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About Hermiston herald. (Hermiston, Or.) 1994-current | View Entire Issue (March 20, 2019)
COMMUNITY A2 • HERMISTONHERALD.COM THREE MINUTES WITH ... WEDNESDAY, MARCH 20, 2019 HERMISTON HISTORY JAKE BACON Principal, Highland Hills Elementary School When and why did you move to Hermiston? We moved to Hermiston after joining the Hermis- ton School District. Our experience has been so wonderful that we moved all three kids to the dis- trict and my wife and I both work for the district. What is your favorite place to eat in Hermiston? We love to eat at La Palma and Yo Country! What do you like to do in your spare time? Spend time with my wife and kids. We are at the stage of life where all our spare time is taken fol- lowing kids to their sporting events. My favorite place to be is in the mountains or at my Grand- ma’s place in Grant County. What surprises you about Hermiston? I am reminded, daily how amazing our school fam- ily is. Our community, students, staff is truly one of the greatest experiences I have had professionally. I am proud to have my kids attending HSD. Our family feels very fortunate to be in a community that is so welcoming and supportive. What was the last book you read/are cur- rently reading? I am currently reading “Rethinking Teacher Supervision and Evaluation” by Kim Marshall What app or website do you use most other than Facebook or Google? It depends upon the season. Fall – ESPN Fan- tasy Football & Seattle Seahawks APP. Winter & Spring – AccuWeather. Summer – ESPN & Seattle Seahawks App. Don’t tell my wife, I hope she is not reading this, Groupon is year-round! If you could travel anywhere, where would you go? Rome, or as we are fi nally walking away from win- ter, anywhere WARM! What is the funniest thing that’s happened to you? We were holding a Highland Hills Staff gather- ing and I accidentally emailed it out to the entire school district, not just Highland Hills. I was the lucky recipient to a lot of teasing by staff across the district. What is one of your goals for the next 12 months To win the lottery, get into shape and relax more! What is your proudest accomplishment? Being a father. Nothing has given me so much grief and so much pleasure all at the same time. Watching our children grow through the stages of life is truly amazing. Printed on recycled newsprint VOLUME 113 • NUMBER 12 Chris Rush | Publisher • crush@eomediagroup.com • 541-278-2669 HH fi le photo The Hermiston Herald ran a story on March 23, 1944 announcing an explosion at the Umatilla Ordnance Depot two days prior. From the archives: “Explosion of one igloo Tuesday is fatal to six” From the Hermiston Herald pub- lished Thursday, March 23, 1944: Six persons lost their lives as a result of a terrifi c explosion about 9:30 Tuesday night at the Umatilla Ordnance Depot when a quantity of bombs stored in one of the igloos exploded. One woman and fi ve men, all civilian employees, were killed in the only major disaster at the Ord- nance Depot here since its construc- tion about three years ago. The blast was so terrifi c that, although it did not cause any other damage of con- sequence, it was felt as far away as Lewiston, Idaho and other distant points. The victims of the explosion were: Miss Alice Wolgamott, 20, for- merly of Curtis, Nebraska where her mother resides, but since employed at the depot had lived here with her sister and brother-in-law, Mr. and Mrs. Peterson. Kenneth L. Fraser, 40, of Irrigon, leader of the crew. He is survived by his widow and four children, two are sophomores at Irrigon High School and two are in the grade school there. Lance A. Stultz, 40, of Hermis- ton, residing in the Cox Addition. He is survived by his widow and one child. Hiram Cook, 26, of Hermiston, survived by his widow and two chil- dren. They had resided with his par- ents, Mr. and Mrs. Melvin Cook, in recent months. William Sanders, 30, Rt. 2, Hermiston, survived by his widow and four children, all preschool-age. Harry Sever, 33, Ordnance, sur- vived by his widow and two children. Outside the above victims, no one was injured in the worst tragedy that has ever struck this little community. Colonel A.S. Buyers, command- ing offi cer at the Umatilla Ordnance Depot, has offi cially announced var- ious facts of information since the blast that vary greatly from some of the numerous rumors which usu- ally follow this type of catastrophe. Among these are the following: Only one igloo exploded and defi nitely only six persons were killed from the blast. No one else was injured. Very little other damage was done about the post by the gigantic blast. Although several windows were broken in the area, no damage was done to the other igloos (U.S. Army Engineers are receiving consider- able mention for their planning and locating of the various igloos, to pre- vent further blasts by nearby igloos. The value of the sandy conditions of the soil which tends to kill concus- sions has been proven). The igloo, which was used princi- pally for the storage of huge bombs, such as 2,000-pound “blockbusters” used in aerial bombing, contained only a partial capacity of bombs. An investigation of the explo- sion is underway by U.S. Army offi - cers and pending its report no fur- ther information is available as to the exact cause of the explosion. There is no knowledge of any sab- otage connected with the explosion. Some fear that workers might prove jittery and reluctant to go back to work was relieved when practi- cally all employees today proved “good soldiers” and today opera- tions are back to normal. The explosion caused consider- able excitement in the surrounding territory. Windows were smashed here and there and other minor dam- ages resulted but as a whole major damage was confi ned to the igloo and its contents. Several interesting stories are being told about the blast. Workers state that as a rule each crew is com- posed of eight members but appar- ently two of the crew were cleaning up the freight car after a shipment. At least, only six men were in the igloo at the time of the explosion. Miss Wolgamott had just driven to the scene by truck. The explosion was so terrifi c that the entire roof of the igloo and a por- tion of the fl oor was shattered to bits. Several theories have been advanced by workers as to the cause of the blast but none are printed as facts. Among these are that it might have been a defective bomb, some say a bomb might have been dropped “just right,” and still others say it might have been something else. However, a thorough inves- tigation is being held and some announcement may be made later. This much is known, however, that extreme precautions have always been taken to avert such explosions and the entire area was placed under strict military rule after the blast. In Hermiston, Victory Square and Ordnance, as well as Echo, Stanfi eld, Umatilla, Irrigon and other places where families of U.O.D. workers reside, the night was a long one until word was received that their loved ones had escaped injury. Several freakish instances of damage were found the next morn- ing. Directly across the highway at Ordnance, the merchandise had been knocked from the shelf but no win- dows were broken. In many cases doors were blown in, and in several instances the casement went with the door. In Hermiston where the blast was felt quite heavily, in many instances residents at fi rst thought that their stoves had blown up except for the severity of the shock. The theory that concussion trav- els in waves was also proven cor- rect because that shock was not as severe near Ordnance as it was sev- eral miles away. A check up of bro- ken windows also revealed that the damage was very spotty and at times skipped several miles. That it trav- eled far is another certainty. At Spo- kane a seismograph registered a “very slight” earth disturbance. Another item that traveled fast is news. The Herald offi ce was swamped with calls Wednesday from anxious relatives far and near. It appeared that the farther the news went, the greater was the damage done. One resident of Pasco stated over the phone that “Hermiston had been leveled.” It is hoped that in spite of the great tragedy, everyone will contrib- ute much to the war effort and that activities will not only continue on schedule but will accelerate because of the sacrifi ce. Jade McDowell | News Editor • jmcdowell@eastoregonian.com • 541-564-4536 Jayati Ramakrishnan | Reporter • jramakrishnan@hermistonherald.com • 541-564-4534 Tammy Malgesini | Community Editor • tmalgesini@eastoregonian.com • 541-564-4539 BTW Annie Fowler | Sports Editor • afowler@eastoregonian.com • 541-564-4542 Continued from Page A1 Jeanne Jewett | Multi-Media consultant • jjewett@hermistonherald.com • 541-564-4531 equipment, such as a bro- ken headlight, taillight and the like. The sheriff’s offi ce is partnering with the Oregon State Sheriff’s Associa- tion and the Oregon State Police to participate in the program. The voucher pro- vides a discount on auto- motive parts to purchase, repair or replace the defec- tive equipment. Drivers can redeem the vouch- ers at the following busi- nesses: Advance Auto Parts, Battery Systems, Baxter Auto Parts, Car- quest Auto Parts, Clack- amas Auto Parts, Milex Complete Auto Care, Mt. Angel Auto Body, Napa Auto Parts, White’s Collision. • • • Two members of the Umatilla County Sher- iff’s Offi ce will receive awards for their efforts to keep impaired drivers off the road. Audra Workman | Multi-Media consultant • aworkman@eastoregonian.com • 541-564-4538 Dana Tassie | Offi ce Coordinator • dtassie@eastoregonean.com • 541-564-4530 To contact the Hermiston Herald for news, advertising or subscription information: • call 541-567-6457 • e-mail info@hermistonherald.com • stop by our offi ces at 333 E. Main St. • visit us online at: hermistonherald.com The Hermiston Herald (USPS 242220, ISSN 8750-4782) is published weekly at Hermiston Herald, 333 E. Main St., Hermiston, OR 97838, (541) 567-6457. ANNUAL SUBSCRIPTION RATES Delivered by mail Wednesdays Digital + e-Edition .............................. $39/year Full Access (print and digital) ............. $49/year Periodical postage paid at Hermiston, OR. Postmaster, send address changes to Hermiston Herald, 333 E. Main St., Hermiston, OR 97838. Member of EO Media Group Copyright ©2019 CORRECTIONS It is the policy of the Hermiston Herald to correct errors as soon as they are discovered. Incorrect information will be corrected on Page 2A. Errors commited on the Opinion page will be corrected on that page. Corrections also are noted in the online versions of our stories. Please contact the editor at editor@hermistonherald.com or call (541) 564-4533 with issues about this policy or to report errors. SUBMIT A LETTER TO THE EDITOR Letters Policy: Letters to the Editor is a forum for the Hermiston Herald readers to express themselves on local, state, national or world issues. Brevity is good, but longer letters should be kept to 250 words. The sheriff’s offi ce announced the Oregon DUII Multi-Disciplinary Training Task Force selected sheriff’s Sgt. Josh Roberts as the “2018 DUII Trainer of the Year” and senior deputy Nathan Rankin as the “2018 DUII Enforcement Deputy of the Year.” • • • Hermiston School Dis- trict recently celebrated its classifi ed staff of the year. Those staff are: Michelle McAllister, career and counseling secretary at Hermiston High School; Kat Mayberry, campus monitor at Hermiston High School; Tracy Hepworth, special programs secre- tary at the district offi ce; Amy Ware, administra- tive assistant at Armand Larive Middle School; Carol West, special educa- tion assistant at Sandstone Middle School; Polly Briscoe, library assistant at Desert View Elementary; Jessica Brown, kindergar- ten assistant at Highland Hills Elementary; Jamie Cleaver, special education assistant at Rocky Heights Elementary; Leticia Bau- tista, custodian at Sunset Elementary and Lyndsey McKillip, Title I assistant at West Park Elementary. • • • Nolan Mills of Board- man and several other local farmers were recently determined to be outstand- ing in their fi elds by the National Corn Growers Association. Mills took fi rst in the no-till/strip-till irrigated category of the 2018 National Corn Yield Con- test. Growing a DuPont Pioneer hybrid seed, it yielded more than 360 bushels per acre. In addi- tion, Dean Harris of Uma- tilla placed third in the same category with more than 343 bushels per acre, also with a Pioneer hybrid. And, at the state level, Emily Rea of Boardman came in third with just over 274 bushels per acre. In the irrigated class, a pair of local farmers placed in the state-level contest: Joe Taylor of Boardman was fi rst with 315 bushels per acre and Dan Mills of Stanfi eld came in second with 310. The national and state contest winners were rec- ognized at the annual Commodity Classic, held Feb. 28 to March 2 in Orlando, Florida. Growers competed in six corn pro- duction classes. For a link to a list of all contest win- ners, visit www.ncga.com. • • • The menu at the Har- kenrider Senior Activ- ity Center for Thursday is a hot roast beef sandwich, potatoes and gravy, veg- etables and dessert. The menu for next Tuesday is spaghetti and garlic bread, vegetable, tossed salad and dessert. ——— You can submit items for our weekly By The Way column by emailing your tips to editor@hermiston- herald.com.
