Sherman County eNews #282

Letter to the Editor: Thank You, South Sherman Fire Department
Join Forces
Sherman County Emergency Services August Activity Report
What You Should Know About Oregon’s New Distracted Driving Law, Oct. 1
Be Alert for Landslides in Recently Burned Areas of Oregon
Links: Things to Think About & Things to Do

“If by the liberty of the press were understood merely the liberty of discussing the propriety of public measures and political opinions, let us have as much of it as you please; But if it means the liberty of affronting, calumniating and defaming one another, I, for my part, own myself willing to part with my share of it.” —Benjamin Franklin (1789)

1. Letter to the Editor: Thank You, South Sherman Fire Department

Good morning, Sherry,

My sincere gratitude to the South Sherman Fire Dept. for coming to our rescue early this morning. A special thanks to Glenn and those who accompanied him to the scene in the middle of the night. The cause of the fire is still a mystery at this time. It burned one of the main structures of the compound to the ground, but they were able to detach that structure from the main lodge with a backhoe…thanks Zack. South Sherman Fire Dept. showed up in time to beat the fire back and keep the lodge wet enough not to catch on fire. Also a thank you to all of the folks from Shaniko and surrounding area who showed up to help out. A very unfortunate incident, but luckily it happened last night or we would be fighting fire in Antelope this AM.

Fred Justesen

Grass Valley

2. Join Forces

Sometimes it is wiser to join forces with opponents than to fight them. What a better world this would be if we worked together in harmony toward the achievement of our shared goals instead of engaging in petty disputes and turf battles. When you allow yourself to be dragged into personality conflicts, game playing, arguments about who gets the credit, and disagreements about trivial issues, they only drain your energy and sour your attitude. Plus you waste valuable time that could be spent on far more important matters. When you make an effort to understand others’ motivations, you may well discover that your opponents have far more in common with you than you think. When you cage your ego and look at the situation from the other person’s point of view, you can almost always find a way to work together for your mutual advantage. ~Napoleon Hill

3. Sherman County Emergency Services August Activity Report

~Shawn Payne, Sherman County Emergency Services

Sherman County Ambulance

August 2017 Activity Report

Date	Time	Incident	Location

8-01	4:02 PM	Heat Emergency	US 97 MP # 37
8-02	10:34 PM	Chest Pain	Wasco
8-03	2:46 PM	Structure Fire Standby & Rehab	Wasco
8-05	7:12 PM	High Fever	Moro
8-06	1:53 AM	Assault	Dintys in Biggs Jct.
8-10	4:06 PM	Difficulty Breathing	Wasco
8-11	9:11 PM	Chest and Abdominal Pain	Wasco
8-11	9:49 PM	Nausea and Vomiting	Moro
8-19	11:29 AM	Welfare Check	Moro
8-20	7:58 AM	Welfare Check	Biggs Jct.
8-21	11:54 AM	Motor Vehicle Crash	US 97 MP# 19
8-21	7:24 PM	Abdominal Pain	Rufus RV Park
8-21	8:05 PM	Fall Injury	Three Rivers Motel in Biggs Jct.
8-23	5:09 PM	Leg Laceration	Rufus
8-25	2:16 PM	Breathing Problem	Wasco
8-26	4:21 PM	Breathing Problem	Grass Valley
8-26	7:00 PM	Bull Riding Standby	Fairgrounds in Moro
8-27	1:30 PM	Demo Derby Standby	Fairgrounds in Moro
8-27	4:10 PM	Possible Stroke	Grass Valley

North Sherman County RFPD

August 2017 Activity Report

Date	Time	Incident	Location
8-01	10:41 PM	Ambulance Assist	Wasco
8-03	2:42 PM	Structure Fire	Wasco
8-04	10:05 PM	Fire Alarm	MCP Elevator in Biggs
8-07	4:06 PM	Fire Alarm	MCP Elevator in Biggs
8-10	4:37 PM	Fire	I-84 MP 100-101
8-10	4:15 PM	Ambulance Assist	Wasco
8-12	3:00 PM	Grass Fire	Finnegan & Liberty
8-15	1:40 AM	Truck Fire	Medler Lane
8-21	8:05 PM	Ambulance Assist	3 River’s Motel in Biggs
8-23	5:15 PM	Ambulance Assist	Rufus
8-24	2:19 PM	Rail Road Tie Fire	US Hwy 30 MM#2
8-25	4:50 PM	Motor Vehicle Crash	US 97 & I-84 MP# 1048-29
8-29	12:23 AM	Grass Fire	Gordon Ridge
8-30	7:51 PM	Grass Fire	Erskine Lane & Moore Lane
8-30	9:25 PM	Grass Fire	Sawtooth & DeMoss Springs Lane

Moro Fire Department

August 2017 Activity Report

Date	Time	Incident	Location
8/03	2:44 PM	Structure Fire	1016 Clark St. Wasco
8/12	2:46 PM	Grass Fire	Finnegan Lane
8/15	1:40 AM	Truck Fire	Medler Lane in Wasco
8/29	1:10 AM	Grass Fire	Gordon Ridge
8/30	8:19 PM	Grass Fire	Erskine & Moore Lane in Moro
8/30	9:22 PM	Grass Fire	Sawtooth & DeMoss in Moro
8/31	7:30 AM	Checking on Fire	Erskine & Sawtooth

4. What You Should Know About Oregon’s New Distracted Driving Law, Oct. 1

Starting Oct. 1, drivers in Oregon can be pulled over for not only texting and talking on their cellphones, but also for navigating, using social media and any other “hands-on” cell phone and electronics use.

Repeat offenders will face steeper fines and as much as a year in jail.

Officials are hoping the changes, which stem from the passage of House Bill 2597 during the 2017 Oregon Legislature, will help officers nab reckless drivers and curb dangerous distracted driving behaviors.

Wording on the previous cell phone driving law made texting and talking on the phone the only primary distracted driving offenses, meaning if an officer spotted someone behind the wheel reading a Kindle or scrolling through Facebook, they couldn’t pull them over solely for that.

5. Be Alert for Landslides in Recently Burned Areas of Oregon

Oregon.Flat.pole With flash flood watches in effect for multiple areas of Oregon, be alert for landslides.

The National Weather Service is continuing flash flood watches for fire burn areas in northwest Oregon through Wednesday morning. Flash flood watches are also in effect from Tuesday night through Wednesday afternoon for fire burn areas in southwest Oregon, including the Chetco Bar and North Umpqua Complex wildfire burn scars.

“Heavy rain can lead to landslides and debris flows, especially in wildfire burn scars,” says Bill Burns, engineering geologist at the Oregon Department of Geology and Mineral Industries (DOGAMI). “With the rain continuing, be aware of the hazard in wildfire burn areas and the areas below them.”

Debris flows are rapidly moving, extremely destructive landslides. They can contain boulders and logs transported in a fast-moving soil and water slurry down steep hillsides and through narrow canyons. They can easily travel a mile or more. A debris flow moves faster than a person can run.

People, structures and roads located below steep slopes in canyons and near the mouths of canyons may be at serious risk. Extreme caution should be used when traveling.

According to DOGAMI, hazardous areas can include:
– Bases of steep hillsides.
– Road cuts or other areas where slopes of hills have been excavated or over-steepened.
– Places where slides or debris flows have occurred in the past.
– Canyon bottoms, stream channels, and areas of rock and soil accumulation at the outlets of canyons.

For more landslide and debris flow information: http://bit.ly/landslidehazards