A large number of protesters laid down on Hood River’s Second Street overpass for eight minutes and 46 seconds early Wednesday evening, the length of time a Minneapolis police officer had his knee on George Floyd’s neck.  Hood River Police Chief Neal Holste said the group had gathered at Overlook Memorial Park at 4:45, and went north on Second Street at about 6:30 to stage the protest.  Holste said the location made it easy for traffic to be re-routed, and everything was peaceful.

The 78th Annual Roy Webster Cross-Channel Swim has been canceled for 2020.  The event which is sponsored by Providence Hood River Memorial Hospital and the Hood River County Chamber of Commerce was scheduled for Labor Day in Cascade Locks.  The annual event draws over 500 people to swim a 1.1 mile stretch across the mighty Columbia River.  It had moved from Hood River to the Port of Cascade Locks last year.  The event is scheduled to return in September 2021.  The Chamber of Commerce says registered participants will be entitled to early access to the 2021 registration and the paid 2020 registration fee will be applied to 2021 registration fees.  No refunds will be issued.

Several campgrounds in the Columbia River Gorge will begin to reopen this month, even as many popular day use sites and visitors’ centers remain closed.  Officials say Columbia Hills, Maryhill, and Brooks Memorial Campgrounds are expected to open Friday, and reservations can be made on the Washington State Parks website.  Memaloose Campground is scheduled to open Tuesday and Viento Campground on June 15, and reservations can be done through the Oregon State Parks website.  Wyeth Campground also has a planned opening of June 15, with reservations at Recreation.gov.  The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers expects delays in the opening of LePage and Plymouth Campgrounds due to recent storm damage.  Dispersed camping remains closed at all Corps parks.  Fewer trails, activities, and visitor services will be available this summer.  Information on the status of recreation sites is available at ReadySetGorge.com.  Visitors are asked to respect any posted closures and should never tamper with signs, flagging, or barriers on the assumption that they no longer apply.

The Oregon Childhood Development Coalition is modifying its plans for childcare for harvest workers to meet physical distancing guidelines.  OCDC provides care for children ages six weeks to six years.  Program director Jennifer Heredia says busing is unworkable, so workers will have to drop their kids off at childcare.  To accommodate that, OCDC will open 30 minutes early at 4:30 a.m., and staff will take the temperature of every child every day and ask three health related questions, with parents dropping kids off outside the building.  To the extent possible children will be kept in stable groups of ten with the same staff, playgrounds will be used in shifts, and new cleaning regimens will also be in place.  OCDC will open two days later than planned on June 11 as it awaits the arrival of ordered supplies and works to hire 20 aides.  The Migrant Education Program for ages 7 to 11 is also seeing significant changes, including teaching classes at orchards instead of at a central location.

In a split decision, Hood River County Commissioners elected to wait until Monday before deciding whether they are ready to submit an application to the state to enter into Phase 2 reopening.  Those who wanted to wait cited the recent outbreak of cases at three different congregate work facilities, and concerns about whether the County’s health department could handle the contract tracing with a further increase.  Department Director Patricia Elliott told the Commission they are keeping up right now in spite of eight positive COVID-19 tests in the past couple of days, but did say she was fine with making the application but with a reopening date of June 12 rather than this Friday to allow more time to gather more test results and get more contract tracers.  County Health Officer Dr. Christopher Van Tilburg said hospital capacity is adequate with a plan in place to deal with a surge, and emphasized the case rate in proportion to testing hasn’t really changed with the beginning of testing asymptomatic people last week.  Commission Chair Mike Oates joined Les Perkins and Rich McBride in wanting to wait, with Oates saying he was worried about having to go backward if they move too quickly.  Bob Benton and Karen Joplin wanted to move forward, with Benton explaining he was worried about gathering sizes prescribed by the state but also concerned for businesses waiting for the next phase.  In the end Benton’s motion to send the application letter with a June 12 start date was defeated three-to-two, and the Commission will meet again on Monday.

North Central Public Health Director Teri Thalhofer told Wasco County Commissioners on Wednesday that finding hotel space for those who test positive for COVID-19 and need a place for isolation and quarantine is a problem.  Thalhofer said at the time Wasco County did its application for Phase 1 reopening they thought they had agreements in place with area hotels, but when the County tried to use them they have faced opposition.  Thalhofer said she is working with The Dalles Area Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Lisa Farquharson to discuss the issue with hotels, and County Counsel Kristen Campbell has written a letter of explanation to lodgers.  Thalhofer noted a brief from the Oregon Bureau and Labor of Industries says it is discrimination to not allow people with COVID-19 or exposure to the virus to use a hotel room.  She said without a resolution to the quarantine space issue, it is doubtful Wasco County can move into Phase 2, and County Commission Chair Scott Hege added they need options to give people a place to stay.

Oregon’s phase 2 coronavirus reopening plan will begin Friday and includes opening pools, zoos, museums and movie theaters, allowing recreational sports, loosening current restaurant restrictions and expanding outdoor gatherings to 100 people.  Gov. Kate Brown held a news conference late Wednesday morning with state health leaders to discuss the next steps to ease restrictions from her stay-at-home directives.  Thirty-one counties are eligible to apply for phase 2.  The governor’s office is reviewing applications and will announce Thursday which counties can move forward to phase 2.  State epidemiologist Dr. Dean Sidelinger did say Oregon will be in Phase 2 for a while, until there is some kind of treatment of a vaccine for COVID-19.  Currently, gathering limits are set at 25 people.   Under phase 2, gatherings will be increased to 50 people indoors and 100 people outdoors.  Following updated guidance, zoos, museums and outdoor gardens, will be allowed to open statewide.  Recreational non-contact sports, such as pickleball and tennis, will begin again.  In addition, collegiate athletes will return to training by mid-June.  Restaurants, which are currently required to close at 10 p.m., will be allowed to stay open until 12 a.m. in counties approved for phase 2.

Hood River County Health Director Patricia Elliott said the County has now had 29 positive COVID-19 tests.  That’s up from 16 last Friday, the result of cases associated with three different congregate work facilities.  The County also indicates they have individuals connected to the outbreaks that have test positive and work at other local businesses.  Elliott said Wednesday the rate of positive tests has not gone up, but the amount of testing has.  She noted they have done almost 700 tests in response to the work facility outbreak, and County Health Officer Dr. Christopher Van Tilburg added they are now testing asymptomatic people.  Contact investigators for Hood River County do say several cases were involved in group activities outside of work like parties where they could have contracted the virus.  County officials emphasize those types of gatherings are discouraged. Wasco County’s tally of positive COVID-19 tests went up by two Wednesday to 28, while Sherman County is at one and Gilliam County remains at zero.  Statewide, Oregon reported 65 new confirmed and presumptive cases to move the full total to 4,399.  There were also two COVID-19 deaths in Wednesday’s report, bringing that number to 159.  In Washington, Klickitat County remains at 29 cases and Skamania County three.

Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area director Lynn Burditt said overall the opening of 70 recreation sites in the Gorge last weekend went fairly well.  Burditt told the Wasco County Commission that they did have a few challenges, particularly Dog Mountain in Skamania County, which remains closed, but some people were not honoring that closure.  Burditt says Dog Mountain will probably remain closed until at least mid-June because the mechanisms to deal with parking and congestion at the site are not yet in place.  For information on recreation sites in the Gorge, go to readysetgorge.com.

Wasco County Commissioners approved a request to the state for a drought declaration.  Commissioner Steve Kramer said the U.S. Department of Agriculture issued a declaration of extreme drought status for Wasco County last month.  As of May 27, snowpack snow water equivalent by the Natural Resources Conservation Service for the Hood Deschutes Basin is 68 percent of normal and the Upper Deschutes Basin is at only 41 percent.  In addition, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration is predicting persistent drought, above average temperatures, and below average precipitation this summer.  Kramer said the request asks Oregon Governor Kate Brown to move forward with a drought declaration so growers and producers can access various programs that can offer assistance.