Lewis County Sirens.com

By Sharyn  L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

An outbuilding used for growing marijuana east of Napavine burned to the ground last night.

Nobody got hurt and nobody got high, according to Lewis County Fire District 5 Chief Eric Linn.

The 60-year-old wood frame structure was fully involved in flames when firefighters arrived; it and its contents were basically incinerated, according to Linn.

Responders, of course, were wearing their breathing apparatus so there was little danger of them being affected, he said.

Firefighters were called about 10:30 p.m. to the 30-foot by 30-foot building off South Prairie Road. They were on the scene until about 1:30 a.m., he said.

Linn said he did not have an estimate of the number of plants inside, but a deputy verified it was a valid medical marijuana grow.

Since the building had been secured and did have power to it, they are looking at a possible electrical problem as the cause, he said.

This was updated at 6:30 p.m.

By Sharyn  L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

CHEHALIS – A Randle taxidermist charged with second-degree murder is expected in court today following a plea offer in the case of his father-in-law who died after injuries that included  broken eye sockets.

Erik R. Massa, 44, was charged almost a year ago in the death of Guy W. LaFontaine, a 58-year-old welder, from Federal Way.

Massa’s trial is currently set for the week after next in Lewis County Superior Court.

Update: Massa’s case was pleaded down to second-degree assault and he was sentenced this afternoon to as much as the judge could give someone with no criminal history – nine months in jail.

He was taken directly into custody.

More to come. See it here

This was updated at 5:50 p.m.

By Sharyn  L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

Update: Officer Elwood says Taylor has been found; his truck was spotted by the sheriff’s office plane on a logging road in the Pe Ell area.

Police are looking for a 67-year-old Napavine man who left home the day before yesterday and hasn’t been seen since.

Michael A. Taylor

Napavine Police Department Officer-in-charge Silas Elwood said Michael A. Taylor’s family is worried something might have happened to him or he might possibly be suicidal.

Taylor was last seen at 2 p.m. on Tuesday leaving his home driving a black 1990 Chevrolet Sport pickup, according to Elwood.

Taylor vanished one a year or so ago and Elwood tracked him through his cell phone, but this time Taylor left his cell phone behind, Elwood said.

He was spotted earlier Tuesday at the Lucky Eagle Casino, leaving police to suspect he could be staying at a motel or a casino.

“He might in like the Pe Ell, Doty or Dryad area, the family is from there, so people out there should really be on the lookout,” Elwood said.

Anyone with any information is asked to call Elwood at 360-880-0113 any time of day or night.

Taylor's black 1990 Chevrolet Sport pickup is similar to this one, except Taylor's does not have a spoiler.

By Sharyn  L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

CHEHALIS – If a person can get a federal permit to grow marijuana, then Lewis County officials will allow them to apply for a local permit to create a so-called collective medical marijuana garden in unincorporated portions of the county.

That’s the gist of the proposal Lewis County commissioners will take public comment upon and then vote on Jan. 23.

A draft of the expected new ordinance should be available on Jan. 11, county commissioners said yesterday.

A state law went into effect last summer allowing up to 10 medical marijuana patients to grow their cannabis in a single plot, but county officials put a moratorium in place while they studied the issue.

While state law allows it, marijuana is still illegal under federal law, a contradiction commissioners say they were attempting to address.

Lewis County Civil Deputy Prosecutor Glenn Carter told the three commissioners yesterday federal permission is hard to get, but named at least one facility in the country which has obtained one.

Commissioner Bill Schulte said the “climate” for such approval by the federal government could change in the future.

•••

For background, read “County leaders want your opinions on how to grow (medical) marijuana” from Tuesday August 2, 2011, here

By Sharyn  L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

A Chehalis home that was hit by a bus early last year was the scene of another vehicle collision last night.

Nobody inside was injured but two little girls from the offending vehicle were taken to the hospital with scrapes, according to the Chehalis Fire Department.

Police and aid were called about 9:10 p.m. to the split-level home on the 100 block of 13th Street, near William Avenue, according to Fire Capt. Kevin Curfman.

A pickup truck drove through a fence into the driveway, where it ran into two parked vehicles shoving one of them several feet through the closed garage doors, Curfman said.

Curfman said it didn’t appear the driver put on his brakes. The children, ages 4 and 5, had been buckled into car seats and their injuries were minor, he said.

There was lots of broken glass, he said.

Chehalis police did not have a completed report this morning, although Deputy Chief Randy Kaut said the driver was checked and found not to be under the influence.

Residents Hieu Duong and Liu Li were home last February with their children and mother when a Twin Transit bus plowed through a fence and the yard before striking the house. None of them were hurt then either.

“The poor home owner, I really feel for him,” Curfman said.

By Sharyn  L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

Three people were killed in a single-vehicle collision west of Oakville this evening.

Firefighters were called about 5 p.m. to the 400 block of Brooklyn Road, six or so miles southwest of Oakville, according to Grays Harbor Fire District 1.

There were two men and two women in a small pickup truck which ran into some trees, Fire Capt. Ryan Graham said.

Firefighters from District 1 as well as Riverside Fire Authority used the Jaws of Life to extricate the adult female who survived, Graham said. She was airlifted to Harborview Medical Center in Seattle.

The Grays Harbor County Sheriff’s Office is investigating, he said.