News Stories Jun. 25, 2018

Another day of progress on the lines of the 2,143-acre Graham Fire near Lake Billy Chinook has lowered the evacuation notice for Three Rivers-area residents again, from Level 2 (get set to leave quickly) to Level 1 (be ready), Jefferson County officials said Sunday night. “Firefighting efforts will continue into next week,” Heckathorn said. “No other areas are under any evacuation order at this time.” The fire moved to 60 percent containment Sunday morning and the structural protection crews called in from other counties were being released to go home:

The Boxcar Fire is estimated to be 87,000 acres, after merging with the “South Junction Fire”. The wildfire burning brush and grass near Maupin has more than doubled in size to 36 square miles (93 square kilometers).  The wind-driven wildfire is mostly burning in sage brush and grass along with some juniper. The lightning caused fire that started Thursday is about 10 percent contained with fire officials predicting it could be contained by June 30.

Firefighters on the Jack Knife Fire, approximately 10,000 acres, 11 miles southeast of Grass Valley, were able to stop eastward progress of the fire at the John Day River on Saturday.

SEATTLE, Washington — A new study by University of Washington Medicine is associating the use of the black tar intravenous heroin an untreatable kidney disease that often leads to dialysis and death.  Researchers found that among 38 patients diagnosed with AA-type kidney amyloidosis, 35 had a previous history of heroin use. The patients had been evaluated or treated for kidney disease between 2005 and 2015 at Harborview and UW Medical Centers in Seattle. An editorial on the changing spectrum of heroin-associated kidney disease accompanies the research article.

A U.S. District Court judge in Tacoma has ruled that seven of eight claims brought by the Chinook Indian Nation will move forward. It’s a victory for the tribe, which has been fighting for recognition for more than a century. The August 2017 lawsuit stems from the tribe’s ongoing battle to gain federal status. Tribal members packed a federal courthouse last month to hear oral arguments on a motion filed by the U.S. Department of the Interior to dismiss the case. In a filing Wednesday, U.S. District Court Judge Ronald B. Leighton largely sided with the tribe, denying seven of eight claims claims by the Interior Department to dismiss the case, including a challenge to a 2015 rule that bars tribes from seeking recognition again.