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Nestucca Students Leave Their Mark
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Headlight Herald
Tuesday, May 20, 2025 | Vol. 137, Issue 20
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www.TillamookHeadlightHerald.com
South Fork Forest Camp holds fire school WILL CHAPPELL
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Headlight Editor
outh Fork Forest Camp held its annual fire camp for its adults in custody last week, with a field training day held on May 14 to give the students a chance to practice skills in a hands-on environment. Inmates at South Fork Forest Camp, jointly operated by the Oregon Department of Correction (DOC) and Oregon Department of Forestry (ODF), have been fighting fires since the camp was established in 1951, and ODF Assistant Camp Manager Dana Turner said that those in the program value the opportunity. “It’s a privilege to be at this camp, it’s the only fenceless minimum-security camp in the state of Oregon and it’s a privilege to be here,” Turner said, “and I would say most of these guys want to be here.” Founded in response to the Tillamook Burn, the series of four fires that leveled the majority of what is now the Tillamook State Forest between 1933 and 1951, South Fork Forest Camp is located a little over a mile and a half off Highway 6, near milepost 28, and is home to 125 adults in custody. Those at the camp all have less than five years remaining on their sentences and are selected for the program by a committee of staff members. All participants must have been incarcerated for at least six months by DOC, and they are selected based on a variety of criteria, including their behavior, victim profile and time left to serve. All participants earn a wildland firefighter type II certification during the annual May camp, where they learn skills like mopping up a burned-over area, creating a fire line, laying hose and using fire shelters. With this certification, maintained in annual refresher courses, program participants are eligible for wildland firefighting positions in the public or private sector upon
Courtesy photo
New Tillamook City Manager Sean Lewis.
Headlight photo by Will Chappell
Trainees practice mop-up operations to prevent hot spots using several controlled burns.
release, and Turner said that ODF had hired two ex-participants this year alone. “So, Department of Forestry, we do hire ex-adults-in-custody who’ve been through South Fork, which is pretty cool,” Turner said. During the fire season, crews typically respond to fires within a three-hour drive, according to Turner, though they can also travel farther to larger conflagrations for up to 14 days. Much of the crews’ work focuses on mop-up and line-cutting activities, but Turner said that last year they had several opportunities to participate in initial attacks as well. Flynn Lovejoy, one of the firefighters who has been at South Fork for a little over a year, said that he had come from Snake River Correctional Facility in Eastern Oregon and was excited to be at South Fork. Lovejoy said that he thought
the opportunity could provide an “awesome segue” back into society upon his release and that he enjoys being able to fight fires while in custody. “It’s incredible,” Lovejoy said, “being able to go out and fight fires while I’m incarcerated in prison, it’s super cool.” While not responding to fires during the summer months, crews spend their time maintaining recreational assets in the adjoining state forests, including by making signs in a workshop at the camp. In the winter months, their focus pivots to forest management, including thinning operations, prescribed burns and other reforestation efforts. Firefighters in the program work 40 hours weekly and earn $112 monthly, plus an additional $20 for any day spent responding to a conflagration. They can also earn a wildland firefighter type I certifica-
tion following their initial training by helping in the training of others and responding to a variety of different scenarios in the field. At the field training day, ODF firefighters and seasoned program participants manned four stations spread across the camp’s grounds to reinforce a week of classroom learning. At one, trainees practiced clearing burned over areas of pieces of hot wood in a safe manner to prevent flare ups, while at another they got hands-on experience cutting a fire line with the various tools of the trade. Another station saw the fighters learn the proper way to unroll and reroll hose, while the final station consisted of drilling the use of emergency shelters, used when a fighter is overtaken by a conflagration.
Fournier pushes for Highway 6 fix WILL CHAPPELL
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Headlight Editor
ollowing a landslide in late 2024 that caused significant damage to Highway 6 near mile marker 35 in Washington County, Tillamook County Commissioner Paul Fournier is looking to build support for a permanent fix to address the two active slides in the area. While Oregon Department of
Transportation (ODOT) crews address issues as they arise and are examining longer-term solutions, Fournier said that he is concerned a major storm could knock the roadway out for months, a situation he feels the counties and ODOT should be prepared for. “I’m just trying to raise the alarm because we will be devastated if that thing is closed for any length of time,” Fournier said, “like our TLT, you know, we’re relying on that, people who long-term visit will make that trip around, but overnight visitors won’t.” Highway 6 was built during the great depression by workers from the Works Progress Administration, providing the first direct road link between Tillamook County and the Willamette Valley. Unfortunately, the section of the 48-mile highway crossing through a pass in the coastal range, between mile markers 31 and 37, was constructed on unstable slopes, leading to damage to the road as early as the 1950s, according to Mindy McCart, a public information officer for ODOT. McCart said that the section of the road at the counties’ border is on an unstable slope that is prone to landslides and ground movement that cause ongoing damage, including broken and sunken pavement. Geotechnical experts from
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Fournier surveys the edge of the slide at mile marker 34.8.
ODOT have monitored the area for years, according to McCart, and have identified two major landslides around mile marker 34.8, which move by a quarter or inch or more some weeks. During the summer months, ODOT crews repave the sections most damaged by the slides, which they then maintain as best they can through the winter months. While no concrete plans or funding for longer-term fixes currently exist, a 2023 safety study, funded by a bill sponsored by State Senator Suzanne Weber, found that
addressing 18 priority unstable slopes between mileposts 31 and 35 would cost between $38 and $49.4 million. McCart said that ODOT engineers were also looking at less expensive repair options, including new retaining walls or a possible road realignment away from the most unstable areas, with price tags ranging from $6 million to more than $20 million. Even those smaller figures outstrip available resources, though,
Lewis takes reins at Tillamook City Hall WILL CHAPPELL
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Headlight Editor
fter an extensive nationwide search with the assistance of WBCP, Inc., a professional recruitment agency, the Tillamook City Council has chosen Sean Lewis to be the next City Manager of Tillamook. Mr. Lewis was selected out of nearly 60 applicants and brings with him more than 16 years of experience in local government. Previously Mr. Lewis worked as a Deputy Director for Community Development for South Salt Lake, Utah; and was a County Planner in Summit County, Utah. Most recently, he served as the City Manager of Ephraim, Utah, where he was formerly the Planning and Zoning Administrator. Lewis is a member of the American Institute of Certified Planners through the American Planning Association and a member of the International City/County Managers Association. “The City was very fortunate to have a very broad and deep applicant pool to choose from. It was an extremely competitive recruitment,” said Interim City Manager, Kevin Perkins. “Everyone at the City is excited to begin working with Sean.” “ I am humbled and excited to have been offered the opportunity to be the next City Manager of Tillamook City,” said Lewis. “My family and I are looking forward to experiencing all that Tillamook and Oregon has to offer!” Mayor, Aaron Burris, stated, “I am happy to welcome Sean to the team and look forward to working with him in this important role.” Lewis started with the City on May 12, 2025, and has agreed to a 2-year contract with the City. His initial salary will be $136,200.
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