NEWS
WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 5, 2020
HERMISTONHERALD.COM • A3
Earthquake prep urges people to be ‘2 Weeks Ready’
By JADE MCDOWELL
NEWS EDITOR
As Saturday wrapped up
Cascadia Earthquake Pre-
paredness Week in Oregon,
Umatilla County’s emer-
gency manager hopes peo-
ple will resolve to be a little
more prepared for any future
disaster.
“We hope people will
have a general all-hazard
preparedness mindset and
be prepared for any event
any time of the year,” Tom
Roberts said.
Roberts said the county is
fully on board with the Ore-
gon Offi ce of Emergency
Management’s campaign to
persuade Oregonians to be
“2 Weeks Ready” for emer-
gencies. That means hav-
ing enough food, water, toi-
letries and other supplies at
home to live on for at least
two weeks without outside
assistance.
“We want to make sure as
many people as possible are
prepared to be self-sustain-
ing for as long as possible,”
Roberts said.
He said if people have
already built up two weeks
worth of supplies for their
family, the next step would
BE 2 WEEKS READY
Items that will help households be 2 Weeks Ready include:
1) A gallon of clean water per person per day for drinking
and hygiene
2) Nonperishable food for each person (make sure you can
either eat it without cooking or have a plan for preparing it
without electricity, such as a propane camp stove)
3) A fi rst aid kit and supply of needed medications
4) Hygiene items (toothbrush, soap, etc.)
5) Flashlights or lanterns and extra batteries
6) At least one blanket for each family member
7) NOAA weather radio
8) A portable cell phone charger that can hold several days’
worth of charge
9) Disposable plates, cups and cutlery (cuts down on water
needed for washing)
10) Specialty items your family may need such as pet food
or diapers
HH fi le photo
Umatilla County Emergency Coordinator Alan Polan reads his call sign on a ham radio during
a test of the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s Region 10 ham radio network on Feb.
21, 2018, in Pendleton.
be to periodically rotate
out old items, such as food,
medications and batteries, to
keep them updated.
Having emergency sup-
plies on hand can be valu-
able in a variety of situ-
ations, including fl oods,
fi res, earthquakes, blizzards,
power outages or a contami-
nated drinking water supply.
But it could be especially
vital during a widespread
disaster, such as a Cascadia
subduction zone earthquake
and tsunami.
A magnitude 8.0 or 9.0
earthquake would top-
ple thousands of buildings
and kill thousands of Ore-
gonians on the west side of
the state. It could spur later
aftershocks in Eastern Ore-
gon, but even if Umatilla
County residents are spared
from most of the shaking,
they could still be without
everything from electricity
to cell phone service to gas-
oline for weeks.
In that case, Umatilla
County residents being
self-suffi cient would enable
supplies coming in to Ore-
gon to be prioritized for the
hardest-hit areas of the state.
Gov.
Kate
Brown
declared Jan. 26-Feb. 1 (the
320th anniversary of the last
Cascadia quake) as Cascadia
Earthquake
Preparedness
Awareness Week to encour-
age people to make a disas-
ter plan and emergency kit
to be 2 Weeks Ready.
“Being prepared to be
self-suffi cient for two weeks
is an achievable goal and
you may be more prepared
than you think,” Althea
Rizzo, geologic hazards pro-
gram coordinator for Ore-
gon’s Offi ce of Emergency
Management, said in a state-
ment. “See what you already
have and you can get there
over time.”
The state has published
information about prepared-
ness for individuals, fami-
lies, children, seniors, pets,
livestock, businesses and
more at https://www.oregon.
gov/OEM/hazardsprep/Pag-
es/2-Weeks-Ready.aspx.
Proposed bill hopes to increase
dental health awareness
City of Hermiston
posts city hall survey
By JESSICA POLLARD
STAFF WRITER
As the city of Herm-
iston prepares to make a
major decision about city
hall, residents are being
asked to chime in.
The city published an
online survey Friday that
will be available through
the month of February at
http://bit.ly/HermistonCi-
tyHall. The survey asks
people about their current
use of city hall, and asks
them to rank the impor-
tance of priorities such as
access for individuals with
disabilities, security, effi -
Children on the east side
of the state are seeing more
access to dental care than
their western counterparts,
according to a new study
released by Oregon Health
& Science University.
The study uses Oregon
Health Authority data to
determine how many chil-
dren on the Oregon Health
Plan had access to any den-
tal services or preventa-
tive dental services. State-
wide, about half of the kids
enrolled had access to dental
care like cleanings and fl uo-
ride treatments in 2018.
“Diffi culty
accessing
these services at a dentist’s
offi ce or in the community
can place children at risk of
complicated problems later
on,” the report states.
More than 60% of chil-
dren in Umatilla County,
who were enrolled in the
Oregon Health Plan in 2018,
received at least one den-
tal service that year. Ten
percent of those children
received services through a
school program.
Morrow County had the
second highest average in
the state with more than
No names have been
offi cially entered into the
2020 race for Umatilla
County sheriff yet, but
incumbent Terry Rowan
confi rmed he’s planning on
another run.
“I do plan on running
again, and trying to earn
another term serving Uma-
tilla County,” Rowan told the
Hermiston Herald last week.
Rowan would be seek-
ing a third term as sheriff,
a position he’s held since
Solar Shades, Screens,
Retractable Awnings & More!
HH fi le photo
“Enhancing the Art of Outdoor Living”
Dr. Blair Smith puts a silver nitrate treatment on a child’s teeth at his offi ce in Pendleton in
2014. A new bill seeks to increase awareness of dental health.
70% of children on state
health insurance receiving
any kind of dental service.
One-fi fth of those chil-
dren received services
through a school program.
“Low-income children
are less likely to visit a den-
tist than their higher-income
peers, making policies to
improve dental care access
especially important for
this population,” the report
states.
The study precedes a bill
set to hit the Oregon House
fl oor this coming legislative
session. It would require
school districts to incorpo-
rate oral health into curricu-
lum and also provide access
to federal funding for dental
programs through the Ore-
gon Health Authority.
The bill is sponsored by
more than a dozen lawmak-
ers, including Senator Bill
Hansell, R-Athena.
In recent years, the Ore-
gon Community Founda-
tion helped provide grants
for children’s dental health
programs, including to
the Pendleton-based Inter-
mountain Educational Ser-
vice District and to the East-
ern Oregon Healthy Living
Alliance.
But according to a state-
ment released in part by the
Foundation, those grants are
set to sunset this year.
Umatilla County Sheriff to seek third term
HERMISTON HERALD
fi rst being elected in 2012.
In 2016, he defeated chal-
lenger Ryan Lenhert 56% to
42%. Lenhert is currently a
corporal with the Pendleton
Police Department.
Rowan said he plans
to submit his candidacy
paperwork
soon,
and
that he hasn’t yet simply
because he’s been too busy
with his duties at the offi ce.
He said he wasn’t aware if
there were others planning
on running against him.
Rowan’s career began
as a civilian employee with
the sheriff’s offi ce back
in 1989 before becoming
a sheriff’s deputy the fol-
lowing year. He then left
in 1995 to take a detective
position with the Herm-
iston Police Department
before returning 10 years
later as the undersheriff to
John Trumbo in 2005.
Candidates have until
March 10 to fi le with the
Umatilla County Elections
Offi ce for the primaries that
will take place on May 19.
If only two candidates fi le
for the sheriff’s race, both
will advance to the gen-
eral election in Novem-
ber. If there are more than
two, May 19 will be a pri-
mary election with the top
two candidates advancing
to November’s ballot.
509-308-1354
lowed by dinner at 6 p.m., a
dessert auction at 6:30 p.m.
The evening also features
live music and dancing.
The cost is $20 per plate
or $100 for a table of six.
All ages are welcome.
The
evening
also
includes entertainment pro-
vided by Hermiston Jazz
Band 1 and Hermiston Jazz
Band 2.
In addition, a regional
horn band will play. Brass
Fire features a variety of
talented musicians, includ-
ing current/past band direc-
tors, some who have played
on cruise ships, with mili-
tary bands or professionally
across the country.
For more information or
to purchase tickets, contact
HHS band director Sean
McClanahan at sean.mccla-
nahan@hermistonsd.org.
Tickets also will be
available at the door.
License #188965
www.nwshadeco.com
102 E Columbia Dr. Kennewick 99336
Interested in a Medical career?
Need funds to complete
your training?
Good Shepherd Community Health
Foundation medical scholarship
applications are now being accepted
from qualified local students
through February 29th.
The Foundation is again pleased to
partner with Tualatin Imaging to offer
additional scholarships for students
who have expressed interest in
pursuing a diagnostic imaging career
Please call 541-667-3419
for further information
Applications can be accessed online at
www.gshealth.org/foundation/scholarships
JUST RELEASED
UMATILLA
COUNT Y
MEMORIES
Band boosters tune up with
Valentine’s benefi t dance
A Valentine’s spaghetti
dinner and auction will help
boost fundraising efforts for
a Hermiston High School
band trip to Los Angeles.
The Hermiston Band
Boosters
are
hosting
the event Saturday, Feb.
15 from 5-8 p.m. in the
school’s commons, 600 S.
First St.
The doors open at 5 p.m.
for the silent auction (clos-
ing bids at 7:15 p.m.), fol-
ciency and room to grow.
The current city hall was
originally built as a bank
building in 1965 and the
city purchased and remod-
eled it in 1986. City coun-
cilors had named build-
ing a new city hall with
more room and accessibil-
ity as one of their goals in
the coming years. After the
building had a fi re in the
HVAC system in Decem-
ber, and the city is now
faced with a choice about
whether to put the insur-
ance money into repair-
ing the current building or
build a new one this year.
HERMISTON HERALD
Hardcover book
Limited supply
$44.95
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or call 800-522-0255