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Barron’s
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Saturday September 14 2019
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Brookings, Oregon
SERVING CURRY COUNTY SINCE 1946
Fatal accidents spur renewed Highway 199 safety efforts Carol Hungerford Publisher
More local news space O
ur recently-hired reporters in Crescent City and Brookings are now hitting their stride, providing increasingly relevant coverage of the activities and residents in Country Media’s two new communities. Your ongoing positive feedback underscores that. Speaking of which, beginning with this issue we’ll be slowly expanding the A Section of each newspaper to allow more space for local news. To accomplish that, we’re sharply reducing the amount of “canned” syndicated features leaned on by the former owners of The Pilot and The Triplicate, using that space for more staffwritten stories about people and events in Crescent City, Brookings and surrounding areas. So you’ll no longer be seeing generic filler such as advice columns, comics, word puzzles and the like. If we can’t fit in everything, we opt to give priority to news of the local area. As a great fan of Sudoku, I admit I gave this a lot of thought, but I have several books of Sudoku puzzles and can go to internet sites to download puzzles or play online. So, there are alternative sources. I believe our community newspapers’ columns are better suited to carrying as much local news as possible. Why? Because local news is our stock in trade here in Brookings and Crescent City. You won’t get that commitment to local coverage from anyone other than The Pilot and The Triplicate. You can get syndicated features from a variety of other suppliers. Meantime, we’re continuing our search for local fishing columnists. Our pressroom manager is a passionate fisherman and I asked him to write a column about his time on the water. Running our big presses is his day job … but writing articles isn’t something he was so sure about. I suggested he write as though he were drafting me a letter. You’ll see his brief anecdote in this issue of the paper. I hope you enjoy it. (That said, he elects to stick with running our presses as opposed to pursuing a literary career.) There are so many types of fishing opportunities in our corner of the world, perhaps we will begin getting columns from a variety of people. I hope deep-sea fishermen and fly fisherman More Local on Page A4
Index
Classifieds.................B4-8 Crosswords...............B4 Obituaries.................A5
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.S. Highway 199, which runs east into Oregon from U.S. Highway 101 just north of Crescent City, has become one of the deadliest corridors in Oregon, according to details released this week by the Oregon Department of Transportation (ODOT). The study shows a persistent four traffic fatalities since June 1 on the highway itself, plus five fatal crashes off the highway along adjacent county roadways. The Highway 199 fatal crash rate has been as high as eight, in 2016, and as low as two, in 2014. It doesn’t seem to be improving. “We have struggled with this corridor for many years,” said ODOT public information officer Gary Leaming. “This is not a new problem with this highway, but we seem to have run
Several electronic reader boards are part of a renewed public-awareness safety campaign along one of southwest Oregon’s deadliest highways. Photo courtesy Oregon Department of Transportation.
More Safety on Page A5
Lessons pay off in river emergency
save a child’s life,” said Rotary Club president Bonnie Jordan. “This is the first time we’ve gotten concrete proof that it has.” Jordan said the lessons are provided at n a sunny afternoon the first weekend the end of the school year, when the young of summer vacation, the Christensen students are likely to be around water at a family of Brookings took visiting out-of-state naturally curious age. The project includes friends to play in the Chetco River at Loeb classroom instruction, as well as 30 minutes in State Park. the city pool every day for a week. Jenny Christensen recalls a “big discussion” During the youngsters’ first day in the water, about whether their children would be using organizers determined that half the third-gradlifejackets. ers either had never been in the water, had no With lifejackets on, Christensen’s daughwater skills, or were afraid of the water. Yet ter, Ella, 9, and two other girls decided to they all were willing to give it a try. try swimming out to the rock in the park’s As part of the lessons, volunteers worked popular swimming hole. Suddenly, the visitwith the children in small groups. The water ing 11-year-old was in trouble as she crossed activities were based on the skill level of the river’s current. each group, with special safety lessons pro“Just her face was above the water,” said vided for everyone that included an opportuChristensen, who was watching from shore nity to try floating in lifejackets, grabbing a with the older girl’s mother. She said neither rescue ring, and lying down on the pool deck she nor the girl’s mother are adept in the to pull a friend back to the wall. water. Ella took additional swim lessons over the “It was so scary,” Christensen said. “We summer, said her mother, adding that water were watching her be swept down the river safety lessons are “imperative” for thirdin slow motion. There seemed no way those graders. girls were getting back to shore on their Jordan said the lessons are one of the own. club’s favorite projects, although only one “I remember thinking, ‘How does Ella project among many. “Being a member of know what to do?’” the Rotary Club of Brookings-Harbor gives Ella knew exactly what to do. She used us many opportunities to positively impact “big arms” to swim toward her friend, and a our community and the world as a whole,” “loud voice” and direct eye contact with the Jordan said. “It’s purposeful, meaningful and nearest adults as she called for help. unbelievably rewarding.” All without screaming or panicking, said Charlie Kocher is a member of the her mother. Brookings-Harbor Rotary Club. For more inAttracted by Ella’s actions, three women Ella Christensen, 9, used her Rotary Club formation about the club, call Bonnie Jordan on shore dove in to help all three girls back swim lessons to help save a life during a at 541-961-6553. summer swimming emergency in the Chetco to safety, said Christensen. How did Ella know what actions to take in River. Courtesy photo.
such an emergency? Just a week prior, she had participated in annual third-grade water safety lessons - a project funded and facilitated by the Rotary Club of Brookings-Harbor, in partnership with Kalmiopsis Elementary School and the City of Brookings. “Man, was I ever grateful for those lessons,” Christensen said. “I didn’t put it together (the lessons and Ella’s actions), but Ella did.” “We’ve always felt that providing these water safety lessons every year could potentially
Charles Kocher For The Pilot
O
Harbor Fire District now seeks new chief Linda Pinkham Staff Writer
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he Harbor Fire District has appointed a new board commissioner and is moving forward with plans to hire a new chief. That follows a Harbor Rural Fire Protection District Board meeting held Sept. 11, which public information officer Neville Hill declared was interactive and well attended by the public. The board is looking to replace
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commissioner Ken Hall, who is relocating and has resigned. Anthony Burkett was nominated in open session for the post, position 3. After a short executive session with Burkett, the nomination was confirmed and announced to the public in open session. Burkett also serves in position 5 on the Harbor Sanitary District Board of Directors. Hill said Burkett’s appointment – he has yet to be sworn in - allows the board to achieve a quorum and
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begin working to replace former Chief Bob Larson, who resigned effective Aug. 31. Larson’s resignation came shortly after a noconfidence petition was submitted by district firefighters to the board Aug 14. On Aug. 23, Larson filed notice of his intention to bring legal action against the Harbor Fire District and one or more of the district’s board members. In his tort claim, Larson said his ability and effectiveness had been undermined by the board.
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Hill said the district already had received two applications for the position. At present, he said, “Assistant Chiefs Thomas Sorrentino and Joshua Frame are acting in the capacity of fire chief and covering all the calls.” There has been no impact on the department’s ability to respond to calls and provide protection to the community, stated Hill. The Harbor Fire Department is located at 98069 West Denham Lane.
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