The Washington County Board of Commissioners declared a state of emergency Tuesday over the winter storm, saying the move would allow the county to have "greater flexibility and support for the multi-agency response to the snow, wind and ice storms over the last several days and the coming freezing
We're in for what looks like a final round of icy weather starting some time this afternoon. We're going to keep all the bits of news—that's road closures, business closures, power outages, new weather alerts and the like—contained in this ever-updated story. No account or subscription required.
Already gripped in frozen temperatures and an icy winter storm, Oregon could now be on for round two, the Portland office of the National Weather Service said in an Ice Storm Warning issued Monday morning.
The December 2023 Banks Police Log is presented here as written and delivered to the Banks City Council. We've also provided the verbal report delivered by Deputy Frank Ward for your listening pleasure as well.
"We understand that early releases can be an inconvenience, but the safety of our students and staff is our top priority," the Banks School District said in a notice announcing a three hour early release for Friday. "We encourage everyone to plan accordingly and make the necessary arrangements."
In Banks and North Plains and the rural areas surrounding them, close to 3,500 customers were without power. The Banks School District said that all power was out, which was also affecting phone and internet service. "All schools will dismiss at the regular time," the district said.
Just hours after Hampton Lumber announced the closure of their Banks sawmill, the Banks City Council met for a regularly scheduled city council meeting. The topic soon turned to the sawmill's closure.
A 1924 ad for dynamite, the tiny community of Watts (where Stringtown Road and Gales Creek Road meet) considers merging their two community halls, and a Banks man says the water system is coming along fine in this week's Dispatches from History.
Every highway in this newspaper's territory—that's 6, 26, and 47—had a disabled vehicle or a crash when the map was checked at 10:30 p.m. Tuesday, according to the Oregon Department of Transportation's tripcheck.com.
