High winds cause
damage
50¢
VOL. 140
NO. 13
8 Pages
Wednesday, March 31, 2021
Morrow County, Heppner, Oregon
Heppner High School honors seniors
High winds picked up the mobile shade structure at the Hep-
pner cemetery and deposited it on top of the shop building.
-Photo by Giselle Moses.
Seniors at HJSHS and their parents were honored at the football game last week. Pictured (L-R): Jayden Wilson and his par-
ents, Aymee and Robert; Jackson Lehman and his parents, Jessica and Andy; Blake Wolters and his parents, Kirk and Amy;
Hayden Hyatt and his parents, Troy and Leah; Tim Jaca and his parents, Dave and Jennifer; Roy Collins and his parents,
Tim and Jean; Genevieve Smith and her parents, Sherri and Greg; Kayla McAnninch and her parents, Jason and Stephanni.
-Photo by Damon Brosnan.
High winds on Sunday, March 28 caused damage and
power outages in the south county area. A downed tree in
Lexington at Hwy 74 near B Street hit power lines, caus-
ing a town-wide power outage and traffic to be detoured
around the area for several hours. Peak winds of 54 mph
were reported at the Lexington Airport Sunday.
Winds also toppled trees and caused damage in Hep-
pner without causing power outages.
A tree fell onto the power lines in Lexington knocking out power to the town. -Photo by Wayne
Gordon.
Lexington and Heppner Fire Departments and Columbia Basin Electric made short work of
removing the tree and repairing the power lines. -Photo by Wayne Gordon.
New Ione duplex construction
progressing
Construction on the
new Ione duplex is proceed-
ing it was announced at last
Wednesday’s Willow Creek
Valley Economic Develop-
ment Group (WCVEDG)
meeting. The duplex is
being constructed in the
Emert 2 section of Ione and
is a joint venture between
WCVEDG and Grow Ione.
Grow Ione is the original
developer of Emert 2 sub-
division and donated this
lot for construction. WC-
VEDG provided the fund-
ing for the new rental units.
Money for the project
came through WCVEDG
from the Columbia River
Enterprise Zone II which
disburses money through-
out the county for educa-
tion, housing, public safety
and community enhance-
ment projects. WCVEDG is
a nonprofit economic devel-
opment group that, among
other things, is working to
try and alleviate a chronic
rental housing shortage in
A grain storage bin knocked down from wind on Kilkenny Road and a tree hit the ground in
Heppner. -Contributed photos.
2,000 COVID-19 vaccinations
coming to Morrow County
next week
Free vaccinations for anyone over 18
The new duplex is being constructed at the top of the Emert By David Sykes
2 subdivision.
Several COVID-19 vaccinations events are planned for Morrow County in the
coming weeks. The vaccinations are free and for anyone over the age of 18-years-old.
They are the one-shot Johnson and Johnson variety. The vaccinations will be given
on a first-come-first-serve basis and people only need to show up at one of the below
locations to get their vaccination. The vaccinations are free to all, however it is asked
that those with insurance cards to bring their cards with them.
The shot schedule is as follows:
Boardman at Sage Center
Monday, April 5 - 4 to 9 p.m.
Tuesday, April 6 - 4 to 9 p.m.
Wednesday, April 7 - 6 a.m.
to 12 noon
Each unit will have 3-bedrooms, 2-baths and a garage
the south county area. WC- directors. Local building
VEDG has representatives company Allstott Construc-
from Heppner, Lexington tion is handling the project.
and Ione on its board of
Congressman Bentz supports
passage of Farm Workforce
Modernization Act
Congressman Cliff
Bentz (R-Ore.) voted in
favor of H.R. 1603 – the
Farm Workforce Modern-
ization Act of 2021, which
passed the House of Rep-
resentatives with bipartisan
support 247-174. The bill
goes to the U.S. Senate
for consideration. Bentz
was joined by 29 House
Republicans in passing this
legislation, which seeks to
address the labor shortage
faced by many food and
fiber producers in Oregon’s
Second Congressional Dis-
trict.
“As one who was raised
on a cattle ranch in Harney
County, I know firsthand
just how much work must
be done by those who work
in agriculture. I have also
spoken with local leaders
across our district – in-
cluding farmers, ranchers,
orchardists, and produc-
ers; business owners; trade
associations; and local
governments. After many
conversations and careful
consideration, I agreed with
my constituents that our
district would benefit from
the reforms this bill makes
to the H-2A guest worker
program. These reforms
are important to ensuring
that we have a stable and
-See BENTZ/PAGE TWO
Irrigon at AC Houghton
Friday, April 9 - 1 to 7 p.m.
Saturday, April 10 - 8 a.m. to
1 p.m.
Heppner at Fairgrounds
Monday, April 12 - 1 to 7
p.m.
Tuesday, April 13 -7 a.m.
to 1 p.m.
The vaccination events are a collaboration between the Federal Emergency Man-
agement Agency, Oregon Health Authority, Morrow County Health District and Morrow
County Health Department. “We feel exceptionally grateful to be able to bring these
vaccinations to the people of Morrow County,” County Commissioner Melissa Lindsay
said in announcing the vaccination events.
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