COMMUNITY
SATURDAY, MAY 8, 2021
STUCK
Continued from Page 1A
Strus acknowledges, with
the rueful chuckle of a person
who wonders later what he
was thinking at the crucial
moment, that his judgment
wasn’t sound.
When the road deterio-
rated into something closer to
a trail, and with dark coming
on besides, Strus said he
thought about turning back.
“I should have turned
around,” he said. “But the kid
in me said go a little farther.”
He did — just far enough to
reach the spot in the road.
Strus said he felt one rear
wheel sink, and when he
pushed the accelerator the
front end of the truck “reared
up just like a horse.”
Then the truck rolled in
what seemed, he said, “like
slow motion.”
Strus said it looked as
though a burrowing animal
had dug into the bank, weak-
ening the road.
Whatever the cause, he
was stuck, at nightfall, in the
chilly mountains.
Strus said he wasn’t espe-
cially worried, though.
Although his prized truck
sustained dents and a couple
of broken windows, it was
upright and the engine ran
fi ne.
He had most of a tank of
a gas.
And, perhaps most impor-
tant, he had an eight-pack of
hot dogs.
Also a bottle of orange
juice.
And two beers.
But before he took stock
of his situation, he sat inside
the cab and gave himself a
talking to.
“I just was beating myself
up for making a bad decision,”
Strus said.
Travis Ash/Contributed Photo
Joe Strus’ pickup truck landed upright after rolling off a
remote road north of Keating Valley on Sunday, May 2.
Besides the food, a warm
coat and some camping gear,
Strus had his cellphone.
He didn’t have service
in the creek bottom, so he
climbed the nearest hill.
He was able to send a text
to his girlfriend, but he never
received a reply and couldn’t
be sure the message had gone
through.
When he tried to make a
phone call he got a message
that he could only make a
9-1-1 call.
Strus said he decided not to
do that.
He wasn’t in any immedi-
ate danger, and he fi gured
that if his girlfriend didn’t
get his message, and nobody
came looking for him, he could
always walk out.
“I didn’t want to put
anybody else in harm’s way
to come out and look for me,”
Strus said.
And although he didn’t
think many people traveled
the road where he got stuck,
CHILD CARE
Continued from Page 1A
In an email, Wilkinson said the
estimated total cost for the center is
$250,000.
Strus was nervous about leav-
ing his pickup truck.
He had a couple of rifl es
and a shotgun, and with the
windows broken there was no
way to secure the guns.
During Monday he stayed
close to the truck.
He gathered stones to build
a fi re ring and kindled a blaze
to cook the hot dogs.
After he fi nished the orange
juice he used the container
to get water from the creek.
Strus said he wished he had a
water purifi er, but he said the
stream was cold and clear.
Strus said he was glad his
pickup ran despite rolling
over. He started the engine
occasionally to let the heater
ward off the nighttime chill.
An automated weather sta-
tion several miles to the east
recorded temperatures as low
as 30 degrees early Monday,
May 3.
“It really got cold,” Strus
said.
On Tuesday morning, May 4,
BAKER CITY HERALD — 5A
he considered his situation.
He had eaten the last of the
hot dogs.
Strus said he concluded
that either nobody was
searching for him, or they
didn’t know where to look.
He found a stout limb to use
as a walking stick and, once
the temperature had warmed,
he started walking, retracing
his driving route on Sunday
evening.
Strus hadn’t gone far when
he came across a large pile of
fresh bear scat on the road,
almost within sight of his
truck.
“He must have smelled
those hot dogs,” Strus said.
He had covered about two
miles when he heard the
burble of a motor.
It was an ATV, ridden by
Brian Ratliff, a biologist for
the Oregon Department of
Fish and Wildlife who was
investigating the death of a
calf in the area.
Strus said he greeted
Ratliff with a question:
“You guys aren’t looking for
me, are you?”
Ratliff was not — Strus, un-
able to get a text message out,
hadn’t been reported missing.
Ratliff told Strus to wait,
then rode to a place where
he could text Baker County
Sheriff Travis Ash.
Strus said the sheriff,
whom he knows, arrived less
than an hour later and drove
him to Richland.
Strus said he learned that
the Forest Service has in-
stalled signs warning people
not to try to drive down the
road where his truck rolled.
He said he’s glad that
something positive came from
his predicament.
Strus said Thursday
afternoon that he and some
friends planned to try to
extricate his truck that day.
Donations included:
• $5,000 from the YMCA
• $100,000 from Saint Alphonsus
• $5,000 from Head Start
• $28,000 from Wilson’s Cattle
• $2,000 from Chaves Consulting
St. Luke’s donated $10,000 for
Company
• $10,000 from Intermountain ESD sensory sidewalks.
According to the press release,
• $5,000 from OTEC
Rich, poor,
old, young.
Compassion
doesn’t
discriminate.
DEQ fines mine
owner for release
of wastewater
By Jayson Jacoby
jjacoby@bakercityherald.com
The Oregon Department of Environmental Quality
has proposed to fi ne a Salem company $8,400 for re-
leasing about 2,000 gallons of wastewater from a mine
pond into the Burnt River in southern Baker County in
December 2020.
The state agency issued a notice to K&E Excavating
Inc., which owns the High Bar mine along Pine Creek
about six miles northeast of Hereford.
According to DEQ documents, the company has a
permit to operate wastewater treatment ponds at the
mine.
That permit prohibits releasing water from the
ponds, according to DEQ.
Around Dec. 2, 2020, a pond at the mind overfl owed,
releasing an estimated 2,000 gallons of “industrial
wastewater generated from (the) mining operations.”
That water fl owed into the Burnt River, according to
DEQ.
Baker County notifed DEQ about the wastewater
discharge on Dec. 3, according to records.
DEQ is not proposing to issue fi nes for two other
violations, according to agency records.
K&E Excavating failed to immediately report
the discharge of wastewater from the pond, and the
company failed to monitor treatment ponds daily for
seepage and water levels, according to DEQ.
Kerry Kuenzi, registered agent with K&E Excavat-
ing, did not return phone messages.
Kieran O’Donnell, manager of DEQ’s Offi ce and
Compliance and Enforcement, said the company has
appealed the fi ne.
BAKER SOFTBALL
La Grande beats Bulldogs
Baker’s softball team came up short against the
unbeaten La Grande Tigers on Thursday, May 6, losing
17-2 at La Grande.
Sophomores Kaci Anderson and Makayla Rabourne
each had an RBI hit for Baker in the third inning.
Baker coach Sonny Gulick said starting pitcher Kay-
cee Cuzick, also a sophomore, threw accurately, but La
Grande hitters were tough.
a survey by the Eastern Oregon
Child Care Resources deemed Baker
County as a “child care desert,” with
20% of child care needs being meet.
A community health needs assess-
ment recently conducted by Saint
Alphonsus Medical Center also
recognizes child care as a central need
not currently being met.
More information about the child
care center is available by calling the
YMCA at 541-523-9622.
Text
us your tire photo
541-519-8878
we will text back
with a quote for
new tires!
Lew Brothers Tire Service
Our calling is you.
541-523-3679
210 Bridge St. Baker City, OR