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Severe weather causes chaos in Coos County By DAVID RUPKALVIS The World
Severe weather with winds up to 70 miles per hour causes chaos and flooding throughout Coos County from Sunday night into Monday morning. A strong storm hit the county early Sunday evening and seemed to pick up force throughout the night. The high winds led to hundreds of trees toppling over, power lines being knocked down and power outages that impacted up to 10,000 homes. As a result, both the Coos Bay School District, Bandon School District, North Bend School District and even the Port Orford/Langlois School District cancelled the first day of classes after winter break. The districts cited the power outages and unsafe driving conditions due to debris on the roadway. At 5:19 a.m., the Coos County Sheriff's Office reported numerous trees were down and power was out in much of the county. Pacific Power, Bandon Power, Central Lincoln PUD and Coos-Curry Electric Co=op had crews out in the middle of the storm working to repair downed lines. Most power outages in the Coos Bay-North Bend area were repaired by mid-morning Monday. The combination of heavy Please see Weather, Page A2
Contributed photo
Severe weather that included winds that exceeded 70 miles per hour in some places knocked down trees, pulled down power lines and caused localized flooding through Coos County on Monday. In Charleston, this tree pulled down power lines, causing an extended outage.
A polar plunge to kick off the new year Murphy
named county clerk
By DAVID RUPKALVIS The World
Photos by David Rupkalvis/The World
Dozens of people rush into the ocean at Sunset Bay during the polar bear plunge early on New Year's Day. The large crowd braved temperatures below 40 degrees to start the new year off with a bang. Below, Emma Keeley, left, and her mom, Kristen, make their way out of the water.
Despite frigid temperatures, dozens rush into Sunset Bay By DAVID RUPKALVIS The World
Dozens of local residents flocked to Sunset Beach on New Year's Day to start the new year off with a cold bang. The annual Polar Bear Plunge at Sunset Beach drew large crowds with more than 50 people running into the water at 9 a.m. and just as any cheering them on. With the air temperature below 40 degrees that morning, the water temperature that hovered around 55 degrees was actually warmer, but that didn't stop many from gasping and shrieking as they plunged into the ocean. Sam Baugh came to participate with his son, Seth. It was
Days after Debbie Heller retired as Coos County clerk, the board of commissioners voted unanimously to appoint Dede Murphy to the position. Heller was appointed as county clerk in 2017 and elected to the position a year later. She announced her retirement last year, leaving the office one year before her term was scheduled to end. Murphy will fill the position through the end of 2022. An election will be held this year to choose the clerk starting at the beginning of 2023. Commissioner John Sweet said Murphy was an easy choice to finish the term, and commissioners felt she would do a great job. "When our now previous county clerk decided she would like to retire, we advertised for people who were interested in filling the position," Sweet said. "We had five or six people apply, and I would say they were good applicants. However, none of them other than Dede had worked in the clerk's office. Dede worked in the clerk's office in the election's department until her retirement. We're very fortunate to have Dede willing to step forward and fill the seat until the next election." After commissioners voted to appoint Murphy as Please see County, Page A3
Please see Plunge, Page A12
Photo gallery: 2021 year in review Photo gallery: Bandon Light Parade winners
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