Month: August 2015

Oregon fishery managers announced Monday that the afternoon fishing ban in place on most rivers and streams in the state will be lifted, beginning Tuesday. Managers also re-opened the lower Willamette River below the Willamette Falls and the Clackamas River downstream of the I-205 Bridge to fishing for trout, salmon, steelhead and sturgeon. With the

A southeast Bend resident who awoke to find a stranger standing over his bed early Sunday chased him out of the house, but he stole the man’s car keys on the way, and then his car, police said. He later stopped in southwest Bend and tried to enter another home, they said, but fled when

The 280-acre Cove Fire that broke out Saturday at Cove Palisades State Park, destroyed two homes and prompted evacuations neared full containment Monday. Meanwhile, a park official defended his staff after investigators determined the blaze began from improperly disposed of barbecue charcoal briquettes. The fire was 84 percent contained by Monday morning, with crews continuing

Strong weekend winds have pushed the Canyon Creek Complex Fire near John Day to over 105,000 acres as of Monday, two days after it consumed three more homes, bringing the total to 43 lost to the nearly 3-week-old blaze. But officials said Sunday’s calmer winds made for a better day on the fire lines. Here’s

The Central Oregon Community College’s Madras Campus will be closed Aug. 28 through Sept. 7 for maintenance. For assistance, call or visit the COCC campuses in Redmond, Bend or Prineville. The Madras Campus phone number (541-550-4100) will be redirected to the COCC staff at the Redmond Campus during this time. Madras staff will be working

About 500 firefighters were still on the lines Monday of the 67,083-acre County Line 2 Fire on the Warm Springs Indian Reservation, now 84 percent contained, with full containment expected by Thursday. Winds actually helped more than hampered firefighting efforts Saturday on the blaze, but the expected full containment was pushed back several more days.

A woman awoke to the smell of smoke, and she and her two sons escaped their burning home in northwest Bend early Sunday, a blaze that investigators said was caused by a gas barbecue on the back porch that had been accidentally left on. Bend Fire Department crews responded just after 1 a.m. to the

Daimler Trucks North America announced Friday night its commitment to bring more jobs to Oregon with an $18 million investment to upgrade its current research and development facility in Madras. The upgraded facility will bring more than 30 new jobs to the area, the company announced during the opening night of The Airshow of the

Winds sent the more than 87,000-acre Canyon Creek Complex wildfire advancing north toward the town or Prairie City early Saturday, prompting evacuation of the southern half of the town, but crews protected the community and kept it from reaching it, officials said late Saturday. As of Saturday, more than 850 firefighters had brought the 87,145-acre

Marla Melius and her family were on a camping vacation at Lake Billy Chinook Saturday morning when daughter Brittany realized something wasn’t right. “It was like 10:30, I think, in the morning — we were just sitting there talking, and I smelled fire, and I was really confused. We had no idea what was going

A home off Galveston Avenue in northwest Bend is being transformed into a new recreational marijuana shop. It’s located just a few feet from a pre-school and day care, sparking concern and even outrage from some area neighbors and businesses. “I’m a parent myself of a 3-year-old, so I can completely see their concern,” Diamond

A two-vehicle crash on Highway 97 south of Sunriver on Friday afternoon injured four people and brought an air ambulance to the scene, prompting a closure of the highway, initial reports indicated. The crash was reported around 1:20 p.m. at the highway’s intersection with Vandevert Road, near milepost 155, troopers said. Sunriver Fire medics, Deschutes

Two Bend teens were arrested early one morning this week, accused of entering at least 10 unlocked cars parked in a southeast Bend neighborhood and taking items from them, police said Friday. Rico Lazzereschi, 18, and a 16-year-old male whose name was not released were contacted by Bend police around 3:30 a.m. Wednesday in the

Oregon Secretary of State Jeanne P. Atkins announced Fri day that Oregon law does not require candidates for president to be declared members of the political party for which they seek to be nominated. Under Oregon law, a candidate for president can be listed on the primary ballot if the secretary of state determines that

Central Oregon drug agents stopped a car and arrested a Washington state man and a transient in Redmond Walmart parking lot Wednesday night, later seizing about a pound of methamphetamine found hidden in the dashboard, officials said. CODE Team detectives arrested Jose Ramon Martinez Castelo, 30, of Federal Wash., Wash., and transient Yahir Acosta, 26,

The ‘friendship’ between Facebook and Prineville may have just become a little richer — by millions and millions of dollars. City and Crook County leaders signed an agreement Wednesday offering the social media giant property tax exemptions for the next 15 years on a new, third data center. It’s an incentive to entice Facebook to

Former Madras High School quarterback Josh Farrester is back in Madras to help out the community that helped him so much in the past. In 2007, during his senior year of high school, Farrester injured his knee during a game. Farrester immediately took advantage of Apex Physical Therapy’s free athletic injury clinic for Jefferson County

A well-known name and face in Central Oregon political circles for over a decade is making her second bid for the same statewide office, this time as an Independent. And yes, the capital “I” is intentional. Former state senator — and now, former Republican — Chris Telfer revealed Thursday she recently registered as a voter

A group of firefighters from Hampshire, United Kingdom have come all the way to Central Oregon to learn how to effectively fight wildfires. On Thursday, they visited the burn scar of last year’s Two Bulls Fire. “I’ve never seen anything like this on this scale,” said Glenn Bowyer, station manager for Hampshire Fire and Rescue

The Oregon Transportation Commission has approved a proposed updated set of rules for transporting hazardous materials by rail. Combined with ODOT’s addition of four rail inspectors, the rules aim to improve the state’s ability to both prevent incidents in the first place and respond to them if they do occur. “These rules will help ensure