HAPPY INDEPENDENCE DAY
The
Blue Mountain
EAGLE
W EDNESDAY , J UNE 29, 2016
Monmouth
boy drowns
in John
Day River
• N O . 26
• 20 P AGES
www.MyEagleNews.com
Four celebrations planned for 4th
Dayville event Saturday
features memorial car
show for Jake Streeter
By Sean Hart
Blue Mountain Eagle
Blue Mountain Eagle
Authorities
recov-
ered the body of a youth
from Monmouth who
drowned in the John
Day River Sunday near
Spray.
The body of Cody
Lane Watson, 16, was
recovered from the riv-
er near mile post 82
on Highway 19/207 at
about 10 a.m. Monday,
Wheeler County Sher-
iff’s Office Chief Depu-
ty Michael Boyd report-
ed.
At about noon Sun-
day, Wheeler County
deputies responded to a
report that Watson had
disappeared beneath the
surface of the river while
swimming with friends
about 8 miles west of
Spray. They were assist-
ed by Wheeler Coun-
ty Search and Rescue,
Wheeler County Fire
and Rescue, the Oregon
State Police and mem-
bers of the Spray Fire
and Ambulance depart-
ments, which searched
extensively without suc-
cess. About two hours
after the search began,
members of the Grant
County Fast Water Res-
cue Team also respond-
ed to help.
Boyd said the initial
investigation indicated
the incident was an ac-
cident.
“The John Day River
continues to be decep-
tively dangerous with
sudden changes in both
the current and the un-
derwater features of the
riverbed,” Boyd said
in the press release.
“Swimmers should use
extreme caution when
swimming in any natural
waterway.”
• $1.00
Eagle file photo
Grayson Schmedeka of
Dayville, left, and Kendall
Skillings of La Grande at the
2015 Dayville Parade.
Dayville, Long Creek, Monument and
Prairie City will all proudly display their
stars and stripes during the Fourth of July
weekend.
Several fun events are on schedule, in-
cluding parades, fi reworks displays, mu-
sic in the park, contests and barbecues.
Dayville has a new schedule this
year, with their main events on Satur-
day, July 2.
“I’ve been enjoying Dayville’s 4th
of July Celebration for decades,” said
city recorder Ruthie Moore. “This year,
things are defi nitely different, but I’m
sure the event will still be full of fun,
family and friends. I am especially look-
ing forward to the car show; I think it’s a
great way to honor a man (Jake Streeter)
who gave so much to the Dayville com-
munity. And an evening parade should
be lots of fun — come to Dayville, and
celebrate with us.”
See FOURTH, Page A10
IS SCHOOL WATER
SAFE?
By Sean Hart
Blue Mountain Eagle
L
ocal schools are testing
their water taps for lead,
joining a scramble of oth-
er Oregon districts who
are doing the same.
Schools are hurrying to test in
the wake of large
amounts of lead
found in the Flint,
Michigan, city wa-
ter supply and, more
recently, in Portland
public schools.
Federal law does
not require schools
test for lead. Al-
though the Oregon
Board of Education
is working on a new
rule, current Oregon
law only requires
schools with their own
water supply to test.
Most districts in
Oregon use city wa-
ter systems, which
handle their own testing. While pub-
lic systems test on a regular basis and
treat water to help reduce corrosion,
lead in pipes and fi xtures can enter
the water at the tap and later into any-
one who drinks from it.
The Eagle asked all of the school
districts in Grant County for records
of lead tests. Dayville was the only
district that had completed testing, but
other districts indicated they plan to
test soon.
Dayville tested the elementa-
ry, high school and gym drinking
fountains and the kitchen sink June
9. The results were sent back from
Box R Water Analysis Laboratory in
Prineville June 24.
“Dayville Schools passed the lead
test well within accepted (Environ-
mental Protection Agency) levels,”
Superintendent Kathryn Hedrick re-
ported Tuesday.
The EPA’s maximum allowed
level of lead in drinking water is .015
milligrams per liter. The highest level
detected in Dayville was .00374.
Local
districts
testing
after lead
problems
elsewhere
See LEAD, Page A10
EO Media Group/Kathy Aney
Most area school districts are testing for lead in drinking water at the
schools this summer.
EO Media Group/E.J. Harris
The U.S. Forest Service
has said the roadside
memorial to Robert
“LaVoy” Finicum on
Highway 395 north of
Burns must be removed.
F.S. says
Finicum
roadside
memorial
must be
removed
By Amanda Peacher
Oregon Public Broadcasting
Supporters of the Malheur
National Wildlife Refuge oc-
cupiers are in confl ict with the
U.S. Forest Service and other
agencies over an impromptu
memorial site for Robert “La-
Voy” Finicum, the Arizona
rancher killed by law enforce-
ment during the occupation.
Rocks, fl ags, balloons,
photos and fl owers are in
place at the remote site along
U.S. Route 395 north of
Burns, where the spokesman
for the armed occupation died
in a confrontation with Ore-
gon State Police troopers.
The Forest Service says
the memorial, which sits on
Malheur National Forest land,
is illegal.
“While the placement of
a monument or memorial on
public land may help some
individuals through diffi cult
times, these memorials are
generally of signifi cance to
only those most closely tied
to a specifi c person or event,”
said Mike Stearly, public af-
fairs offi cer with the Malheur
National Forest. “Others may
feel that memorials intrude
on their experience of the
forest.”
Two men have been guard-
ing the memorial for nearly
three weeks, in response to
several instances when the
memorial was altered or dis-
appeared completely in the
middle of the night. William
Fisher, of Salmon, Idaho,
and Jamey Landin, of Burns,
say these three weeks are the
longest the site has been un-
touched.
“They know we’re there,”
said Fisher, referring to any-
one who might want to alter
the site. “We’re doing some-
thing here.”
After reaching the 14-day
stay limit allowed in the near-
by designated campground,
the two moved across the
road and founded a dispersed
campsite. There, they can stay
for an additional 30 days.
See FINICUM, Page A10