Northwest News

The State Board of Higher Education has formally hired Michael Gottfredson to lead the University of Oregon. He was appointed president Friday.

Dr. Gottfredson has been a senior administrator at the University of California, Irvine for 12 Years. He says his first order of business is to get to know the University of Oregon better.

“There’s one overwhelming impression, great enthusiasm for the University of Oregon from every quarter: faculty, students, community," Gottfredson says. "I had very high expectations and they have been exceeded in every way.”

Emergency managers and National Weather Service forecasters have a new way to alert you to imminent danger. They've teamed up with all of the Northwest's major cellular providers on a system to broadcast emergency alerts to mobile devices. You don't need to sign up for anything; it's automatic.

U.S. Energy Secretary Steven Chu fielded questions about safety at the Hanford Nuclear Reservation Friday. He assured hundreds of workers listening in a Richland park that challenges in the massive cleanup of radioactive waste are getting attention at the highest level.

Secretary Chu said he’s really serious about wanting safety at Hanford. He’s particularly focused on the site’s $12 billion waste treatment plant, now under construction. It’s meant to stabilize 56 million gallons of radioactive waste.

President Obama's announcement Friday that some young adults who came to this country illegally as children will get a reprieve from deportation has sparked strong reactions here in the Northwest.

Oregon and Washington groups opposed to illegal immigration strongly criticized the President's announcement. They said it was politically motivated. But those in the region who support an overhaul of the nation's immigration laws cheered.

A wi-fi connection and smart phone bar codes could be coming to a state park near you. Those are just two of the ideas under consideration as Washington State Parks tries to recruit a new generation of visitors. Olympia Correspondent Austin Jenkins explains.

Cash strapped county budgets got word Thursday, that their annual federal aid check is coming through. But as it stands, this year’s payments in lieu of property taxes could be the last of their kind.

Nearly every county in the Northwest receives at least some money based on their population and how much nontaxable public land is within their borders. The program, called PILT for short expires this year. It’s up to congress to reauthorize it.

Gil Riddell, Policy Coordinator for the Association of Oregon Counties, predicts that despite congressional gridlock, the counties won’t be left out to dry.

An Army combat engineer has become the 12th Washington based soldier to die in Afghanistan this year. The pace of deaths has picked up in recent weeks as the summer fighting season begins.

The Army says Sgt. 1st Class Barett McNabb was killed by an improvised explosive device. He was on his fourth deployment, but his first to Afghanistan.

McNabb is just the latest soldier from Washington’s Joint Base Lewis-McChord to die in Afghanistan. May was the deadliest month so far this year with six soldier deaths.