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About The independent. (Vernonia, Or.) 1986-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 3, 2012)
PRESORTED STANDARD U.S. Postage Paid Vernonia, OR 97064 Permit No. 37 Vol. 27, No. 19 THE FREE INDEPENDENT The Voice Voice of of the Upper Nehalem River The River Valley Valley for for Over Over 25 27 years years October 3, 2012 Dry weather means forest closures to deer hunters Salmon have arrived in time for Salmon Festival. This picture taken on Rock Creek north of the Rock Creek Bridge near Hawkins Park. Crash on Hwy. 47 sent four to hospital On September 25, at ap- proximately 6:19 p.m., a 2000 Hyundai four-door driven by Nicole A. Meglen, 21, from Ver- nonia, was northbound on Highway 47 near milepost 66 when it crossed the centerline. A southbound 2005 Harley Davidson motorcycle with two occupants veered right to avoid the oncoming vehicle and crashed into a ditch. A 1992 Volkswagen Jetta driven by William D. Mashburn, 22, from Forest Grove, following the mo- torcycle, crashed head-on with the Hyundai. Meglen and Mashburn were transported by Metro West Am- bulance to Legacy Emanuel Medical Center with non-life threatening injuries. Safety re- straint use information was not available for this release. The motorcycle occupants were transported by Metro West Ambulance to OHSU. Operator Stanley C. Miles, 47, from Hillsboro, was treated and released. Passenger Kathryn A. McNeil, 59, from Hillsboro, received serious injuries. Both were wearing protective hel- mets. The highway was blocked for about two hours following the accident. Vernonia Rural Fire Department, Vernonia Po- lice Department, Washington County Sheriff's Office, and ODOT assisted the Oregon State Police at the scene. Dog lovers: beware of salmon poisoning Dogs that eat even a small amount of uncooked Salmon, Trout, or Steelhead are at risk of getting potentially fatal Salmon Poisoning disease. The cause is a microscopic organism that sometimes lives in a parasite that can infect the salmon family. The germ is killed by cooking, freezing or hot smoking fish. If a dog eats infected fish, symptoms start from a few days to five days later. Symp- toms include decreased energy level, increased temperature, loss of appetite, swollen lymph glands, vomiting, and diarrhea (turning bloody within a day or two) If untreated, 90 percent of dogs with symptoms will die within 7-14 days from dehydra- tion and blood loss. If caught early enough, Sal- mon Poisoning is treatable with antibiotics. In severe cases, in- See Beware on page 6 Costume Parade on Halloween The Vernonia Costume Sidewalk Parade will take place on Halloween, October 31, starting at Vernonia City Hall. Meet there at 4:00 p.m. to start the parade at 4:30 p.m. The parade route (and trick- or-treat to businesses) starts from City Hall, going first to the Library, down Bridge St. (with detour to Sentry) to Shay Park, crosses the street at Adams Ave. and returns to City Hall via the other side of the street. All children up to 10 years of age and their parents are wel- come. Businesses and organi- zations that don’t have loca- tions on Bridge St. may do their promotions along the route. With the rifle deer season now open, ODFW and Oregon Department of Forestry are warning hunters they may find more private forestlands closed this year due to the high fire danger. “This year, it’s more impor- tant than ever that hunters check for closures before heading afield and follow fire restrictions,” said Tom Thorn- ton, ODFW game program manager. Mike Dykzeul with the Ore- gon Forest Industries Council estimates that 50 percent more private lands are closed this year than at the same time last year. Forestland managers say forest vegetation is extremely dry. Although light rainfall has fallen in some areas, moisture content in vegetation in west- ern Oregon ranges from 10-20 percent, while east of the Cas- cades it is in single digits. “Un- der these parched conditions, any fire started could spread rapidly,” said Dan Postrel, Ore- gon Department of Forestry (ODF). ODF keeps a list of landowner closures on its web- site (see below). It changes fre- quently and lands could be opened if Oregon gets some significant wet weather, though current forecasts aren’t predict- ing rain. Hunters should check back before the season opener or the day they plan to hunt for the latest information. http:// www.oregon.gov/ODF/Pages/fi re/corporate_closure.aspx . Hunters who don’t see their local landowner listed should call them directly. Can you help this elk hunter? Mark Stewart, a Vernonia resident, is looking for help from an area landowner to help make a dream come true. Stewart’s father has terminal cancer and limited mobility. He would like to go elk hunting once more but will need a pri- vate landowner to allow him ac- cess due to his mobility issues. Any landowner who would like to help can contact Stewart at 503-410-6243. Salmon Festival this Saturday The 10th Annual Vernonia Salmon Festival will be held in Hawkins Park on Saturday, Oc- tober 6, from 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. There will be salmon view- ing (if they’ve made it this far by then) a kids’ trout pond, scare- crow building, pumpkin carv- ing, artist and craft vendors, food vendors, a silent auction, hay rides and music, and Clau- dia the Chinook will be teach- ing everyone about salmon. Come join the community in celebrating Fall and the return of the salmon. Volunteers Night is on Nov. 3 The volunteers who keep so many functions and events working in Vernonia will be honored at the annual Volun- teers Appreciation Night, on Saturday, November 3 at 5:30 p.m. If you have volunteers you want to recognize, contact Heather Lewis at 503-429- 4677, or email aletheia.hti@ gmail.com. The event is spon- sored by the Vernonia Preven- tion Coalition.
