KATUBADDA, Sri Lanka -- Two roadside bus bombings -- one blamed on the rebel Tamil Tigers -- killed at least 23 people and injured more than 70 in Sri Lanka Friday, authorities said.Bombing of the first bus came at the height of rush hour commuting at Moratuwa near the capital of Colombo, killing 21 people and injuring 64, officials said. Hours later, a second bomb, planted in the central hill country near Katugastota, killed two ... [full story]

TALENT, Ore. -- One lane of northbound Interstate-5 was closed Thursday afternoon for about one-half hour when a distraught woman jumped from a freeway overpass in Talent, Oregon, police reported. An unidentified 35-year old woman jumped from the overpass near the northbound lanes of I-5 and exit 21 just before noon, Oregon State Police (OSP) Trooper William Matson said. She landed 30-feet below in an ivy-covered, sloped area off the pavement and was transported to Rogue ... [full story]

CORBETT, Ore. – One person was airlifted by helicopter and four others transported by ambulance to the hospital with serious to critical injuries sustained in a head-on crash early Friday morning when a driver reportedly was speeding, passing recklessly and driving on the wrong side of the road, deputies reported. 20-year-old Grant Thomas Millard of Corbett was flown by Life Flight to Emanuel Hospital with critical injuries, a Multnomah County Sheriff’s Office news release stated. ... [full story]

HILLSBORO, Ore. – Detectives are asking the public’s help to keep watchful for a 55-year old man with Schizophrenia who went missing in the Hillsboro area Wednesday afternoon.   Donald Errend - submitted photo  Donald Errend regularly takes medication for his diagnosed mental disease, the Washington County Sheriff’s Office news release stated. Errand was supposed to return to a group home in Aloha by bus about 2:30 p.m. after shopping at a Fred Meyer store at S.W. ... [full story]

BEND, Ore. – Two brothers were arrested early Thursday morning following a two-month investigation when detectives raided their structurally-modified homes south of Sunriver, Oregon, near State Rec. Road and discovered marijuana growing operations in concealed rooms in both residences. 78 marijuana plants and 26 firearms were seized, authorities said.   Jay Tyler Ramey, 24 (left), and Jeremiah James Ramey, 27 (right) - DCJ photos    Each of the homes had been structurally modified with hidden rooms to conceal ... [full story]

BEND, Ore. – The search for a suicidal man deputies believe may have jumped into the rapidly-moving water near the top of Benham Falls on the Deschutes River south of Bend, Oregon, Thursday night will continue this morning. Deschutes County Sheriff’s deputies and Search and Rescue Team members began the search around 7 p.m. after 911 Dispatch received a call from an adult male in the area who made statements about taking his own life, ... [full story]

PRINEVILLE, Ore. – Four people were injured, one seriously, in a rollover crash in southeast Prineville, Oregon, Wednesday night when the speeding driver lost control of a vehicle that may have been stolen earlier in the day, deputies reported.   The driver of the 1985 Dodge Ram, 21-year old Jonathan Terramin of Prineville, was cited for reckless driving and additional charges may be pending as the investigation continues, Crook County Sheriff’s Sgt. James C. Savage said. ... [full story]

Cascade Healthcare Community Saddened By Accidental Patient Death At St. Charles Medical Center-Bend; Organization Reviews Tracheostomy Procedures BEND, Ore. – On Saturday, May 31, a patient died at St. Charles Medical Center-Bend following a possible medical error, the hospital reported.   St. Charles Medical Center - Bend, Oregon “We send our deepest condolences to the patient's family, and want to assure the community that this was an isolated incident," said James A. Diegel, FACHE, president and CEO ... [full story]

SALEM, Ore. — The Oregon Progress Board reports that the state has become more racially and ethnically diverse over the past 15 years, and that Asians and Pacific Islanders—compared to other diverse groups—have made the most progress. The 2008 Oregon Benchmark Race and Ethnicity Report shows improvement in the percentage of African American adults who have completed high school, along with a decreasing dropout rate. Crime has declined among all the racial groups. African Americans, ... [full story]

Inheriting the family farm or woodland has been a traditional expectation in Oregon's culture over the past 150 years. The formula was simple: A generation would tend to an agricultural or small forest tract with the assumption that subsequent generations would continue stewardship of the land. But much has changed in Oregon's culture in the past few decades. The survival of family-owned forests – some of the most visible forestlands in the state - looks ... [full story]