Weather

Oregonians pump their own gasoline during heat wave emergency

Oregon Public Broadcasting | By April Ehrlich

Published July 31, 2022 at 7:25 AM PDT

Shon Teeple of Milwaukie pumps his own gas at a Fred Meyer gas station in Milwaukie, Oregon, on July 30, 2022. The station was one of many that temporarily implemented self-serve gas pumping during the heat wave emergency.

Oregonians in 25 counties can pump their own gas through Sunday, when Gov. Kate Brown’s emergency declaration for extreme heat ends.

Oregonians in 25 counties can pump their own gasoline through Sunday, when Gov. Kate Brown’s emergency declaration for extreme heat ends.

The declaration allowed the State Fire Marshall to temporarily change state rules on self-service pumping to protect station workers from spending too much time in the heat.

On Tuesday, Brown declared a state of emergency to last July 25-31 because of excessive high temperatures. It spans across most of the state, except for the coast and southeast Oregon.

Much of the state is enduring a massive weeklong heatwave, with some areas in the generally cooler north reaching 100 degrees and warmer areas in Southern Oregon reaching 110 degrees.

Multnomah County health officials say they’re investigating at least five deaths that may be related to the heat wave, and Clackamas County officials are investigating one potential heat-related death.

According to the National Weather Service in Medford, Jackson and Josephine Counties — as well as parts of Douglas, Klamath, Curry and Siskiyou Counties, are under an Excessive Heat Warning through 11:00 p.m. Sunday night