PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) — During 2017, there were a number of topics that generated a great deal of public interest over a considerable length of time.
Some topics came and went. Others are still in progress in one form or another. Here, then, are the KOIN.com Top 5 story groups from 2017:The Solar Eclipse
The first coast-to-coast total solar eclipse in 99 years crossed 14 states on August 21, with Oregon the first — and arguably, the best — state to see the celestial rarity. More than 200 million people live within a day’s drive of the path of totality, and about 1 million arrived in Oregon for the event.
The Eagle Creek Fire
A spark from a firework on September 2 set off a blaze that was not 100% contained until November 30. It burned more than 50,000 acres of prime land in the Columbia River Gorge and led to charges against a 15-year-old Vancouver teen.
Killings on a MAX train
Teens riding a MAX train were verbally assaulted by a passenger. Three men came to their aid, and 2 of them paid the ultimate price while the 3rd was seriously wounded. One man, Jeremy Christian, was arrested and charged in the attack. His trial is now set to begin in June 2019 — 2 years after the attack on May 26, 2017.
Pro- and Anti-Trump protests
From the moment Donald Trump won the presidential election on November 8, 2016, Portlanders — and, frankly, outsiders — took to the streets to protest. Over the year, 2 groups became most closely connected with this movement, and both cloak themselves in the drape of the First Amendment. Some of the protests were extremely violent, some were tame — but all were fraught with raw emotion.
Early year snow storm
It is safe to say Portland doesn’t do snow well. Or ice. Or the combination of snow and ice. We got it all in January 2017…and most of us don’t want to see it again anytime soon.