Lewis County Sirens.com

Updated

By Sharyn L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

An Onalaska man was airlifted to Harborview Medical Center in Seattle after a two-vehicle wreck overnight on U.S. Highway 12 just east of Interstate 5.

Both Toyota Corollas were totaled.

Troopers called at 12:53 a.m. found that Monte E. Bainbridge was traveling north on Meier Road and failed to stop at the stop sign. His car was struck by another car which was eastbound on Highway 12, according to the Washington State Patrol.

Bainbridge, 40, from Onalaska, was injured and flown to the Seattle hospital, according to the state patrol. The other driver, Erik L. Due, 23, from Toledo, was reportedly unhurt.

The investigating trooper reports Bainbridge is suspected of having been driving under the influence.

The state Department of Transportation indicates the westbound lane of Highway 12 was blocked until just after 5 o’clock this morning.

Update 10:30 a.m. on Monday March 7, 2016: A hospital spokesperson says Bainbridge is in serious condition in the intensive care unit but improving this morning.

By Sharyn L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

Centralia police, along with the Centralia Utilities Center, are warning city utility customers about a scam involving bogus collection calls.

The utilities center has received several complaints from customers about it. Customers received a call from a male, identifying himself as “Mark Montgomery” who requests overdue payments, according to the Centralia Police Department.

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Anyone who receives such a call is urged to hang up and then call the Centralia Utilities Center at 360-330-7657. This is the only valid Centralia Utility Customer Service Center number, according to police detective Patricia Finch.

Only on rare occasions, after a statement and past due letter is sent out will a representative of the utilities center call the customer, according to Finch.

Finch said officials have learned of another residence getting a phone call from someone saying the resident was in legal trouble. Another scam, according to Finch. That one provided a business name of Tarek Fadel and a phone number of 646-247-1929.

Residents continue to report getting calls from someone claiming to be with the Internal Revenue Service and demanding payment, according to Finch. That’s a scam, she indicates.

“Please do not give anyone your credit / debit card number over the phone until you have confirmed that it is legitimate,” detective Finch stated in a news release.

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Earlier this month, the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office took more than 30 reports over a two-day period of citizens being phoned by someone purporting to be from the IRS and threatening to send a deputy to arrest them if they didn’t send a money order immediately.

Chief Deputy Stacy Brown reminds the public that the sheriff’s office does not get involved in tax issues and also that the IRS typically contacts people via mail, not by phone.

The sheriff’s office advises if someone gets a call such as these, just simply hang up.

The Thurston County Sheriff’s Office, in conjunction with the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA) earlier this month put out a warning urging taxpayers to remain on high alert.

“As the tax filing season begins, it is critical that all taxpayers continue to be wary of unsolicited telephone calls and e-mails from individuals claiming to be IRS and Treasury employees,” the Inspector General stated. “This scam has proven to be the largest of its kind that we have ever seen.”

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The callers are aggressive and relentless, and once they have your attention, they will say anything to con you out of your hard-earned cash, authorities say.

The IRS will not ask for payment using a prepaid debit card, a money order or wire a transfer, nor will they ask for a credit card number over the phone.

If you get a call from someone claiming to be with the IRS asking for a payment, here’s what to do, according to Thurston County sheriff’s Lt. Cliff Ziesemer. Hang up.

If you owe federal taxes, or think you might owe taxes, hang up and call the IRS at 800-829-1040. IRS workers can help you with your payment questions.

And today, the U.S. Marshals Service is warning the public of a nationwide telephone scam in which callers impersonate U.S. marshals, court officers or law enforcement officials seeking to collect a fine in lieu of arrest for failing to report for jury duty.

The U.S. Marshals Service does not call anyone to arrange payment of fines over the phone for failure to appear for jury duty or any other infraction.

Officials says to be aware the fraudsters:

• May know the last four digits of the victim’s social security number.
• Can make caller ID information appear as if the IRS, or another entity, is actually calling.
• May provide badge numbers and even names of actual judges and courthouse addresses.
• Claim that hanging up the phone will cause the immediate issuance of an arrest warrant.
• Send bogus emails to support their claim
• Call back a second or third time claiming to be police or the department of motor vehicles.

By Sharyn L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

CHEHALIS – The man who died when he was struck by a train south of Tenino on Friday was 41-year-old Gary F. Mann, according to the Thurston County Coroner’s Office.

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Coroner Gary Warnock said Mann had no fixed address but was known to camp out in the Tenino area. He has family locally, according to Warnock.

Deputies were called at 3:52 p.m. on Friday to the area of the 17200 block off state Route 507, told by the Amtrak engineer that the train hit a person who stepped out from between two freight cars parked on a parallel track, according to the Thurston County Sheriff’s Office

The engineer didn’t have time to activate the horn or brakes, and he was killed instantly, sheriff’s Lt. Cliff Ziesemer said.

Warnock indicated he is hoping to view footage from the train’s cameras, to help him determine if the death was an accident or suicide.
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For background, read “News brief: Man struck, killed by train near Tenino” from Friday February 26, 2016, here

Trains are stopped in the area of the 17200 block of state Route 507. / Courtesy photo by Thurston County Sheriff’s Office

Updated at 7:30 p.m.

By Sharyn L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

CHEHALIS – The Thurston County Sheriff’s Office is investigating a death on the train tracks south of Tenino this afternoon.

It happened in the area of the 17200 block off state Route 507, according to the sheriff’s office.

A southbound Amtrak reported at about 4 p.m. they struck an individual, sheriff’s Lt. Cliff Ziesemer said.

A freight train was stopped on the adjacent tracks and Amtrak said the person stepped out from in between two of its cars, he said.

The Amtrak was right there, traveling about 60 mph, Ziesemer said.

The engineer didn’t have time to activate the horn or brakes, and he was killed instantly, he said.

They found identification and the coroner’s office has taken custody of the body and will be notifying next-of-kin, according to Ziesemer. The deceased is 41 years old.

Investigators from BNSF and Amtrak also responded to assist with the investigation.

The rail line was shut down approximately two hours.

By Sharyn L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

Investigators this morning are looking for the cause of a blaze last night that destroyed a medium-sized one-story shop building in Rochester.

Crews called at 8:47 p.m. to the 16600 block of Jordan Street Southwest found the structure fully involved in flames and fought the fire defensively, according to West Thurston Regional Fire Authority.

The adjacent house and shed were steaming from radiant heat, so they protected those buildings from igniting, Chief Robert Scott said.

Firefighters were on the scene into the early hours this morning, Scott said.

Nobody was injured and he wasn’t sure what the shop building contained, Scott said.

By Sharyn L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

CHEHALIS – A deputy was called to Toledo High School yesterday morning to follow up on a clue a student may be in possession of marijuana.

The evidence: A staff member showed the deputy a Facebook post allegedly made by the juvenile featuring a photo of four large buds and indicating he was trying to sell them, according to the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office.

A deputy spoke to the 16-year-old boy, who pulled items out of his backpack and handed them over, according to the sheriff’s office.

A ziplock baggie containing 36.5 grams of the vegetable matter and another container with just shy of 14 grams were confiscated, the sheriff’s office reported this morning.

The teenager was arrested and booked into the Lewis County Juvenile Detention Center for possession of marijuana with intent to deliver, Chief Deputy Stacy Brown said.

By Sharyn L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

A 19-year-old was injured when her pickup struck a culvert and flipped onto its top this morning along state Route 6 about six and a half miles east of Pe Ell.

Troopers called to the scene about 5:40 a.m. report that Ryley R. Lusk, of Chehalis, was not wearing a seat belt and was transported to Providence Centralia Hospital. A hospital spokesperson said she is listed in good condition.

Her 1999 Ford F350 truck is described as totaled.

Lusk had been heading eastbound when her vehicle left the roadway to the right and traveled into a ditch, according to the Washington State Patrol.

She was to be issued citations for not wearing a seat belt and for wheels off the roadway, according to the state patrol.