Welch tapped for Bay City Manager
Images of Hope art contest Page 9
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Headlight Herald
TUESDAY, AUGUST 17, 2021
TILLAMOOK, OREGON • WWW.TILLAMOOKHEADLIGHTHERALD.COM
VOL. 133, NO. 32 • $1.50
World Championships
Salo takes Pig-NFord title T
Staff
he annual Pig-N-Ford races have been part of the Tillamook County Fair for the past 97 years. This popular event fills the grandstands to capacity each year and this year was no different. The one-of-a-kind race has the drivers snatch up a pig from the starting line, rush to their Model T, crank it up while clutching the oinker, and speed off for a lap. They swap in a fresh pig for the second lap, crank that engine up again and they’re off. It’s a threelap event. Before the race, drivers pick numbered ping-pong balls that determine starting positions and which pigs they’ll have riding shotgun. In the old days anybody could get into the race. In the early 1950s, a 10-franchise racing association was formed. The race was divided into two heats with five cars racing one day and the five another and they began recording finale champions. Kenny McDonald took the first championship win in 1952 in the No. 10 car. An exhibition race was added for fun around a decade ago. Two races were held each day of the fair at 5:30 p.m. Wednesday, Aug. 11, through Saturday, Aug.
14. Winners from each race throughout the fair competed in the Championship Finals Aug. 14, immediately following the two qualifying races. Winners were Ben Salo with first place, Dillon Walker with second place, and Mckenzi Wassmer with third place. Pig-N-Ford sponsors were Bud Elgin Concessions; Greg and Teresa Hubert with Red Robin; Tillamook PUD; TLC, A Division of Fibre Federal Credit Union; Pepsi-Cola of Tillamook; S-C Paving; Tillmook Country Smoker; Tillamook Motor Company; Les Schwab Tires of Tillamook; and Boyd’s Implement Service, LLC. Salo unseats Walker, who took home the top honors in 2019 in his No. 13 Model T. He, like Salo are returning champions with numerous previous wins. See more fair pictures on page 2.
(Top) Pig -N-Ford race drivers grab their pig and hurry to start their engines in the final Saturday. (Bottom) Ben Salo eyes the finis line and the World Championship in the final. Photos by Hilary Dorsey
Crews have completed a perimeter around Cedar Butte fire
Gov. issues statewide indoor mask mandate T
Firefighters focus on mop up operations
Staff
illamook County Public Health was notified the state of Oregon has implemented a statewide mask requirement for people aged 5 years and older, including those who are fully vaccinated in all indoor public settings and those 2 years old and older when using public transit, effective Friday, Aug. 13. There is no end date set for the mask requirement at this time. Oregon recorded the most COVID-19 cases in a single day since the start of pandemic, Tuesday, Aug. 10, with 2,329 cases. Statewide, hospitals are nearing capacity as COVID-19 cases continue to rise. Here in Tillamook County, a surge of new cases has occurred, with 159 new COVID-19 cases in Tillamook County since Aug. 1. More transmissible strains continue to devastate our community.
In indoor public spaces when face coverings were consistently used, minimal transmission had been noted. Tillamook County Public Health strongly encourages and urges the implementation of mandatory face coverings for all (including people who are fully vaccinated) in indoor public settings. Choosing to wear a face covering will protect those who are not yet vaccinated and add additional protection to those who are vaccinated. All three COVID-19 vaccines (Pfizer, Moderna and Johnson & Johnson) are safe and effective at protecting against severe COVID-19 illness, hospitalization and death from any of the currently identified variants of concern including delta. In Tillamook County,
63.78% of those eligible for the vaccine are fully vaccinated against COVID-19 and 52.80% are fully vaccinated in the total Tillamook County community (including those not yet eligible). Oregon Health Authority reports that COVID-19 cases are lower in communities with a total vaccination rate greater than 60%. In addition, Oregon Health Authority notes that nearly all of the new COVID-19 cases have been from the delta variant. The delta variant is three times more transmissible that earlier strains of the virus, both young and older individuals are getting sick and increasing disease spread. We plead with you, if you or members of your household are at least 12 years old and not yet
vaccinated, choose to get vaccinated as soon as possible – our bodies cannot effectively fight a virus that it has not seen, vaccines give us the ability to do that. Visit our website https://tillamookchc.org/coronavirus/vaccinescheduling/ to learn more on where you can get a COVID-19 vaccine at no cost in Tillamook County. Tillamook County Public Health recommends that individuals take the following precautions to reduce and limit the spread of COVID-19: • Wear a mask properly (over mouth and nose) when indoors and in crowded areas, • Keep 6ft of distance from those not in your immediate household,
n See MASK, Page A3
The Cedar Butte Fire 18 miles east of Tillamook as of Sunday, was 74 acres, but crews have fully lined the fire and are focusing on containment and mop up. All aviation resources have been released from the fire. Smoke may continue to be visible as slash piles continue to burn within the fire perimeter. The cause of the fire remains under investigation. Barring any major changes in conditions, this will be the last update for the Cedar Butte Fire. This firefighting effort would not have been possible without the coordination and support from many members of the Tillamook community. Oregon Department of Forestry would like to thank the Tillamook Airport, Tillamook School District #9, Tillamook High School, the Tillamook YMCA, and the local vendors, restaurants, and stores that helped feed over 100 firefighters for the last four days, three meals a day totaling over 1,200 meals. As mop up operations continue, the public should avoid Cedar Butte Road, and should not travel beyond Cedar Butte junction with Muesial Creek Road.