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8256103mC0828
Wednesday August 28, 2019
www.currypilot.com
Brookings, Oregon
SERVING CURRY COUNTY SINCE 1946
High fire danger declared H
Pilot Staff
igh temperatures and worsening fuel conditions across southern Oregon have prompted the Coos Forest Protective Association to increase the fire danger level to “high” Aug. 28 “Live fuels are at the point
where they are available for fire to burn, which makes fires more resistant to control efforts,” association spokesman Jef Chase said in a press release issued Aug. 27.
while traveling in forestlands, except in vehicles or improved roads, in boats, on the water, and in other designated area. • Open fires, including campfires, charcoal fires, cooking fires and warming fires, are allowed only at designated and managed
The high fire danger includes several restrictions: • Smoking is prohibited
campgrounds. • Powersaw use is allowed only from 8 p.m.-10 a.m. Each saw must be accompanied by one shovel and fire extinguisher of at least 8-ounce capacity. A fire watch of one hour is required More Danger on Page A3
A bad turn ... into Java Hut Arrested for DUII
58-year-old woman was arrested at the A scene of a one-car accident Monday night when her car careened off U.S. Highway 101 and
crashed into the Java Hut at the Fred Haight Drive intersection in Smith River. According to the Del Norte County Sheriff’s Office Online Information System, Karen Ilene McGuire was booked into the county’s jail on suspicion of driving under the influence of intoxicants. California Highway Patrol Officer Brandy Gonzalez said the crash occurred about 11:20 p.m. and that no one was injured or was inside the building at the time. Gonzalez added that the crash was not the result of a law-enforcement pursuit, as initially reported on The Del Norte and Curry County Scanner Feed Facebook Page.
California Highway Patrol officers (Top) clear the accident scene where a motorist drove off U.S. Highway 101 and into the Java Hut in Smith River. Photo by Jennifer Smith/Del Norte and Curry County Scanner Feed Facebook Page.
No tsunami sirens for Curry County T
Linda Pinkham Staff Writer
he Curry County commissioners have voted unanimously to discontinue supporting operation of the county’s 17 tsunami sirens. So, what now? In a presentation to the commissioners July 24 in Port Orford, County Emergency Services Manager Jeremy Dumire described the condition of the existing sirens, the costs to maintain them, and why
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they’re no longer the best technology to deploy as a tsunami-warning system. The commissioners subsequently voted Aug. 7 to discontinue using the sirens for emergency warnings. Dumire will repeat that presentation for Brookings residents this evening at 6:00 in the Brookings City Hall Council Chambers, 898 Elk Dr., during a regular meeting of the Curry County commissioners. Dumire will discuss his previous recommendations to discontinue Past four days
Tues 71 55
5-day forecast: Page B2
Mon 87 58
Sun 71 51
Sat 67 52
using the World War II air-raid sirens, and elaborate on newer and more-reliable options. To the south, Del Norte County’s officials said they’ll continue using local tsunami sirens for now. Keeping tsunami sirens has been a topic of debate in coastal communities for quite some time, said Kymmie Scott, emergency services manager for Del Norte County. Although Scott said she’s has heard the arguments both for keeping and for discontinuing the
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tsunami sirens, she said it’s best to have multiple methods to reach people in an emergency. Of the 17 sirens in Curry County, only four are “reliably operational,” Dumire said July 24. He placed the cost to fix just the head of each unit at $22,000 - assuming all of the other components in the system are still operational. To completely replace the sirens, with all new systems, would cost between $50,000 and $100,000, said Dumire. His department’s an-
nual budget is $120,000. According to Dumire, the two possible tsunamis are labeled local and distant. A local tsunami would occur following a major earthquake in the Cascadia Subduction Zone near the Oregon coast. A quake measuring 9.0 on the Richter Scale would be 900 times greater than the 7.1-magnitude quake experienced in southern California on July 5. More Tsunami on Page A3
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