WLFEA Chief’s Contract Extended
A joint executive board meeting of Siuslaw Valley Fire and Rescue and Western Lane Ambulance met on Thursday to discuss the tenure of Chief Michael Schick and the impact he has had on the organization. Immediately following that meeting the boards met in regular session and praised the Chief for the work that has been done and the manner it which it was conducted. Over the past several years the entities have been working on developing a new plan for moving forward which included the creation of the West Lane Fire and EMS Authority. The Chief also led the district through a tough political enslaught against the levy that provides the operating capital for Western Lane Ambulance District. WLAD Director Mike Webb says that time after time Chief Schick proved he was the right person for the position.
“In my personal opinion he’s done a very good job of managing the environment. He’s definitely a person who works well under pressure and in a crisis. Not everything is always popular but he is willing to work through it and doesn’t get upset about it.”
The boards approved a four year extension of the Chief’s contract. They also approved the agreement that originally formed WLFEA. Fire and ambulance districts are poised to combine operations on July 1st of this year under WLFEA.
100 Years of Oregon Parks
This is the centennial year for Oregon State Parks, to celebrate, the agency is hosting 100 volunteer events. That project involves work on an historic trail, originally built by the Depression-era Civilian Conservation Corp. Men from all over the country spent a year at a time working on public works projects. One of those projects included the construction of Jessie M. Honeyman State Park. Ryan Warren is the park manager: “The CCC had a camp located on the south end of Woahink Lake and they would walk that trail when they were developing the day use area.” Warren says the trail was unused for decades. A restoration effort began about ten years ago but there is still work to be done. Pre-registration is required online at oregonstateparks.org. Most of the 15 spaces available have already been taken but they are still looking for a half dozen more volunteers. June 4th is Oregon State Parks Day and National Trails Day.
COVID-19
Nearly 2000 new COVID-19 cases were added to the Oregon list on Friday. Cases continue to follow an upward trend as do hospitalizations. As of Friday there were 299 cases in Oregon hospitals and 30 individuals in ICU. Lane County saw 192 new cases and Florence is still reporting 1624 all time cases.
Memorial Day
There will be a Memorial Day remembrance at the Veterans Memorial Park today at 1pm. There will be a ceremonial laying of the wreaths and several guest speakers. The U.S. coast Guard Siuslaw Station will also participate with laying of wreathes on the Siuslaw River.
Fall Chinook Season Cancelled
After hinting at the possibility of a fall Chinook Season on the Siuslaw on Tuesday, the Oregon Department of Fish and wildlife released new numbers on Thursday and determined that due to low levels of the fish, the Siuslaw River would not open for fall on August 1st. The Report stated that while the ocean has seen recovery since 2014, it may be a while before that translates to the rivers.
