Tour bus crash near Deadman Pass kills 9

December 30

Nine people were killed and 38 injured when a tour bus crashed on Interstate 84, through a guardrail and down a steep, icy 200-foot embankment.

Dozens upon dozens of emergency responders were dispatched to the scene, where they encountered numerous obstacles, one of which was a language barrier with many of the passengers. Most of the 47 on board were of Asian descent and spoke English as a second language, if at all.

Because the tragedy had personal connections to international communities in Canada, South Korea, Japan and Taiwan, the story carried quickly across the globe.  Pictures from the the crash appeared on newspapers such as The New York Times and Los Angeles Times, and was covered on radio and television in Vancouver and Soeul, among others.

This story is far from closed: some survivors and family members remain in Pendleton, hoping to reunite with their belongings and their fellow travellers.  

Amyjane Brandhagen murdered in motel

August 14

Pendleton teenager Amyjane Brandhagen is remembered for the way she loved her friends and welcomed new people into her life.

The community was shocked this summer when the 19-year-old was found stabbed to death in the Travelodge motel where she worked part-time. Police are still searching for the killer.

At the memorial service and candlelight vigil held for her a week after her death, friends and family recalled her laugh, smile and the bright energy with which she lived her life.

Brandhagen graduated from Pendleton High School in 2011 and spent half a year traveling the world with Youth With A Mission.

In the months after her death, police developed a list of suspects and people of interest based on DNA evidence from the murder scene. But because the killing happened in a hotel room, sorting through that evidence has been time-consuming.

The motel is across the street from Pendleton City Hall and the public library, and the murder happened in the daytime.

Pendleton Police Chief Stuart Roberts compared the case to a 1,000-piece jigsaw puzzle, which detectives are trying to put together without a full picture to go on.

Despite the difficulties in pinning down the details of the killing, Roberts said the investigation will go on until the guilty person or people are found.

Police find kidnapper, captive after search

May 1

A Hermiston woman was rescued by state police from her kidnapper, ex-boyfriend Alberto Quiroz Martinez, who held her against her will for five days.

Martinez, 29, pleaded guilty to kidnapping, rape and sodomy earlier this month, and last Thursday was sentenced to 35 years in prison without possibility for parole for his crimes.

The man, who had previously been incarcerated for attempted rape, stuffed the woman into the trunk of his car on the morning of Thursday, April 26, after picking her up from her job in Hermiston.

Police tracked the man to a cabin at Crescent Lake in Klamath County the following Tuesday. Martinez came out with the woman held at knifepoint, and an Oregon State Police officer shot him in the head to end the standoff.

Apartment fire at the South Hill

July 7

A fire that started in the field next to the South Hill Apartments in Pendleton quickly engulfed the complex, and by the time firefighters put it out, it had destroyed 16 units and put 60 people out of their homes.

The early July fire was the largest of several that burned residences during the summer. None were fatal.

In the face of the destruction, the people of Pendleton stepped up to provide for those who lost their residences.

Within five days, all 60 people displaced by the fire had found housing and people had donated food, clothing, appliances and furniture.

Craigen arrested after two-day manhunt

January 1

George West Craigen, a man wanted for shooting at a Milton-Freewater plumbing business and killing Cecil Robbie Carter two days earlier, was arrested on New Years Day at a gas station in Walla Walla.

Craigen was charged with murder, to which he 362 days later would plead not guilty.

About 60 people, including two SWAT teams and officers from both Oregon and Washington searched for Craigen after the shooting. He was arrested peacefully after being surrounded by police in the PDQ gas station.

The arrest was a relief to Carter’s family and friends, who didn’t know if they were at risk with the alleged shooter on the loose.

In the weeks and months following his arrest, Craigen’s case moved very slowly. His extradition from Washington took several weeks. New judges and defense attorneys were requested and appointed. His plea was delayed until last week.

The case is now expected to move forward in the coming months, with judge Russell West, of Union and Wallowa counties, presiding.

Crash kills five on Umatilla reservation

May 29

Five people died in a fiery two-vehicle crash on the back roads of the Umatilla Indian Reservation, and two children survived.

Pendleton residents Mylie Huesties, 41, Brett Huesties, 13, and Warren Huesties, 4, were killed at the scene, as were David John Damm, 47 and his wife Cynthia Marie Falk-Damm, 45, of Walla Walla.

The tragedy struck at all levels of the Athena-Weston school district, where victims and survivors were students. Crisis intervention teams went into the communities to help the them deal with the shock and grief.

Man shot to death at Gotta Stop in Hermiston

January 9

A man was shot to death in the parking lot of the Gotta Stop convenience store in Hermiston during daylight hours.

Three people were arrested, including a juvenile, for the shooting that killed Salvador Valencia, 22.

The three men were charged with riot.

Weapons depot declares mission complete

March 15

The Umatilla Army Ordnance Depot ended nearly 72 years of service in March, and in July held a flag ceremony and Operation Lights Out.

The base, which stored chemical weapons for 60 years of its operation, was turned over to the Oregon Army National Guard in August. The final container of mustard gas was destroyed in October 2011, the result of a decade-long incineration project that included 7.4 million pounds of nerve and blister agents.

The 20,000 acres of land between Hermiston and?Boardman is now being divided and assigned by the Local Reuse Authority.

Since the closure, area jobs have been in a steady decline. More than 800 people were employed at the base last year, and by this summer 500 of those jobs are expected to be cut.

Hermiston Police Chief Dan Coulombe resigns

February 1

Hermiston Police Chief Dan Coulombe, following an investigation into his conduct, turned in his badge in February for an early retirement and two months salary.

The chief had been on paid administrative leave for more than five months for an investigation demanded by the Hermiston Police Association. Investigator Ron Louie found Coulombe had fostered a culture of fear in the department over several years and the chief agreed to step down.

The Hermiston Governmental Reform Committee cited the city council’s handling of Coulombe including the failure to investigate sooner as a reason for a recall of four councilors and the mayor. The recall made the ballot but was rejected by voters.

Mayor Bob dies in final days in office

December 10

His life in Hermiston spanned more than four decades, and the man who became known as Mayor Bob will go down in history as one of the town’s pillars.

Bob Severson, 80, who had been mayor since 2000, died in December following a heart attack. He was remembered at his memorial service for his grocery store, Bob’s Red Apple, his time on city council and his love for Hermiston and its people.

While dedicating much of his life to the city, he also was a caregiver for his wife, Janet, who became disabled in 2004. He also was a major proponent of Martha’s House, the homeless center in Hermiston which is expected to open this year.

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Editor’s note: The top stories of 2012 were voted on by employees of the East Oregonian.