Oregon, once a virus success story, struggles with surge

Oregon was once the poster child for limiting the spread of the coronavirus, after its Democratic governor imposed some of the nation’s strictest safety measures, including mask mandates indoors and outdoors, limits on gatherings and an order closing restaurants.

Portland firefighter denies kidnapping allegations

A Portland, Oregon, firefighter denies kidnapping a man last weekend and looks forward to proving his innocence, his lawyer said Wednesday.

COVID-stricken Oregon deploys National Guard to hospitals

Oregon’s governor said Friday she will send up to 1,500 National Guard troops to hospitals around the state to support healthcare workers as the COVID-19 surges amid the rapid spread of the Delta variant.

Northwest heat wave and bad air from wildfires pose danger

Temperatures were expected to soar to triple digits again Friday in Portland, Oregon, and Seattle as a heat wave bakes the Pacific Northwest, and forecasters said hot weather and wildfire smoke would pose a problem through the weekend.

Wildfire smoke anticipated to impact coastal and metro communities

Forest Service advisors are warning that the air quality in coastal and metro communities is anticipated to worsen by Thursday due to several fires burning across the Pacific Northwest. 

COVID: Oregon issues mask mandate, warns of hospital surge

Gov. Kate Brown on Tuesday announced a statewide indoor mask requirement in Oregon as coronavirus hospitalizations and cases reach record high numbers in the state and health care systems are overwhelmed.

Man who sold drugs, bought guns tied to shootings sentenced

A Portland, Oregon man who sold counterfeit Oxycodone pills laced with fentanyl and trafficked guns to gang members has been sentenced to nearly six years in federal prison, authorities said.

Northwest heat wave targeted vulnerable, tested climate prep

Karen Colby thought she could make it through an unprecedented Pacific Northwest heat wave with a little help from her neighbor, who dribbled cold water on her head and visited every hour to wrap frozen towels around her neck.

Portland mayor: Police should prepare for body cameras

Portland, Oregon, Mayor Ted Wheeler is directing the police bureau to prepare for a body worn camera program in anticipation of the U.S. Department of Justice forcing the issue.

Hundreds of lightning bolts hit dry Oregon, start new fires

Lightning bolts struck the parched forests of southern Oregon hundreds of times in 24 hours, igniting some 50 new wildfires even as the nation’s largest wildfire continued to burn less than 100 miles (161 kilometers) away, officials said on Monday.

Masks required in Oregon schools and state agency buildings

It has been a month since Oregon lifted statewide coronavirus-related restrictions, but this week Gov. Kate Brown has announced the reimplementation of mask requirements in schools and state agency buildings.

Proposal to lay cables under Columbia met with skepticism

Can slicing a 100-mile trench into the bed of the Columbia River be good for the environment? The answer is a big yes, says a team of energy developers that proposes submerging power cables in the riverbed.

Portland approves $600K to settle cop’s fatal shooting

The City Council in Portland, Oregon, on Wednesday approved a $600,000 payment to the family of a 24-year-old shot and killed by police after a foot chase that outside consultants later criticized as a police policy violation.

Extreme weather fuels Oregon wildfires; outside help sought

The threat of thunderstorms and lightning has prompted officials in fire-ravaged Oregon to ask for help from outside the Pacific Northwest to prepare for additional blazes.

Size of Oregon wildfire underscores vastness of the US West

The monstrous wildfire burning in Oregon has grown to a third the size of Rhode Island and spreads miles each day, but evacuations and property losses have been minimal compared with much smaller blazes in densely populated areas of California.

Huge Oregon blaze grows as wildfires burn across western US

The largest wildfire in the U.S. torched more dry forest landscape in Oregon on Sunday, one of dozens of major blazes burning across the West as critically dangerous fire weather loomed in the coming days.

1 killed, at least 6 others hurt in Portland shooting near food truck pod

An 18-year-old woman was killed and at least six others were hurt overnight in downtown Portland when someone started shooting into a crowd of people near a food truck pod.