Softball

Hood River Valley 12, The Dalles 9, 12 innings:  HRV came back from a three-run deficit to pull into tie with the Riverhawks for the third and final Intermountain Conference playoff spot.  Sarah Mason homered in the seventh inning to tie the game at 5-5.  The Eagles then scored seven runs in the top of the 12^th inning, including a grand slam by Jessa Nickelsen.  The Riverhawks made things interesting with four runs in the bottom of the 12^th.

  Columbia split with King’s Way Christian, winning the opener 7-6 and then falling 4-3 in the nightcap.

  Baseball

Pilot Rock sweeps Sherman 13-11 and 7-5

  Southwest Washington Class 1A Boys Soccer Tournament

Columbia 3, Forks 0:  The Bruins clinch a state playoff invitation, and will play Montesano for third place in the district tourney on Saturday at 1 p.m. at Fort Vancouver High School.

  Girls Lacrosse

Oregon Episcopal 19, Hood River Valley 3

The long-running expansion of the Kingsley Reservoir is reaching its conclusion, and that means it will reopen to recreation sometime this summer.  Farmers Irrigation District Manager Les Perkins says substantial work is finished, with a bridge over the spillway, a building, a tower, and a couple of gates remaining.  Perkins says wet conditions have slowed that down, but they are moving as quickly as they can.  He hopes the reservoir will be open to recreation in early summer, adding there will be improvements in place, including a new boat ramp, enlarged staging area, more restrooms, and a new and larger campground.  Perkins says the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife will be stocking the reservoir with fish in the latter part of May.

Ballot return for the primary election in Mid-Columbia counties remains behind 2020, but also ahead of the statewide pace.  According to figures from the Oregon Secretary of State’s office Thursday morning, 16.2% of ballots have been returned in Hood River County, 14.9% in Wasco County, and 16.4% in Sherman County.  Statewide, the return rate is 13%.  The Wasco County Clerk’s Office says two years ago, the return rate at a similar time was 23.2%, while the Hood River County’s elections office says the 2020 rate at this point was 28.4%.

Columbia Area Transit’s Master Plan Survey is open for another month.  The master plan willbe a key guiding document that outlines the delivery of community and regional transit services, and asks Hood River County and regional residents for input to help shape its future delivery of transportation services.  CAT officials say with Hood River County experiencing a growing population, becoming an increasing draw for recreation and tourism, and expanding local and regional employment opportunities, they want to hear from the community about how transit can address the changing conditions and include supportive transportation options like bike share, vanpools, and ridesharing.  CAT’s online survey is available in English and Spanish online at engagecatbus.org.  

Beginning on Monday, burning yard debris, material from fuel reduction projects, and other commercial forest slash will be prohibited for lands protected by The Dalles Unit of the Oregon Department of Forestry.  That includes private, municipal, county, and state owned lands within ODF’s protection boundary in Wasco and Hood River counties.  Landowners whose property is within a local fire district may be able to obtain a permit from their fire district for yard debris and burn barrels.  Recent precipitation has improved fuel moisture, including in live vegetation, however underlying long-term drought conditions continue to be a concern for firefighters.  Burn barrels with a valid burn permit will be allowed.  All fire must be extinguished by 11:00 a.m., with the fire attended at all times, and a shovel and water available.  Before ignition, verify burning is allowed by calling your local fire department or The Dalles Unit of ODF.  

Fishery managers from Oregon and Washington have adopted additional fishing days, beginning Thursday, for recreational spring Chinook salmon in the Columbia River downstream of Bonneville Dam.  This additional opportunity is based on a projected return of 161,800 upriver-origin adult spring Chinook.  The updated projection exceeds the preseason forecast of 122,900 adult fish and is slightly higher than the recent 10-year average return of these fish.  The specific season dates are from Thursday to May 22, and June 4 to June 15.  The bag limit is two adult hatchery Chinook or steelhead per day, but only one may be a Chinook.  Shad may also be retained.  The open area is from the Tongue Point/Rocky Point line upstream to Beacon Rock, plus bank angling only from Beacon Rock upstream to the Bonneville Dam deadline.  Fishery managers scheduled another hearing for next Wednesday to consider the latest information on catch rates and determine if additional fishing days can be added.

An early morning fire damaged a small strip mall on West 6th Street in The Dalles.  Mid-Columbia Fire and Rescue District Chief Bob Palmer says the fire started around 1:12 a.m. Wednesday, and took over five hours for crews to bring under control.  An investigation into the fire is underway, but Palmer says it appears the fire originated in the center of the main structure, and then extend east into businesses.  He estimated 60 to 70 percent of the building suffered significant damage.  The Dalles Police Department and MCFR are investigating the cause of the fire, with the Oregon State Fire Marshal’s office and the Oregon State Police involved as well.  Dallesport, Mosier, Cascade Locks, Dufur, Wamic, and Bingen fire departments all assisted in firefighting effort.  Palmer said one firefighter suffered a minor injury, but was treated on scene.

The Klickitat County Sheriff’s Office will hold a memorial ceremony Thursday in Goldendale as part of National Police Week.  It will honor law enforcement officers who have been killed in the line of duty, including three from the Klickitat County Sheriff’s Office.  Deputy Danny Vaughn died in 1976, Deputy Michael McNabb died in 1986, and Sergeant Peter Garland died in 2007.  The memorial will take place Thursday at 2 p.m. on the steps outside the Klickitat County Jail on the south side of the Courthouse in Goldendale.  Refreshments will be available after the event in the Mt. Adams Roof of the new Klickitat County Administrative Services Building.  There will also be a candlelight vigil on the front lawn of the Courthouse at 8 p.m. Thursday.

The Hood River County Health Department has scheduled a pair of COVID-19 vaccination and testing clinics this month.  One will be at the Marine Park Pavilion in Cascade Locks this Friday, with another at the Mt. Hood Town Hall on May 20.  The Health Department’s Daron Ryan says their focus is to go around the County to get vaccines to people on their schedule.  Both the Cascade Locks and Mt. Hood clinics will run from 2 p.m. to 7 p.m.

Election officials in Oregon are reminding voters about the new “postmark rule,” which says any ballot postmarked by Election Day is considered on time even if it arrives at elections offices up to seven days after the election.  Voters may be able to put their ballots in the mail as late as Election Day if their mail is collected by the Postal Service and postmarked that day, similar to rules in other vote-by-mail states.  Wasco County Clerk Lisa Gambee says her office still recommends mailing ballots well in front of the deadline.  Ballot drop boxes continue to be available for voters to use, and they will shut down at 8 p.m. on Election Day as in the past.