Lewis County Sirens.com

By Sharyn  L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

A 51-year-old man was arrested yesterday after he allegedly tried to fire bomb his ex-wife’s home in the Mossyrock area.

Matthew P. White was subdued by his 23-year-old son, who at one point kicked away a device his father said was Napalm before it exploded in the kitchen.

No injuries were reported. White, who lives in Centralia, was booked into the Lewis County Jail on multiple offenses.

It happened on the 100 block of Koons Road, south of Mayfield Lake.

Deputies were called about 12:30 p.m. by the son, who said he was concerned about his father and followed him to the home, according to the Lewis County Sherif’s Office.

“The son watched his father carry a gas can and an incendiary device to the front door then kick in the door,” Chief Civil Deputy Stacy Brown said.

Nobody was home at the time, according to Brown.

The son and his 22-year-old friend followed the father into the kitchen, where they found he had lit the device, Brown said.

Brown said White looked at the device and threw it at his son.

The friend grabbed a fire extinguisher and put it out, while White and his son wrestled, Brown said.

White then allegedly came at the friend, pulling a large knife from the back of his coat.

The two young men finally subdued White and pulled him from the house, according to Brown.

The fire damage was apparently limited to a door jamb.

Brown said the device was found to be gas mixed with styrofoam. She said three more were found in White’s car.

White was booked for first-degree arson, first-degree assault, burglary and possession of an incendiary device, according to Brown.

He has not lived at the house since October, she said.

By Sharyn  L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

The Centralia Community Church of God are among those mourning the death of 57-year-old John Michael Summers.

Summers body was recovered Sunday from inside a chemical holding tank at a Portland area industrial site.

John Michael Summers

“He’s Mike to everyone here,” Pastor Mark Fast said this afternoon. “Oh man, what a big-hearted guy.”

Portland Fire and Rescue was called just after 10 o’clock on Sunday morning to rescue a worker who had apparently fallen into a 20-foot deep holding tank on a barge, according to a news release from the fire department. It contained a toxic and corrosive agricultural material, according to the fire department.

Another employee had seen Summers near the hatch, turned away and when he looked back, Summers was gone, the fire department reported.

Rescuers concluded a person would have become unconscious right away because of the lack of oxygen in the tank.

Pastor Fast said he’s come to know Summers, his wife Sandy Summers and adult daughter Gillian Summers as they began attending the Borst Avenue church about a year and a half ago. They had lived in Centralia before moving to Doty, Fast said.

“Over and over again, the word I’ve used to describe Mike most is genuine,” Fast said.

Summers used to have a flooring company and was a successful business person, Fast said. It was his understanding Summers had taken a job with a Seattle shipyard, and was commuting every weekend, Fast said. The pastor said he was surprised to learn Summers was working in Portland.

It was just this past October, when fast invited Summers to speak about his transformation to the congregation, something the church videotaped and shares through its website. He spoke of the joy permeating his life, Fast said.

A memorial service is set for 11 a.m. on Saturday at Church on the Hill in McMinnville, Ore., according to Fast. Much of Summers’ family lives there, the pastor said.

The accident occurred on Swan Island, at Cascade General Shipyard, according to a fire department spokesperson.

Oregon OSHA is investigating, Firefighter and Public Information Officer Paul Corah said.

Courtesy photo by Portland Fire and Rescue

By Sharyn  L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

CENTRALIA – The fate of the southwest corner of Tower Avenue and Main Street downtown is in the hands of the next generation.

Linda Hamilton’s historic building that burned last week was insured but it certainly can’t be just simply replaced.

Linda Hamilton

Hamilton said with buildings that old, it’s hard to even get insurance, and what she had was capped.

The Dr. Matz building, the oldest masonry structure in Centralia, had a tax assessed value of almost $313,000.

“The cap, in 2012 replacement doesn’t build much,” Hamilton said today. “That part of it’s kind of sad.”

The Valentines Day fire displaced the tenants of a dozen apartments and five businesses, including Hamilton’s Centralia Perk coffee and antique shop and her upstairs residence.

Crews began demolishing what remained last week.

“The bank will be paid off, and happy,” Hamilton said.

The property will stay in the family; she’s letting her adult sons make the decision about what they want, she said.

“The building was their future, now the building lot is their future,” she said.

Her sons, J.J. and Ryan Hamilton, 29 and 31, are pretty excited, she said. If they want to go all out, and go in debt, that’s up to them, she said.

The insurance had a cap of $10,000 on the amount it would pay for tear the building down. The bid to do it was $90,000, according to Hamilton.

The Centralia Downtown Association is organizing a fundraiser to help her defray the costs of demolition.

Steve Koreis, vice president of the CDA, said Hamilton could have chosen to leave the hull of the building standing, but didn’t.

“It was her decision to make sure the building would be cleared completely,” Koreis said. “So we’re supporting her in that decision.”

Their focus is the best outcome for the downtown corridor, Koreis said.

The  Centralia Downtown Association is affiliated with the state Main Street program, which has a philosophy of promoting economic revitalization while preserving a city’s historic character.

Koreis said Hamilton is planning to make the soon-to-be empty lot available for downtown events and activities.

Hamilton said she’s not certain where her former business tenants will land.

She hasn’t spoken with Tony McNally, who operated his barbershop there, but she knows the owner of Phantom Tattoo is looking to stay in the area, she said.

She knows nothing about Rachel Thompson’s plans with her Curious Betty’s boutique, she said. And the woman who had Jody’s hair salon in the back of Centralia Perk, she has friends helping her out, Hamilton said.

The fundraiser to help pay for the Matz building demolition is set for 6 p.m. on March 1, a week from Thursday at the Aerie  Ballroom on South Tower Avenue.

It will include food, beverages, live entertainment and a silent auction, according to Koreis

The CDA is suggesting donations of $10 and up.

Dr. Matz building