AP-OR–1st NewsMinute,319
Here is the latest Oregon news from The Associated Press
PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) – Crews fighting wildfires in Oregon this
weekend are bracing for another dose of bad weather by mid-week –
hot and dry with unstable wind conditions. On Mount Hood, fire
crews caught a break Sunday and early yesterday when weather
conditions held smoke close to the ground and reduced the oxygen
supply to the fires. Those conditions were expected to change later
yesterday, though. Near Sisters, a wildfire has burned out of a
designated wilderness area, and fire officials expected a
challenging day Monday. On the Warm Springs reservation, fire crews
report good progress in battling multiple fires.
PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) – Portland firefighters say a Portland man
has been severely burned in a house fire. The man was standing
outside the house Sunday evening when fire crews arrived. He was
taken to the Oregon Burn Center, and the burns were described as
life-threatening. The man’s name was not released.
CENTRAL POINT, Ore. (AP) – Police say a Central Point woman has
been killed and her former boyfriend arrested on a murder charge.
The Medford Mail Tribune reports that police arrested 36-year-old
Jeffrey Wayne Wheeler shortly after the body was found. The police
say 32-year-old Jessica Starr Bethany was found in her apartment
yesterday. Police say an autopsy is planned. The couple’s year-old
daughter is safe with relatives.
BOISE, Idaho (AP) – Authorities say they have arrested a man who
was being sought in the death of a former landlady in Idaho and
held a couple at gunpoint in Oregon. Malheur County (Ore.) Sheriff
Brian Wolfe tells the Idaho Statesman that a couple reported
yesterday that they were held at gunpoint at their cabin near Lake
Owyhee for more than an hour until their captor asked each for a
hug and let them leave. The couple’s report prompted a search in
eastern Oregon for 51-year-old Theodore J. Kestner. He was found
yesterday and taken into custody.
(Copyright 2011 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
AP-NY-09-06-11 0403EDT
