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Theme: Safety First

Opening night loss

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Friday, September 9, 2016

The Chief

$1 Vol. 125, No. 17 10 Pages

Serving the Lower Columbia Region Since 1891

Clatskanie businesses warned of counterfeit cash BY JEREMY C. RUARK jruark@countrymedia.net

Law enforcement agents and the Wauna Credit Union have issued a business alert concerning counterfeit money that has surfaced in Clatskanie. According to Wauna Credit Union Chief Marketing Officer Debi Smiley, several local business, including retailers and hospitality shops, have received counterfeit $5, $10 and $20 bills. Smiley said the person or persons making the bogus bills are using a more creative technique in order to pass the bills undetected. “They are making them look like they are used bills,” she said. “They fold them, crease them and tear a corner so that makes it more difficult for businesses operators and their employees to detect.” Smiley said the counterfeit money still feels and looks like paper. “It doesn’t have that regular currency feel to it,” she said. “You can still see it is paper and it is not perfect. There are discrepancies, such as the bills are lighter in areas compared to real currency.” The local counterfeit money surge was detected about two weeks ago and Wauna immediately sent a representative to local businesses to train employees on what to look for in a proactive effort to protect the businesses. “It is a loss to them and we don’t want that to increase, so we want to partner with the community to help,” she said. “We have never really experienced this type of influx of counterfeit, usually it would be sparse.” Smiley said Wauna also uses a cash-recycling machine that helps employees detect counterfeit currency. ­­­­

See COUNTERFEIT Page A6

Back To School

Police services decision on hold BY JEREMY C. RUARK jruark@countrymedia.net

JEREMY C. RUARK / THE CHIEF

A vote by the Clatskanie City Council to disband the city’s police department in favor of contracting law enforcement services with the Columbia County Sheriff’s Office is now expected Oct. 5, according to Clatskanie City Manager Greg Hinkelman. During its regular monthly meeting, held on Wednesday, Sept. 7, Hinkelman told the Clatskanie City Council that his review of the final draft of the contract submitted by the sheriff’s office is complete, but that proposal must now be reviewed by the union representing the sheriff’s office employees. “Under state law, when such a transition is made affecting union employees we have to bargain the impact,” he said. Following the bargaining session he anticipates will occur next week, Hinkelman said he would email his report and recommendations to the city council members in a staff report for their review. “I believe the council will vote on the contract at the Oct. 5 meeting,” he said. In discussions earlier this year, the Columbia County Sheriff’s Office proposed to provide two fulltime deputies, a 1/3-time sergeant, and 1/3-time undersheriff for 97 hours of active coverage, 71 hours of standby coverage, at a cost of $511,847. Hinkelman told The Chief last month that his review of the final draft will include a close look at final details and minor changes made by the Columbia County Sheriff Jeff Dickerson. “I want the greatest or highest level of police services we can get for the city under the budget constraints we have,” Hinkelman said. Public discussions about disbanding the police department surfaced in February. In an article that

It was a brisk walk for Carter White, 9, as he headed out of the light rain and into Clatskanie Elementary School Tuesday, Sept. 6, the first day back to school for many. White will be attending the 4th grade at Clatskanie Elementary. It will be his first time here,” said Michelle Romane, Carter’s mother. “We have moved here from St. Helens.” The two were escorted by crosswalk attendant Linda Kujala.

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See POLICE Page A8

LIFELINES: Everyday heroes at Columbia 9-1-1 dispatch BY CODY MANN

cmann@countrymedia.net

Dispatchers have a tough job. They serve people at some of the worst, most difficult moments in life, working to rapidly gather

and disseminate critical points of information about emergencies ranging from minor to extreme. Dispatchers might save lives by directing police, fire and/or medics to a scene, or they might be called upon to save a life over the phone. Recently, a dispatcher at Columbia 9-1-1 Communications District was faced with exactly that challenge – saving a life by guiding a person through CPR over the phone. The heroic dispatcher declined an interview for privacy reasons. Columbia 9-1-1 Communications District Executive Director Steve Watson said the positive outcome deserved recognition. A 25-year veteran of the agency, Watson worked his way up the ranks from a dispatch trainee position. Watson said the training for dispatchers is crucial. A caller may be under tremendous stress, injured or in active danger, which may make it difficult to clearly communicate the key details of the situation. When emotions are running high, dispatchers must be the calming center of the storm, urging patience while assuring help is on the way. Watson said one of the common criticisms for dispatchers is that they ask too many questions. He said while a caller is answering questions, a dispatcher is likely multitasking, preparing or directing responders to the scene.

“They don’t always see that we’re doing two or three things at once,” Watson said. “We train our folks to immediately start from the beginning of the conversation and obtain the information in the order that makes sense to them to cut down on the amount of time it takes to process,” Watson said. The data is collected and entered into the computer system in a specific order, and rushing that leads to the risk of missing an important

COURTESY PHOTO

A Columbia 9-1-1 Communications District dispatcher was recently honored for helping save a life by providing CPR instructions over the phone.

detail or possible confusion for responders. “When someone calls 9-1-1, the very first piece of information that we want to know is where they are,” Watson said. “If I don’t know where they are or where the situation is, I have really limited my ability to help them.” Knowing that sometimes a 9-1-1 caller will have a short time to talk, Watson said getting that vital location information makes it possible to send help while gathering other necessary details. While some callers are focused on relaying what is happening in an effort urge a rapid response or better explain the emergency, the mobile nature of our society and the increasing portion of emergency calls made from cellular phones makes location the most crucial detail. Due to possible communication difficulties in a crisis, some questions dispatchers ask are strategic. Rather than simple yes or no answers, the questions are designed to assure engagement from callers. “In a state of panic, people will answer yes to almost any question because subconsciously, if they answer yes it means a more affirmative approach to getting help on the way,” Watson said. Watson said the questions also could be used to calm a caller. “When people are panicked and they’re yelling at us… If we can ask them a question that makes

them stop and think, then they also stop yelling at us and we can calm them down and get the information that we need,” he said. Emergency and non-emergency calls are both handled by the dispatchers at Columbia 9-1-1 Communications District. Knowing whether to dial 9-1-1 or call the non-emergency dispatch number is not always clear-cut. Sometimes callers who should use 9-1-1 underestimate the danger of a situation, and some 9-1-1 callers are not facing an immediate emergency. According to Watson, the public is urged to use the emergency number when there is any threat of injury or death, and any time there is an in-progress emergency. “If you’re not sure… default to calling 9-1-1 and let us make that determination,” Watson said. He added that dispatchers explain to a caller what sort of response they should expect because there may not be personnel immediately available, particularly if a call regards a non-dangerous issue or considerable time has passed since the event of concern. With such a stressful, important job to do, becoming a dispatcher is no easy accomplishment. Watson said dispatchers are accurate, fast-thinking individu­­­­

See LIFELINES Page A8


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