Red Flag and Air Quality Warning
A red flag warning has been issued for the central coast region and will be in effect until 11 pm this evening. This comes from the national weather service as the chance for “abundant lightning” is forecast for the area. Officials say conditions are ripe for the potential of fast moving storms that bring the risk of fire due to lightning strikes. Forecasters believe the storm will be fast moving and therefore not leave a lot of rain in its path. This is not good news for firefighters who could use some rain in battling fires. In addition there is still an air quality alert until noon on Friday but those conditions continue to improve.
Smoke Refugees
As a result of the spread of smoke Florence is seeing an increase of people escaping the dangerous air to the south and the east. These Smoke refugees are looking for places to retreat and Florence is the closest place where, even with an air quality alert, people can find relief. Florence area Chamber of Commerce executive Director, Bettina Hannigan says they are receiving calls daily
“We’ve had a lot of calls, in fact, I had a gentleman call this morning from Montana trying to get away from their smoke.”
On the other side of the coin some travelers are cancelling plans to travel here due to the fires in their paths and the air quality issues.
Coho Fishing Ends
At midnight this evening non-selective Coho Salmon fishing will end as the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife determine that quotas of the fish will have been met by this evening. ODFW has issued a statement that calls for the end of the season from Humbug mountain to Cape Falcon. This does not affect Chinook Salmon which continues through October.
Hazardous Waste Collection
At the end of this month Lane county will be sponsoring another hazardous waste collection. Friday the 29th and Saturday the 30th you can bring articles that are otherwise banned from traditional recycling like paints and chemicals. Oil, anti-freeze, and fluorescent bulbs are disposable every day at the transfer station.
Rods and Rhodys
This weekend in Florence the classic cars will be out in droves as the 10th annual rods and Rhodies hits the streets of Florence. Classic cars will line the parking lots at three rivers casino resort on Friday before heading downtown on Saturday to converge on Bay Street. Hundreds of cars are expected to turn out for this event along with thousands of onlookers. This years event is themed “American Graffiti” and will feature several cars from the nostalgic film Going on at the same time will be the annual city wide garage sale with hundreds of homes participating in the event.
