Reporters get first look at Malheur Refuge since occupation

Reporters got their first look Wednesday at the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge headquarters since an armed occupation that drew widespread attention ended early last month.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service offered the guided media tour two days after Interior Secretary Sally Jewell visited Harney County, including a private visit to the refuge and meeting with workers who were displaced by the occupation.

The agency estimated the costs associated with the occupation at around $6 million, including $2 million in direct costs to the Fish and Wildlife Service.

Officials kept the refuge closed in the days and weeks after the occupation so evidence into the alleged crimes of occupiers could be documented and collected.

Refuge employees said they were stunned by the amount of damage they found when they returned. A photo display documented some of the damage refuge employees said they encountered when they first returned to the facility.

But the refuge sign — draped with a U.S. flag the night of the occupation, then replaced later with “Harney County Resource Center” – stands empty, waiting for whatever refuge officials plan in its place, when the site reopens.

The refuge manager told NewsChannel 21’s Wanda Moore her top priority was “the safety of my employees.”

“It’s been tough on stafff,” Manager Chad Karges said.”They’re going back to a facility that there’s nothing really in the place they left it.”

The agency also said security was being stepped up at wildlife refuges around the West as a result of the takeover.

Moore’s report on her return to the refuge will air Thursday evening at NewsChannel 21.