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SERVING CURRY COUNTY SINCE 1946

www.currypilot.com

FRIDAY, DECEMBER 4, 2020

Brookings, Oregon

Surfing accident paralyzes youth LINDA PINKHAM The Pilot

Zachary Abblitt, age 18, of Brookings fractured his C5 and C6 neck vertebrae while surfing with his friend at Sporthaven Beach at the Port of Brookings Harbor on Nov. 20. “He was pulled from the surf by his friend Daniel (Strom), transported to the local hospital via ambulance and by that evening was flown to Mercy Medical Center in Redding, where he is today,” said his uncle Kevin Knoll. “Zac had no feeling below his neck and was in surgery the day he arrived in Redding to remove part of the two vertebrae that were pinching his spinal column. Doctors also put a plug/fastener in its place to stabilize. The following day

he underwent surgery again to have a stabilizing plate put in the back of his neck. He has since regained slight movement in his arms but no movement in his hands and no feeling below his chest.” Brookings resident Michael Lange was parked at the beach that day while eating his lunch and was watching the two teenage boys playing in the surf, one on a kayak and one on a surfboard. “It was a ‘shore break’ day, meaning the waves were breaking close to shore as opposed to out further in the water,” Lange said. “I could tell the boys were having a great time, laughing and enjoying the beautiful day and a decent swell, three to four feet on the sets coming in.” According to Lange, the boys

placed the boat and the board up on the beach and ran up to the boardwalk and sea wall area to visit a friend. Meanwhile, a wave came up to the surf toys and started to take one out to the ocean. Two girls who were with the boys were laughing about it. “At that time, Zac and the other boy, Daniel, ran down the beach to help the girls get the items back up on the beach,” Lange said. “Zac went after the kayak and when the wave receded back into the surf, Zac dove head first in to the shallows. I did not see Zac come up from the dive and then I saw Daniel run to get him; he was struggling to retrieve Zac from the surf. “Once that happened I jumped More Accident, Page A3

Contributed photo from Zachary Abblitt Recovery Facebook page

Brookings teen Zac Abblitt is loaded onto a stretcher for transport to the local hospital after a surfing accident. He eventually was airlifted to Mercy Hospital in Redding, Calif.

COVID-19

Curry in high risk category THE PILOT

Pilot File Photo by Jeremy C. Ruark

Everyone loves a light parade to kick off the holiday spirit. The lineup from last year had lots of decorated cars, busses and fire trucks. The parade will take a longer route this year so there will be plenty of room to spread out.

Brookings light parade has longer route Event starts at 4:30 p.m. on Dec. 12 at AzaleaMiddleSchool LINDA PINKHAM The Pilot

It is time to get out your lights and dress up your vehicles,

horses, wagons, busses, dump trucks and fire trucks for the annual Brookings Christmas Light Parade on Dec. 12. Parade lineup is at 4:30 p.m. at Azalea Middle School, 505 Pacific Ave., Brookings. The parade begins at dark, approximately 6 p.m. This year’s parade will be slightly different than previous years to ensure a completely

COVID-19 safe event. The route is different from last year, and much longer to allow people to watch from their cars with lots of room to spread out along the route. The new route starts at Azalea Middle School, proceeds down Oak Street, crosses Chetco Avenue to Railroad Street, then proceeds to 5th Street, and after

crossing Chetco Avenue continues up the hill to Easy Street to return to the middle school via Pioneer Road. Santa will not be hosting a reception at the park as in previous years, but he will be leading the parade in a fire truck. For information, contact Kathy Breshears at 541-2512353.

Brookings Post Office re-opens after ‘environmental issue’ LINDA PINKHAM The Pilot The Brookings U.S. Post Office at 711 Spruce St. is back open after it closed abruptly Dec. 1 at approximately 2:30 p.m. A notice on the door stated the U.S. Postal service implemented an emergency suspension of the office effective immediately. “The reason for the temporary suspension is a possible environmental issue that is being investigated and mitigated if necessary,” the notice said. “Out of an abundance of caution, we need to restrict access to the building.” “The safety of our employees

INDEX Crosswords........................................ A7 Crossword Answers............................ B3 Classifieds.......................................... B1

and customers is paramount,” said Postmaster Yvonne Huston. “This is an emergency suspension of this office, not a permanent closure.” Environmental cleanup crews from northern California and Portland arrived at the site at approximately 2 a.m., Dec. 2, according to David Rupert, strategic communications manager for USPS. The environmental hazard turned out to be a ‘trace’ amount of mercury that leaked from a package that was improperly mailed, according to Rupert. More Post office, Page A2

FORECAST FRIDAY

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SATURDAY

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Pilot Photo by Linda Pinkham

Post office patrons gathered outside the locked doors of the U.S. Post Office in Brookings to read the notice posted on the door after it closed Dec. 1.

Curry County has moved to the high risk category from its pre-Thanksgiving moderate risk assessment after the state updated county statuses on Monday, Nov. 30. Worse however, the county is currently moving in the wrong direction towards the extreme risk category. New county-by-county restrictions to combat the spread of COVID-19 were announced Wednesday, Nov. 25. The restrictions assess each county’s risk level based on its case rate and test positivity rate over a two-week period and went into effect following the end of the two-week freeze. Under the new guidance, each county is assigned a risk level ranging from low risk to extreme More Risk, Page A3

Pilot’s office remains closed Out of an abundance of caution, all Country Media offices, including The Pilot and The Triplicate will remain closed to the public for now. We are continually monitoring the situation and relying on the advice of health professionals. If you need to make a payment, you can slip it under the door or mail it to our Salem business office: Country Media PO Box 670 Salem, OR 97308 We are answering calls at 541-813-1717 during regular business hours from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Please leave a message if you don’t reach us, and we will return your call. You can also email us at pilotofficemgr@countrymedia.net We look forward to seeing you again when it is safe to do so.

SUNRISE/SUNSET

SUNDAY

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RISE SET

Friday 7:29 AM 4:45 PM

Call us: 541-813-1717 Fax: 541-813-1931

Saturday Sunday Monday 7:30 AM 7:31 AM 7:32 AM 4:45 PM 4:45 PM 4:45 PM

$1.50 Online: www.currypilot.com


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