A men's Olympic luger from the country of Georgia died Friday after a high-speed crash during training. IOC president Jacques Rogge said the death hours before the opening ceremony "clearly casts a shadow over these games."

As the weather continues to improve with sunny and clear skies, officials are hoping to have helicopters back in the air and aiding operations with aerial ignition over the next few days on the Williams Creek Fire.

Starting next week, parking violators will get the boot. Diamond Parking will now be allowed to install an immobilization device known as a 'boot', on a violator's vehicle until fines are paid or the vehicle is impounded.

Furry friends visited the grand opening of a new dog park in Sutherlin on Saturday, and they brought their owners to celebrate. The new, two-acre dog park was officially opened near 6th Street.

The summer sun can beat down and expose your body to UV rays, and many people protect their skin from sun damage, but you may not be aware of damage your eyes can get from the sun.

RV'ers that travel around the country, some that stay here in the county and still others that come here in the summer are helping our troops. The Timber Valley Escapees are supporting our troops overseas by baking things that the soldiers love to get from home.

The stimulus money that Umpqua Training and Employment received this year had workers on the job at Umpqua Community College this week. The project is called the Oregon Consortium and Oregon Workforce Alliance.

There is a program to rebuild motors that will help the environment, plus you can get money for it. It's called the Green Motor Initiative, and you can get a rebate for motors that are rebuilt for better reliability.

Those people interested in buying some of the classic cars they saw during Graffiti Week had a chance to do just that Saturday morning at the fairgrounds during the Classic Collector's Auction.

As always, the annual Show & Shine at River Forks Park was one of the biggest of the Graffiti Week events, followed by the annual cruise in downtown Roseburg and Winston.

Beginning Monday, July 13, the DFPA and Umpqua National Forest will activate Industrial Fire Precaution level II on all private, county, state and federal lands in zones UA1 and UA2.

In a protest believed to be connected to the logging protest near Reedsport, patrol officers and detectives responded to the Home Depot in Roseburg after 40-50 protesters entered the business.

There were many Independence Day celebrations in the county, and one of the largest was Winston, where they celebrated with a big parade. It was hot weather and a perfect day for a parade Saturday.

This weekend marks the country's birthday and a spectacular fireworks show will be back again this year in Roseburg. Stewart Park will host another year of family activities and the fireworks will culminate the events on the 4th of July.

Troops from the Charlie Company are still in prep training in in Georgia before they are shipped to Iraq, and they will get a surprising treat from the northwest in a few days.