her team” and that “I hope we’re making a difference.” Saito said dealing with the evolving COVID-19 crisis has been complex. “It’s really to the state’s benefit to help Malheur County get back to phase two and start driving down those rates,” said Jonathan Modie, health authority spokesman. “Our goal is to help Malheur County find solutions to do that.” Tracking how the health agen- cies responded to Malheur County’s situation requires delving into what is almost a foreign language of acronyms and government terms. Consider the “Malheur County Mis- sion Analysis” prepared by the Oregon Health Authority in August. The analysis distilled the needs seen in Malheur County by Poe and her team and specialists at the state agency. The recommendation: “Approve objectives, associated strategies and messaging themes presented in this mission analysis brief.” Translated: Let’s get to work in Malheur County. The analysis pinpointed needs for better communication with the pub- lic, more medical staffi ng for Poe, and using local nonprofi t groups to help. Poe said she got essential state guidance to better organize the county’s resources to respond to the emergency. Key state experts regu- larly joined in meetings to fi gure out next steps. “I have never done anything like that,” Poe said. “You can’t practice this.” Testing was fl agged as one need. Poe and other health offi cials say increased testing helps more quickly identify where the virus is spreading. That allows faster efforts to quar- antine those infected and slow the spread. “Testing has been absolutely a high priority,” she said. With the state’s help, Malheur County got more testing supplies and access to laboratories for quicker results. The Oregon Health Authority also was expected to dispatch staff to help with a major drive-thru testing event scheduled this Wednesday, Oct. 21, at the Malheur County Fairgrounds. The state is bringing 500 test kits and has agreed to supply an ad- ditional 1,000 BiNaxNOW rapid antigen tests that can show results in 15 minutes. “We would like to have 5,000,” Poe said. Poe said she remains short of nurs- es. She has diverted her staff nurses from other public health duties to focus on the pandemic. In August, she asked the state for help recruiting. “We haven’t been able to hire another needed nurse and didn’t get any response when we asked for community nursing volunteers,” Poe wrote the state earlier this summer. Last week, Poe said she still hasn’t been able to hire needed nurses. 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All services free & confidential. 10 am - 5 pm (closed for lunch) Baker County Republican Party recommends a vote for: Baker County The Baker County Veteran Service Veteran Service Office will on be will be closed closed October June 1-5 and open for 20th through business on the 22nd Monday, June 8th Baker City Council (vote for 6): ✓ Kerry McQuisten ✓ Joanna Dixon ✓ Betty Milliman ✓ Doni Bruland ✓ Shane Alderson ✓ Johnny Waggoner, Sr. President of the United States – Donald J. Trump US House of Representatives – Cliff Bentz US Senate – Jo Rae Perkins State Offices: ✓ Kim Thatcher for Secretary of State ✓ Jeff Gudman for State Treasurer ✓ Lynn Findley, State Senator ✓ Mark Owens, State Representative VOTE RED - This ad is paid for by the Baker County Republican Party Visit us on Facebook, Baker County Republicans