Medford man dead after tree falls on tent — Medford Police officials said a man died after a large tree fell on the tent where he was camping. Police and medical personnel said they responded to a park in Medford at about 2:30 a.m. on Saturday after they were alerted about a tree falling on an occupied tent. Authorities found a man inside the tent; he was pronounced dead at the scene. The man was identified as Joseph T. Jones. Officials said the incident was reported by two other people camping nearby. They say it appeared as though the tree had fallen due to the high winds overnight.

Storm forces Port Orford closure — A storm on the southern coast forced a temporary evacuation of Port Orford. The World newspaper reports the storm hammered the town’s port on Saturday, destroying small buildings and driving heavy waves crashing over the dock. After sandbags did not stop the waves, port authorities sent some fishermen and sightseers to the dry bluff above the port. No injuries were reported. The power of the waves did destroy a well-known seafood restaurant and mini-museum, as well as about 60 feet of the boulder jetty jutting out into the bay. As the storm subsided, the port was reopened. Boats moored at the dock seemed unscathed.

Mother arrested — Police said they have arrested on criminal charges the mother of a 4-year-old boy who died in an apartment fire in the small Willamette Valley community of Keizer. Niya Breann Sosa-Martinez was arrested early on Saturday on charges of second-degree manslaughter, criminally negligent homicide, endangering the welfare of a minor, and second-degree child neglect. The 23-year-old Sosa-Martinez is also being held on a parole violation warrant. Authorities did not identify the cause of the fire or how Sosa-Martinez was involved in it. Officials had said the woman was home with her son when the fire started, and she was able to escape the flames. The 4-year old was identified as Andre Joaquin Sosa. Preliminary results of an autopsy indicate the cause of his death was smoke inhalation.

Portland power lines downed — Strong winds downed trees and power lines, cutting electricity to thousands of homes in the Portland metro area and other parts of Oregon, officials said Saturday. About 28,000 customers lost power in Multnomah, Washington and Clackamas counties, Portland General Electric said. Another 12,000 customers lost power in Marion County. Officials said people and their pets should stay at least 30 feet from downed power lines. If a power line falls on a vehicle with people still inside, they should remain in the car as it may be energized.

Democrats fight for Legislature — Voters in Medford, Ashland, Corvallis and Albany have an unusually large amount of power in next month’s election. Those cities form the core of two ultra-competitive state Senate districts that will help determine whether the Democrats can hold onto their control of the Legislature. A number of competitive districts in the House are also up for grabs, but Republicans face a much tougher hurdle to grab the majority there. So all eyes are on two incumbents in the Senate: Democrat Alan Bates of Medford and Republican Betsy Close of Albany. Spending by the candidates has already topped $1 million in each of those races, and that doesn’t count the money spent by independent groups. Several other races are also drawing big spending.