Around the state
Published 12:00 am Tuesday, September 3, 2019
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Undersea Gardens closing in Newport — A floating Oregon tourist attraction is set to close after more than 50 years in business. Undersea Gardens in Newport is scheduled to end operations Sunday. Owner Mariner Square announced the closure of the attraction in Newport’s Historic Bayfront on social media over the holiday weekend. Undersea Gardens’ dive shows ended Monday, while its free public tours will be offered through Sunday. The gift shop will remain open until Oct. 11. Undersea Gardens opened in 1966 as a floating “people-quarium” allowing visitors inside the attraction to look out and view sea life in Yaquina Bay, 115 miles southwest of Portland. Mariner Square says it is renovating its other two attractions, The Wax Works and Ripley’s Believe it or Not!
Man survived nearly a week in the wild — A California man missing in rural southwest Polk County was found dehydrated but alert after surviving for nearly a week eating leaves and berries. The Polk County Sheriff’s Office reported that Peter Nestlerode, 59, was taken to a local hospital for treatment Monday and was described to be in “remarkably good spirits.” Nestlerode, of Palmdale, California, was in the area for his daughter’s wedding and went missing late Aug. 26. He was last heard from the morning of Aug. 27 when he called 911 but was not coherent. At around 9 a.m. Monday, the sheriff’s office received a call about a man walking out of the woods saying he was lost. When deputies arrived, the property owner led them to Nestlerode, who was lying in the brush.
Trapped under oak tree — A person was rescued and hospitalized after being trapped under a tree that was being cut down on SW Old Highway 47 near Forest Grove. The Forest Grove Fire Department sent out a tweet Monday saying it sent a Life Flight helicopter to help with the rescue. About 30 minutes later, fire officials said the person was freed from under an oak tree that was about 2 feet in diameter. They said the patient was sent to a local trauma hospital.
Amtrak-car collision near Springfield — An Amtrak passenger train smashed into an unoccupied vehicle near Springfield on Friday. The collision happened around 2:15 p.m., and the train resumed its northward run more than four hours later, at about 6:30 p.m., Kimberly Woods, an Amtrak spokeswoman said Monday. The train was the Coast Starlight, and it was headed from Los Angeles to Seattle. There were no injuries to Amtrak passengers or crew members, Woods said. The Lane County Sheriff’s Office is investigating the crash.