Image provided by: Morrow County Museum; Heppner, OR
About Heppner gazette-times. (Heppner, Or.) 1925-current | View Entire Issue (July 12, 1979)
The Library Univarsity of Orcscn Eu-2::o, Or 9710.3 Tlte Me nJFi 5 -.1 I I VOL. !(7. NO. I'S . ... . aKi k . ; t I T ; Getting it done City water drinkable according to Lexington, lone officials this week There are no problems with water supplies in lone and Lexington, city officials in both cities said this week, despite a report from the Environmental Protection Agency that those cities and 129 other water systems were not informing the federal agency of the results of their water sampling. "Those 131 systems are leaving their 24,000 customers in the dark," Don Gipe. coordinator of the EPA's Safe Drinking Water Program said last week in a press release to area newspapers. lone Mayor Linda La Rue said she had the water samples taken by the city's maintenance man and sent them to a private laboratory in The Dalles. It was her understanding that the lab oratory would forward the results directly to the EPA. That wasn't the case and LaRue will be sending the test results directly to Portland. She was displeased with EPA's action of sending out the press release as was Lexington City Recorder Lois Allyn without informing the city of lone. Mrs. Allyn does the water sampling herself by simply filling out a bottle of outside or inside water and mailing it first class to the Eastern Oregon College laboratory in La Grande. The tests come back and she forwards them on to Portland. She said Lexington didn't get the reports to the EPA on time. But Mrs. Allyn couldn't understand all the flap about the water systems, since Lexington's water has been found okay. Heppner wasn't one of the cities listed among the non reporting water systems and asked about any possible water problems. Mayor Jerry Sweeney says the city tests its water religiously. "We have good water and add very li'ilc chemicals." he said. Both lone and Lexinjj.nm officials said the Stale Health Sanrihollow farmers and ranchers and their hired men volunteered their equipment and labor to assist the County in patching the numerous potholes that stretched the length of the well-travelled road before harvest started. Morrow County's road department had money budgeted for the materials needed but didn't have the manpower available to put the asphalt on the road. Pictured here are Ken Turner, Bill Kenny. Kick Hill and Dan Nix. Following the crew in his personal grader was Don Kvans, who worked the cold mix into the holes before the county rolled the repairs. Turner said each member of the four-man crew pictured shoveled about five tons of asphalt last Thursday and it took five days to complete the job. Division used to do the sampling for the cities but after the first of the year, the practice was slopped. CoiiUk1'1!! mi Portland about lone. iik! I. . melon's response to the statcu nle press release. EPA's Gipe said that some of the systems listed were non-reporting and some non monitoring but all were in formed in the last two years that they should report their Five enter guilty pleas Five defendants entered guilty pleas in District Court Monday at the Morrow County Courthouse. Rick Rea. 18, Bombing Range Rd., and Delbert Tur ner, changed their pleas from not guilty to guilty to a charge of delivery of a controlled substance in Judge Jack Olsen's Court and multiple charges by District Attorney Dennis Doherty were dropped. Both defendants also plead guilty to a charge of false swearing. Lions begin project to clean up Willow Creek channel The Heppner Lions Club in association with the Heppner Water Control District will be conducting a channel clean-up and debris removal project on Willow Creek July 14. The object of the project is to reduce the hazard of flooding caused by debris dams. According to local officials, the last flood waters contained 40 percent debris and sill and B0 percent water. Saturdav's work will involve IIKI'I'M lt. () (.( 4 r x samples monthly. "If there isn't regular moni toring, there could be contam ination entering at any one point." Gipe commented. The Kinzua Corporation was also named in the report but according to Personnel and Safety Manager Dan Sween ey, the company sends quar terly samples to the State Public Health Laboratory in Portland to make tests of their Richard Hamletl changed a plea to guilty to a charge of controlled substance. A pre-sentence investigation has been ordered for the three cases the last under the adult indictments of the Morrow County Grand Jury investiga tion drug problems in the county. Monday's pleas in volved marijuana. A case is still pending against a juvenile involved in the drug investi gation. Tamara McKenzie. Board man, changed her plea to removing trash and debris from the channel and cutting brush and small trees in the channel that cause debris dams to form. The project is scheduled to begin at 9 a.m . July 14 Participants will meet at the Alfalfa Street bridge. Volun teers and property owners are encouraged to pitch in and reduce the danger of flooding in Heppner. Any property owner along l lll domestic water system; those reports are forwarded to the EPA. There have been no reports of problems with Kinzua's water. Sweeney said. While Kinzua receives free water tests for their quarterly samples, the cities of lone and Lexington pay for their sam ples to be tested. The EPA is now requiring testing of Kinzua's wells for chemical content. guilt of possession of a controlled substance and will undergo a pre-sentence in vestigation. Robert William Hoffman. Boardman. plead guilty of the felony of driving while sus pended . Nora Pourrier. Irri on changed her plea to guilty to a charge of first degree burglary. J.C. Helsel. Hermiston. plead no' guilty to a charge ot theft of property from an lone service station last Februarv. the creek that wishes to oner assistance or provide access is encouraged to do so. Brush removal will he conlined to that area below high water II any properly owner does not wish to have brush removed, they should contact volunteers as they work in the area or visibly mark any brush the wish to save A in vegetation that prov ides bank slabilitv in critical areas will be left li.M VS . .IU.V IL'. IliTM Health care board recommends more budget cuts before vote The Morrow County Hospi tal Hoard decided at a special meeting Monday night at Columbia Basin Co-op in Heppner to recommend Wed nesday to the County Court that $2:5.7:57 be trimmed from the county hospital levy when placed before the voters in August. In the second trimming operation following a levy defeat this year, board mem bers first heard three and a half hour s of budgetary rec ommendations by the medical and nursing staff with Dr. Joseph Gi fiord as spokesman, then met for an hour later and recommended the following reductions: accepting the medical personnel's recom mendation that monies be trimmed in the budget for physic ian services because of the possibility of not obtaining a new doctor until January 1. the board made a $:!:i,fi:S9 reduction in physician relief (weekend service, malprac tice and insuiance. reducing the income by $2(1.11(10; re-"v.-d, VhW I'wi'i physician recruitment. reduced the physician's salary by $12,5(10. thereby reducing the income figures b $ Hi. 744: added $2,342 for reimbursement of telephone billing for indivi dual patients; increased lab oratory expenses by $4.000 and proposed Sli.ooo as the in crease in income Irom lab fees in following the recommenda tion from the hospital staff that money could be saved by instituting in house proced ures rather than sending the woi'k away and rent on the house used by the hospital administrator was increaseed to$22r per month or $2,700 board members said there would be no change in the budget; it would be balanced on the income side of the ledger. No change w as made in the lianancial requirements rec ommended for the North Morrow County clinic of $157,140 dt spite a motion by board mem er Dan Sweeney who said. "We have to realistically weigh how many votes we are going to uel from the north end." North end board members contended that such a move could cost the hospital lew issue a greater number of votes than in the second levy deleat June 20. Irrigon Member Gladys ilobbs advised the board to give that area more services besides the Norlh Morrow Clinic and said il lunds for north end medical care are removed, there would be a strong voter reaction against August's llnr.d levy try. "They would lake that as a direct slap in the tace. ' ilohh said Hoard member Ed I lick said he would be reluctant to remove support lor the north end clinic and ( 'hairman Fred Martin agreed. In making their budgetary recommendations, the board also made no cham;es in the already sla-hrd planning and development lunds and niil i. lied il" i iiange in the SKT.Onu coniiiigeiie tund. noting that salary negotiations are not completed vet with noiilic eased emplo ei s County Court olhcial- will decide he'lier t,, repl Hie recommend. it ions a! a special hearing ednosdas at Hi a in at ihe I ouii! ( 'oui'llmuse II I he coin" L'l.t along With ihe TWO SF.CTIONS proposals, that would mean a $08,737 cut in the original levy proposal submitted to the voters in the first levy vote May 22. In Monday night's session, the medical personnel which have formed a professional association, made several recommendations regarding the future hospital budgetary planning. Speaking for the profession als. Dr. Gilford said the main concern of the group was medical care. His question of "How many times the budget can be presented to the voters" drew a response from Ed Dick. Dick said there was no limit to the times the levy could be submitted to the voters but failure of the levy would pose problems in property tax assessments. Gilford asked what alterna tives the board was looking at should the levy fail again. Responded Martin: "We can't operate a public institution on a deficit. We would have to close 4he place down unless a way is found to operate it on revenue. I wouldn't promise anyone that it would stay open." Postmaster thanks hospital staff for emergency care after fall from roof top Heppner Postmaster Hubert Wilson, recuperating from a broken hack, sustained when he fell off the city hall roof five weeks ago while tarring the surface, says he received the best care he has ever received at Pioneer Memorial Hospital. Wilson is now at home after spending several weeks in the hospital. He wears a custom lilted steel brace to protect his spinal column from further injury. When he fell off the roof, he crushed three verta brae and fractured a fourth He told the Gazette-Times Monday that the hospital personnel which took care of him "were far superior to other hospitals" which he has been in. relating the nursing staff's care during his hospital stay. A former hospital board member. Wilson said two of the nurses would move him gently upon request without arrousing the pain that he has had to endure since his accident "There was concern thc were showing me." Wilson also praised the quick response of the ambu lance crew which transported him to the hospital. He and his son. la ton. were working on Ihe fit hall root u hen the tall in-cured. Wilson, who intermittently blacked out Irom the tall, landed on the concrete sidewalk directly in Iron I ot the city offices. The screams ol lu-- son were heard b Ihe liandall Petersons w ho phoned lor the ambulance Il look only about three minutes. sas Wilson, lor the ambulance to arrive on the M eiie The crew used what the Postmaster described as an "old lasliioned hay fork" w ith lingers lo hfi him into the elm lo And lie praised the quick II PAGES Said Barlett: "It can't operate with a deficit. The decision would rest with the County Court." Chairman Martin said there has only been one month this year that "we have come close to breaking even" and noted that Ihe facility has been subsidized for years. Dick reported the hospital had a $53,000 deficit in 1978, and lacked $71,000 in 1971. "It's nowhere near self-operating." "If you think we are going to operate without a subsidy, you're chasing a rainbow," Martin said. The professional association recommended that $6,000 could be realized in income from doing work in the laboratory rather than send ing it to other laboratories, selling the clinic leased by Dr. Gilford for $42,000 (the board said that woul be a County Court decision and might not result in income to the hospital budget : trimming the $127 .990 earmarked for phys ician services because of the possibility that a physician hired would not start until after January 1; charging patients for medical phone calls outside the area; speci is will it Thanks hospital V earing a steel brace. Heppner Postmaster Hubert Wilson is rccov cring from his fall si weeks ago off the roof of Heppner it Hall, lie says he received excellent care at Pioneer Memorial Hospital and credits the quick attention and av ailaliilily of the facility for his well-being work ol Dr. Joseph Gifford in fitting an clastic brace over the injured area. Wilson said Ihe Kennewick physician who designed the specially filled brace for him, said ihe quick action by (ill lord eased his medical problems He will have lo wear the brace for iwo years and while sleeping at night must wear an elastic brace II was expected by many 'ha' he w on hi have to spend at 20 cents fying directly in the budget, travel funds for nurses attend ing educational courses, rather than lumping them under administration and cut ting the surgical expense by $5,000 because of the probabil ity of not having a surgeon until after January 1. The board held firm to its insistence that surgical ex penditures be left in the budget. Chairman Fred Mar tin was concerned the board would be criticized in the community if it cut out the surgery expense. Responded Gifford, "It would take a lot more than an intinerant surgeon" to rein state surgery at Pioneer Memorial. Gifford said the medical association was questioning the budgeting of a fetal monitor and said the two physicians had not been asked about it and recommended purchase of what he felt was a less expensive I V. transfusion pump; asked that the amount for physician recruitment be reduced and volunteered his services to raise funds for fianancial inducements to bring new physicians into the area. JO li I 1 L .L least 10 weeks in the hospital; Hubert was discharged about 5 weeks early because of the special brace. While in the hospital, he received about 98 cards and numerous flowers from people in the community. Asked why he felt the care was much better at Pioneer Memorial than other larger hospitals. Wilson said "Most of the people are a little Cont. on page 3 ft i
