Month: August 2011

It has been a busy week full of fires in Central Oregon, and Wednesday night was no different. With more than a thousand lightning strikes in just one hour, brushfires were sparking up everywhere. As new blazes cropped up, they added to the several other big ones burning in recent days. Throughout the week, firefighters

Fire crews completed a burnout Wednesday on a 47-acre wildfire in a stand of trees encircled by lava northwest of Lava Butte, and fire managers said that should mean much less of the smoke that billowed into Bend Wednesday morning. “It’s looking really good,” said Lisa Clark of the Central Oregon Interagency Dispatch Center in

Oregon State Police Fish and Wildlife Division officials say they have been seeing more incidents in which hunters will trespass on other people’s property to get an opportunity to shoot a deer. And one Sunriver resident says he’s had enough. Dean Kennedy has lived out in Sunriver for almost 20 years. On any given day,

A 7-year-old Portland girl who wandered away from a La Pine home where her family was staying was found safe after a nearly three-hour search Monday morning that included use of an emergency phone notification system that called residents and asked them to help look for her, officials said. Aubree Ann Fardal, 7, was returned

A Prineville couple was flown to a Bend hospital Monday afternoon after their car was rear-ended by an SUV on Highway 126 near the Powell Butte Country Store, Crook County sheriffs deputies said. The other driver, who declined treatment, was cited for following too closely. Crook County sheriff?s deputies and fire medics were dispatched around

A La Pine man whose speeding minivan — with four children inside — flipped on a Forest Service road Monday night fled the scene when deputies arrived, but soon returned and was arrested on DUII and other charges, authorities said. Three youngsters were unhurt but the fourth was admitted to a Bend hospital with serious

When the sun comes out in Central Oregon, so do all the pooches in the parks — that was just the scene Sunday at Bend’s Riverbend Park. Hundreds of people and their four-legged friends gathered for the second annual Deschutes Dog Days. The event was held by DogPAC and aimed to celebrate the organization’s work

Car enthusiasts and a few “drifters cruised into Redmond Saturday for some fun in the sun — and for a good cause. The Drifters Car Club played host to tons of horsepower and chrome as more than 200 vintage cars lined downtown Redmond. This was the 18th annual show, which included a barbecue, a car

Summer is always the perfect time for a barbecue, but Saturday, there was a special one in town for organizers of the Central Oregon Veterans Outreach medical van to say “thank you.” COVO held a big barbecue at the VFW Hall in Bend in appreciation to all of those who helped with their mobile medical

Bigger class sizes, fewer teachers and even less money to work with from Salem for the school year about to begin. It’s a dire situation, and while school officials put on a brave face and explain how things will work out, the reality is, school administrators say Oregon lawmakers are almost dis-investing in our future.

A grieving, tearful Madras mother whose 7-year-old son was struck and killed at a downtown sidewalk shared more memories Friday of the boy known to his family as “Ozzie,” and also sought out Jefferson County prosecutors, wanting the driver to be held responsible. “All morning, I’ve been sitting at my computer figuring out how long

The importance of a microchip under the skin of your family pets was happily on display this week, when a little Bend girl’s missing kitten was brought home, two months after it ran out of the house. “Pumpkin” belongs to 4-year-old Carly and her mother, Robin Cooper. Robin said she was doing yard work outside,

A 57-year-old Bend man was arrested in Portland on charges of abusing at least three minors over a period of several years, luring them into sex acts with money or marijuana. But the initial 367 counts and $13 million bail were reduced considerably at his arraignment. Bend police detectives, assisted by Portland counterparts, arrested Tyrell

With shovels in hand and solar panels behind them on a bright, sunny day, officials broke ground Thursday in Klamath Falls on Oregon’s largest public “solar system.” “The scale is about 10,000 of these solar panels which you see behind me here,? said Bob Simonton, an associate provost with the Oregon University System, who has

One Bend woman will ride her bike 6,000 miles to 16 states in 10 months. Sara Salo said Thursday it is an effort to push a healthy lifestyle for students around the country. Salo is the spokesperson for the School Food Tour, and she is gearing up for the journey, in which she will visit

An escaped campfire at a transient camp by a northeast Bend church raced across about 2 acres of brush Thursday afternoon, sending up a tall column of smoke and briefly closing Hwy. 20E as it threatened power lines, a substation and the church, which was evacuated. The transients, who called 911 and tried to douse

A lost mountain biker who was found near the city’s Bridge Creek Watershed early Tuesday morning has a warning for other cyclists. Ted Werner of Bend says he got lost after he started going up through North Fork and got off trail. But he also couldn’t believe the amount of snow he saw while on

A man’s reported shooting on Highway 97 near Deschutes River Woods Wednesday afternoon turned out to be something else entirely, according to investigators who said that actually, the reportedly drunk ?victim? had gotten a ride, tried to steal money and pushed a right-side gas pedal of the Jeep Cherokee, a former mail delivery vehicle. According

A new group, apparently of developers, made itself known to Bend city councilors Wednesday night, suggesting that lower city development fees would help to spur needed economic growth. And that sparked a friendly but noteworthy exchange — debate, even — with Councilor Mark Capell, who noted what many have in recent years — that the

The Tri-County Legislative Wrap-up was held at Highland Baptist Church in Redmond Tuesday night. The event brought over 100 people to listen to our legislators and hear how the 2011 Oregon State Legislative session went, as well as to ask questions. Even though the event was sponsored by the three counties’ Republican parties, they also