Lewis County Sirens.com

Smoke observed from a logging road on the North Fork side of the TransAlta Fire. / Courtesy photo by Rhonda Volk

By Sharyn  L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

Smoke spotted from the air drew firefighters yesterday afternoon to a wildfire burning grass, brush and an exposed coal seam on property owned by TransAlta.

It was at the Centralia coal mine’s South Field, according to Riverside Fire Authority Chief Mike Kytta.

The forested unimproved property is protected by the state Department of Natural Resources.

The fire was reported to DNR about 3:30 p.m. and Riverside responding about 4:10 p.m. learned it was already being fought by personnel from Lewis County Fire Districts 6, 5 and 1, along with DNR,  from the North Fork Road area, according to the fire chief.

Kytta said upon their arrival with a brush truck, water tender and command unit, they found a DNR helicopter  had the fire contained already. They left the mop up work for DNR and mine personnel, he said.

Further details were not yet available from DNR and calls to TransAlta were not returned as of this evening.

DNR reported it turned it back over to the landowner last night.

By Sharyn  L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

CHEHALIS – An experienced hiker who accidentally walked six hours in the wrong direction was rescued this morning near Lily Lake Basin close to White Pass.

The 55-year-old Kennewick resident left the Goat Rocks Wilderness area on Saturday for an expected 24-hour roundtrip along the Pacific Crest Trail, according to the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office.

He was well-prepared with the right gear, shelter and food, but became dehydrated because he ran out of water, Chief Deputy Stacy Brown said.

He used his cell phone to call family, who called the sheriff’s office for help last night, according to Brown.

The sheriff’s office coordinated a search and rescue effort that began at 6 o’clock this morning, including members with horses, ATVs and on foot, according to Brown.

The hiker was located at 10:45 a.m. and hoisted to safety by the King County Sheriff’s Office helicopter, Brown said.

The 55 year old was suffering from dehydration and other injuries and had been unable to give clear directions to the SAR coordinator, Brown said.

He was found about three to five miles from the Clear Lost Trail off of U.S. Highway 12; and was transported to Harborview Medical Center in Seattle for treatment, according to Brown.

By Sharyn  L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

CHEHALIS – It’s too soon breathe any sigh of relief that the Fourth of July holiday has come and gone with no major trauma from fireworks, according to one fire chief.

“Now, we’ll start to see over the next few days what will happen,” Lewis County Fire District 6 Chief Tim Kinder said. “There are people still lighting off fireworks.”

The period for legal discharge of fireworks ended at 11 p.m. yesterday, and won’t return again until next summer, except for a few hours on New Year’s Eve.

Also, the fire danger because of the exceedingly dry vegetation didn’t magically vanish. At least 10 large wildfires were burning around the state as of yesterday.

“Everybody needs to remember the burn restrictions,” Lewis County Fire District 8 Chief Duran McDaniel said this morning.

The Salkum area had a relatively mild weekend, fire response-wise, although it certainly was noisy, McDaniel said.

For Kinder, whose department protects the greater Chehalis area, his crews had a very long weekend, with numerous calls.

“We did a lot of mutual-aid stuff,” Kinder said.

District 6 crews assisted Riverside Fire Authority with a Centralia area barn fire on Thursday, with a house fire on Friday, and responded with the Napavine area department for a garage fire on Sunday, according to Kinder.

They dealt with some small grass fires, with four calls in total on Saturday and four more on Sunday, he said.

And on Saturday night, they tended to one victim injured when a mortar exploded prematurely, inside its tube, according to Kinder.

Crews called about 10:30 p.m. to the 500 block of Highway 603 west of Chehalis found the 51-year-old man had been standing next to it, Kinder said.

It singed his eyebrows, and caused an abrasion on his upper chest, he said. The man’s wife took him to the hospital, the chief said.

But, the longtime firefighter said, his expectation is now folks will find leftover fireworks, and sometimes light them off to see if they still are any good.

“I always pay attention to the three or four days after the Fourth,” he said. “It’s not over.”

By Sharyn  L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

An attempted robbery at a Centralia convenience store yesterday evening failed when the would-be thief realized the clerk was not alone.

Police called about 6:15 p.m. to the Pearl Street Market on the 2300 block of North Pearl Street were told the man opened up a knife and demanded money.

The 28-year-old clerk went running backwards screaming for her boss and the startled subject fled, according to the Centralia Police Department.

The owner had been in the back of the store, Sgt. Kurt Reichert said.

Officers were told the individual ran towards Carson Street so one patrol car parked on a wooden bridge near Carson, while other law enforcement officers surrounded a large area, Reichert said.

Centralia police dog Lobo began a track and it wasn’t long before the dog pulled the suspect from the bushes some 50 feet from the patrol car, he said.

Jason M. Keele, 46, from Centralia, was arrested for attempted robbery, according to police. He was taken to be checked for the dog bite and booked into the Lewis County Jail, according to Reichert.

“We probably had the guy in custody within an hour,” he said. “Probably less than an hour, and we’re thankful for the assistance from the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office and the Washington State Patrol.”

By Sharyn  L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

A Boistfort Valley home caught fire late yesterday afternoon, but a neighbor alerting the resident to smoke and the resident putting a garden hose on it kept it from spreading.

Firefighters called just before 5 p.m. to the one-story house on the 100 block of Moon Hill Road found damage beneath an enclosed porch built onto the back of the house, according to Lewis County Fire District 13.

“So it looks like it started on the outside of the residence,” Fire Chief Gwen Turner said. “Not sure what combusted, but something combusted on the outside.”

Turner said smoke got into the interior, but the room itself never caught fire. She suspected the room would have to be completely re-done.

“It’s a very good thing they were home,” she said.

Ten firefighters responded.