Sunday • April 18, 2021
Serving Central Oregon since 1903 • $3
ROSS REFLECTS ON RETIREMENT
WORLD CUP ALPINE SKI RACING • SPORTS, B1
LLOYD’S OF LONDON
DARKNESS TO LIGHT
Former Ducks kicker from Bend hopes to be a role model for others with depression
Insurer
could
again
pay for
fire costs
Plan would pay up to $25M
of wildfire expense in Oregon
By GaRy a. WaRnER
Oregon Capitol Bureau
With the prospect of a possibly cata-
strophic 2021 fire season looming, Or-
egon will once again rely on its one-of-
a-kind $25 million wildfire insurance
policy with the world’s oldest continually
active insurance marketplace.
Lloyd’s of London, which traces its
roots to a 17th-century coffeehouse near
the Tower of London, has insured the
Oregon Department of Forestry against
wildfire losses since 1973. No other state
has wildfire insurance.
“It’s a catastrophic firefighting expense
policy,” said ODF spokesman Jim Gers-
bach.
Oregon’s trees are among Lloyd’s one-
of-a-kind insurance policies that over the
years have included 1940s actress Betty
Grable’s legs, comedian Jimmy Durante’s
outsized nose, rock star Bruce Spring-
steen’s voice, Rolling Stones guitarist
Keith Richards’ hands and crooner Tom
Jones’ chest hair.
The plan will pay up to $25 million of
wildfire costs in Oregon. Under the pol-
icy, Oregon covers the first $50 million in
fire costs, then Lloyd’s pays the next $25
million.
Anything above that level is paid for
by the state. When costs get that high,
federal disaster money usually pays for a
large share of the costs.
See Lloyd’s / A7
CATTLE
Zach Emerson, 23, was a multisport star at Bend’s Mountain View High
School who went on to be a walk-on kicker for the Oregon football
team. Both he and his family believe several concussions suffered
during high school soccer led to his depression and suicidal thoughts.
Ryan Brennecke/The Bulletin
Crook County
mutilations
perplex police
By MaRK MORICaL • The Bulletin
cer games contributed greatly
to his depression and suicidal
thoughts, which consumed him
in college.
But even though his sister res-
cued him in March 2019, his bat-
tle with depression was not over.
The udders appeared to have been re-
moved with precision — straight, even
cuts, as if made by a sharp object.
The reproductive systems had been
cut out cleanly as well, and without dis-
turbing other organs.
There was no indication of predator
activity and perhaps strangest of all, scav-
enging animals appeared to have hardly
touched these six cow carcasses found in
a seven-day span this year on ranchland
in rural Crook County.
Detectives with the Crook County
Sheriff ’s Office, longtime ranchers
and a Prineville veterinarian who re-
viewed evidence from an ongoing case
say they’re stumped by the “unnatural”
deaths.
But the mutilated cattle might be more
ordinary than they seem, according to
Brian Dunning, a Bend-based podcaster
committed to deflating wild claims.
“This reads like a very typical case,” he
said.
Crook County Sheriff John Gautney
said his office has no leads but cautioned
there’s “no reason to panic.”
See Emerson / A6
See Cattle / A9
kicker on the high-profile University of Oregon football team, but he suffered from severe depression. He declined
to discuss the details of his plan in an interview for this story, but the reason this is a cautionary tale and not his
obituary is because Emerson opened up to family and friends about his depression.
Emerson practices his kickoffs
during Oregon’s preseason
camp in Eugene in 2018.
Eric Evans/Submitted photo
TODAY’S
WEATHER
Mostly sunny; warm
High 76, Low 38
Page B6
INDEX
Business/Life
Classifieds
Dear Abby
C1-8
B5
C3
He had a support system in
place that he believes saved his
life.
“That day when I had a plan,
my sister showed up and figured
out the signs and came to my res-
cue,” Emerson recalled recently.
“The main thing that people
who are struggling need to know
is, reach out. People care. For
me the hardest part was finally
reaching out and admitting, ‘I’m
struggling.’ It’s that first big step
of saying, ‘I do need help.’”
Emerson, 23, was a multisport
star at Bend’s Mountain View
High School, where he gradu-
ated in 2016. He and his family
believe several concussions suf-
fered during high school soc-
Editorial
Horoscope
Local/State
A8
C3
A2-3, 5
Lottery
Market Recap
Mon. Comics
B2
B4
C5-6
By GaRRETT andREWS
The Bulletin
“The main thing that
people who are struggling
need to know is, reach
out. People care.”
— Zach Emerson, kicker for the
new pro indoor football team in
Redmond, the High desert Storm
Obituaries
Puzzles
Sports
A9
C4
B1-3
The Bulletin
An Independent Newspaper
We use
recycled
newsprint
Vol. 117, No. 329, 28 pages, 4 sections
SUN/THU
T
wo years ago, Zach Emerson had a plan to end his life. Emerson had been a standout athlete in Bend and was a
U|xaIICGHy02330rzu