The Associated Press


PORTLAND — Brian Meehan, a sports writer and columnist for The Oregonian newspaper, has died after complications from heart surgery. He was 57.

Meehan died Tuesday at St. Joseph Medical Center in Tacoma, Wash., where he had undergone valve replacement surgery last week, the newspaper reported on its Web site.

Meehan joined the Oregonian in 1989 and covered such events as the Thurston High School shootings and the shipwreck of the New Carissa. He moved to the sports department as a columnist in 1999.

“The thing that struck me most about Brian was he was someone who was able to do his job and still maintain his passion for the game,” said the Oregonian’s sports editor, Mark Hester.

During his career, Meehan also worked at the Morristown (N.Y.) Daily Record, the Harrisburg (Pa.) Patriot-News and the Hartford Courant.

Meehan was a native of Rockville Centre, N.Y., and a 1973 graduate of Hofstra University. He coached youth baseball and football in the Lake Oswego community.

He is survived by his wife, Elissa, a daughter and two sons, as well as his mother, Patricia Meehan of Bloomfield, Conn., two brothers and a sister. Services were pending.

Information from: The Oregonian, http://www.oregonlive.com.