December 7, 2025 • 29 mins
Heretic Coffee' SNAP Breakfast. Multnomah County's District Attorney is strengthening the drug deflection program. The Oregon Health Authority wants you to Rethink the Drink. How to safely charge lithium-ion batteries.
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:04):
Welcome to Local Voices. I'm brad Ford. A coffee company
in southeast Portland, has shaken things up with its Snap Breakfast.
Mulda mc County's District Attorney plans tough reenforcement of the
drug deflection program. The Oregon Health Authority wants you to
think about how much alcohol you drink and why it's
important to charge lithium batteries carefully. Heretic Coffee company in Portland,
(00:28):
made national headlines during the government shutdown when they offered
the free Snap breakfast. Older Josh White joins us on
Local Voices. Josh tell us about Heretic Coffee.
Speaker 2 (00:37):
We've been around for a couple of years now, and
a lot of people don't know this, but the coffee
industry is one of the most exploitive industries in the
entire world. In a lot of ways. Heretic exists to
change that. The word heretic it means to disrupt the
established institution of something, and what we mean by that
(00:58):
honestly varies depending on what journey or season we're in. Holistically,
one of the major things that we're about is paying
coffee farmers they're worth. We're also about sustainable electrified roasting,
and then we're also workforce development. We help people train
in barista development and we helped create new jobs here recently.
(01:18):
Though that word haretic when it says to disrupt the
established institution of something. What was disrupted was that benefits
and so we kind of just what our name is
all about and stepped in where we could.
Speaker 1 (01:33):
So let's talk about how you pay for coffee beans.
What's your policy on paying for the coffee beans.
Speaker 2 (01:38):
So we worked directly with two different coffee farmers, one
in Columbia and one in Ethiopia. So when we first
started looking into sourcing our coffee beans, I was buying
coffee bean green coffee way cheaper than I thought I could. Like,
I'm buying something like six four pounds of coffee for
(02:03):
like a couple hundred dollars. I'm like, this feels like
this feels like I'm stealing it, And honestly, I in
a lot of ways, I was, because the middlemen just
cut in so much into the coffee industry. A lot
of people don't know this, but twenty million people around
the world rely on coffee for their livelihoods. Eighty percent
(02:23):
of those people they live in poverty and so even
despite the prices of something like you know, coffee at
your local coffee shop or on the shelves at the
at the store. And so we yeah, we now source
directly with two coffee farmers, one in Columbia, one in Ethiopia.
Speaker 1 (02:40):
And so you cut out the middleman, cut out the middleman. Wow,
that's terrific. You have plans in the future to change
the way that you roast your coffee, it's how's it
done now? And what are your plans in the future.
Speaker 2 (02:55):
Yeah. So, again, a lot of people don't know this either.
Every year, forty one bills million pounds of carbon is
produced by just the act of roasting coffee. And I
mean that's forty one billion pounds. That affects the climate.
It threatens the future of coffee farmers because it does
affect the climate. And so we're working towards purchasing a
(03:18):
new electric roaster and that will actually eliminate thousands of
pounds of CO two emissions from our roasting process.
Speaker 1 (03:27):
So I imagine it has to be tough to find
employees that have the skills necessary to make coffee. How
do you train your employees?
Speaker 2 (03:35):
Yeah, so most third wave coffee shops they require a
minimum of two years. Specifically here in Portland they require
two years. And so with that metric, one of the
major things, hence our name, what we're trying to disrupt
is give people the best training possible. So we have
a volunteer shifts program where you can come in for
four hours a week for about six months or so,
(03:58):
and you're going to get fast tracked into understanding the
art of making coffee, how to pull a shot, we
can even teach you how to roast coffee. But more importantly,
we teach you a lot about the community aspect of
it all. There is very much like there's a lot
of customer service with this, but customer service and how
we teach that a heretic is a little bit different.
(04:21):
This isn't just about caffeine consumption. This is about knowing
your neighbor. And that is one of the major things
that we really try to instill down deep into all
of our bearisas is like when you have that person
that comes in every day, that is a chance for
them to escape from whatever is going on in their world,
and so we try to teach them like that brief
(04:41):
little moment that they're standing in line that you're making
their cappuccino for them that can actually really add up
to a lot of holistic and beautiful joy in their life.
Speaker 1 (04:51):
So you mentioned third wave. What's that mean?
Speaker 2 (04:54):
Yeah, So there are different versions and iterations of what
the coffee industry looks like. First wave would be something
like your Folger's coffee that's like in your in your stores.
It's probably like what your parents make every morning, like
in their their Mister Coffee coffee pot. The second wave
coffee is something like a Dutch Broze or a dunkin
Donuts or a Starbucks. Third wave coffee is more of
(05:18):
a It is people who are taking the idea of
selling coffee and creating a more how should I say this,
a more holistic viewpoint of it. We're just not here
to create profit. We're actually here again to create create community.
Speaker 1 (05:34):
What's it take to become a Bristo? What what are
their skills?
Speaker 2 (05:38):
Well, you need to know the basics, right of course.
You need to know how to pull a shot. You
need to know how to see some milk. You know.
I would also argue right up there is you got
to know how to do a little bit of latte art.
You need to know those little things. But really, for us,
especially here at Heretic, what it takes to be a
barista is what it means for you to be a
(06:02):
kind person and for you to be a neighbor. We
want you to feel like when you see your Barisa,
it's like you're passing your neighbor on the street as
you're like walking your dog, or you're seeing a friend
that you haven't seen for a couple of days. We
wanted to feel like home and that it's very very
much something that we again instill into our baristas.
Speaker 1 (06:25):
So what happened with Snap certainly disrupted things. Tell us
about what you did with the Snap breakfast.
Speaker 2 (06:32):
Yeah, so about four or five days before the Snap
benefits we were lost. On November first, we put out
on our Instagram that if you're losing your Snap benefits,
come by Heretic on November first and we will give
you a Snap breakfast. And what that means is a
(06:54):
breakfast burrito and a coffee of your choice. We put
on our Instagram, no proof needed, no questions asked, just
come in and ask for the Snap breakfast. And if
you ask for the Snap breakfast, Iberisa's will know what
that means, and they will ring you up just like
an everyday ordinary customer, except your meal is one hundred
(07:15):
percent comped.
Speaker 1 (07:17):
And what was the reaction.
Speaker 2 (07:20):
At first? What was really interesting was actually a lot
of people don't don't know about this part. So at
the very very beginning, I posted that I was laying
on the ground in my living room when I saw
what was happening with Snap and I was like, oh
my god, like we got to do something about this,
like what the hell? And so I posted it on
our Instagram. Mind you, we had like seven eight hundred
(07:43):
followers on our Instagram at around that time, and I
don't exactly know who or how or if it was
the algorithmic gods on social media that just put you know,
gave us some favor but that posts me immediately, like
immediately took off. So what's fascinating though, is we didn't
(08:05):
have a donation link set up at the very beginning.
Someone very early on, within the first hour, they put
in the comments and they said, hey, you should set
up a donation link so we can help support this,
and I didn't think about it, like I literally legitimately
I went like a maybe two or three hours without
doing anything. I went back and looked at the post
(08:27):
and realized that comment at that time had more likes
than the actual posts.
Speaker 1 (08:32):
Wow.
Speaker 2 (08:34):
And I was like, Okay, maybe this is something beautiful
that the community could rally around. I set it up.
I went to bed. I checked the next morning and
there's over ten thousand dollars.
Speaker 1 (08:43):
Wow. So how much did you collect? Are you continuing
to collect? And what do you plan to do with
the donations that were made?
Speaker 2 (08:52):
So as of right now, we have collected a little
over three hundred and sixty thousand dollars. Yes, the donation
link it's still still up. You can still donate. And
the reason why is because we have had so many
donations come through that we have decided collectively we're going
to keep the Snap Breakfast, however long until that that
(09:14):
fund runs out. Snap or not. If you are just
in need of a meal and you cannot make it
to your local food bank or your local food drive.
If your EBT, your Snap has ran out for the
month and you're just in need of a hot meal,
really quick, come by ask for the Snap Breakfast. No
(09:35):
proof needed, You don't need a show us your bank account.
We trust you and we'll give you a meal for free.
So our current plan is this, with all that money.
Number one, one hundred percent of all the funds raised
are going to keep Portland fed. That's what we said
from the very beginning and we are very adamant about
keeping it that way. How we're going to do that
(09:56):
is two ways. Number one is Heretic is going to
retain forty percent of all the funds raised, and that
forty percent will allow us to if we didn't bring
in one more dollar, we could do the Snap Breakfast
for the next sixteen months, So we know that. Number Two, though,
we're going to be donating sixty percent of all the
(10:17):
money raised to some of the more under resource communities,
mutual aid groups, food banks here and here in Portland,
and Monday of this week we actually announced our first
one that we have donated to and we're excited to continue,
you know, doing what we can with this money.
Speaker 1 (10:36):
That is terrific. So tell us if people want to
make a donation, where do they go online? And where
is Heretic Coffee located.
Speaker 2 (10:44):
Yeah, so if you want to make a donation, you
can just go to Hereticcoffee dot com and there's a
donation link right there on the very front page, or
just go to our Instagram. It's also in the links
in our Instagram and all of our social media as well.
We're located in southa Portland. Address is fifty one to
twenty southeast twenty eighth Avenue. I would say you can't
(11:06):
miss it, but you can because it's a very small
little building. It's a very fast street that we're on.
So just look for our little sandwich board sign that
says Hair to Coffee, make a left or right right
into our parking lot.
Speaker 1 (11:17):
Josh, anything else you'd like to add.
Speaker 2 (11:19):
You know, I've been telling this to everyone in every interview.
When the system fails us, it's on us to take
care of all of us. And one of the most
beautiful things that we've seen is over twelve thousand people
across the world came together to feed Americans. And I
think that's something that we should really really consider and
(11:40):
think about that this is an act of not just
American or patriotic kindness, this was an act of human kindness.
Speaker 1 (11:50):
That is terrific. Josh, thanks very much for joining us.
Speaker 2 (11:52):
Thank you.
Speaker 1 (11:53):
That's Josh White, owner of Hair to Coffee. They're located
on southeast twenty eighth Avenue near Steel Street. Their website
is Hereticcoffee dot com. Holdom. The county District Attorney Nathan
Vasquez says their drug deflection program isn't working and he's
making changes in his office to put teeth in the program.
He says, it's not getting significant results.
Speaker 3 (12:15):
This is something that you know, I raised these concerns
early on, and I said that without accountability, my fear,
to be very direct, is that we would see this
situation where we have had I think to date around
six hundred individuals, but we have very little to show
for as far as individuals meaningfully engaging in treatment. And
(12:35):
so yes, it's a concern and fear I've been raising.
Speaker 1 (12:38):
How does the program work right now?
Speaker 3 (12:40):
An individual that is you know, picked up, arrested on
the streets, they're brought to our deflection center, they're dropped
off and essentially that ends it. That is the end
of the court police, any type of you know, that involvement.
There is a very complex process where if they if
they've failed, if they walk away but they're arrested again
(13:03):
another month, could they potentially be charged there? It is possible.
I can tell you We've had zero of those brought
to my office. So how it's different now is going
to be that every person that is brought to the
Deflection Center, my office will be reviewing those reports. My
office will be looking at did that person actually engage
in a meaningful way and do treatment that I think
(13:25):
this community demands.
Speaker 1 (13:26):
Does housing play a role in helping people to successfully
get through drug treatment?
Speaker 3 (13:30):
It's a great question, and I'll tell you that you
got to remember my half is the criminal justice side.
That doesn't mean that I am turning away from or
not considering or not looking at that. I am one
piece and there are many others. And I'll say that
Commissioner Singleton put forward a plan that included a lot
of what you're talking about, those housing points, and we're
certainly open to that. And I want to see that
(13:51):
because any way that we can help individuals get stable
and into a healthy and sober situation is going to
be helping push this forward in a positive way that's
meaningful in this community.
Speaker 1 (14:01):
Will this have an impact on available resources for the
Deflection Program and the DA's office right now?
Speaker 3 (14:07):
We can use last year right and will that number
go up or down? I don't know, but last year
we had six hundred cases come in. My hope and
expectation is that, you know, we're going to have people
be successful, so we won't be prosecuting. But if that
number is six hundred, if that number is five hundred,
four hundred, this office is going to step up and
(14:27):
we're going to be taking on those cases and looking
to put them through again.
Speaker 4 (14:33):
It is.
Speaker 3 (14:33):
The first step is conditional discharge, and that means there's
a higher level of supervision, there's more kind of eyes
on the case. So my sincere hope is that we
will see people with this added layer of accountability engage
and actually be successful in a meaningful way. And I
think that's been a lot of the criticism around is
(14:55):
what is success? How do we define that? And I'm
always one that's going to say, means you have to
meanfully engage in treatment, That means making serious efforts, It
means taking those steps that this community is looking for.
Speaker 1 (15:07):
Wasn't this part of the program originally? And why do
it now?
Speaker 3 (15:11):
I'll tell you just for the context in the background
is that this program got started before I took office.
So I took office in January. This program started in
the September before, and you know, essentially there is a
whole group of folks that were putting that together. I
explained to them at the time my reservations with the program,
and I agreed that I would give it some time
(15:32):
to be built up and see how it would work.
That time has been given and it's time for a change.
Speaker 1 (15:38):
It'll be a big effort to follow up with people
in deflection. Can the DA's office handle the extra workload?
Speaker 3 (15:43):
So yes, we have the staff and we will We'll
take it. These are misdemeanors. These are not complex. This
is not you know, this is not some in depth,
lengthy investigation. I you know, I all of us could
walk out right now into Old Town probably and see
someone using fentanyl. And so it's not a difficult thing
to do as far as you know. What happens when
(16:04):
someone fails to go through with it, those reports will
come to my office and either they will have a
citation to appear at a future court date, or if
the other route would be that a warrant would be
issued for their arrest. Those are the two options.
Speaker 1 (16:16):
Is this something the DA's office can do on its own?
Speaker 3 (16:19):
To be clear, the decision about whether to prosecute or
not prosecute. That remains solely with the district attorney. That
is how it is throughout.
Speaker 1 (16:27):
The state of Oregon.
Speaker 3 (16:28):
That's nothing new or novel, and so that is what's
happening here, is that that decision is essentially I'm directing
that decision. When we talk about deflection as a whole,
what we're talking about are all the things that go
into that. So in other words, in Moltlimer County, we
have decided we're going to put together a deflection center,
and so the county has put together this whole center
(16:49):
received it's approximately six million dollars give or take some
money there to create this center in a program. And
then the question about delivery of services. There's lots of
agencies throughout the county. There's the Housing Department, there's you know,
certainly the health department. There's all these other agencies within
the county that can provide all of that back end stuff.
(17:10):
For me, it's a decision of does my office prosecute
or not. And so when we don't prosecute, it's because
someone is meaningfully engaging in treatment.
Speaker 1 (17:20):
Will this have an impact on jail capacity?
Speaker 3 (17:22):
We're not talking about these people aren't going in and
the six hundred people, we're not talking about them getting
held in long periods of times. A lot of times
they are with a citation to appear. They're never even
touching the jail house. So what's happening, though, is there
will be times where people will be booked in and released.
Speaker 1 (17:37):
These are the.
Speaker 3 (17:38):
Types of crimes where I know the sheriff has said
that she will book but they're not ones that I
am seeing under a current release guidelines that they're going
to be held for long periods of time. So I
don't anticipate that the impact on the jail will be
that heavy.
Speaker 1 (17:52):
Drug treatment is ultimately a health issue. What role does
the justice system play?
Speaker 3 (17:56):
Yes, I understand the health part of it. It certainly
has a larger social impact as well, though, And the
way that I would say it is, look, if this
community and this our amazing country and state, if we
can come up with a health system that can deal
with addiction, that can take people and get them through
and basically so there's no involvement with the criminal justice system,
(18:19):
all the better. Would we would welcome that, But currently
that doesn't exist, and so what we have is a
situation where you know, we tried basically the Measure one
ten approach of no involvement of the criminal justice system.
It didn't work. We saw record overdose deaths, and so
we are at a place now where we're kind of
(18:41):
trying to balance out different approaches. And trust me when
I say that we are going to do everything we
can to see individuals get into treatment. Our goal is
not to put people in jail, It is to get
people to treatment.
Speaker 1 (18:54):
Is it a matter of having the tools to run
deflection or is it a system failure that's caused the problems.
Speaker 3 (19:00):
Oh, I think we had the tools in I think
it's a matter of do we have the system built
that actually is designed in a manner that has accountability
and actually works to connect people to those tools and resources.
So it's not like we haven't had a Department of
Homeless Services that didn't have a four hundred million dollar budget.
It's not like we didn't have a county health department
(19:21):
that didn't have a four hundred million dollar budget. We've
had the resources, we just haven't had the accountability and
really the system designed to make sure that we can
get people connected to that. I mean, I'll always say
that people suffering from substance, ustice or It's a very
challenging topic and there are no easy answers for sure,
(19:41):
and success is oftentimes in fits and starts, and there
are a lot of different routes to treatment. But we
should be doing everything we can to help that process.
Speaker 1 (19:49):
Woldo MC County Commissioner Shannon Singleton has proposed tying the
Deflection program more directly into existing systems for homelessness and addiction.
How does that work with your approach?
Speaker 5 (20:00):
Oh?
Speaker 3 (20:00):
I think they work tandem, hand in hand because for
my definition and what I'm seeing is and what Commissioner
Singleton put out particularly was she said, Hey, we know
a lot of people that we're coming into contact with
are struggling with housing issues. And when we see people
get more stable in their lives, they have better opportunities
to engage in treatment, they have better opportunities to get
(20:21):
to sober. There's just all kinds of benefits that can
come from that. And certainly I am one her percent
open to looking at all options that get people to
a healthier place.
Speaker 1 (20:29):
How will your new approach be organized?
Speaker 3 (20:32):
You know what's going to happen is the police and
the district attorneys will work together on the accountability piece,
on reports and citations and all of that. We certainly
will work with our county partners on how to communicate
the efforts that are being made to connect people with
treatment and the end right now, the way our system
is structured, it is actually the responsibility of that individual
(20:54):
who comes in and who is charged, you know, with
possession of control substance, that if they want to be deflected,
they need to take those actions. That's the way the
state legislature put it out. I think it is incumbent
upon our community to try to help provide some of
those opportunities, but it's incumbent upon those individuals to really
take the steps. And the way I've always approached this
(21:15):
is it's a bit of a push and a pull. Yes,
we want to help push them to the right direction,
we should also be there to pull them up as well.
Speaker 1 (21:21):
In what way is Moulton mckenny's drug deflection program not working?
Speaker 3 (21:25):
The bottom line is that what I see is very
very little evidence of anyone actually engaging in meaningful treatment,
very little evidence of that. What I see is when
you talk about the numbers, one third of the people
left without even doing an assessment. The remaining amount go
(21:45):
in and do an assessment, and of those that did
an assessment, I think it's eighteen percent, they're quote unquote successful.
The definition of success then is something that is very limited.
So what we've heard are a few anecdotal folks out
of the six hundred that have been you know, made
(22:06):
life changes. So I just right now I'm looking at that,
and what I hear from the community is that six hundred, sorry,
six million dollars of investment for just a handful of
people that actually I got in treatment is not a
good use of taxpayer dollars. There's two missing components. It's
front end back end. Accountability needs to be there for sure,
(22:28):
and the back end is we need to see meaningful
engagement and treatment that comes both with the individual and
also with the systems in place that are providing that opportunity.
Speaker 1 (22:38):
That's Wilnoma County District Attorney Navan Vasquez outlining his plan
to increase enforcement of the drug Deflection program to make
sure that people are following through with treatment. The Oregon
Health Authority want you to think about how much alcohol
you're drinking. The program is called Rethink the Drink. Deputy
State Health Officer Doctor Tom Jean joins us on Local Doctor.
(23:01):
What's the message the campaign's trying to get across.
Speaker 5 (23:03):
We're really trying to encourage people to stop and think
reflect about the role alcohol plays in their lives and
whether maybe drinking a little less might be a good idea.
And this is a big thing.
Speaker 1 (23:18):
Of course, this.
Speaker 5 (23:19):
Time of year, people are gathering friends, families, coming together
various social events, and alcohols often you know, present in
these kinds of gatherings, parties, or events. So we're really
trying to remind people that you don't need alcohol to
enjoy the holiday season. You can spend time with your
(23:40):
friends and loved ones and celebrate without the pressure to drink.
And of course, the holiday drinking season is when the
most alcohol is sold an organ and across the nation,
so it's a great time to be mindful of this.
Speaker 1 (23:54):
What do you want hosts to think about?
Speaker 5 (23:56):
Yeah, so I think it's really important to create a
environment and that is healthy and gives people options and
doesn't pressure them to drink more alcohol than they might
want to or you know, might be might be good
for them. So we want hosts to think about providing
non alcoholic beverage options of course, you know, providing foods,
(24:21):
make sure people aren't hungry. And you know, people who
are attending events should be thinking about are you going
to drink? And if so, what's you know, how many
drinks do you want to have? Set a personal limit
before you arrive, and then you can think about alternating
alcoholic drinks with with with non alcoholic drinks. If you
(24:41):
are going to be consuming alcohol, and if you are
going to drink, of course, arrange a designated driver or
use a ride share or public transportation. And finally, you know,
we encourage everybody to have open conversations. Ask your friends,
ask your loved ones how they feel about drinking, and
(25:02):
certainly avoid pressuring others to drink and support those who
choose not to drink.
Speaker 1 (25:07):
Talk to me a little bit about some of the
long term effects of alcohol consumption, and not necessarily somebody
who's an alcoholic, but studies are starting to show what
the other effects alcohol can have on people.
Speaker 5 (25:20):
First, over twenty five hundred people in Oregon are dying
from alcohol related causes every year, and the share of
organ adults who are drinking excessively is bigger than most
of us might realize it's more than one in five
adults in organ and most of the people in that
group are not affected by alcoholism or alcohol used disorder.
(25:42):
And so some of the harms, you know, other than
the kind of obvious ones like liver disease or motor
vehicle crashes, are things like cancers. There are at least
eight cancers that are strongly linked to alcohol drinking, heart disease,
as well as depression, anxiety, and then things like of
(26:05):
course injuries, domestic violence, and other health harms. So it's
really a lot of different risks that increase steadily with
the more alcohol that a person drinks.
Speaker 1 (26:18):
Does the orig and Health Authority have resources available for
people who might be asking whether they've been drinking too much,
whether they might have a problem drinking too much alcohol.
Speaker 5 (26:28):
Yeah, absolutely so. We have our website rethinkthedrink dot com,
which has resources, It has information, it has an interactive
screening tool that you can take to quickly assess your drinking,
create a plan to achieve your goals. So that's a
great resource. We also have the Alcohol and Drug Helpline,
(26:51):
which is one hundred ninety two three four, three, five
seven has free confidential resources and support, and there's also
the crisis Lifeline. You just dial mine eight eight and
it's another great way to get resources.
Speaker 1 (27:06):
That's doctor Tom jen, Deputy State Health Officer for the
Oregon Health Authority, discussing there Rethink the Drink campaign. You
can learn more at rethinkthedrink dot com. Lithium ion batteries
or in a lot of products we use, they can
cause intense fires. Kat and Brian from the Northwest Insurance
Council joins us on local voices, so charging batteries can
(27:29):
overheat and start a very intense fire. What advice do
you have for people charging lithium ion batteries?
Speaker 4 (27:36):
The keys are first of all, only use the charging
equipment and or records that came with the device to
charge the device. Secondly, when you're charging a device, especially
if it's a phone or something smaller, make sure sitting
on a hard surface, not on pile clothes or on
your bed. You know, don't charge things overnight, leave them
(27:59):
on the charger unattended. And if you're charging a vehicle
or a scooter or a bike, it's important to not
charge it when you're going to leave the house. It's
best to charge it outside and not inside the garage
or inside your house.
Speaker 1 (28:15):
Is it important to look at the battery and see
if there are any issues with it.
Speaker 4 (28:20):
One thing that is important to do is to keep
an eye on the devices that you're charging. If you're
charging your phone every day for hours at a time,
keep an eye on whether or not you're seeing any
signs of leakage from the battery, or any signs of
overheating or any swelling.
Speaker 1 (28:37):
Now, when you're done with a device or you're done
with the battery, what should you do with it?
Speaker 4 (28:41):
Do not throw your used batteries or devices in the
household trash. Take them to a local recycling or hazardous
waste facility.
Speaker 1 (28:49):
Any special precautions to take with electric vehicles.
Speaker 4 (28:53):
Well, more and more we're seeing damage to homes as
well as vehicles from overcharging and sometimes just from malfunctioning
batteries or the vehicles themselves. So it's important to make
sure that your vehicle is being charged with a system
that's approved by the manufacturer of the vehicle. It's best
(29:14):
to charge the vehicle outside, although some people do install
these chargers inside their garage. It's safer to have it
outside your home, because if there is an overheating problem
in that vehicle or battery starts to burn, it can
burn super intensely and it can burn for days.
Speaker 1 (29:34):
As Kat and Bryan with a Northwest Insurance Council and
tips on how to avoid lithium battery fires. Thanks for
listening to Local Voices, I'm brand Board. You can hear
past episodes on the iHeartRadio app under the podcast tab.
Local Voices is a public affairs presentation from iHeartRadio
Welcome to Local Voices. I'm brad Ford. A coffee company
in southeast Portland, has shaken things up with its Snap Breakfast.
Mulda mc County's District Attorney plans tough reenforcement of the
drug deflection program. The Oregon Health Authority wants you to
think about how much alcohol you drink and why it's
important to charge lithium batteries carefully. Heretic Coffee company in Portland,
(00:28):
made national headlines during the government shutdown when they offered
the free Snap breakfast. Older Josh White joins us on
Local Voices. Josh tell us about Heretic Coffee.
Speaker 2 (00:37):
We've been around for a couple of years now, and
a lot of people don't know this, but the coffee
industry is one of the most exploitive industries in the
entire world. In a lot of ways. Heretic exists to
change that. The word heretic it means to disrupt the
established institution of something, and what we mean by that
(00:58):
honestly varies depending on what journey or season we're in. Holistically,
one of the major things that we're about is paying
coffee farmers they're worth. We're also about sustainable electrified roasting,
and then we're also workforce development. We help people train
in barista development and we helped create new jobs here recently.
(01:18):
Though that word haretic when it says to disrupt the
established institution of something. What was disrupted was that benefits
and so we kind of just what our name is
all about and stepped in where we could.
Speaker 1 (01:33):
So let's talk about how you pay for coffee beans.
What's your policy on paying for the coffee beans.
Speaker 2 (01:38):
So we worked directly with two different coffee farmers, one
in Columbia and one in Ethiopia. So when we first
started looking into sourcing our coffee beans, I was buying
coffee bean green coffee way cheaper than I thought I could. Like,
I'm buying something like six four pounds of coffee for
(02:03):
like a couple hundred dollars. I'm like, this feels like
this feels like I'm stealing it, And honestly, I in
a lot of ways, I was, because the middlemen just
cut in so much into the coffee industry. A lot
of people don't know this, but twenty million people around
the world rely on coffee for their livelihoods. Eighty percent
(02:23):
of those people they live in poverty and so even
despite the prices of something like you know, coffee at
your local coffee shop or on the shelves at the
at the store. And so we yeah, we now source
directly with two coffee farmers, one in Columbia, one in Ethiopia.
Speaker 1 (02:40):
And so you cut out the middleman, cut out the middleman. Wow,
that's terrific. You have plans in the future to change
the way that you roast your coffee, it's how's it
done now? And what are your plans in the future.
Speaker 2 (02:55):
Yeah. So, again, a lot of people don't know this either.
Every year, forty one bills million pounds of carbon is
produced by just the act of roasting coffee. And I
mean that's forty one billion pounds. That affects the climate.
It threatens the future of coffee farmers because it does
affect the climate. And so we're working towards purchasing a
(03:18):
new electric roaster and that will actually eliminate thousands of
pounds of CO two emissions from our roasting process.
Speaker 1 (03:27):
So I imagine it has to be tough to find
employees that have the skills necessary to make coffee. How
do you train your employees?
Speaker 2 (03:35):
Yeah, so most third wave coffee shops they require a
minimum of two years. Specifically here in Portland they require
two years. And so with that metric, one of the
major things, hence our name, what we're trying to disrupt
is give people the best training possible. So we have
a volunteer shifts program where you can come in for
four hours a week for about six months or so,
(03:58):
and you're going to get fast tracked into understanding the
art of making coffee, how to pull a shot, we
can even teach you how to roast coffee. But more importantly,
we teach you a lot about the community aspect of
it all. There is very much like there's a lot
of customer service with this, but customer service and how
we teach that a heretic is a little bit different.
(04:21):
This isn't just about caffeine consumption. This is about knowing
your neighbor. And that is one of the major things
that we really try to instill down deep into all
of our bearisas is like when you have that person
that comes in every day, that is a chance for
them to escape from whatever is going on in their world,
and so we try to teach them like that brief
(04:41):
little moment that they're standing in line that you're making
their cappuccino for them that can actually really add up
to a lot of holistic and beautiful joy in their life.
Speaker 1 (04:51):
So you mentioned third wave. What's that mean?
Speaker 2 (04:54):
Yeah, So there are different versions and iterations of what
the coffee industry looks like. First wave would be something
like your Folger's coffee that's like in your in your stores.
It's probably like what your parents make every morning, like
in their their Mister Coffee coffee pot. The second wave
coffee is something like a Dutch Broze or a dunkin
Donuts or a Starbucks. Third wave coffee is more of
(05:18):
a It is people who are taking the idea of
selling coffee and creating a more how should I say this,
a more holistic viewpoint of it. We're just not here
to create profit. We're actually here again to create create community.
Speaker 1 (05:34):
What's it take to become a Bristo? What what are
their skills?
Speaker 2 (05:38):
Well, you need to know the basics, right of course.
You need to know how to pull a shot. You
need to know how to see some milk. You know.
I would also argue right up there is you got
to know how to do a little bit of latte art.
You need to know those little things. But really, for us,
especially here at Heretic, what it takes to be a
barista is what it means for you to be a
(06:02):
kind person and for you to be a neighbor. We
want you to feel like when you see your Barisa,
it's like you're passing your neighbor on the street as
you're like walking your dog, or you're seeing a friend
that you haven't seen for a couple of days. We
wanted to feel like home and that it's very very
much something that we again instill into our baristas.
Speaker 1 (06:25):
So what happened with Snap certainly disrupted things. Tell us
about what you did with the Snap breakfast.
Speaker 2 (06:32):
Yeah, so about four or five days before the Snap
benefits we were lost. On November first, we put out
on our Instagram that if you're losing your Snap benefits,
come by Heretic on November first and we will give
you a Snap breakfast. And what that means is a
(06:54):
breakfast burrito and a coffee of your choice. We put
on our Instagram, no proof needed, no questions asked, just
come in and ask for the Snap breakfast. And if
you ask for the Snap breakfast, Iberisa's will know what
that means, and they will ring you up just like
an everyday ordinary customer, except your meal is one hundred
(07:15):
percent comped.
Speaker 1 (07:17):
And what was the reaction.
Speaker 2 (07:20):
At first? What was really interesting was actually a lot
of people don't don't know about this part. So at
the very very beginning, I posted that I was laying
on the ground in my living room when I saw
what was happening with Snap and I was like, oh
my god, like we got to do something about this,
like what the hell? And so I posted it on
our Instagram. Mind you, we had like seven eight hundred
(07:43):
followers on our Instagram at around that time, and I
don't exactly know who or how or if it was
the algorithmic gods on social media that just put you know,
gave us some favor but that posts me immediately, like
immediately took off. So what's fascinating though, is we didn't
(08:05):
have a donation link set up at the very beginning.
Someone very early on, within the first hour, they put
in the comments and they said, hey, you should set
up a donation link so we can help support this,
and I didn't think about it, like I literally legitimately
I went like a maybe two or three hours without
doing anything. I went back and looked at the post
(08:27):
and realized that comment at that time had more likes
than the actual posts.
Speaker 1 (08:32):
Wow.
Speaker 2 (08:34):
And I was like, Okay, maybe this is something beautiful
that the community could rally around. I set it up.
I went to bed. I checked the next morning and
there's over ten thousand dollars.
Speaker 1 (08:43):
Wow. So how much did you collect? Are you continuing
to collect? And what do you plan to do with
the donations that were made?
Speaker 2 (08:52):
So as of right now, we have collected a little
over three hundred and sixty thousand dollars. Yes, the donation
link it's still still up. You can still donate. And
the reason why is because we have had so many
donations come through that we have decided collectively we're going
to keep the Snap Breakfast, however long until that that
(09:14):
fund runs out. Snap or not. If you are just
in need of a meal and you cannot make it
to your local food bank or your local food drive.
If your EBT, your Snap has ran out for the
month and you're just in need of a hot meal,
really quick, come by ask for the Snap Breakfast. No
(09:35):
proof needed, You don't need a show us your bank account.
We trust you and we'll give you a meal for free.
So our current plan is this, with all that money.
Number one, one hundred percent of all the funds raised
are going to keep Portland fed. That's what we said
from the very beginning and we are very adamant about
keeping it that way. How we're going to do that
(09:56):
is two ways. Number one is Heretic is going to
retain forty percent of all the funds raised, and that
forty percent will allow us to if we didn't bring
in one more dollar, we could do the Snap Breakfast
for the next sixteen months, So we know that. Number Two, though,
we're going to be donating sixty percent of all the
(10:17):
money raised to some of the more under resource communities,
mutual aid groups, food banks here and here in Portland,
and Monday of this week we actually announced our first
one that we have donated to and we're excited to continue,
you know, doing what we can with this money.
Speaker 1 (10:36):
That is terrific. So tell us if people want to
make a donation, where do they go online? And where
is Heretic Coffee located.
Speaker 2 (10:44):
Yeah, so if you want to make a donation, you
can just go to Hereticcoffee dot com and there's a
donation link right there on the very front page, or
just go to our Instagram. It's also in the links
in our Instagram and all of our social media as well.
We're located in southa Portland. Address is fifty one to
twenty southeast twenty eighth Avenue. I would say you can't
(11:06):
miss it, but you can because it's a very small
little building. It's a very fast street that we're on.
So just look for our little sandwich board sign that
says Hair to Coffee, make a left or right right
into our parking lot.
Speaker 1 (11:17):
Josh, anything else you'd like to add.
Speaker 2 (11:19):
You know, I've been telling this to everyone in every interview.
When the system fails us, it's on us to take
care of all of us. And one of the most
beautiful things that we've seen is over twelve thousand people
across the world came together to feed Americans. And I
think that's something that we should really really consider and
(11:40):
think about that this is an act of not just
American or patriotic kindness, this was an act of human kindness.
Speaker 1 (11:50):
That is terrific. Josh, thanks very much for joining us.
Speaker 2 (11:52):
Thank you.
Speaker 1 (11:53):
That's Josh White, owner of Hair to Coffee. They're located
on southeast twenty eighth Avenue near Steel Street. Their website
is Hereticcoffee dot com. Holdom. The county District Attorney Nathan
Vasquez says their drug deflection program isn't working and he's
making changes in his office to put teeth in the program.
He says, it's not getting significant results.
Speaker 3 (12:15):
This is something that you know, I raised these concerns
early on, and I said that without accountability, my fear,
to be very direct, is that we would see this
situation where we have had I think to date around
six hundred individuals, but we have very little to show
for as far as individuals meaningfully engaging in treatment. And
(12:35):
so yes, it's a concern and fear I've been raising.
Speaker 1 (12:38):
How does the program work right now?
Speaker 3 (12:40):
An individual that is you know, picked up, arrested on
the streets, they're brought to our deflection center, they're dropped
off and essentially that ends it. That is the end
of the court police, any type of you know, that involvement.
There is a very complex process where if they if
they've failed, if they walk away but they're arrested again
(13:03):
another month, could they potentially be charged there? It is possible.
I can tell you We've had zero of those brought
to my office. So how it's different now is going
to be that every person that is brought to the
Deflection Center, my office will be reviewing those reports. My
office will be looking at did that person actually engage
in a meaningful way and do treatment that I think
(13:25):
this community demands.
Speaker 1 (13:26):
Does housing play a role in helping people to successfully
get through drug treatment?
Speaker 3 (13:30):
It's a great question, and I'll tell you that you
got to remember my half is the criminal justice side.
That doesn't mean that I am turning away from or
not considering or not looking at that. I am one
piece and there are many others. And I'll say that
Commissioner Singleton put forward a plan that included a lot
of what you're talking about, those housing points, and we're
certainly open to that. And I want to see that
(13:51):
because any way that we can help individuals get stable
and into a healthy and sober situation is going to
be helping push this forward in a positive way that's
meaningful in this community.
Speaker 1 (14:01):
Will this have an impact on available resources for the
Deflection Program and the DA's office right now?
Speaker 3 (14:07):
We can use last year right and will that number
go up or down? I don't know, but last year
we had six hundred cases come in. My hope and
expectation is that, you know, we're going to have people
be successful, so we won't be prosecuting. But if that
number is six hundred, if that number is five hundred,
four hundred, this office is going to step up and
(14:27):
we're going to be taking on those cases and looking
to put them through again.
Speaker 4 (14:33):
It is.
Speaker 3 (14:33):
The first step is conditional discharge, and that means there's
a higher level of supervision, there's more kind of eyes
on the case. So my sincere hope is that we
will see people with this added layer of accountability engage
and actually be successful in a meaningful way. And I
think that's been a lot of the criticism around is
(14:55):
what is success? How do we define that? And I'm
always one that's going to say, means you have to
meanfully engage in treatment, That means making serious efforts, It
means taking those steps that this community is looking for.
Speaker 1 (15:07):
Wasn't this part of the program originally? And why do
it now?
Speaker 3 (15:11):
I'll tell you just for the context in the background
is that this program got started before I took office.
So I took office in January. This program started in
the September before, and you know, essentially there is a
whole group of folks that were putting that together. I
explained to them at the time my reservations with the program,
and I agreed that I would give it some time
(15:32):
to be built up and see how it would work.
That time has been given and it's time for a change.
Speaker 1 (15:38):
It'll be a big effort to follow up with people
in deflection. Can the DA's office handle the extra workload?
Speaker 3 (15:43):
So yes, we have the staff and we will We'll
take it. These are misdemeanors. These are not complex. This
is not you know, this is not some in depth,
lengthy investigation. I you know, I all of us could
walk out right now into Old Town probably and see
someone using fentanyl. And so it's not a difficult thing
to do as far as you know. What happens when
(16:04):
someone fails to go through with it, those reports will
come to my office and either they will have a
citation to appear at a future court date, or if
the other route would be that a warrant would be
issued for their arrest. Those are the two options.
Speaker 1 (16:16):
Is this something the DA's office can do on its own?
Speaker 3 (16:19):
To be clear, the decision about whether to prosecute or
not prosecute. That remains solely with the district attorney. That
is how it is throughout.
Speaker 1 (16:27):
The state of Oregon.
Speaker 3 (16:28):
That's nothing new or novel, and so that is what's
happening here, is that that decision is essentially I'm directing
that decision. When we talk about deflection as a whole,
what we're talking about are all the things that go
into that. So in other words, in Moltlimer County, we
have decided we're going to put together a deflection center,
and so the county has put together this whole center
(16:49):
received it's approximately six million dollars give or take some
money there to create this center in a program. And
then the question about delivery of services. There's lots of
agencies throughout the county. There's the Housing Department, there's you know,
certainly the health department. There's all these other agencies within
the county that can provide all of that back end stuff.
(17:10):
For me, it's a decision of does my office prosecute
or not. And so when we don't prosecute, it's because
someone is meaningfully engaging in treatment.
Speaker 1 (17:20):
Will this have an impact on jail capacity?
Speaker 3 (17:22):
We're not talking about these people aren't going in and
the six hundred people, we're not talking about them getting
held in long periods of times. A lot of times
they are with a citation to appear. They're never even
touching the jail house. So what's happening, though, is there
will be times where people will be booked in and released.
Speaker 1 (17:37):
These are the.
Speaker 3 (17:38):
Types of crimes where I know the sheriff has said
that she will book but they're not ones that I
am seeing under a current release guidelines that they're going
to be held for long periods of time. So I
don't anticipate that the impact on the jail will be
that heavy.
Speaker 1 (17:52):
Drug treatment is ultimately a health issue. What role does
the justice system play?
Speaker 3 (17:56):
Yes, I understand the health part of it. It certainly
has a larger social impact as well, though, And the
way that I would say it is, look, if this
community and this our amazing country and state, if we
can come up with a health system that can deal
with addiction, that can take people and get them through
and basically so there's no involvement with the criminal justice system,
(18:19):
all the better. Would we would welcome that, But currently
that doesn't exist, and so what we have is a
situation where you know, we tried basically the Measure one
ten approach of no involvement of the criminal justice system.
It didn't work. We saw record overdose deaths, and so
we are at a place now where we're kind of
(18:41):
trying to balance out different approaches. And trust me when
I say that we are going to do everything we
can to see individuals get into treatment. Our goal is
not to put people in jail, It is to get
people to treatment.
Speaker 1 (18:54):
Is it a matter of having the tools to run
deflection or is it a system failure that's caused the problems.
Speaker 3 (19:00):
Oh, I think we had the tools in I think
it's a matter of do we have the system built
that actually is designed in a manner that has accountability
and actually works to connect people to those tools and resources.
So it's not like we haven't had a Department of
Homeless Services that didn't have a four hundred million dollar budget.
It's not like we didn't have a county health department
(19:21):
that didn't have a four hundred million dollar budget. We've
had the resources, we just haven't had the accountability and
really the system designed to make sure that we can
get people connected to that. I mean, I'll always say
that people suffering from substance, ustice or It's a very
challenging topic and there are no easy answers for sure,
(19:41):
and success is oftentimes in fits and starts, and there
are a lot of different routes to treatment. But we
should be doing everything we can to help that process.
Speaker 1 (19:49):
Woldo MC County Commissioner Shannon Singleton has proposed tying the
Deflection program more directly into existing systems for homelessness and addiction.
How does that work with your approach?
Speaker 5 (20:00):
Oh?
Speaker 3 (20:00):
I think they work tandem, hand in hand because for
my definition and what I'm seeing is and what Commissioner
Singleton put out particularly was she said, Hey, we know
a lot of people that we're coming into contact with
are struggling with housing issues. And when we see people
get more stable in their lives, they have better opportunities
to engage in treatment, they have better opportunities to get
(20:21):
to sober. There's just all kinds of benefits that can
come from that. And certainly I am one her percent
open to looking at all options that get people to
a healthier place.
Speaker 1 (20:29):
How will your new approach be organized?
Speaker 3 (20:32):
You know what's going to happen is the police and
the district attorneys will work together on the accountability piece,
on reports and citations and all of that. We certainly
will work with our county partners on how to communicate
the efforts that are being made to connect people with
treatment and the end right now, the way our system
is structured, it is actually the responsibility of that individual
(20:54):
who comes in and who is charged, you know, with
possession of control substance, that if they want to be deflected,
they need to take those actions. That's the way the
state legislature put it out. I think it is incumbent
upon our community to try to help provide some of
those opportunities, but it's incumbent upon those individuals to really
take the steps. And the way I've always approached this
(21:15):
is it's a bit of a push and a pull. Yes,
we want to help push them to the right direction,
we should also be there to pull them up as well.
Speaker 1 (21:21):
In what way is Moulton mckenny's drug deflection program not working?
Speaker 3 (21:25):
The bottom line is that what I see is very
very little evidence of anyone actually engaging in meaningful treatment,
very little evidence of that. What I see is when
you talk about the numbers, one third of the people
left without even doing an assessment. The remaining amount go
(21:45):
in and do an assessment, and of those that did
an assessment, I think it's eighteen percent, they're quote unquote successful.
The definition of success then is something that is very limited.
So what we've heard are a few anecdotal folks out
of the six hundred that have been you know, made
(22:06):
life changes. So I just right now I'm looking at that,
and what I hear from the community is that six hundred, sorry,
six million dollars of investment for just a handful of
people that actually I got in treatment is not a
good use of taxpayer dollars. There's two missing components. It's
front end back end. Accountability needs to be there for sure,
(22:28):
and the back end is we need to see meaningful
engagement and treatment that comes both with the individual and
also with the systems in place that are providing that opportunity.
Speaker 1 (22:38):
That's Wilnoma County District Attorney Navan Vasquez outlining his plan
to increase enforcement of the drug Deflection program to make
sure that people are following through with treatment. The Oregon
Health Authority want you to think about how much alcohol
you're drinking. The program is called Rethink the Drink. Deputy
State Health Officer Doctor Tom Jean joins us on Local Doctor.
(23:01):
What's the message the campaign's trying to get across.
Speaker 5 (23:03):
We're really trying to encourage people to stop and think
reflect about the role alcohol plays in their lives and
whether maybe drinking a little less might be a good idea.
And this is a big thing.
Speaker 1 (23:18):
Of course, this.
Speaker 5 (23:19):
Time of year, people are gathering friends, families, coming together
various social events, and alcohols often you know, present in
these kinds of gatherings, parties, or events. So we're really
trying to remind people that you don't need alcohol to
enjoy the holiday season. You can spend time with your
(23:40):
friends and loved ones and celebrate without the pressure to drink.
And of course, the holiday drinking season is when the
most alcohol is sold an organ and across the nation,
so it's a great time to be mindful of this.
Speaker 1 (23:54):
What do you want hosts to think about?
Speaker 5 (23:56):
Yeah, so I think it's really important to create a
environment and that is healthy and gives people options and
doesn't pressure them to drink more alcohol than they might
want to or you know, might be might be good
for them. So we want hosts to think about providing
non alcoholic beverage options of course, you know, providing foods,
(24:21):
make sure people aren't hungry. And you know, people who
are attending events should be thinking about are you going
to drink? And if so, what's you know, how many
drinks do you want to have? Set a personal limit
before you arrive, and then you can think about alternating
alcoholic drinks with with with non alcoholic drinks. If you
(24:41):
are going to be consuming alcohol, and if you are
going to drink, of course, arrange a designated driver or
use a ride share or public transportation. And finally, you know,
we encourage everybody to have open conversations. Ask your friends,
ask your loved ones how they feel about drinking, and
(25:02):
certainly avoid pressuring others to drink and support those who
choose not to drink.
Speaker 1 (25:07):
Talk to me a little bit about some of the
long term effects of alcohol consumption, and not necessarily somebody
who's an alcoholic, but studies are starting to show what
the other effects alcohol can have on people.
Speaker 5 (25:20):
First, over twenty five hundred people in Oregon are dying
from alcohol related causes every year, and the share of
organ adults who are drinking excessively is bigger than most
of us might realize it's more than one in five
adults in organ and most of the people in that
group are not affected by alcoholism or alcohol used disorder.
(25:42):
And so some of the harms, you know, other than
the kind of obvious ones like liver disease or motor
vehicle crashes, are things like cancers. There are at least
eight cancers that are strongly linked to alcohol drinking, heart disease,
as well as depression, anxiety, and then things like of
(26:05):
course injuries, domestic violence, and other health harms. So it's
really a lot of different risks that increase steadily with
the more alcohol that a person drinks.
Speaker 1 (26:18):
Does the orig and Health Authority have resources available for
people who might be asking whether they've been drinking too much,
whether they might have a problem drinking too much alcohol.
Speaker 5 (26:28):
Yeah, absolutely so. We have our website rethinkthedrink dot com,
which has resources, It has information, it has an interactive
screening tool that you can take to quickly assess your drinking,
create a plan to achieve your goals. So that's a
great resource. We also have the Alcohol and Drug Helpline,
(26:51):
which is one hundred ninety two three four, three, five
seven has free confidential resources and support, and there's also
the crisis Lifeline. You just dial mine eight eight and
it's another great way to get resources.
Speaker 1 (27:06):
That's doctor Tom jen, Deputy State Health Officer for the
Oregon Health Authority, discussing there Rethink the Drink campaign. You
can learn more at rethinkthedrink dot com. Lithium ion batteries
or in a lot of products we use, they can
cause intense fires. Kat and Brian from the Northwest Insurance
Council joins us on local voices, so charging batteries can
(27:29):
overheat and start a very intense fire. What advice do
you have for people charging lithium ion batteries?
Speaker 4 (27:36):
The keys are first of all, only use the charging
equipment and or records that came with the device to
charge the device. Secondly, when you're charging a device, especially
if it's a phone or something smaller, make sure sitting
on a hard surface, not on pile clothes or on
your bed. You know, don't charge things overnight, leave them
(27:59):
on the charger unattended. And if you're charging a vehicle
or a scooter or a bike, it's important to not
charge it when you're going to leave the house. It's
best to charge it outside and not inside the garage
or inside your house.
Speaker 1 (28:15):
Is it important to look at the battery and see
if there are any issues with it.
Speaker 4 (28:20):
One thing that is important to do is to keep
an eye on the devices that you're charging. If you're
charging your phone every day for hours at a time,
keep an eye on whether or not you're seeing any
signs of leakage from the battery, or any signs of
overheating or any swelling.
Speaker 1 (28:37):
Now, when you're done with a device or you're done
with the battery, what should you do with it?
Speaker 4 (28:41):
Do not throw your used batteries or devices in the
household trash. Take them to a local recycling or hazardous
waste facility.
Speaker 1 (28:49):
Any special precautions to take with electric vehicles.
Speaker 4 (28:53):
Well, more and more we're seeing damage to homes as
well as vehicles from overcharging and sometimes just from malfunctioning
batteries or the vehicles themselves. So it's important to make
sure that your vehicle is being charged with a system
that's approved by the manufacturer of the vehicle. It's best
(29:14):
to charge the vehicle outside, although some people do install
these chargers inside their garage. It's safer to have it
outside your home, because if there is an overheating problem
in that vehicle or battery starts to burn, it can
burn super intensely and it can burn for days.
Speaker 1 (29:34):
As Kat and Bryan with a Northwest Insurance Council and
tips on how to avoid lithium battery fires. Thanks for
listening to Local Voices, I'm brand Board. You can hear
past episodes on the iHeartRadio app under the podcast tab.
Local Voices is a public affairs presentation from iHeartRadio
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