Category: ktvz-local-news

Kelsey Merison

CHILOQUIN, Ore. (KTVZ) — The 5th Annual Chi-Town Family Festival will offer two days of free music and family fun in Chiloquin on June 19th and 20th, 2026. The event, featuring live music and various activities, will be held at the Chiloquin Rodeo & Event Grounds, with no admission or parking fees.

Festival organizers are set to present a diverse lineup of local and regional musicians throughout the two-day event. Beyond the music stage, visitors can also enjoy a farmers market, a craft fair, food vendors, kids activities, water slides and bounce houses, and the 2nd Annual Chili Cook-Off.

The music schedule for Friday, June 19th begins at 2:00 p.m. with the Sonshine Mountain Duo, composed of Ron and Gale Willis of Sprague River, known for their gospel, bluegrass and folk ballads. The day’s entertainment continues at 4:00 p.m. with the Tommy-Jimi Blues Duo, performing blues and classic rock.

Saturday, June 20th features a full day of live performances starting at 10:00 a.m. with Tom Franks. Following performances include Jeff Hahne at 11:10 a.m., Chris Garrett at 12:20 p.m., Dan Hill at 1:30 p.m., Robert Kerns at 2:40 p.m. and Spinning Gold at 3:50 p.m. These artists will present a mix of acoustic music, classic hits, folk, country and blues.

In addition to the musical acts, the festival includes a silent auction benefitting Chiloquin Visions in Progress. The auction supports the organization and its community programs.

For a complete music schedule and additional event information, individuals can visit www.chi-townfamilyfestival.com/music-schedule.

Further inquiries can be directed to familyfestival@cityofchiloquin.org or by calling (541) 783-2717.

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Kelsey Merison

(KTVZ) — UPDATE: As of 8:15 a.m., the outage appears to have been resolved.

ORIGINAL REPORT:

If you’re experiencing issues with Meta platforms this morning, you’re not alone.

A wave of access issues affected users of several Meta platforms on Friday morning, with people across multiple countries reporting difficulties using Facebook, Instagram, and Messenger.

Complaints began surfacing early in the day as users encountered unexpected logouts, failed login attempts, and error messages. Others reported that pages would not load properly or that key features were unavailable on both mobile apps and desktop browsers.

By mid-morning, outage-monitoring services showed a sharp increase in reports linked to Meta’s platforms. One tracking site indicated that thousands of users had flagged problems and categorized the situation as a potential service disruption.

Despite the growing number of complaints, Meta had not issued an official statement confirming a widespread outage. Industry observers noted that outage-tracking platforms rely largely on user-submitted reports, meaning the exact scale and cause of the issues remained unclear.

Reports appeared to come from a broad range of regions, including the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, and the Philippines. Many affected users said they had been signed out of their accounts without warning and were unable to regain access despite multiple login attempts.

As users waited for answers, social media platforms outside Meta’s network saw an increase in posts from people seeking updates and sharing their experiences with the disruption.

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Tyson Beauchemin

BEND, Ore. (KTVZ) — Parents of children who attended OSU-Cascades’ ‘Little Kits’ daycare program are demanding answers about it’s closure. To this end, they’re sending a letter to the University’s board of trustees, and the Higher Education Coordinating Commission.

The program, which operated for approximately seven months is closing in July.

The 7,200-square-foot facility was built by the college specifically designed for child care. It used roughly $3 million in grant funding, including support from the American Rescue Plan Act.

This closure forces parents to scramble for new day care arrangements after their children were enrolled in a high-quality educational program.

Parents expressed the difficulty of explaining the sudden closure to young children. Rachel Taylor, a parent of a child in the Little Kits day care program, described the challenge.

“I there’s no way to really explain to her what’s going to happen. There’s no way to really say, you’re never going to see your teachers again. She doesn’t understand time or concepts like that. There is no way to say, like, yeah, you’re never going to see your teachers. You’re never going to see your friends. OSU administrators decided that you’re going to lose all your friends so you don’t get to have them anymore,” Taylor said.

Parents are demanding an explanation for the closure from the Oregon State University board of trustees and the state’s Higher Education Coordinating Commission. They have sent a letter along with collected signatures from the community to both organizations.

The full letter is attached below:

Little Kits Letter of SupportDownload

Beyond an explanation, the letter also seeks details on how OSU plans to select a new operator for the soon-to-be-empty day care center.

When the closure was announced, OSU-Cascade released a statements, citing ” ongoing financial challenges”.

A change.org petition has also been launched by the parents of Little Kits.

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Spencer Sacks

REDMOND, Ore. (KTVZ) — The Oregon Lightning organization forfeited the remainder of its 2026 AF1 season on June 11, 2026, citing significant player injuries and overriding safety concerns.

The decision comes after medical evaluations determined the team could no longer safely field a roster that meets professional standards for competition and player well-being.

Player health and safety have always been an organizational priority for the Oregon Lightning. The team’s announcement also aimed to provide full context to its stakeholders, following an inaccurate statement published by Arena Football One regarding a scheduled Oregon versus Ky. matchup.

Chuck Jones, who serves as Owner, general manager and Head Coach of the Oregon Lightning, clarified the reasons for the forfeiture. Jones stated, “This game was not canceled due to inadequate travel arrangements, as we have receipts to provide as proof travel was secured and the trip was paid.”

Jones emphasized that the decision was solely based on player safety. “This is strictly about the safety of our players,” Jones said. He added that the team’s choice not to travel was “based solely on player medical status, not operational unwillingness or lack of commitment.”

The organization asserted that its athletes have shown heart, resilience and professionalism throughout the season. Jones affirmed that the team would “never place them in a situation that compromises their long-term health.”

The Oregon Lightning remained transparent with the league about the injury situation, providing updated medical reports and roster availability throughout the week. According to Jones, the team exhausted all options, “including emergency signings, practice squad evaluations and medical rechecks,” before concluding that continuing the season was not feasible without risking further injury.

Despite the forfeiture, the team intends to maintain daily operations. “We are continuing daily operations, still running our summer camps with Bend FC and we are still playing in Central Oregon in 2027,” Jones said. The organization also extended gratitude to its fans, sponsors, volunteers and the Central Oregon community for their support during the 2026 season.

The Oregon Lightning remains committed to its community, sponsors and team, with plans to play in Central Oregon in 2027. The organization states it will continue with daily operations and summer camps with Bend FC. The team also pledged its commitment to transparency, professionalism and the long-term growth of football in Oregon.

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Spencer Sacks

(UPDATE: Adding Story and video)

BEND, Ore. (KTVZ) — Fertilizer prices are increasing and its availability is decreasing in Central Oregon, impacting local farmers. This issue is linked to disruptions in the global supply chain through the Strait of Hormuz, exacerbated by the Iran war.

U.S. Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-OR) stated that the rise in fertilizer prices is due to its transport through the Strait of Hormuz, equating the situation to the impact on gas prices. Sen. Merkley explained that global fertilizer producers sell their product on the world market.

Fertilizer is composed of nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium, with many Middle Eastern countries like Saudi Arabia, Oman and Egypt serving as major sources of nitrogen.

The disruption in the Strait of Hormuz has led to ships becoming stuck, further intensifying the shortage of fertilizer on the market. This global issue has exacerbated existing challenges in Central Oregon. Central Oregon has experienced a significant reduction in its fertilizer production capacity in recent years. The number of main fertilizer producers in the region has decreased from four to two, contributing to an even greater local shortage.

Hay farmers in the region are also facing economic difficulties. Over the last several years, hay prices have declined, making its production less profitable. According to a market report from Ag-West Farming Credit, hay is currently only somewhat profitable.

I spoke with several farmers and ranchers who chose to remain anonymous. Some expressed the struggle they are enduring, with one farmer stating they were glad they did not purchase fertilizer this year. Another indicated that the profitability of farming has become increasingly difficult.

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Madeline Clark

(update: adding comments from students and school officials)

BEND, Ore. (KTVZ) – Tumalo Community School is breaking new ground—literally—marking the start of a major campus expansion with a ceremonial groundbreaking held Thursday.

The project, set to continue through the summer, will add four new classrooms and expand the school to serve students from kindergarten through eighth grade.

“Super excited to have our ceremonial groundbreaking for the construction at school,” said Sam Platt, Tumalo Community School principal. “We’re going to be adding four classrooms to include sixth, seventh, and eighth grade.”

The expansion is funded by a $93 million bond, which took about two years to develop and pass.

“It was a $93 million bond. Took us about two years to put it together and pass it,” said Redmond Schools superintendent, Charan Klein. “We had a big community committee. We wanted to create something that increased our capacity for middle school, because our middle schools were getting a little bit tight, and create something that we believe would be a draw for parents.”

School leaders say the added grades will allow students to remain in their local community longer, rather than transitioning to schools in Bend or Redmond.

“So now we’re offering them another three years where they don’t have to go into a Bend school or farther into Redmond,” said Board Chair Redmond Schools Michael Summers. “They have this unique experience in the community school that they’ve grown up in and love.”

The expansion also emphasizes hands-on learning tied to the region’s natural environment.

“We want them to experience nature. That’s why most of us live in Central Oregon anyway,” Summers added. “We have access now to the river for outdoor science projects and experiments, and for them to get hands-on with Central Oregon.”

Students are already looking forward to the changes.

“I’m super excited for the new teacher and the new experiences, and to be the top grade for three years,” said Riley.

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Kelsey Merison

OREGON (KTVZ) — As of 10:23 a.m., ODOT reports the issue has been resolved.

ORIGINAL REPORT:

A network outage is currently affecting several state government agencies in Southwest Oregon, disrupting critical public services. The Oregon Department of Transportation, TripCheck, the Commerce and Compliance Division and Department of Motor Vehicles services are all offline.

The widespread service interruption includes Department of Motor Vehicles call centers, self-service kiosks, DMV2U and physical DMV offices. This outage impacts a broad range of operations that residents and businesses depend on.

The network disruption may also affect the live streaming of the Oregon Transportation Commission meeting. The Oregon Department of Transportation has contacted its vendors. These vendors are working to find a solution to the ongoing network issues.

Vendors contacted by the Oregon Department of Transportation are working to find a solution to the network outage.

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Kelsey Merison

SALEM, Ore. (KTVZ) — A solemn tribute will take place next week in Salem as Oregon honors firefighters who made the ultimate sacrifice in the line of duty.

The Department of Public Safety Standards and Training and the Oregon Fire Service Honor Guard will host the annual Oregon Fallen Fire Fighters Memorial Ceremony on Tuesday, June 16th, at 1 p.m. at the Oregon Public Safety Academy in Salem.

The ceremony brings together families, firefighters, and elected officials to remember and honor fallen members of Oregon’s fire service.

The ceremony is open to the public.

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Triton Notary

LA PINE, Ore. (KTVZ) The Deschutes County Sheriff’s Office and Republic Services are partnering to host a free Community Shred Event this Saturday, June 13, in La Pine. Residents can dispose of sensitive documents, unwanted medications and worn American flags and also donate non-perishable food items.

The event will take place from 10:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m., or until the truck is full, at the Sheriff’s Office La Pine Substation, located at 51340 Highway 97.

This residential-only shred service is not intended for business or commercial use. Residents are limited to four boxes of documents per household.

The Deschutes County Sheriff’s Office encourages residents to take advantage of this opportunity to securely dispose of unwanted items while supporting the local community.

The event includes safe medication disposal, accepting prescriptions, patches, ointments, over-the-counter medications, vitamins, samples and pet medications.

However, certain items are not accepted. For document shredding, plastic bags and three-ring binders cannot be accepted, though paper clips and staples may remain attached. For medication disposal, sharps, thermometers, inhalers, aerosols and other pressurized containers are prohibited. Those with more than four boxes of documents should contact Republic Services at 541-352-2263 for additional disposal options.

Community members may also bring worn or tattered American flags for proper retirement. Non-perishable food donations will be accepted on-site and will be given to a local food bank.

Two additional community shred events are scheduled. The next event will be on Saturday, July 18, at the Sheriff’s Office Substation at 703 N. Larch in Sisters. A final event is scheduled for Saturday, Sept. 19, at the Terrebonne Community School, located at 1199 B Ave. in Terrebonne.

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Triton Notary

BEND, Ore. (KTVZ) Construction on the roundabout at the intersection of 15th Street and Ferguson Road in Bend, Ore., will begin June 22. The intersection will fully close to safely complete the work, with detours in place for motorists.

The project is a voter-approved 2020 Transportation GO Bond initiative. The work includes constructing a new roundabout, road resurfacing and creating a new shared-use path. The intersection closure is timed with summer break to help reduce traffic impacts and construction is expected to wrap up in the fall. The full closure will occur only after Ferguson Road near 27th Street reopens to two-way traffic.

The new shared-use path is a component of the larger Bend Bikeway Project.

Residents can learn more about the project, view detour information and sign up for updates by visiting the city’s website.

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