Oregon
Preschool teacher finds rare fossil along Oregon coast
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PORTLAND (KPTV) — In March, Amariah Jacobs was on a hike with her husband along the Oregon coast when she found a rare fossil of an extinct animal.
“I happen to be walking on a long, long stretch of sand in the middle of nowhere and found a tiny, tiny patch of cobble,” Jacobs said. “I just thought I saw a snail and looked down but then on second thought, was like ‘what the heck are these – teeth?’”
Matthew Miller, a Smithsonian Museum specialist in paleobiology, says yes – they are teeth, and most likely of a desmostylian – a hippo-like animal that is closely related to elephants and sea cows.
“They mostly lived in the water, they were swimming around,” Miller said. “They’re eating vegetational at the bottom of the seafloor and shallow coastal environments, coming back on land to have their children.”
Miller said the tooth is estimated to be 20 to 23 million years old.
“Based on its rounded nature, like the fragment of bone that it’s in it probably weathered out of a much larger skull,” Miller said. “It’s very likely that the sea basically eroded the skull out of the rock underneath the waterline and broke it up into various fragments and just so happened that the teeth are a little bit more robust, and this fragment just happened to survive the rest of the skull broke apart.”
Miller said the find is rare because only about 1% of all living animals become fossilized.
Jacobs said she is in talks with the University of Oregon to donate the fossil.
“I just picked something up off the ground that the ocean would’ve scooped away in the next two hours and we wouldn’t have seen it again for another 20 million years,” Jacobs said. “I would love to see it be on display if it’s of quality, good enough, to be on display. And I would certainly like to see it be available for study.”
Until then, the preschool teacher wants to make the rare find a teachable moment for her students.
“The physics they need exist in the world around them, the biology they need to learn at that age exists in the world around them,” Jacobs said. “So, take the children outside, let them touch the natural world, and whenever you can, bring the natural world back inside for the children.”
CENTRAL OREGON (KTVZ) — New rules approved by Oregon regulators aimed at how utilities charge large energy users are expected to have implications beyond Portland General Electric, including for Central Oregon customers served by Pacific Power.
The Oregon Public Utility Commission approved changes allowing Portland General Electric to charge higher rates to large energy users such as data centers. The goal is to ensure those customers pay for the cost of expanding the power grid, rather than shifting those costs onto smaller or household ratepayers.
The move comes after six consecutive years of rate increases for Oregon customers, driven in part by what PGE describes as an unprecedented rise in electricity demand, with data centers as a major factor.
Under the new rules, large energy use facilities must pay 100% of the cost to expand distribution systems needed to serve them. They must also use at least 90% of their contracted power capacity, with requirements for contract lengths and penalties for exceeding usage or exiting early.
The rules define large energy users as facilities capable of drawing more than 20 megawatts of power at a time. A separate category for “very large loads” — those exceeding 100 megawatts — includes a 1 cent per kilowatt-hour surcharge, with funds going toward reducing energy burden for vulnerable customers.
The order also includes a queue system to ensure new large users can only connect when enough zero-emission energy is available to meet demand under House Bill 2021.
While the decision directly applies to PGE, Pacific Power is proposing a similar approach for customers in Central Oregon.
PacifiCorp exclusively sent a statement to KTVZ News, saying utilities have seen a growing number of extremely large new load requests in recent years, requiring significant investments in transmission and generation infrastructure.
The company has filed a proposed tariff with the Oregon Public Utility Commission under House Bill 3546 to create a new rate schedule for “New Large Energy Use Facilities.” Under the proposal, large energy users such as data centers would be required to cover the costs of infrastructure upgrades needed to serve them.
PacifiCorp said the approach would allow the utility to meet the needs of large energy users while continuing to invest in infrastructure and protecting affordability for other customer classes.
PGE has until June 3 to file a new pricing system to implement the order, which would take effect June 10. The utility is also required to begin annual reporting on large energy users starting June 1, 2027.
PORTLAND, Ore. (KATU) — The Oregon Department of Forestry is asking Oregonians to be careful when disposing of yard debris this spring.
READ MORE | High pressure brings 48-hour warmup to western Oregon as temps near 90 Tuesday
“There have already been 23 escaped debris burns for a total of 83 acres reported on ODF-protected land in 2026,” the agency said.
The agency said that at this time last year, it had responded to 37 escaped burns.
“More than 70% of wildfires every year in Oregon are human-caused, with escaped debris burns topping the list,” ODF said. “With record-low snowpack and an abnormally warm winter, forecasters are anticipating a hotter and drier summer than usual.”
The Central Oregon District of ODF has already declared the start of fire season.
On May 14, fire restrictions will go into effect for all Bureau of Land Management lands in Oregon and Washington.
“We are increasingly concerned that 2026 could rival the most extreme years on record for heat and dryness in the Pacific Northwest,” said Jeff Fedrizzi, assistant chief of operations for the Pacific Northwest, U.S. Wildland Fire Service. “Every visitor must understand that even one small spark can lead to a costly and destructive fire in these high-impact conditions.”
Officials say the restrictions will help reduce the risk of human-caused fires. BLM officials say anyone who violates the prohibition could be fined up to $100,000 and/or face up to 12 months in prison.
More information on fire season is available on the ODF website.
The Bureau of Land Management website has additional information on fire restrictions and closures.
The Oregon Lottery offers several draw games for those aiming to win big.
Here’s a look at May 10, 2026, results for each game:
Winning Pick 4 numbers from May 10 drawing
1PM: 8-2-8-4
4PM: 5-1-2-6
7PM: 1-5-9-6
10PM: 8-6-5-1
Check Pick 4 payouts and previous drawings here.
Feeling lucky? Explore the latest lottery news & results
When are the Oregon Lottery drawings held?
- Powerball: 7:59 p.m. on Monday, Wednesday and Saturday.
- Mega Millions: 7:59 p.m. on Tuesday and Friday.
- Pick 4: 1 p.m., 4 p.m., 7 p.m. and 10 p.m. daily.
- Win for Life: 7:30 p.m. on Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday.
- Megabucks: 7:29 p.m. on Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday.
This results page was generated automatically using information from TinBu and a template written and reviewed by an Oregon editor. You can send feedback using this form.
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