KWSO News Fri., Dec. 28, 2018

During the partial government shutdown, the Indian Health Service continues to provide direct clinical health care services as well as referrals for contracted services that cannot be provided through IHS clinics.  However, many non-essential administrative activities are impacted due to the lapse in funding for IHS.  IHS will continue to update the public on closures or changes to the facility hours of operation.

Madras Girls Varsity were edged by Ridgeview on the opening day of the Oregon Holiday Hoopfest at Summit High School. They will take on Eatonville today at 4:00 and Thurston on Saturday at 1:15 – both of those games will be played at Mountain View High School. The Madras Boys Varsity lost to Thurston yesterday 100-60.

Oregon’s snowpack is getting off to a weak start in the Cascades. The Natural Resources Conservation Service says the Mt. Hood area’s snowpack is half of normal, but it is improving. The Cascades in Central Oregon are also drier than usual. The good news is that Southern Oregon, which has been in the grips of a drought, has an above-normal snowpack and the mountains of northeastern Oregon and southeastern Washington are 93 percent of normal. The NRCS experts point out that January, February, and March bring the most snow to the mountains, so there’s plenty of time to improve the amount throughout the area. However, forecasters are concerned that the El Nino weather pattern that’s settled in will prevent that from happening. A typical El Nino means a drier, warmer winter for the Pacific Northwest.