A2 THE BULLETIN • TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 13, 2022
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LOCAL, STATE & REGION
Hottest August on record for
Idaho, Oregon and Washington
BY DON JENKINS
Capital Press
Oregon, Idaho and Wash-
ington had their hottest
Augusts in 128 years of re-
cord-keeping, the National
Oceanic and Atmospheric Ad-
ministration reported Friday.
Heat records fell in all three
states, topping old marks for
the month by nearly a degree
in Idaho and by more than a
degree in Washington and Or-
egon.
Temperatures were far
above normal.
Idaho’s average temperature
was 5.67 degrees Fahrenheit
above the norm, while Wash-
ington’s was 6.3 and Oregon’s
6.6.
The three states also set re-
cords for average temperature
over a two-month period, July
and August. The Northwest
has now had hotter-than-av-
erage summers for the past
decade.
“The real story is that we
have this big cluster of years
with temperatures well above
normal,” Oregon State Clima-
tologist Larry O’Neill said.
“This is the kind of summer
we’re expecting in the future.
By 2050, this will be an aver-
age summer,” he said.
California nearly set a heat
record for August. Only Au-
gust 2020 was hotter.
All four states, including
California, set records for Au-
gust nighttime temperatures.
Washington State Climatol-
ogist Nick Bond said green-
BY MAXINE BERNSTEIN
The Oregonian
Two Nigerian nationals are
accused of attempting to steal
about $25 million from nearly
two dozen hospitals, schools
and universities around the
United States, including about
$2.9 million from Oregon’s
Portland Public Schools dis-
trict in 2019.
Efeturi Ariawhorai, also
known as Efeturi Simeon, 35,
and Ikenna Nwajiaku, 41, each
face an 11-count indictment,
Power
restored
after fire,
high winds
Associated Press
Dean Guernsey/Bulletin file
Jeremy Prater douses his head July 26 at a cooling station on Hunnell Road in Bend, where temperatures
hit 102 degrees, according to the National Weather Service. Oregon, Idaho and Washington recorded their
hottest August temperatures in 128 years of record keeping.
house gases are holding in
heat at night, keeping tem-
peratures up.
“This is something we’re
seeing more and more of,” he
said. “It’s completely consistent
with the physics.
“It’s like we have a thin film
of clouds even when it’s clear,”
Bond said. “In the morning,
you’re starting off at a higher
(temperature) level.”
Bond also noted there
were few Pacific Ocean
“weather disturbances” —
the gentle summertime ver-
sions of storms — to usher
in cool breezes and sprinkles
of rain.
The hot summer came af-
ter an unusually wet and cold
April, May and much of June.
Oregon’s summer was the
fourth-warmest on record,
surpassed by three recent
years, 2016, 2017 and 2021.
A warm north Pacific
Ocean — reminiscent of
“The Blob” that heated up the
Northwest in 2013-15 — was
another reason for the high
temperatures, O’Neill said.
Warm and humid air
flowed into Oregon and also
trapped heat, he said. “That
was definitely a factor.”
Idaho had its sixth-warmest
summer, and California had
its third-warmest. Across the
U.S., it was the eighth hottest
August on record
Rain varied more in the
states. Washington had its
16th driest August, while Or-
egon had its 58th driest and
Idaho its 69th driest. Califor-
nia had its 18th wettest Au-
gust.
2 Nigerian men charged in attempted fraud
Alleged victims include
Portland Public
Schools, FBI says
OREGON
charging them with conspir-
acy to commit wire fraud, wire
fraud and aggravated identity
theft.
The two remain fugitives.
Ariawhorai was arrested in
Italy in November but fled
house arrest before he could
be transferred to Oregon. He’s
believed to be living in the
United Arab Emirates. Nwaji-
aku is suspected of living in or
near Lagos, Nigeria, according
to federal investigators.
The attempted theft from
Portland Public Schools oc-
curred when a fraudster pos-
ing as one of the district’s con-
struction contractors tricked
employees into green-lighting
the $2.9 million payment, dis-
trict officials said at the time.
The scam was caught while
the millions were still in the
fraudster’s bank account, and
most of the money was re-
turned to the district’s Wells
Fargo account within days, of-
ficials said.
The two defendants’ alleged
fraud occurred from August
2019 through December 2020
and targeted a total of about
$25.2 million from 20 dif-
ferent organizations, school
districts or hospitals, the in-
dictment said. The actual loss
was $6.2 million to 15 organi-
zations, according to investi-
gators.
Authorities urged victims
of online or internet-enabled
crimes to file reports online
with IC3 at www.ice3.gov or
call a local FBI field office.
Utility companies said
Monday they have re-
stored power to tens of
thousands of customers
after shutting down ser-
vice over the weekend to
try to prevent wildfires
during high winds, low
humidity and hot tem-
peratures.
Both Portland General
Electric and Pacific Power
enacted planned power
shut-offs Friday as high,
gusting winds and low
humidity moved into Or-
egon, posing extreme fire
danger.
The utilities were con-
cerned that the winds
would cause power lines
to break or sag, making
sparks that could ignite tin-
der-dry vegetation.
Portland General Elec-
tric halted power to about
37,000 customers in 17
service areas starting Fri-
day, and Pacific Power shut
down service to 12,000
customers.
Power shut-offs due to
fire weather, common in
California, are new to the
Pacific Northwest.
The strategy appeared
to be successful, with no
major new blazes over the
weekend.
Portland General Elec-
tric also fully restored
power to all affected cus-
tomers by Saturday eve-
ning, the company said.
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CDC
The Centers for Disease Con-
trol and Prevention reported
COVID-19 community levels at
low for Crook, Deschutes and
Jefferson counties on Thursday.
Statewide, four counties were at
high, indicated by orange;
three were at medium, or
yellow; and 29 were at low,
or green.
COVID-19 community
levels for Central Oregon
The Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention mon-
itors levels of COVID-19 to
help communities decide what
prevention steps to take based
on the latest data.
Levels can be low, medium
or high and are determined by
looking at hospital beds be-
ing used, hospital admissions
and the total number of new
COVID-19 cases in an area.
The agency listed the follow-
ing levels for Central Oregon:
Deschutes County: Low
Crook County: Low
Jefferson County: LowFor
communities at low levels, the
CDC recommends staying
up to date on vaccines and
getting tested if experiencing
symptoms.
— Bulletin staff report
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