Lewis County Sirens.com

By Sharyn L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

Firefighters and investigators continued their work today, trying to uncover what ignited the blaze that claimed three lives and nearly consumed a two-story home in Winlock.

“We’re out going through the scene today,” Lewis County Fire District 15 Assistant Chief Kevin Anderson said. “Going through the remains of the house.”

807 N.E. First Street

The Lewis County coroner yesterday recovered the partial remains of three individuals and has yet to verify their identities or release their names.

Winlock Police Department Chief Terry Williams said he hasn’t confirmed the ages of all the family members involved in Thursday’s early morning morning fire.

The father, whose name has not been released, and his two boys escaped the fire physically uninjured. The mother and two little girls who were right behind him did not.

“I think they’re 3 and 4,” Williams said today.

She had them on her hips or under her arms, carrying them out, Williams said. They were found right where he would have expected them to be, some 10 to 15 feet from the front door.

The family had been asleep, and the father had no ideas what caused the fire, Williams said.

807 N.E. First Street / Google

The survivors were in their nighttime apparel, and a life-long Winlock resident has headed up efforts to collect clothing for them, as well as household items.

Brandon Patching said the boys, ages 7 and 9, are average to slim. The father could likely wear large or extra large, he said.

Patching also spearheaded a candlelight vigil last night, held at the site of the world’s largest egg, which the south Lewis County town is known for.

“Being a small town, that’s what we do,” Patching said. “That family needs to know that we’re all there for them.”

Connie Sneed, who became acquainted with the couple at first through the Winlock community Facebook group, early yesterday coordinated with Umpqua Bank in town to set up a donation account.

She’s anxious to get it out of her name, but hasn’t talked directly to the father yet, she said today.

His brother phoned her earlier today – she assumed because the police chief thought they should connect – on the father’s behalf.

“He said he’s very, very appreciative, he’s just barely hanging in there, his brother said; he’s just trying to hang in there, he’s not doing real well,” Sneed said.

Sneed said the father is up north with his family. She said the couple had come to Winlock a year or so ago from Coupeville.

He asked her if she could help get the donated items stored, because he’s going to need them soon, she said.

The brother told her what’s really needed is money, for services and relocating, she said.

“I want him to be able to put her and those babies to rest, and not have to skimp on anything,” Sneed said.

Umpqua Bank continues to accept monetary donations; Mayor Lonnie Dowell said donors can just tell them it is for the fire victims.

Any donations of clothing, or household goods can be taken to the Christian Fellowship in Winlock on Cemetery Road. Also, Patching is happy to continue accept them at his workplace at Aaron’s in the Twin City Town Center in Chehalis, as long as it’s arranged ahead of time with a phone call. He can be reached at 360-740-6060.

Patching and Sneed can also be reached for details via posts on Lewis County Sirens Facebook page.

The fire investigation is being conducted by Sam Patrick, under the direction of Chief Williams.

The chief expected they would continue working into this evening.

Lewis County Coroner Warren McLeod indicated this morning his office is working with the family, keeping them informed of their progress of confirming the identities, so the three can be released and laid to rest.

•••

For background, read “Deadly Winlock fire: Sifting though charred rubble” at 3:39 p.m., here

The search for bodies at the fire scene on Northeast First Street is a slow process.

Updated at 5:04 p.m.

By Sharyn L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

WINLOCK – The scene was somber as an investigator examined the area inside the blackened shell of what was a two-story house, hovering in the basket of a manlift while firefighters assisted below.

“We believe we have a location of one of the victims,” Winlock Police Department Chief Terry Williams announced shortly after 12:15 p.m.

A woman and two little girls didn’t make it out when fire broke out overnight. A father and two boys are said to be in the care of the Red Cross.

Winlock Police Chief Terry Williams

“It’s just heart wrenching,” Winlock Mayor Lonnie Dowell said.

“My heart goes out to them,” Dowell said. “I can’t imagine losing half my family.”

The north end of the main street through the little town that sits three miles west of Interstate 5 is blocked off today, with barricades and yellow tape.

Chief Williams said the blended family had lived there perhaps a year; they were renting. He didn’t release any names.

“I knew of them,” Williams said.

Former Mayor Glen Cook who operated the machine to help Fire Investigator Samuel Patrick take photos from above, lives just down the street. Cook said when he phoned 911, he could see a little glow at the back of the house. Before he could finish explaining the location to the call taker, flames were coming out everywhere on the first floor, he said.

Another neighbor spoke of an explosion that rocked his house and woke his family up.

Chief Williams was dispatched at 2:45 a.m., just 10 minutes after the fire department was called out. He had only initial information from the man who lived there.

“The father indicated he grabbed the two boys and headed out the door,” Williams said. “She was right behind him, and he told her to get down, get down low.”

She didn’t come out, Williams said.

“He’s not even certain what happened,” Williams said of the father.

The residence, at 807 N.E. First Street, was built in 1904, according to county records. The Lewis County Assessor’s most recent information notes the one bathroomed home as in fair to average condition and heated with space heaters.

A representative of Puget Sound Energy said it was served by natural gas.

The front door of the main floor faced First Street. The house had a sort of basement on the backside, so it could be considered three stories, Williams said. Today, the top floor was gone.

Assisting Williams and his department were detectives from the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office, Napavine Police Chief Chris Salyers, and members of the fire departments.

They were taking up debris layer by layer, searching for victims. Specialists from the Washington State Patrol came to create a map of the premises, once a suspected victim was found.

A fire investigator for Puget Sound Energy arrived at about noon.

Williams said the oldest of the children is a 9-year-old boy. The school district sent out a message this morning stating they will be providing support as needed to students and staff.

Mayor Dowell said a vigil is going to be held tonight, at the park in the center of town where the giant egg is. Umpqua Bank is accepting donations in an account already set up, he said.

Williams, who has been a police officer in Winlock since 1979, said its the third fire with child victims he can recall.

“They’re never easy, especially when there’s children,” he said.

Update: Just after 4 p.m. today, Chief Williams indicated investigators have recovered the remains of three victims, by way of the department’s Facebook page. The investigation into the cause of the fire will continue, according to Williams.
•••

For background, read “Possibly fatal house fire erupts in Winlock” from Thursday February 26, 2015 at 6:14 a.m., here

Citizens should expect travel delays on Northeast First Street thorough the day.

•

Examining the interior of what was a two-story house.

Marcus T. Dantinne, left, accompanied by attorney Shane O’Rourke, told the judge he was sorry for what he did.

By Sharyn L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

CHEHALIS – The 24-year-old who called in an anonymous bomb threat to a Morton lumber mill and admitted to police he just wanted to get a friend out of work so they could hang out was sentenced today to house arrest.

Marcus T. Dantinne pleaded guilty to threat to bomb property, a felony. He apologized this morning in Lewis County Superior Court.

“I truly am greatly sorry for all the badness I’ve caused throughout this,” Dantinne told the judge. “I’m seeking attention from Cascade Mental Health right now.”

Dantinne, who lives with his mother in Morton, was arrested on Nov. 17, after the scare that shut down Alta Forest Products just north of town of some 60 employees. The company’s mill in Shelton was also evacuated because they didn’t know if the threat was site specific.

Police traced the call to Dantinne who reportedly took the phone apart so he wouldn’t be discovered.

Dantinne spent two days jail before being allowed to wait out his case by posting an unsecured, but co-signed  $10,000 bond. His mother was with him in the courtroom today.

He faced a standard sentencing range of three to nine months of lockup, but the lawyers agreed to recommend he be sentenced as a first-time offender, meaning zero to 90 days in jail.

Lewis County Senior Deputy Prosecutor Will Halstead and defense attorney Shane O’Rourke agreed he should serve one month, and suggested to the judge he be allowed to do so under electronic home monitoring.

This morning in court, O’Rourke read a letter from Dantinne’s social worker regarding his eligibility for the alternative; she expressed he suffered from severe social anxiety, and that confinement at the county jail would be detrimental.

The young man has several issues, one of which is autism spectrum disorder, but has been very focused on his outpatient treatment, according to the letter.

Judge Nelson Hunt went along with the sentence.

“Kind of a stupid reason for a bomb threat,” Hunt said. “Usually there’s more to it, than I want a day off with my friend.”

Hunt advised him he has lost his right to possess firearms, and ordered him to begin his electronic home monitoring stint by the evening of March 17.

Dantinne will be under supervision for a year, during which he will have to comply with all his treatment requirements, according to Halstead.

Not yet determined, is the amount he will owe in restitution.

Halstead told the judge the mill indicates the hoax cost them a tad bit over $42,000.
•••

For background, read “Authorities: ‘Dumb’ bomb threat brings class B felony charge” from Wednesday November 19, 2014, here

By Sharyn L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

CHEHALIS – They called it mental health first aid.

Providers from Cascade Mental Health have been teaching local law enforcement officers about the many disorders people are affected by and how to best deal with them in the field, as well as how to obtain resources for them.

Sheriff Rob Snaza

Over the past two weeks or so, 52 officers from the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office and other agencies each got five hours of training at the clinic’s Centralia location, according to the sheriff’s office.

It’s part of partnership between the sheriff’s office and Cascade Mental Health, that is already in place at the jail and is expanding.

Deputies and corrections officers are often the first to see and deal with people suffering from mental health disorders, and they continue to see many of them, according to Sheriff Rob Snaza.

Snaza says the jail is not always the best place for them.

“Law enforcement has a tough job of needing to enforce laws, yet apply basic understanding of mental health disorders to specific situations so they can try to seek appropriate resources to help people,” Snaza stated in a news release announcing the training earlier this week.

Corrections Bureau Chief Kevin Hanson notes in the news release his people and Cascade Mental Health have been working together, well, for many years.

They are in the process of strengthening programs already in place to ensure the best possible outcomes for those affected by mental health issues, according to Hanson.

Hanson recently shared with the Lewis County Board of Commissioners that he and Deputy Chief Bruce Kimsey were accepted as board members at Cascade Mental Health.

Hanson also said regular meetings are now underway for what they are calling Mental Health Alternative Programs, something that is akin to an informal mental health court.

The prosecutors and courts are on board with it, he said.

The sheriff’s office is also developing something called a Crisis Intervention Team / Critical Incident Response Team to work both at the jail and out in the field, according to Chief Deputy Stacy Brown.

Sheriff Snaza is allowing those who are interested to undergo further training in regard to that, according to Brown.

Undersheriff Wes Rethwill told county commissioners at a recent meeting the sheriff’s office is ahead of the curve on what is a huge issue across the state, across the country.

“In the past, they get into the criminal justice system” Rethwill said. “That’s not working, how it’s been handled in the past.”