Florence museum director arrested on sex abuse charges

July 11, 2025

FLORENCE — The director of the Oregon Coast Military Museum in Florence was arrested Thursday, July 10 and later lodged at the Lane County Jail on accusations of sexual abuse of a minor. The Florence Police Department said officers received a report June 29 that Geoffrey Cannon, 27, was in an inappropriate relationship with the minor. Search warrants were executed at the

One man’s journey shines light on 100-year-old “Toledo Incident” that has similarities to what is happening today

July 10, 2025

By SHAYLA ESCUDERO/Lincoln Chronicle Before a white mob dragged Ichiro Kawamoto out of his home in Toledo, a battering ram pounded the door and rocks hurled down like rain. Spectators clapped as Asian laborers and their families were forced into waiting trucks and driven to Corvallis where they were put on a train to Portland. A century has passed

Wave energy proponents at OSU waiting for word from federal government if money for testing is coming

July 10, 2025

By DANA TIMS/Lincoln Chronicle Dan Hellin is no stranger to delays when it comes to building the nation’s first wave-energy testing facility just off the central Oregon coast. Last summer, for instance, a major hurricane inflicted extensive damage and disruption to shipping traffic in parts of Mexico and the Caribbean, temporarily delaying the delivery of steel cables critical to the

Florence children’s theater group now thriving by involving the whole family and community

July 10, 2025

By LORI TOBIAS/Oregon ArtsWatch FLORENCE — Nothing turns a head like a bearded man in a pink tutu. Throw in a bushel of the sparkly stuff, and you’ve got the makings of celebrity. In this case, the would-be stars are The Tutu Dads, part of the Florence-based children’s theater group C.R.O.W. Until recently, there were no men in frilly pastels

Five Lincoln County fire districts send crews to southern Oregon blaze

July 10, 2025

The Lincoln County Fire Defense Board has mobilized a specialized wildfire task force to assist in battling the Elk Fire in Klamath County, according to the Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office. The deployment came at the request of the Oregon State Fire Marshal as part of the state’s coordinated wildfire response under the Emergency Conflagration Act. The task force left Lincoln

Following months of speculation that he won’t, Oregon senator Jeff Merkley says he will run again

July 10, 2025

By ALEX BAUMHARDT/Oregon Capital Chronicle Oregon’s junior U.S. Sen. Jeff Merkley, a Democrat, will seek a fourth term in Congress. Merkley, 68, announced Thursday he’d run again for the Senate seat he’s held for more than 16 years. He’s represented Oregon in the U.S. Senate since 2009, alongside Oregon’s senior U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden, also a Democrat. Merkley was last

Passage of federal tax bill last week means major upheaval for Oregon’s health care system

July 10, 2025

By KRISTIN de LEON/The Oregonian/OregonLive Oregon’s health care landscape faces a major upheaval under the landmark federal tax and spending bill signed into law last week by President Donald Trump. The legislation delivers the largest tax cuts in U.S. history and gives more money to immigration enforcement and border security, paying for it in part with some of the deepest

Waldport city manager and Secretary of State’s office disagree on whether it offered advice on incomplete audits

July 10, 2025

Editor’s note: This story was updated at 12:30 p.m. Thursday to include information from the city’s new auditor. By GARRET JAROS/Lincoln Chronicle WALDPORT – The city of Waldport has not submitted a state required annual audit since 2020, leaving a vocal few in the community as well as recently-elected mayor Heide Lambert to question why – and not finding

State says ocean waters at Newport beach are now OK

July 9, 2025

Update Wednesday, July 9: The Oregon Health Authority says the public can return to ocean waters at Nye Beach in Newport. The beach has been under a health advisory for a little over a week after higher than normal levels of fecal bacteria was discovered in the water there. The contamination could have been caused by a storm, failed septic

Rotary Club and bevy of organizations and students tackle beach microplastics one sieve at a time

July 9, 2025

By ELIOT SEKULER/Oregon Coast TODAY NEWPORT — Sailing on the wind and the sea, the tiny particles find their way into everything. Like a sci-fi movie plague, the worldwide buildup of microplastics – plastic scraps measuring less than 3/16 of an inch – is menacing the planet, permeating food, water and, as it breaks down further, the air we