Oregon

Volunteers fill gaps in rural Oregon emergency medical care

Published

8 months ago

June 25, 2025

Volunteers fill gaps in rural Oregon emergency medical care

An air ambulance lands as rural EMS volunteers and students train at the site of a simulated car wreck on April 12, 2025. The training covers how to create a safe helicopter landing zone and stay in contact with the flight crew on board.

Jennifer Baires / OPB

On New Year’s Day in 2023, Erik Kerr met up with a snowmobiling group near Crescent in south-central Oregon, intending to ride through the forest to the rim of Crater Lake.

But he never made it that day.

“I hit the tree dead between the skis,” Kerr said recently. “My torso went forward. My head missed the tree somehow. I could have easily broken my neck.”

Thrown off the snowmobile, Kerr landed in a snow drift, off trail and out of sight. He lay in the snow watching the other riders pass by unaware.

“My leg was snapped,” Kerr said. “I’m just freaking out. I’m like, ‘Great. Nobody’s going to see me.’”

But Kerr was luckier than most who find themselves injured in Oregon’s backcountry. Riding behind the group happened to be James Wilson, an EMT and the fire chief of Crescent. Wilson sprang into action.

“I came across him, did a quick patient assessment, saw that there was definitely a potential fracture going on there and a lot of pain,” he said.

First responders load Erik Kerr into an ambulance after a snowmobiling crash on Jan. 1, 2023.
*Courtesy of Erik Kerr / Courtesy of Erik Kerr*

Even with the good fortune of being found right away, Kerr waited over four hours to make it to a hospital bed in Bend. Thick fog in the region meant going by helicopter wasn’t an option.

Wilson said accidents like Kerr’s are common in his agency’s coverage area, and the calls for help are increasing.

From Crescent in Klamath County, Wilson’s EMS crew covers over 1,000 square miles. During busy holiday weekends, the population can surge to over 10,000 people.

“We’ve gone from an agency that was very small and with under 300 calls a year, five or six years ago, to where this year we’re on track to breaking 800 calls for service,” Wilson said.

Roughly 70% of Oregon’s ground ambulance service areas are in rural communities, according to the state’s Office of Rural Health.

Without a state-mandated tax base to fund local EMS, many rural agencies struggle to staff and maintain ground services, relying frequently on costly air resources and unpaid volunteers.

The level of medical care a volunteer EMS provider can offer varies greatly. Oftentimes they’re certified as EMTs and are only trained to provide basic care. Unlike paramedics, they can’t start an IV line, administer medication or intubate a patient. The years of schooling required to be a paramedic are demanding, and the associated costs are steep — around $20,000.

Crescent Fire volunteer Chris Jones (far right) washes an ambulance on May 30, 2025. Jones retired last year after 25 years as a firefighter and paramedic in La Pine. He says calls for help have increased past what rural agencies can handle.
*Jennifer Baires / OPB*

Hiring and retaining professional medics is another hurdle, Wilson said. Rural agencies typically offer smaller salaries than their urban counterparts. It’s a problem that Wilson said he faces in Crescent, and one that Oregon Office of Rural Health Director Robert Duehmig said is being felt statewide as older medics age out of the job.

“The population of existing EMTs is starting to retire out,” Duehmig said. “And some of the EMTs that are working are older, and that becomes a bigger danger to them trying to lift people and respond to those kinds of calls, particularly in bad weather.”

Duehmig said there are grants available to help support training for staff and volunteers at rural agencies. His office has a staff member dedicated to helping agencies find ways to increase their workforce and connect to resources. A bill under consideration in the Oregon Legislature now would raise the annual tax credit available to rural medical volunteers from $250 to $1,000.

Chris Jones volunteers for Crescent Fire, and understands firsthand the need for well-trained help. He spent 25 years as a professional paramedic before retiring in 2023.

“Rural areas need extra people,” Jones said. “I figured I have some extra time available, might as well volunteer.”

Responding to emergencies in isolated areas takes dedication, with or without a paycheck, he added.

“It’s a love for the job, a love for the rural community,” he said.

His son, Cruz Jones, also volunteers with Crescent Fire as a resident volunteer student. He’s working toward his paramedic certifications at Central Oregon Community College. By using a Federal Emergency Management Agency grant and its own funds, Crescent Fire is paying for his education. He even lives at the station and volunteers extra time to fill shifts.

The student-resident program is one way Crescent has been able to adequately staff its ambulances, Wilson said. Depending on the day and location, it can take up to four hours for a ground ambulance to arrive after a 911 call in rural Oregon.

Air ambulance operators said they are increasingly getting calls to transport patients from rural areas.

Paul Pearlmutter, a flight respiratory therapist with AirLink, prepares the air ambulance in Bend on May 30, 2025.
*Jennifer Baires / OPB*
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Paul Pearlmutter is a flight respiratory therapist at AirLink Critical Care Transport, a medical flight company based in Bend. He’s flown with the private company for the last decade and said aside from inter-hospital transfers, the majority of its calls to scenes are in outlying areas. Pearlmutter said he’s noticed an increase in calls for patients who aren’t critically sick or injured.

“Sometimes they’re less critical but still need to get to Bend,” Pearlmutter said. “We will go fly just to help alleviate the stress on the [ground] EMS in that system.”

A helicopter ride can range widely from a few thousand dollars to over a hundred thousand dollars, according to AirLink representative Marta Jaroch.

One mother’s seven-minute helicopter ride to transport her premature baby between hospitals racked up $40,000 in bills, Jaroch said.

EMS leaders said they would like to avoid using costly air resources for less-critical patients. To help, some rural agencies east of the Cascades are working together to build up the volunteer base of trained first responders. Some of them, like North Lake County EMS in Christmas Valley, are entirely owned and operated by volunteers.

The view from an AirLink air ambulance as it flies near the company's base in Bend on May 30, 2025. — The view from an AirLink air ambulance as it flies near the company’s base in Bend on May 30, 2025.
*Jennifer Baires / OPB*

In April, sagebrush and juniper trees dotted the landscape around a turnout area on Highway 31 near Fort Rock Junction in Lake County. Two cars were parked with their front bumpers inches apart. Inside the vehicles, actors posed as if they’d just been in a wreck. A woman was draped over the steering wheel, another was lying against the passenger door frame and a child in the back was slumped over in a booster seat.

North Lake County EMS and AirLink set up this scene as part of a training for over a half a dozen rural EMS agencies across three counties. The actors were there to help first responders prepare for a mass-casualty event, said AirLink’s Jaroch.

“The EMTs are going to ask them questions and they’re going to say, ‘Well, I’m feeling nauseated. My neck hurts, my head hurts, or I’m having severe abdominal pain,’” she said.

Katie Lossing, an EMT student at Klamath Community College, leaned into the car window.

Erik Kerr successfully completes the trip to the rim of Crater Lake on May 10, 2025.
*Courtesy of Erik Kerr / Courtesy of Erik Kerr*

“Hey sweetheart, you with us?” Lossing asked the driver

“Pressure. My head hurts,” the woman replied.

After assessing the victims, the group convened to determine which patients were critical and required air transport.

It’s a scenario that volunteers need to be familiar with when working in rural areas, Jaroch said.

And their efforts are appreciated, especially by people like Erik Kerr — the snowmobiler who broke his leg two years ago.

He’s healed up now, and recently returned to the backcountry to finish his ride to Crater Lake.

Jennifer Baires is a freelance journalist based in Bend. She can be reached at jbaires@opb.org.

Editor’s note: OPB is a nonprofit, statewide news organization with a mission to tell stories for communities in all parts of Oregon and Southwest Washington. As part of that goal, we work with partner news organizations and freelancers to identify stories like this that might otherwise go untold. If you have an idea for a story, live in an area outside Portland and want to work with us, send your freelance pitches to ecureton@opb.org.

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Oregon

New Data Shows Oregon E-Scooter Injuries on the Rise

Published

4 hours ago

March 5, 2026

Press Room

New Data Shows Oregon E-Scooter Injuries on the Rise

Data released by the Oregon Health Authority this week suggests Oregonians are getting hurt on electric scooters more every year.

In recent years, according to OHA, an “e-scooter-specific code” was developed for health care tracking purposes.

From 2021 to 2024, annual injury reports under this code from Oregon hospitals and emergency departments jumped from 211 to 418.

And in just the first nine months of 2025, there had been 509 such reports.

“These injuries are not minor scrapes,” said Dagan Wright, an OHA epidemiologist, in a written statement. “They often involve head injuries, broken bones, and other serious trauma that requires emergency or inpatient care.”

The city of Portland signed contracts with three e-scooter rental companies in 2018, as the transportation craze spread across the country. But e-scooter injury diagnosis codes are relatively new in health care reporting, Wright said in the OHA statement.

“While the overall numbers remain smaller than for other transportation-related injuries, the rapid increase over a short period of time is a clear safety signal,” OHA added.

The agency highlighted the story of Portland e-scooter commuter Daniel Pflieger, who it says was riding a scooter home when he reportedly slid on ice. He bruised several ribs.

Sometimes outcomes are worse. OHA identified 17 deaths linked to electric or motorized scooters since 2018, and seven of those occurred in 2025.

OHA says that e-bikes raise many similar safety concerns as e-scooters. The first full year for which e-bike injuries were coded for reporting was 2023. State data shows 392 reported e-bike injuries that year, 683 in 2024, and 760 in the first nine months of 2025.

“Injuries involving e-bikes and e-scooters share common risk factors—speed, lack of helmet use, roadway design, and interactions with motor vehicles,” Wright said.

Oregon E-Scooter Injuries on the Rise (Source: Oregon Health Authority)

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Oregon

Oregon women’s basketball playing for March Madness seeding vs. Purdue

Published

16 hours ago

March 4, 2026

Press Room

Oregon women’s basketball playing for March Madness seeding vs. Purdue

At times, the Oregon women’s basketball team has certainly made things much harder on themselves than it needs to be. The team has also produced some miraculous comeback victories, putting itself in position to make women’s March Madness for the second straight season.

March 1, in their final regular season game, the Ducks (20-11, 8-10 Big Ten) finished on the wrong end of yet another tight game to Washington, 70-69. It’s the second time this season Oregon has come back from a double-digit deficit, but ended up losing to the Huskies (20-9, 10-8).

Those aren’t the only times Oregon has come back from a double-digit deficit, like it did in wins vs. Nebraska and USC. The No. 11-seed Ducks are hoping they won’t need heroics in a Big Ten tournament first-round game against No. 14 Purdue this Wednesday.

Watch Oregon basketball on Peacock

“I think our biggest weakness this year has been our inconsistency,” coach Kelly Graves said, “something we’ve battled all year. The great thing is our kids know, regardless of the score, we’ve got a chance. We’ll make it a game at some point. As a coach, it drives you nuts. Hopefully we can figure it out and play more consistent basketball.”

Oregon’s volatility has seen it earn three double-digit comeback wins this year, but also blow several games in the final moments.

Against Wisconsin, the Ducks held a 6-point lead with less than a minute remaining, but lost in overtime. Against Illinois, Oregon held a 21-point lead at halftime, blew it in the third quarter, trailed by eight with minutes to play and somehow eked out a win.

That makes UO somewhat of a wild card heading into the conference tournament this week at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis.

“It’s definitely (been) a rollercoaster,” guard Katie Fiso said. “A lot of highs and a lot of lows. But one thing that I try to see through all games is our grittiness and our toughness. One thing that stays consistent throughout the season is our toughness and our grittiness. The game isn’t over until the last bell rings.”

The Ducks will be taking on a Boilermakers (13-16, 5-13) team that has struggled against most of the top competition in the league, but played Oregon tight in a Feb. 25 Ducks win.

Graves said when the Ducks went throughout the postgame handshake line after, the Boilermakers felt like their season would end after the regular season. Thanks to some upsets, Purdue is in the Big Ten Tournament as the No. 14 seed.

“We’re playing a team that probably feels like it’s playing with house money,” Graves said. “We’ve got to pick ourselves back up and get it done.”

What channel is Oregon vs. Purdue on today in Big Ten tournament?

Oregon will tip off vs. Purdue on Peacock, with no TV option to watch the game.

Oregon vs. Purdue start time in Big Ten tournament

Date: Wednesday, March 4
Time: Around 5:30 p.m. PT

Oregon and Purdue will play around 5:30 p.m. PT at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis. The first game of the day begins at 12:30 p.m. PT, with the next game 25 minutes after the first game ends, and so on. The Ducks play in the third game of the day, so no official tip time is listed.

Oregon women’s basketball schedule 2025-26

Below are the past five games of Oregon’s 2025-26 basketball season. For the full schedule, click here.

Feb. 15	Washington 51, Oregon 43
Feb. 19	Oregon 80, Nebraska 76
Feb. 22	Indiana 72, Oregon 65
Feb. 25	Oregon 71, Purdue 65
March 1	Washington 70, Oregon 69
March 4	Oregon vs. Purdue (Big Ten tournament)

Purdue women’s basketball schedule 2025-26

Below are the past five games of Purdue’s 2025-26 basketball season. For the full schedule, click here.

Feb. 14	Purdue 72, Rutgers 57
Feb. 19	Iowa 83, Purdue 74
Feb. 22	Maryland 99, Purdue 66
Feb. 25	Oregon 71, Purdue 65
March 1	Purdue 67, Northwestern 62
March 4	Oregon vs. Purdue (Big Ten tournament)

Alec Dietz covers University of Oregon football and women’s basketball for The Register-Guard. You may reach him at adietz@registerguard.com.

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Oregon

Oregon lawmakers advance one-year moratorium on tax breaks for data centers

Published

1 day ago

March 4, 2026

Press Room

Oregon lawmakers advance one-year moratorium on tax breaks for data centers

Written by Alma McCarty & KGW:

SALEM, Oregon — In the final week of Oregon’s legislative short session, lawmakers in Salem discussed regulating data centers — specifically, placing a one-year moratorium on certain tax breaks.

Governor Tina Kotek has been looking to expand the state’s enterprise zone program, which is intended to grow Oregon companies and attract new ones. Businesses that locate or expand within designated zones can qualify for property tax exemptions on new investments if they meet eligibility requirements.

However, some advocates argue that extending incentives to data centers may not be sustainable long term.

“Data centers have been around for a while,” said Kelly Campbell, policy director for Columbia Riverkeeper. “Data centers are getting bigger and bigger. Some of these new AI hyperscale data centers are exponentially bigger than those tiny ones. They’re really just using a lot of energy, a lot of water.”

However, some advocates argue that extending incentives to data centers may not be sustainable long term.

Last week, Columbia Riverkeeper released a report examining data centers operating or planned along the Columbia River in Oregon and Washington.

“I think the question becomes, do we want to stick to our climate goals of getting to 100% renewable? Or do we want to have these big, mega data centers owned by big tech companies — some of the wealthiest corporations in the world — getting to use whatever energy they want? We would say, no, that’s not OK,” Campbell said.

On Monday, lawmakers amended an economic incentives bill to block new data centers from qualifying for certain tax breaks for one year.

“I think this moratorium is a pretty short pause to give the advisory council time and space to do their work,” said Rep. Nancy Nathanson, D-Eugene, during a subcommittee meeting Monday morning.

The Data Center Advisory Committee, convened by Kotek, held its first meeting Friday. The group’s goal is to develop policy recommendations addressing the rapid growth of data centers.

“There are some businesses that will need them, but freestanding data centers, the way we’ve been growing in the state, is not sustainable,” the Governor told reporters during a press conference last week.

On Monday, her office sent KGW a statement regarding the moratorium:

“The moratorium will address immediate concerns and also allow for the Governor’s Data Center Advisory Committee to develop recommendations to strategically pursue economic development opportunities while ensuring utility costs, infrastructure investments, and environmental impacts remain sustainable and equitable for all residents.”

Supporters of data center growth, particularly in rural communities, also spoke during work sessions.

“This moratorium will have a disparate impact on communities east of the Cascades — communities like Prineville, Hermiston and Redmond that have leveraged enterprise zones and data centers to bring hundreds of living-wage jobs to their communities,” said Alexandra Ring, a lobbyist for the League of Oregon Cities.

“While data centers may be seen as a nuisance or inconvenient in Washington County, they are not in Crook County. They are not in Morrow County, in Umatilla County,” said Sen. Mark McLane, who represents several Eastern Oregon counties, including Baker, Crook, Grant and Harney.

Even if the House and Senate ultimately approve the moratorium, it would apply only to new data centers — not those that already receive tax breaks or projects currently underway.

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