OREGON -- When the days get a little longer, that’s the signal to dust off the cob webs and de-winterize your boat.  The weather is about to take a turn from gray to sunny and it’s a great feeling to have your boat and gear prepared for the first opportunity.  The Oregon State Marine Board offers some reminders and suggestions for getting your boat ready for the first excursion this season. [full story]

Using GIS Technology, Oregonians will be Able to Track Where and How Stimulus Dollars are Invested.SALEM, Ore. – Governor Ted Kulongoski today announced a new feature of the state’s recovery Web site that provides the public with the ability to track how state and local governments are spending federal stimulus dollars provided by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA). “I am committed to ensuring that Oregon taxpayers know how their dollars are being spent to create ... [full story]

OAKRIDGE, Ore. – Four adults, two men and two women, were killed early this morning when their SUV crossed the oncoming lane of Highway 58 about five miles east of Oakridge, went off the road and became airborne when it rolled down an embankment and crashed into a large tree, crushing the passenger compartment, police reported.   The small SUV went airborne when it rolled down an embankment and crashed into a large cedar tree (above). ... [full story]

Deschutes, Crook and Jefferson Counties’ Unemployment Rates about Doubled from One Year Ago   Seasonally adjusted unemployment rates in Central Oregon continued to rise in February. Individual county rates ranged from 12.6 percent in Deschutes County to 16.1 percent in Crook County. The statewide rate also increased, from 9.8 percent in January to 10.8 percent in February. Deschutes County (Bend MSA): The county’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate increased to 12.6 percent in February from a revised ... [full story]

OAKRIDGE, Ore. – Four adults, two men and two women, were killed early this morning when their SUV crossed the oncoming lane of Highway 58 about five miles east of Oakridge, went off the road and became airborne when it rolled down an embankment and crashed into a large tree, crushing the passenger compartment, police reported.   The small SUV went airborne when it rolled down an embankment and crashed into a large cedar tree (above). ... [full story]

LA PINE, Ore. – A Redmond man and woman wisely had food and water with them when they were forced to spend a cold night in their SUV that became stuck in the snow on FS Road 22 about 25 miles east of La Pine this weekend, deputies reported. Tyler Purcell, 22, and 35-year old Crystal Bales of Redmond had been traveling on Finley Butte Road (FS-22) near milepost 25 and the South Ice Caves when ... [full story]

BEND, Ore. – A 25-year old Bend man was arrested early Sunday morning in his younger sister’s northeast Bend townhome after she frantically called 911 and reported that he had threatened to kill her with a knife, police reported.   Jared Abraham Hendriks – DCJ photo  According to Bend Police Sgt. Andy Homan, officers were called to 1697 NE Lotus Drive #2 about 12:13 a.m., March 22, when Sarah Hendriks, 23, reported having locked herself in a ... [full story]

BEND, Ore. -- Construction crews continue work on the Deschutes Market Overcrossing project located between Bend and Redmond.  The project will consist of extending the first phase of the Deschutes Market Overcrossing project that crossed over Highway 97 east to connect into Deschutes Market Road and will consist of building a structure over the railroad tracks.  Part of this project will involve a temporary bypass road on Deschutes Market Road to avoid the construction.  Drivers ... [full story]

SALIDA, Colo. -- Plans by the Nestle food company to remove water from the Arkansas River in Colorado for bottled water sales are too risky, state residents say. Michele Riggio, Chaffee County Citizens for Sustainability co-founder, said Nestle's plan to remove and bottle water from the Arkansas River in Chaffee County in central Colorado offers no "proven benefits" for area residents, The Denver Post said Monday. "We have to take everything they are promising on faith," Riggio ... [full story]

BRUSSELS -- Danish Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen appears next in line to become the NATO secretary-general, analysts said in Brussels. Rasmussen, who reportedly has the backing of Britain, will likely get the job over Washington's preferred candidate, Canadian Defense Minister Peter MacKay, and would succeed Jaap de Hoop Scheffer at the helm of the alliance, the EU Observer said Monday. McKay told a press conference at the Brussels Forum event Sunday that he is more focused ... [full story]