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The latest news stories and stories of interest in Eugene-Springfield area and around the state of Oregon from the online digital home of the valley, WillametteValleyMagazine.com.
Wednesday, November 11, 2020
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Today’s Headlines
Oregon health officials reported 771 new cases of coronavirus on Tuesday, marking a continuation of the state’s recent spike in COVID-19.
The new cases are in the following counties: Baker (7), Benton (13), Clackamas (110), Clatsop (2), Columbia (3), Coos (8), Crook (9), Curry (1), Deschutes (30), Douglas (18), Grant (3), Harney (3), Hood River (2), Jackson (56), Jefferson (7), Josephine (3), Klamath (7), Lane (49), Lincoln (3), Linn (18), Malheur (15), Marion (90), Multnomah (151), Polk (15), Umatilla (23), Union (8), Wallowa (1), Wasco (2), Washington (95) and Yamhill (19).
The Oregon Health Authority said have been nearly 52,000 identified cases in the state since the pandemic began.
A majority of the most recent cases were reported in Multnomah (151), Clackamas (110), and Washington (95) counties. The latest increase in COVID-19 cases reflects a recent increase in the number of daily reported cases. Over the weekend, the state saw a new record daily jump in cases with 988.
Governor Brown announced earlier in the week that nine counties are now on a two-week ‘social pause’ starting today.
The two-week pause measures include:
- Urging all businesses to mandate work from home to the greatest extent possible.
- Pausing long-term care facility visits that take place indoors to protect staff and residents.
- Reducing maximum restaurant capacity to 50 people (including customers and staff) for indoor dining, with a maximum party size of six. Continuing to encourage outdoor dining and take out.
- Reducing the maximum capacity of other indoor activities to 50 people (includes gyms, fitness organizations/studios, bowling alleys, ice rinks, indoor sports, pools and museums).
- Limiting social gatherings to your household, or no more than six people total if the gathering includes those from outside your household. Reducing the frequency of those social gatherings (significantly in a two-week period) and keeping the same six people in your social gathering circle.
From Salem, Oregon Gov. Kate Brown joined hospital leaders across the state for a press conference yesterday, to discuss concerns about hospital bed capacity amid increasing cases and hospitalizations.
“Our fears that this virus would spread out of control when the colder months set in are certainly becoming a frightening reality,” Brown said.
“I’ve said this before, but from the outset, our goal has been to save lives and avoid overwhelming our health care systems.”
Of course, hospitals are not limited to dealing with COVID-19 cases but also the impact flu season could have, along with the countless others reasons why individuals need immediate care.
Some leaders shared they will have to balance patients between multiple facilities. Others said they could have to reduce elective surgeries or shut them down altogether if cases continue to rise.
“We cannot and should not be relying on the fact that our hospital systems can withstand a surge, but instead we should be working together to ensure they don’t have to,” Brown said.
The State has been working with health care leaders in seven regions to develop plans for a possible surge.
Dr. Dana Hargunani is the Chief Medical Officer for the Oregon Health Authority.
“While COVID-19 has been larger and longer-lasting of an event than we could have ever anticipated, we found that our foundational learning and planning has helped us be ready in the early days when we first saw these cases,” Hargunani said.
Brown warned that it is up to the community to do their part in slowing the spread because hospitals could be put in a dangerous bind this winter.
As of Tuesday, there are 285 patients hospitalized with COVID-19 across Oregon. This is a 57% increase in this past week since Nov. 3. There are 762 ventilators available in the state.
The state Emergency Board approved nearly $128 million for Oregonians still impacted by COVID-19. The board made up of state legislatures approved the allocation of money on Monday.
House Speaker Tina Kotek said in a statement this funding comes at an important time when cases across the state are rising.
“As winter approaches, it’s particularly important we passed additional funding to help people without permanent housing,” Kotek said. “We’ve been facing a statewide shelter emergency for some time and the pandemic has made the situation even more dire.”
Here is how the money will be divided up:
- $35 million for Project Turnkey Statewide Pandemic and Homelessness Response.
- $45 million for Childcare Provider Assistance
- $20 million for the Oregon Worker Relief Fund
- $20 million for small businesses financially impacted by the pandemic
- $5 million for long term care provider costs of routine COVID-19 testing for staff
- $2.4 million for long term care facility staff and resident COVID-19 testing
- $1 million to help support victims of domestic and sexual violence
From the Oregon Capitol in Salem, the State of Oregon says it has mailed $3.2 million in unclaimed funds to nearly 11,000 Oregonians. More is available.
It’s the first distribution of unclaimed property of its kind in Oregon.
See unclaimed.oregon.gov.
“This is the first time the Oregon Unclaimed Property Program is distributing funds directly to owners who have not first filed an unclaimed property claim. The state determined that, due to the financial circumstances many are facing, property that met certain criteria would be mailed to the associated owners,” the state said.
“The criteria included a deliverable address. For cases in which the October letter was undeliverable because an individual no longer lived at that address, that person was removed from the final mailing list,” the state said. “However, they can still claim their property at unclaimed.oregon.gov.”
But if you did receive a letter in October, your check is in the mail.
“The checks, which range between $50 – $2,500, are being mailed to current and former Oregonians,” the state said. “Each check represents a unique sum of unclaimed funds — referred to as unclaimed property — owed to each person by a business or organization that was unable to return the money to its owner.”
The state said “common examples of unclaimed property include uncashed checks, forgotten bank accounts, security deposits, tax refunds, credit balances, investment accounts, payroll checks, refunds and more.”
Around the state of Oregon
Crater Lake National Park’s North Entrance Road and Rim Drive have been closed for the winter season. All visitors to Crater Lake National Park must use Highway 62 to access the park from the south or west during these closures.
The North Entrance Road and Rim Drive, with elevations from 5,850 to 7,960 feet above sea level, receive an average of more than 40 feet of snow each year and are not plowed from fall to late spring because of deep drifts, avalanche risk, and other dangerous conditions.
The North Entrance Road and Rim Drive will reopen in the late spring or early summer of 2021. Exact dates for road openings depend on snow depths each year. Effective Nov. 1, Crater Lake National Park has been charging winter entrance fees of $20 per car, $15 per motorcycle, and $15 per person on foot or bike. This fee is good for seven days and is collected at the Annie Creek Entrance Station.
It is also possible to purchase an annual pass for Crater Lake National Park for $55, which is honored at both Crater Lake and Lava Beds National Monument. Annual passes for Lava Beds are also accepted at Crater Lake.
Oregon’s centralized voter registration system is a weak point in the state’s election system, county clerks told the secretary of state-elect, days after the incumbent fired the state elections director after he raised similar concerns.
Secretary of State Bev Clarno fired Election Director Stephen Trout on Thursday after he pointed out “major technology challenges ahead in elections.”
Clarno’s action shocked county clerks, who are responsible for running elections in their respective counties and sending results to the state. Trout’s concerns were outlined in a letter, a copy of which The Associated Press obtained, that he sent on the eve of the election to Democratic candidate Shemia Fagan and Republican candidate Kim Thatcher. Fagan won by a 7% margin. Both are state senators.
Trout had pointed out that some of the election systems are running on Windows Server 2008 that Microsoft stopped supporting last January; a lack of multifactor authentication for officials accessing election systems that can create opportunities for hacking; and that public-facing websites are threaded through one power supply with only one internet connection, with no redundancy.
FATAL CRASH ON HWY 26 – WASHINGTON COUNTY
On Tuesday, November 10, 2020 at approximately 1:50 P.M., Oregon State Police Troopers and emergency personnel responded to a three vehicle collision on Hwy 26 near milepost 35.
Preliminary investigation revealed a Toyota 4Runner, operated by an adult male from Portland, was westbound when it went into the eastbound lanes and collided with a Ford Transit commercial van operated by Michael Kromm (34) from Salem. The 4Runner then collided with a Toyota Tacoma operated by Michael Young (69) from Portland.
The operator of the 4Runner sustained fatal injuries and was pronounced deceased. His name will be released when it is appropriate.
Kromm was transported to an area hospital.
Young and his passenger, Lea Young (68) from Portland, were not transported.
Hwy 26 was closed for approximately three hours.
A man is facing nearly two years behind bars after being convicted of beating a man during a protest in Portland over the summer.
A judge sentenced 26-year-old Marquise Love to 20 months in prison yesterday for the assault August 16th near Southwest Taylor and Broadway. Love pleaded guilty to third-degree assault and felony riot. Video of the incident shows Love beating Adam Haner until he was unconscious. The Multnomah County District Attorney’s Office says Love apologized and expressed remorse during yesterday’s sentencing hearing.
Associations representing Oregon’s home builders, bankers and REALTORS® are partnering for the second annual Oregon Housing Economic Summit to be held virtually on January 14, 2021.
The event brings leading housing industry experts, economists, and Oregon legislators together to discuss the state’s housing and economic environment, barriers facing the industry and what the future holds.
Presented by Oregon Home Builders Association, Oregon Bankers Association, and Oregon REALTORS®, the Oregon Housing Economic Summit aims to build consensus around solutions to Oregon’s housing crisis. According to Freddie Mac, Oregon’s housing supply deficit is the worst in the nation.
“Oregon’s housing shortage, combined with the devastation of over 4,000 homes in the recent wildfires, makes it clear that now more than ever we need to come together to discuss solutions to our housing crisis,” says Mark Long, CEO of the Oregon Home Builders Association.
“The pandemic has re-enforced the value of ‘home’ as not just a place to live but now as a place to work and to go to school,” says Jenny Pakula, CEO of Oregon REALTORS®. “Yet home is out of reach for so many in our community because of Oregon’s housing shortage. The Housing Economic Summit will bring together economists, industry leaders, nonprofits and policymakers to discuss how to make it a reality for more Oregonians.”
The Summit is open to the public, but space is limited by the virtual event platform. The event will begin at 9 a.m. with a keynote address on Oregon’s economy, followed by economic, industry and legislative panel discussions. The program concludes at Noon.
Individuals interested in attending are encouraged to register early. Registration is $49 per person. Sponsorships are also available. To register, become an event sponsor, or for general information. visit http://oregonhousingeconomicsummit.com.