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About The Blue Mountain eagle. (John Day, Or.) 1972-current | View Entire Issue (Nov. 20, 2019)
PRAIRIE CITY KICKS OFF CHRISTMAS | PAGE 5A The Blue Mountain EAGLE Grant County’s newspaper since 1868 Wednesday, November 20, 2019 151st Year • No. 47 • 16 Pages • $1.50 MyEagleNews.com New hotel announced for John Day By Rudy Diaz Blue Mountain Eagle The Eagle/Rudy Diaz Court Priday discusses plan for the Inn at Whiskey Flats, the new John Day Hotel. A 60-room, $6 million hotel is coming to John Day. The project was announced to an overflow crowd at the John Day City Council and the planning commission meeting Nov. 12 at the John Day Fire Hall. The hotel will be located near the Oregon Pine Property east of Patterson Bridge Road. The city sold the 1.7 acres of land it owns at the site for $74,052 — $1 per square foot — to facilitate the deal. John Day City Manager Nick Green revealed that the city has been working with the Priday family, a hotel investment group from Central Oregon, for three months. The Priday family plans to name the hotel the “Inn at Whis- key Flat” and begin construction in the spring. Court Priday shared with the audience what they could expect from the investment. “We try to be the very best in the towns that we come into,” Pri- day said. “We like to be involved in the community ... you’re not going to have a company where you hear about the owner but never see them.” The Inn at Whiskey Flat is expected to bring thousands of dollars to the community through property taxes. According to Green, the city could receive around $50,000- $60,000 a year in taxes from the hotel. However, that will not happen for six years. Because the hotel development is part of John Day’s “innovation gateway project,” See Hotel, Page A16 EXPECT THE UNEXPECTED Prepare and communicate when enjoying the great outdoors By Angel Carpenter Blue Mountain Eagle rant County Sheriff Office Search and Rescue Coor- dinator Dave Dobler said there is one common denomina- tor when it comes to safely hunt- ing, hiking, and traveling in the wilderness. “Always expect the unex- pected,” he said. Dobler, who is also deputy with the Grant County Sheriff’s Office, said the county has averaged three search and rescue missions a month for the past year. There have been many instances when a person traveling to the out- doors has not communicated with family members or others about their whereabouts or when they’ll return. “It’s a statewide problem,” Dobler said. He suggests families make a plan. If someone is hunting, they should be responsible for sharing where they are going, follow that plan, and be sure to call if circum- stances change. People spend big on a pickup, scope or rifle, he said, “but not $200 a year on a satellite device and service.” A satellite phone is one of the two most important safety tips Dobler recommends. The other is having fire-build- ing materials and skills. Had Mark Larsen, 73, of Crooked River Ranch in Central Oregon been carrying a cellphone or fire-starter, he could have been rescued a lot sooner than the 10 days it took SAR to find him. He was eventually found Sept. 13 in the Fields Peak area southwest of Mt. Vernon. Larsen did a few things right, including leaving a map for his G Contributed photo Grant County Search and Rescue members assist an injured hiker found at Crawfish Lake near Anthony Lakes in Grant County. From left (in yellow shirts), Gretchen Ladd-Dobler, Cindy Lemcke and Nathan Gordanier. wife with his planned location. He also packed appropriate hunting equipment as well as food and water. However, upon arrival, he stepped out to stretch his legs with a walk in the woods and became disoriented. The bow hunter took no back- pack and was wearing only a T-shirt and jeans — brown in color — and slip-on shoes with no socks. “He went northeast ... farther into the mountains and away from anyone that could aid him,” Dobler said, adding that almost any other direction would have sent him toward a road or people. Fifteen agencies spent a total of 1,800 hours looking for Larsen. “We had SAR from Eastern and Central Oregon and the Willamette Valley,” Dobler said. This included air and ground search and rescue dogs. One of the reasons Larsen sur- vived the 10 days included warm weather for the elevation — tem- peratures reached a low of 55 degrees, and there was only one night with rain and wind. A hunter found Larsen and waved a large blue tarp, which helped airborne searchers locate the man. He was flown to Blue Moun- tain Hospital in John Day where he spent three nights before being released, Dobler said. Dobler said there was cellphone service available where Larsen was found, and a fire would have helped airplanes find him. “Carry two good quality light- ers, always, in your pocket,” Dobler said. “Right now, I have two quality lighters in both my front pockets. Bring flares or fire starters — they may be crucial, if you need to keep warm.” Lucas Francesco Cavalle, 38, went missing on Fields Peak last December and died in subzero temperatures. His body was recovered Dec. 6 after a three-day search. Dobler believes the man had tried to light a fire, but he may have waited too long and condi- tions were windy. He added that fine-motor skills are the first to go when a person becomes cold and may be scared. The search and rescue team cur- rently has 34 members, and Dobler would like to see that increase to 50. Many hours are spent fulfilling training requirements. There will be an open application time to join SAR in November and Decem- ber with interviews beginning in January. About 40 hours of training will take place in March, April and May, with a combination of eve- nings and some Saturdays, fol- lowed by a test. “There are lots of different things people can do as part of the SAR team, but they need to be able to follow instructions, be a good fit for the team and team player,” Dobler said. “In SAR, we have a lot of fun but it’s mission oriented.” Ongoing training includes monthly meetings, two evening trainings per month and one Satur- day a month. “We keep busy,” he said. Team members also present information to the public, includ- ing at three outdoor schools each year. Search and rescue crews also teach a Hug a Tree program to teach elementary students what to do if they become lost. The county gives SAR a $5,000 See Prepare, Page A16 Finding ways to avoid the fall For older adults, falling can cause serious health problems By Rudy Diaz Blue Mountain Eagle Countless falls prepare a baby for their first step. But for people older than 65, falling can cause seri- ous injuries and possibly the final steps. An assessment released by Grant County Pub- lic Health on Oct. 30 showed that 30 percent of the Grant County population is older than 65 and that Oregon will see an increasing population of older adults. As the population grows older, the risk of falling also increases. One out of three adults 65 years and older fall each year according to Karissa Debenport, a physi- cal therapist at Blue Mountain Hospital, and Stacie Klusmier, an occupational therapist at Blue Moun- tain Hospital. Less than half of the people who have fallen talk to their health care providers about it. Aside from physical injuries, falling can also contributed photo Icy roads in front of the Blue Mountain Eagle in De- cember 2016. cause fear to develop in some people. “This fear may cause them to limit their activ- ities, which leads to reduced mobility and loss of physical fitness and in turn, increases their actual risk of falling,” Debenport said. “Injuries and fear of falling make it increasingly hard to get around and live independently.” In Grant County, some of the common causes for falling are icy and slippery stairs, uneven sur- faces inside and outside a home, tripping on throw rugs, tripping over oxygen tubing, not using assis- tive devices appropriately, not taking medications as prescribed, inappropriate use of alcohol, vertigo, dizziness and impaired vision, said Klusmier and Debenport. There are ways for people 65 and over to min- imize the risk of falling by recognizing potential hazards. Simple exercise routines that can help as well. Keeping traction with the floor is an import- ant first step: be sure to wear footwear with a non- slip sole. Make sure socks have a firm grip, espe- cially on hardwood floors. “Remove throw rugs from all areas of the home,” Debenport said. “Use a non-slip rug only at the shower or tub side when entering or exit- ing the shower. When not in use, pick it up. If you have any balance difficulty, use a cane or walker for stability.” When walking in and out of home, be sure to keep your night lights on at all time to avoid any See Falls, Page A16