Heppner Gazette-Times, Heppner, Oregon Wednesday, June 29, 2016
GRAND MARSHALS
thing too close to one of the
houses.”
Work on the firing
site itself starts before the
Fourth.
“We work on it before-
hand as much as we can,”
says Ed Rietmann. “We
dig trenches for the mortars
and the holes for the boxes.
That usually doesn’t take
too long—maybe an hour
or two.”
“On the Fourth we
usually start somewhere
around ive in the evening
loading stuff up and taking
it up there,” he adds.
Spectators can wave to
the men during the parade,
which begins at 1 p.m. on
Monday, July 4, in Ione.
However, the fireworks
crew probably won’t be
hanging around very long
to greet fans after the pa-
rade—while they appreci-
ate the honor bestowed on
them, Wayne Rietmann
says he is irm in his resolve
to get up on the hill between
Ella and Cemetery roads
and make sure the show is
set for the night.
And no visitors will be
allowed to visit the men
while they work. The law
- FIVE
requires that only the ire-
works crew—and abso-
lutely no one under the age
of 18—be allowed on the
iring site.
So, on Monday eve-
ning, while the sounds of
blues tunes loat over Ione
and the rest of the town
relaxes and celebrates in-
dependence, a small but
dedicated crew will be up
on the lonely hill across
the highway, carrying on
its 60-year-plus tradition
of creating magic in the
skies over a small Eastern
Oregon town.
Wayne Rietmann and Ed Rietmann stand by a container used to store the ireworks before
the Fourth of July Celebration, displaying the seals placed over the padlocks to keep the ex-
plosives from falling into the wrong hands. -Photo by Andrea Di Salvo
-Continued from PAGE ONE the Fourth, and storage to inspect and approve.
inches with his hands. This
year’s show supply list is
four pages long.
It consists of ireworks
as small as an inch and a
half in diameter, but mostly
three- and four-inch shells,
with names like “4” Lemon
Dahlia” and “4” Ruby Red
to White Strobe.” There are
also miscellaneous supplies
like a 65-foot match fuse,
earplugs and safety glasses.
The ireworks are de-
livered a few days before
is another thing that has
changed over the years.
“Before we just kept
‘em cool someplace,”
Wayne Rietmann says.
Now the government re-
quires that fireworks be
locked up in something like
a munitions magazine.
They now store them in
a large shipping container
with a special seal over the
locks, which the Bureau of
Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms
and Explosives (ATF) had
Rietmann says he didn’t
enjoy dealing with the ATF,
but admits he does see some
sense to the seals.
“One of the irst things
I learned in the Army was
how to bust a padlock,” he
says.
Aside from the locks,
position of the storage con-
tainer is also an issue.
“We had to move it,”
Ed Rietmann recalls of the
ATF’s irst inspection. “We
were three feet or some-
Project grant funds available
through SWCD, OWEB
Morrow County land-
owners looking for inan-
cial help to prevent erosion
along streams, increase irri-
gation eficiency or upgrade
bridges or culverts that will
improve ish access or proj-
ects that improve upland
processes should consider
applying for a grant tai-
lored for these and similar
projects.
One funding source
available through Morrow
Soil and Water Conserva-
tion District for small proj-
ects is the Oregon Water-
shed Enhancement Board
(OWEB) Small Grant
Program. This statewide
program provides up to
$10,000 in Oregon Lot-
tery funds for individual
projects that help restore
watersheds to a healthy
condition and also help
landowners comply with
the Willow Creek Ag Wa-
ter Quality Management
Plan while protecting water
quality. A match of 25 per-
cent is required from the
landowner. This match can
be cash or in-kind match-
ing funds. Morrow SWCD
is the Willow Creek Wa-
tershed (which includes
the Boardman and Irrigon
An aerial map of the ireworks site with clearances required by law. -Contributed
Texas Hold ‘Em poker beneits
Fourth of July
areas) contact for the Uma-
tilla-Walla Walla-Willow
Creek OWEB Small Grant
Team. Applications will be
accepted until Friday, July
29, for funding review in
August.
Another funding source
is the OWEB Large Grant
Program that provides i-
nancial assistance for
projects with higher costs.
Other funding sources are
also available depending on
the project and landowner
eligibility. Contact Morrow
SWCD for applications and
more information at 541-
676-5452.
Sheriff’s Report
March 5 (cont.): -A
woman in Heppner reported
she heard a lot of screaming
coming from the neighbor’s
residence.
-A Heppner resident
reported that another resi-
dent’s dogs were barking
day and night, an ongoing
problem. The caller advised
he had video of them bark-
ing at different times of the
day over a period of three
weeks. The caller did not
need contact but would like
the dogs quieted.
-A male in Irrigon ad-
vised his wife rammed the
car into a tree and then left
toward the freeway. He
advised she was driving
by herself, not intoxicated,
but stated she was not in
the right mental state to be
driving. The caller asked to
be notiied if the wife was
found so he could come
pick up the car.
March 6: -Emergency
dispatch was advised of an
overturned semi on I-84
with unknown injury. Mor-
row County Sheriff’s Of-
ice, Boardman PD, Oregon
State Police, ODOT, and
Boardman ambulance re-
sponded and the triple was
taken off the roadway. No
injuries.
-A female in Board-
man reported that someone
had attacked her the night
before and stole her pills,
wallet, purse and other
things. MCSO and Board-
man PD responded and took
a report.
-A male in the Hep-
pner area advised that his
16-year-old daughter and
her mother were pushed
around by the mother’s
boyfriend. The juvenile was
not injured and the mother
hit her head but appeared to
be ine to the juvenile. The
juvenile requested to speak
to a deputy.
Enjoy Ione on
Fourth of July
Weekend!
Hours: Open Saturday &
Sunday
8a.m. to 5 p.m.
Open Monday July 4th
7 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Deli open M-F 10a.m. to 3 p.m.
Ione Market &Deli
-MCSO received a re-
quest from Good Shepherd
Hospital for contact from
the on-call crisis worker for
a female who was feeling
suicidal but had been medi-
cally cleared. The Commu-
nity Counseling Solutions
on-call was advised.
-MCSO was advised of
a possible felon in posses-
sion of a weapon in Board-
man and took the incident
under investigation.
March 7: -Morrow
County Sheriff ’s office
was advised of a dispute at
a location in Irrigon. The
caller advised there was
nothing physical so far and
no weapons or intoxicants
were involved. The caller
advised her girlfriend was
trying to throw her daughter
out. Deputies responded
and explained eviction op-
tions.
-Staff at Lakeview
Heights said a resident
was having lots of calls
and visits from a couple of
individuals and was con-
cerned about what may be
going on.
Deadline for news and
advertising:
Monday at 5 p.m.
The Ione Texas Hold ‘Em poker tournament took place Saturday, June 25, with all proceeds
going to the Ione Fourth of July celebration. From L-R: Marvin Padberg, poker tournament
chairman; Brian Doherty, second place; Tim Patton, irst place; Terry Snyder, third place;
Virgil Morgan, fourth place. Event coordinators reported a small turn-out but a “fabulous
time,” and said they were able to present the Ione Fourth of July with a “very nice contribu-
tion to the cause.” -Contributed photo
-MCSO arrested Misty
Nicole Morrison, 38, on an
Irrigon Justice Court war-
rant for Failure to Appear
on Theft III.
-MCSO was advised of
a three-year-old male wan-
dering around in Heppner.
The caller was able to get
him into the school build-
ing. A deputy responded
and the mother of the ju-
venile came and picked
him up.
-A female in Boardman
reported that her neighbor
was beating up a woman
in front of the residence.
No weapons were seen.
Boardman PD responded
and gave the female a ride
somewhere else.
-A female in Irrigon
advised that her husband
passed away last month
and they just had a service
for him that weekend. She
stated that her husband’s
brother came over that day
wanting the AR-15. The
caller stated that the brother
is a felon and she does not
want to give him the gun.
-MCSO was advised
that a female’s vehicle slid
off Highway 207 Echo/
Lexington; she advised the
vehicle slid into someone
front yard because she was
trying to miss a deer.
March 8: -Morrow
County Sheriff ’s Office
was advised of a cow by
the side of Hwy. 74, Ione
that looked like she was
pregnant and couldn’t stand
up; advised the cow may
have been hit by a car. Dis-
patch got in contact with the
owner, who took care of it.
-A female in Boardman
called the Victim’s Advo-
cate and Boardman PD and
advised that a male was at
her residence pounding at
the door and she was afraid.
-Emergency dispatch
received a call regarding
a motorcycle versus tree
accident at the Morrow
County OHV park. They
advised they needed help
packing out a female pa-
tient. Heppner ire, Heppner
ambulance and MCSO all
responded and the patient
was transported to Pioneer
Memorial Hospital.
-A female in Heppner
reported that two individu-
als had been calling and
harassing her.
-A male subject in Ir-
rigon called because he was
needing the day and the
month. Dispatch advised
him it was March 8.
-A female in Board-
man called and advised
someone was trying to get
in her house through the
doggy door. She advised
the subject took off on foot.
Boardman PD and MCSO
responded but were unable
to locate the suspect.
March 9: -Emergency
dispatch was advised of a
motor vehicle accident at
I-84 west and Patterson Fer-
ry, Boardman. The vehicle
went off the road, rolled
three or four times, and
there was a subject stuck
in the vehicle. Morrow
County Sheriff’s Office,
Boardman PD, Boardman
fire, Irrigon ambulance
and Oregon State Police
responded. A male was
transported to Good Shep-
herd Hospital.
-A male in Ione re-
ported that another male
showed him a gun and
threatened to shoot him.
The caller requested contact
and MCSO took the inci-
dent under investigation.
-MCSO received report
of a counterfeit $20 bill in
Irrigon.
-MCSO arrested Erick
Michael Wanty, 41, on a
Umatilla County Circuit
Court warrant for Failure to
Appear on Harassment and
Touching Intimate Part x2.
The subject was lodged at
Umatilla County Jail.
-MCSO was advised
that a subject had just been
at Circuit Court in Heppner
and was very intoxicated.
-A male in Heppner
advised he and his wife no
longer felt safe due to the
next door neighbors and re-
quested extra patrol through
the neighborhood to calm
some of the stuff down.
-Contineud on PAGE EIGHT