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