PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) – Nurses at a Christmas Eve bonfire came to the rescue of two people seriously injured in a car crash in Mount Hood National Forest. The Oregon State Police say the nurses heard the 8:30 p.m. crash and found the driver, 28-year-old Cornelio Diaz Flores of Hood River, and a passenger, 17-year-old Cesar Zarate-Mendoza, of Parkdale, both unconscious. Their injuries were non-life-threatening. Police say alcohol was likely a factor in the crash. The group didn’t have cellphone service.
PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) – A Portland church believes a burglar attended a service, hid inside the church overnight and stole food, tools and recording equipment. KATU-TV reports the Lincoln Street Baptist Church lost $600 worth of tools. The freezer was also cleaned out of food. Pastor Dan Paxton says he found the burglary days before Christmas. He says desperation in a tough economy likely led to the theft.
ASTORIA, Ore. (AP) – Fishery managers have approved four razor-clam digs in what has become a holiday season tradition for people near the Oregon-Washington border. The Daily Astorian reports more than 200,000 clam diggers have descended on the Washington state beaches in recent years. Diggers are limited to 15 razor clams per day, and are required to keep the first 15 clams they dig. Some years’ digs are in doubt, but this year, tests for marine toxins came up clean.
PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) – A 3-month-old puppy is scheduled to be united with the family that bought him after the dog was stolen from an animal shelter. The 3-lb., Chihuahua-Pomeranian mix was stolen from the Oregon Humane Society after it was purchased by a Camas, Wash., family. The Oregonian reports an anonymous caller told the society that the animal could be found at a Gresham address. The dog, named John, was found and was scheduled to meet with his new owners on Christmas at 2 p.m.
