Lewis County Sirens.com

Check current conditions and the forecast from the National Weather Service, here

Updated at 8:03 a.m.

By Sharyn L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

CHEHALIS – Most of the interior lowlands of Western Washington will see light snow or flurries this morning, but little to no accumulation is expected, according to the National Weather Service.

Roads will be slippery as temperatures will likely stay near freezing, the weather service says. This includes the Interstate 5 corridor from the north end of the Pierce county line southward.

White Pass schools are closed today, with most other school districts in Lewis County reporting they will start two hours late. School districts in Toledo, Winlock and Castle Rock are closed today as well.

Precipitation is expected to change over to rain by late morning.

Temperatures in Chehalis are 34 degrees this morning, having climbed from a low of 18 degrees yesterday morning.

Some, but not all, Lewis County schools share late start or closure information on the website Flash Alert, here

By Sharyn L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

CHEHALIS – The city of Chehalis is looking to fill a vacancy on its Civil Service Commission.

The commission holds regular meetings once each month and its members are unpaid.

The Civil Service Commission basically oversee the examination process, appointments, promotions, transfers, reinstatements, demotions, suspensions and discharge of police and fire department employees, according to City Clerk Judy Schave.

Appointments to the commission are made by the city manager, subject to the approval of the city council, and are generally six-year terms.

Applicants must be a citizen of the United States and a resident of the city of Chehalis for at least three years.

Application forms are available on the city’s website, or can be picked up at City Hall located at 350 N. Market Blvd. Rm 101.

The city will accept applications until the position is filled.

By Sharyn L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

CHEHALIS – Wildlife officers are trying to catch a cougar suspected of killing a llama in the Meade Hill area of Glenoma.

Authorities were contacted yesterday after the discovery of the dead animal, according to the state Department of Fish and Wildlife.

“We do suspect it could be a cougar, we did put out a live trap,” department spokesperson Craig Bartlett said.

Bartlett said the big cats’ chief prey are deer and elk, but they don’t hibernate and they’re out and about, and hungry this time of year.

He said it appeared whatever attacked the llama had gone back to eat on it a couple of times.

If it’s captured, and could be tied to the llama, it will probably be euthanized, he said.

By Sharyn L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

A hunter was rescued yesterday after spending the night stuck in a creek bed in the woods southwest of Boistfort.

The man was found by a couple who called 911 about 9 o’clock in the morning and met up with firefighters at Boistfort Lions Club Park on  Pe Ell-McDonald Road, according to Lewis County Fire District 13.

“They took us to his location, we found him conscious and able to speak,” Fire Chief Gwen Turner said, noting it was along the 4000 Line. “He just couldn’t get himself out on his own.”

He said he had fallen and hit his head, Turner said.

Turner said it was quite a deep ditch and while the man was not in the water, he didn’t have a coat. Someone had tossed one down to him before he was brought up, she said.

Temperatures overnight in the area dropped into the mid- to high 30s.

He was very lucky, she said.

Seven members of the fire department carried him out, about three-quarters of a mile to the road.

The man, who is from Roy but owns property in Pe Ell is either 57 or 58 years old, she said. He said he was hunting raccoons.

He was put in an ambulance and taken to Providence Centralia Hospital, to be checked for hypothermia and possibly a bit of dehydration, she said.

By Sharyn L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

The Thurston County Prosecutor’s Office introduced its newest member to the public yesterday, Marshal the courthouse dog.

Marshal the courthouse dog

The 2-year-old black Labrador is trained to provide companionship for individuals by reducing their stress and assisting those reliving painful events, according to the prosecutor’s office.

Thurston County Prosecutor Jon Tunheim says Marshal can offer a soothing influence for the victims they work with.

“Crime is a traumatic event for victims,” Tunheim said in a news release. “As difficult as the incidents themselves can be, giving statements about what happened and navigating the criminal justice system forces a victim to re-live that challenging trauma.”

Marshal was provided free of charge by Assistance Dogs of Hawaii, where he was trained. He will work at the main courthouse as well as at the Family Support Center of South Sound.

Comfort dogs in courthouses are not new.

The Lewis County Prosecutor’s Office brought in Oak, a court therapy dog, earlier this year.

Anne Larsen of the Thurston County Prosecutor’s Office indicates courthouse dogs have been in place since 2004, with 95 other facility dogs like Marshal working in 29 other states.

A sport utility vehicle rests between two trucks on Interstate 5 today. / Courtesy photo by Riverside Fire Authority

Updated

By Sharyn L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

The Washington State Patrol says there were no major injuries from a series of wrecks on southbound Interstate 5 at Centralia today.

The first one came about 10:30 a.m. just prior to the construction area, according to Trooper Will Finn.

“There were multiple collisions, lots of collisions, even while we were out there, people were still crashing,” Finn said.

Lewis-Thurston county line about 5 p.m.

Crews from Riverside Fire Authority responded initially to a report of multiple vehicles with two semi trucks involved.

The state Department of Transportation alerted motorists to a backup that stretched nearly to the Maytown rest area.

Interstate 5 narrows down to two lanes coming in to Centralia, allowing for a huge bottleneck, Finn said.

“It sounds like a little bit weather related, a little bit traffic related,” he said.

He said he didn’t know how many people were transported to the hospital, but he understood there were only minor injuries. He didn’t have a count yet this afternoon of how many cars and trucks were involved.

However, the fire department later reported they responded to four collisions involving eight semi trucks and seven other vehicles.

One patient sustained severe injuries and five suffered minor injuries, according to Fire Capt. Scott Weinert. All were taken to Providence Centralia Hospital, according to Weinert.

Troopers were on the scene until 1:30 p.m., Finn said.

Late this afternoon, the state patrol in Lewis County turned its attention to U.S. Highway 12 east of Packwood.

Dispatchers were taking calls of spinouts and blocking accidents in the area near state Route 123, with other motorists trying to chain up to drive over White Pass, Finn said at about 4:45 p.m.

The state Department of Transportation last night reopened one lane over the pass, following a lengthy closure from washouts during the last round of flooding.

Commercial trucks – tractor-trailer combinations – are prohibited except for an allowance for local deliveries.

By Sharyn  L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

A traveling magazine salesman was arrested last night for allegedly stealing decorative fish from the bathroom of a potential customer in Centralia.

Over the weekend, a resident at the 200 block of Elizabeth Browning Drive who allowed a door-to-door salesman to use her restroom discovered a computer tablet missing after he left.

Then yesterday evening, police got a report the same man was back in the area and an officer contacted him, according to the Centralia Police Department.

“He talked to him for awhile, one thing led to another and the officer had probable cause to believe he took the tablet,” Officer John Panco said. “On searching him, he found these fish figurines in his pants pocket.”

The officer was able to learn a resident on the 1100 block of Emerson Lane had invited the man inside, and while there, he also asked to use the bathroom, according to Panco. That’s where the little ceramic fish came from, Panco said.

Joshua D. Medaris, 24, from Austin, Texas, was arrested for two counts of third-degree theft and booked into the Lewis County Jail.

Panco said he didn’t know if the magazine subscription sales were legitimate or not.

In the Saturday case, the victim did make a purchase and their receipt was signed Josh Medarz.