Oregon
Bend losing, Portland and Eugene winning: Large Oregon districts see mixed results from school levies
Three of Oregon’s largest school districts had measures on the May ballot to either establish or renew levies in their communities.
Portland Public and Eugene appeared to have gotten a “yes” from voters. But others weren’t so lucky.
According to initial results this week, voters in the Bend-La Pine School District are rejecting a new tax levy that district leaders say is needed to maintain class sizes and staffing, add career technical education programs and more.
Bend-La Pine administrators warned voters before the election that if the levy didn’t pass, they’d have to eliminate up to 180 positions over the next two years, and average class sizes would likely increase by four students. They said counseling and support services would be stretched thin, and there would be a 30% reduction in building budgets.
Scott Maben, director of communications for the district, told OPB it’s too early to say if the school board will go back to voters any time soon.
“Superintendent [Steven] Cook will discuss the outcome of this election with the board at an upcoming board meeting,” he wrote in an email Wednesday, “possibly June 18.”
Maben said the district needs time to analyze the results of the election and listen to feedback from voters who did not support the levy request. He said there may be a variety of reasons it didn’t pass, and they want to look into that closely.
However, he acknowledged it wasn’t close. Results as of Wednesday morning showed about 57% of the votes cast were in opposition.
“That’s a clear message that voters are not in favor of adding a local option levy in our district at this time,” Maben said. “We certainly are disappointed in these results, as we believe the priorities we had identified for levy funding are important and deserving of additional investment.”
Local taxes have become a key source of funding for many Oregon schools. That’s especially important this year as districts across the region face tens of millions of dollars in budget deficits. Educators are losing their jobs, and in some cases, entire schools or districts are at risk of being closed.
It’s often easier for districts to renew existing levies — such as those in Portland and Eugene — than to introduce a new tax. In some parts of the state, passing taxes to support schools may fail repeatedly before a district is able to win the support of a majority of voters, as happened in the small Gervais district this election.
Maben said leaders in Bend-La Pine are also focusing their efforts on securing adequate state funding for the 2025-27 biennium.
“We are already deeply engaged in communicating with state leaders regarding the challenges of meeting the needs of our students with the current state of education funding in Oregon,” he wrote. “We will intensify these efforts as we approach the next legislative session.”
Maben said the future financial difficulties caused by the failed levy are separate from current budget conversations.
The school district has already built its proposed budget for the 2024-25 school year, which, like many districts across the state, reduces staffing and other spending. That budget will go to the school board next month for final approval.
The budget for the upcoming school year eliminates close to 60 positions across the district by eliminating vacant positions — rather than through layoffs. Maben said additional cuts may be necessary for the following 2025-26 school year as a result of the vote, but those conversations will be part of the budget process starting next January.
Oregon
28 People Trapped Upside Down on Amusement Park Ride AtmosFEAR Rescued by Fire Department in Oregon
More than two dozen people are recovering after a theme park ride in Oregon left them hanging upside down for more than 20 minutes.
On Friday, June 14, 28 passengers were riding Portland’s Oaks Amusement Park’s AtmosFEAR at around 2:55 p.m. when the ride stopped in its place, suspending them all upside down in its “apex position,” the park said in a statement shared to X (formerly Twitter).
According to the amusement park, the ride operators working on AtmosFEAR — which can operate on either a 180- or 360-degree setting as it sends its riders flipping through the air on a loop — called 911 and began initiating “emergency procedures.”
First responders, including Portland Fire & Rescue, arrived on the scene around 3:20 p.m., the park said. Within minutes all of the riders were taken off the ride and safely returned to the ground.
“We wish to express our deepest appreciation to the first responders and our staff for taking prompt action, leading to a positive outcome today, and to the rest of the park guests who swiftly followed directions to vacate the park to make way for the emergency responders to attend to the situation,” park officials wrote in the statement. “Most of all, we are thankful that the riders are safe and with their families.”
Park visitor Daniel Allen told local ABC affiliate station KATU that the experience stunned him so much that he began to cry when he finally touched the ground.
“I was crying, not of joy, not of anything, I was just crying. I was more happy, I was alive. I don’t think I’ve ever appreciated my life more. This is really an acknowledgement moment for me,” he told the outlet.
Fellow AtmosFEAR rider Jordan Harding also told the outlet that although she did not suffer any medical issues from being stuck upside down, the entire experience was uncomfortable.
“My entire waist below was asleep,” she said. “[A fellow rider] told me, he was like, ‘You have to hold your legs back.’ It was so hard. It was so bad.”
“So there’s this like woman firefighter, and she’s like tiny, and she’s like, ‘Oh I got you,’ ” Harding continued, describing her rescuer. “I’m like, ‘Are you sure?’ And she literally, like, picked me up, and I was just so overwhelmed and everything, I gave her, like, the biggest hug.”
One rider, who had pre-existing health conditions prior to the incident, was transported to a local hospital as a precaution, the park said. All other riders were assessed by first responders and given the go-ahead to go home.
According to a Facebook post shared by Portland Fire on Saturday, June 15, rescue teams had previously trained for this scenario, and the amusement park added in its statement that the team had even been trained to respond to an emergency on this exact ride.
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“[Firefighters] have preplanned this scenario and were en route to the site ready to deploy to put our plan into action,” the fire department wrote in the post. “It may have taken a few minutes longer to return everyone to the ground, but we are ready for this and many other unique emergencies. We leave nothing to chance as we preplan and train on what ‘could’ happen before it actually happens.”
According to the park, AtmosFEAR first opened in 2021 and has “operated without incident” until Friday — which was also the park’s first day of operation for the 2024 summer season.
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Oaks Park told KATU that it would initiate an investigation with the help of the ride’s manufacturer and state inspectors in an attempt to figure out what caused the ride to stop.
The park closed for the day soon after the incident, officials added, and Oak’s website states that the attraction will be closed until further notice.
Oregon
28 rescued after ride malfunctions at century-old amusement park in Oregon
Emergency crews in Oregon rescued 28 people Friday after they were stuck for about half an hour dangling upside down high on a ride at a century-old amusement park.
Portland Fire and Rescue said on the social platform X that firefighters worked with engineers at Oaks Park to manually lower the ride, but crews had been prepared to conduct a high-angle ropes rescue if necessary. All riders were being evacuated and medically evaluated, and there were no reports of injuries.
One rider with a pre-existing medical condition was taken to a hospital for further evaluation as a precaution, Oaks Amusement Park said in a statement posted on social media. Medics released all other passengers.
Rider Daniel Allen told CBS News affiliate KION that the ordeal was “just crazy.”
“My entire bladder hurts. I was holding back throw-up. My legs are killing me,” said Allen.
The ride, called AtmosFEAR, operates like a pendulum, with the capacity to swing riders completely upside down. Jordan Harding, another passenger on the ride, told KION people were “praying to God, screaming for their life, throwing up, passing out,” while they waited for help.
“The ride went up, the kids got stuck on the ride and they were just dangling,” Lavina Waters, a witness to the incident, told KION. “And somebody came in and said ‘Hey, the kids are stuck on the ride’ and I look up, and sure enough, they were stuck on the ride.”
When the ride stopped, park staff immediately called 911 and emergency responders arrived about 25 minutes later, the park statement said. Park maintenance workers were able to return the ride to its unloading position minutes after first responders arrived.
Portland Fire said about 30 people were on board. The amusement park statement said there were 28 riders. KION also reported 28 riders.
The ride has been in operation since 2021 and has not had any prior incidents, the park said. It will remain closed until further notice. Jon Harrell, a Portland Fire and Rescue spokesperson, told KION that crews are familiar with the attraction.
“I know that our high and go rope rescue team has specifically drilled as recently as last year on this ride and extrication of individuals from this ride,” he said.
The park said it would work with the ride’s manufacturer and state inspectors to determine the cause of the stoppage.
“We wish to express our deepest appreciation to the first responders and our staff for taking prompt action, leading to a positive outcome today, and to the rest of the park guests who swiftly followed directions to vacate the park to make way for the emergency responders to attend to the situation,” it said.
Oaks Park first opened in 1905. Its website says it offers a “uniquely Portland blend of modern thrills and turn-of-the-century charm on a midway that has delighted generations of Northwesterners.”
Oregon
Firefighters rescue 28 people stuck upside down on Oregon ride
Firefighters rescued 28 people who were stuck dangling 100ft upside down on a ride at an amusement park in Oregon.
One person with a pre-existing medical condition was taken to hospital as a precaution after the AtmosFEAR ride stopped, Oaks Amusement Park, in Portland, said in a statement posted on social media.
However, they said no one was injured in the incident.
Chris Ryan said he and his wife, who were at the park for his birthday were just about to go on the ride – which operates like a pendulum, with the capacity to swing riders completely upside down – when they saw it was stuck.
He heard people saying: “Oh my God, they are upside down.” He said they decided to walk away because of “how scary the situation was”.
They eventually got on a Ferris wheel and heard a loudspeaker announcement that the park was closed and that people should evacuate.
Portland Fire and Rescue said on X that firefighters worked with engineers at Oaks Park, which first opened in 1905, to manually lower the ride, but that crews had been preparing to conduct a high-angle ropes rescue if necessary.
When the ride stopped, park staff immediately called the emergency services, who arrived around 25 minutes later.
Maintenance workers were then able to return the ride to its unloading position minutes later, the park said in a statement.
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The ride has been in operation since 2021 and has not had any prior incidents, the park said. It will remain closed until further notice.
The park said it would work with the ride’s manufacturer and state inspectors to determine the cause of the stoppage.
“We wish to express our deepest appreciation to the first responders and our staff for taking prompt action, leading to a positive outcome today, and to the rest of the park guests who swiftly followed directions to vacate the park to make way for the emergency responders to attend to the situation,” it said.
Oaks Park’s website says it offers a “uniquely Portland blend of modern thrills and turn-of-the-century charm on a midway that has delighted generations of Northwesterners”.
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