Mid-Columbia Community Action plans to operate its pallet shelters at the Gloria Center in The Dalles on a seasonal basis starting this coming winter. Last winter, the eighteen shelters that can each hold two people were only used on an emergency basis, opening only during the December rain and wind storms. Community Action Executive Director Leslie Naramore says they had not been using them for the season due to staffing issues, but they are now able to do so. Community Action will also continue to operate its shelter at 1733 Oak in Hood River this winter. Naramore says 66 people used the 26-bed capacity shelter in the eighteen weeks it was open last winter.
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MCFR Deals With Two Tuesday Fires
Mid-Columbia Fire and Rescue crews had a busy Tuesday evening. A little after 5:30 p.m., a pair of engine crews responded to a reported explosion and fire involving a forklift outside Sawyer’s Ace Hardware on Third Street. MCFR says employees acted quickly in attempts to suppress the flames and prevent the fire from spreading. Firefighters arrived and contained the incident to a single forklift and were able to fully extinguish the fire within minutes. A little over three hours later, five MCFR units, Dallesport firefighters, and a National Scenic Area crew responded to a brush fire in the Mill Creek drainage near the 3000 block of Mill Creek Road. The fire was burning in very steep, brush and grass heavy terrain, but coordinated work between responders, local property owners, and neighbors kept the fire to about half an acre. Crews completed mop‑up operations, and the area will be patrolled over the next few days.
Watershed Group Starts Project
Hood River Watershed Group has started a project on the Hood River just below where the Powerdale Dam used to be to add some side channels in the old flood plain. Watershed Group Executive Director Cindy Thieman said a pipe to send water down to the Powerdale Powerhouse created a berm along the river that cutoff the flood plain. This project is removing some of that fill at connection points to create another perennial side channel to provide good habitat for fish. Thieman adds there is one channel there already that the project is mimicking where coho salmon spawn. The project will take about a month-and-a-half to complete.
Farmers Irrigation Puts Watering Limits In Upper & Middle District Areas
Farmers Irrigation District in Hood River County is requiring its customers in the upper and middle portion of the district to limit their watering to 75 percent of their water right, or 4.2 gallons per minute per water right acre. The District says demand and water supply will determine if further water restrictions will be required later in the summer, adding everyone limiting water demand, and maintaining a lower but more consistent usage rate, will help water supplies stretch through the season. The District also said it is seeing very high water demand in the lower section, and patrons are asked to practice good water management and water conservation. Low river flows are likely to bring more sediment into the delivery system, so users should anticipate cleaning their filter(s) more frequently. More information, including a map of the sections of the district, is available at fidhr.org.
Health Council Receives Award For Rural Senior Care
The Columbia Gorge Health Council will receive an approximately $618,000 award from the Oregon Health Authority’s Rural Health Transformation Program for connected care for older adults to help rural seniors stay healthy, independent, and safely in their homes. The OHA says this project addresses a critical gap in care for older adults in rural communities who are not currently receiving in-home support. Through a clinic-based community health worker model, individuals will receive in-home visits and coordinated care focused on maintaining independence and preventing avoidable health crises. Funding supports workforce capacity and service delivery. This work is expected to improve health outcomes, reduce strain on emergency services, and help older adults remain safely in their homes.
Regional Recreation Grants Awarded
Experience Mt. Hood and the Gorge Regional Destination Management Organization has awarded $120,000 through its 2026 Strategic Investment Fund grants to support six projects that enhance public infrastructure, outdoor recreation access, visitor experience, and community livability across the area. Public infrastructure was identified as the region’s top tourism priority in Travel Oregon’s most recent tourism industry survey. Main Street Mosier received the largest grant, $26,580, to support pedestrian safety enhancements at Mosier Confluence Park and connect downtown Mosier to trails and Mosier Creek. The Port of Cascade Locks will get $25,000 to pave the existing gravel parking lot and access road and add ADA-accessible parking spaces at Herman Creek Cove. Bike The Gorge is receiving $15,000 for installation of three bike racks at Hole-In-The-Wall Falls along the Historic Columbia River Highway State Trail. And Wylde Wind & Water was granted $4,770 to support infrastructure upgrades at the organization’s Hood River waterfront dock site.
Governor Seeks Help For Pear Growers
Oregon Governor Tina Kotek has asked the U.S. Department of Agriculture for disaster relive for Columbia Gorge and Oregon pear growers, as bins of Oregon pears that cost $300 to grow may fetch nothing on the market as farmers confront the consequences of a disastrous 2025 season. Kotek’s letter notes pear growers face bin prices.of $0 to $150 on some varieties, owing to a weak market fueled in part by global competition. Kotek’s request comes at a crucial time for growers. Pears are harvested around August or September, but farmers aren’t paid for their crops until they are sold, often months after they’re stored in cold facilities. That means Oregon pear growers are waiting for final checks from the 2025 season as they push into the 2026 harvest, and Columbia Gorge Fruit Growers chair Lesley Tamura said in a statement that the combination of excessive heat, low snowpack and a destructive pest known as pear psylla cut grower revenue in half this year. She adds some growers don’t have enough money to cover their current production expenses. Kotek’s request to the USDA, if granted, could bring emergency credit to family farms, and help some growers reach the end of the 2026 harvest. Tamura’s statement says growing state regulations, including rules for farmworker housing and overtime, have further tightened orchardists’ fiscal margins.
Fire Near Antelope Burns 1,261 Acres
A fire one mile north of Antelope burned 1,261 acres in grass, brush, and sage. Central Oregon Fire Information says the fire started early Saturday afternoon, and led to a Level 3 “Go Now” evacuation advisory for the town of Antelope. By Sunday morning, firefighters had achieved an 80% containment level, and evacuation advisories were dropped to Level 1 “Be Ready.” As of Sunday, crews had established dozer line around approximately 90% of the fire and retardant had been dropped across the fire’s north flank. Firefighters focused on mopping up interior pockets of heat. The Dallesport area saw multiple fires over the weekend, including a ten-acre fire that sparked Friday afternoon north of Highway 14 near Crawford Oaks. Saturday evening there was a one-acre brush fire near the Columbia River, and a set of small fires near the old ferry dock.
Motorcyclist Taken To Hospital After Highway 14 Accident
A 64-year-old man from The Dalles was taken to a Vancouver hospital after an accident involving a motorcycle and a pickup on Highway 14 in Skamania County. According to the Washington State Patrol, the motorcyclist was eastbound on Highway 14 at milepost 24 west of North Bonneville on Sunday morning at around 11:15 when he crossed the centerline for an unknown reason. The motorcycle struck a westbound pickup head-on. The motorcyclist was taken to PeaceHealth Southwest Medical Center in Vancouver for treatment of undisclosed injuries. The WSP says the pickup truck driver was uninjured.
4th of July Activities Throughout The Gorge
The Fourth of July will feature plenty of celebrations in the Columbia Gorge. In Hood River, the annual parade begins at 10 a.m. on the Heights from 12th and Pacific to Jackson Park, and then the annual fireworks show is at 10 p.m. at the Port of Hood River Marina.
Fort Dalles Fourth in The Dalles features the Hometown USA Days parade downtown at 10 a.m., the Main Street Community Celebration at 5 p.m., and the fireworks show is at 10 p.m. A complete list of activities is available at fireworksinthedalles.com.
The Pioneer Cemetery in White Salmon hosts a Liberty Tree dedication at 9:30 a.m., with White Salmon’s Fourth of July Parade beginning at 11 a.m., heading down Jewett Boulevard to Rheingarten Park, with music to follow.
In High Prairie, the Community Council Saturday Market hosts an Independence Day Kickoff from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. wit fire trucks, party favors, hot dogs, watermelon, lemonade, and kids’ games.
In Mill A, the Fourth of July parade starts at 11 a.m., ending at Mill A School for a potluck barbecue.
The Oregon Veterans Home in The Dalles hosts a Fourth of July Celebration with a barbecue at noon, games, and a band until 5 p.m.
Appleton’s July 4th Potluck and Picnic is at the Appleton Log Hall Park at 1 p.m.
And Fourth of July at the Skamania County Fairgrounds in Stevenson includes music by the Big River Blues Band at 7 p.m., and a fireworks display by Crazy Rays at 10 p.m.