WednesdAy • June 23, 2021 • Serving Central Oregon since 1903 • $1.50
SPORTS PULLOUT, A5-8
District
managers
assess
irrigation
season
With hot days ahead,
reinforcements arrive
Wickiup Reservoir
water level at 22%,
one-third of normal
By MICHAeL KOHn
The Bulletin
A crew from Tualatin Valley Fire & Rescue unloads gear Tuesday at the super 8 Hotel in Redmond.
Mike Britton has seen his
fair share of irrigation sea-
sons. He has been in charge of
North Unit Irrigation District
since 2008, guiding water use
on farms in Jefferson County,
Central Oregon’s most produc-
tive farmland. But this year has
been particularly challenging.
As of Monday, Wickiup
Reservoir, which holds most
of North Unit’s stored water,
was just 22% full. In a normal
year, the reservoir would con-
tain three times the current
amount of water.
That matters because when
the reservoir reaches extremely
low levels, which is expected to
happen by mid-August, water
may not be available for farm-
ers to irrigate their crops until
the end of the season. It leaves
crops vulnerable and puts live-
lihoods on the line.
“We are doing the best we
can with the supplies we have.
Granted it’s not a good year by
any means,” said Britton, who
is retiring in March. “I have
been doing this for 20 years
and this is the most difficult
year I have experienced so
far, so that tells you how bad
things really are.”
Dean Guernsey/The Bulletin
Fire risk prompts officials to move
extra firefighters to Central Oregon
See Irrigation / A4
By MICHAeL KOHn • The Bulletin
chief for Sisters-Camp Sherman, said the
Oregon prompted the Office
reinforcements will help take pressure off
of State Fire Marshal to send fire crews
and vehicles to the High Desert to serve
local crews if fires grow in size.
“Our goal regionally and statewide is to
as a backup in case wildfires flare up this
respond with as much force as we can, as
week. Two task forces from Washington
quickly as we can and keep fires as small
and Marion counties will be based in
as possible,” said Johnson. “So this is part
Redmond for 72 hours, starting Tuesday
of that effort to pre-position resources in
morning.
areas that are experiencing higher risk
The backup includes eight fire engines,
two water tenders, two command vehicles
We are
anticipating
record temperatures,
100 degrees plus
over the weekend,
so obviously it’s
concerning for us
based on our fuel
conditions.”
Brothers
get 2 years
for motel
hammer
attack
— Christie shaw,
Oregon department of
Forestry spokesperson
By GARReTT AndReWs
The Bulletin
due to the weather that we have and the
in risk ratings.
Jefferson, Klamath and
Marion counties moved from
high risk to moderate risk in
the level ratings issued Tues-
day. The new ratings go into
effect Friday.
Six counties remain in the
high-risk level, currently the
state’s most restrictive: Co-
lumbia, Crook, Douglas, Linn,
Malheur and Umatilla.
A pair of local brothers will
head to prison for 2½ years for
robbing and attacking their
drug dealer with a hammer in
a Bend motel.
Damon Cole Hall, 22, and
Levi Austin Hall, 27, were sen-
tenced Tuesday in Deschutes
County Circuit Court for the
April 23 attack.
Around 7:30 p.m. the broth-
ers used a room key to enter
Room 113 of the Motel 6 on
NE Third Street. They had
arranged a swap of metham-
phetamine for heroin with the
21-year-old man staying in-
side, according to prosecutor
Matthew Nelson.
Levi Hall, who had been in-
troduced to heroin only four
months prior to the incident,
was armed with a hammer, ac-
cording to his lawyer, TJ Spear.
See COVId-19/ A13
See Brothers / A4
fuel conditions.”
and 28 firefighters. Roger Johnson, fire
See Fire / A13
Brown issues final COVID-19 county risk levels
By GARy A. WARneR
Oregon Capital Bureau
Gov. Kate Brown on Tues-
day announced what she
said would be the last adjust-
ments in the state’s county
COVID-19 infection risk lev-
els.
Brown said she was con-
fident the state would soon
reach her benchmark of
70% of eligible adults state-
wide who have been given
TODAY’S
WEATHER
at least one shot of vaccine.
At that point, Brown has
said she would lift nearly all
COVID-19 health, safety,
business and event restric-
tions.
“Fewer than 45,000 more
Oregonians need to receive
a first dose to achieve a 70%
statewide adult vaccination
rate,” Brown said.
The Oregon Health Au-
thority on Tuesday reported
Mostly sunny
High 86, Low 57
Page A12
INDEX
that as of noon, about 68.7%
of eligible adults had received
one shot of vaccine. Another
41,094 vaccinations were
needed to reach the goal.
Demand for vaccination
has dropped sharply in recent
weeks, with fewer than 5,000
new vaccinations per day re-
cently. At the peak of demand
in April, the state surpassed
50,000 vaccinations on its bus-
iest days.
Business
Classifieds
Comics
A11-12
A14
A9-10
Dear Abby
Editorial
Horoscope
A7
A8
A7
Brown had originally
said in early May that she
thought the goal could be
reached by mid-June. The
forecast slid to June 21, then
June 25. At current rates,
the number will be reached
around July 1. But any ad-
ditional slowing could push
that date further away.
In the latest — and offi-
cially last — risk level report,
several counties moved lower
Local/State
A2-4
Lottery
A6
Nation/World A4, 13
Obituaries
Puzzles
Sports
A4
A10
A5-7
The Bulletin
An Independent Newspaper
We use
recycled
newsprint
Vol. 117, No. 329, 14 pages, 1 section
DAILY
H
igh fire risk in Central
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