Archive for July, 2017

News brief: Authorities investigate possible drowning in Mineral

Thursday, July 6th, 2017

By Sharyn L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

CHEHALIS – Sheriff’s deputies are checking in and around Mineral Lake looking for signs of a resident said to have gone into the water from a boat yesterday.

Deputies were dispatched just before 4 p.m. yesterday to the north Lewis County community along state Route 7 where they contacted a woman who was adrift in a boat.

She said her significant other had gone into the water and was believed to have drowned, according to the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office.

The missing man is a 54-year-old who resides in Mineral, Chief Deputy Dusty Breen said.

The sheriff’s office is investigating the circumstances of what occurred, according to Breen.

The plan this morning is to check the area by boat and by foot, according to Breen.

News brief: WSP looking for travelers who saw I-5 wreck

Wednesday, July 5th, 2017

By Sharyn L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

CHEHALIS – The Washington State Patrol is seeking assistance from anyone who may have witnessed the fatal crash late Sunday night on Interstate 5 just north of Centralia or who observed the Subaru’s driving prior to the collision.

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“The Subaru was likely experiencing some mechanical problems and may have been traveling at slow speeds when struck by the tractor-trailer,” Lt. Randy Hullinger stated in a press release today.

It happened about 11:46 p.m. in the northbound lanes, near milepost 86, approaching the Southwest 216th Avenue overpass in south Thurston County.

The vehicles were a gray 1993 Subaru Legacy and a 2017 Peterbilt with double trailer.

The driver of the Subaru, Edward P. Chambers, 80, of Beaverton, Oregon died, according to the state patrol. His 19-year-old passenger, Scott R. Anderson, of Hillsboro, Oregon, reportedly sustained minor injuries.

They were traveling from Oregon and headed to Rochester, according to Hullinger.

The driver of the semi, 36-year-old Michael L. Buterbaugh of Yelm was unhurt.

Anyone with information is asked to contact detective Jim Meldrum at 253-538-3174 or James.Meldrum@wsp.wa.gov

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For background, read “News brief: Fatal wreck on I-5 north of Centralia under investigation” from Monday July 3, 2017, here

Sirens: Daily police and fire roundup

Wednesday, July 5th, 2017
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BREAK-IN CHEHALIS

• A Chehalis resident called 911 about 3:30 p.m. yesterday after returning home to the 700 block of Northwest Pennsylvania Avenue to find someone had entered their home through a window, according to the Chehalis Police Department. There was nothing listed in the report as missing as of this morning, according to the Chehalis Police Department.

MISSING MONEY

• Centralia police were called to the 1300 block of Alexander Street about 11:30 a.m. on Monday to take a report of the theft of $200 cash occurring during the night, according to the Centralia Police Department.

DRUGS

•  Nicholas F. Henderson, 62, of Centralia was arrested and booked into Lewis County Jail  for possession of a controlled substance and an outstanding felony warrant following contact with police at the 100 block of East High Street in Centralia at about 1:40 a.m. today, according to the Centralia Police Department.

FIREWORKS ARRESTS

• Two Centralia residents were cited for violating the state fireworks law by allegedly lighting fireworks in the roadway at Fourth Street and Tower Avenue twice yesterday, according to the Centralia Police Department. Christopher S. Anderson, 24, and Dennis R. Mathews, 23, had been warned by an officer, according to police.

VANDALISM

• A fuel line was cut and someone attempted to drain fuel from the tank on a van at Floral and South Gold streets in Centralia, according to a report made to police about 12:15 p.m. yesterday.

• Tires were slashed on two vehicles parked near the victim’s residence on the 300 block of North Gold Street in Centralia, according to a report made to police about 10:45 a.m. on Monday.

• Chehalis police were called just before 9 a.m. on Monday to the 700 block of Southwest William Avenue where someone had broke the window of a vehicle.

ON THE ROAD, OFF THE ROAD

• Kellie E. James, 46, of Centralia, was arrested for hit and run collision in a case associated with the 500 block of North Tower Avenue at about 12:30 p.m. on Monday, according to the Centralia Police Department.

AND MORE

• And, as usual, other incidents such as arrests for warrants, shoplifting, misdemeanor assault, third-degree assault, malicious mischief, driving under the influence, driving with suspended license, possession of marijuana, driving without ignition interlock device, negligent driving; responses for alarm, dispute, harassment, civil issue, trespassing, vehicle collision, suspicious circumstances, dog on a roof; complaints of fireworks, warnings about fireworks violations … and more among 333 calls for local law enforcement and / or fire-emergency medical services in the 48-hour period ending about 7 a.m. today.

One dead after shooting in forest near Randle

Wednesday, July 5th, 2017

By Sharyn L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

CHEHALIS – Detectives are investigating a fatal shooting at a campsite south of Randle in which a 63-year-old man has claimed self defense.

The Lewis County Sheriff’s Office released few details, noting they have resumed processing the scene this morning.

Chief Deputy Dusty Breen stated in a press release that deputies were dispatched after a 911 call at 7:14 p.m. yesterday from a 63-year-old Glenoma man who said he shot an individual at a campsite in self defense.

Breen said it occurred on Forest Service Road 2801 off Cispus Road.

Deputies and sheriff’s detectives responded with assistance from law enforcement personnel from the Washington State Patrol, Morton Police Department and the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife, according to Breen.

Because of darkness and conditions at the scene, the investigation was suspended and is continuing there today, according to the sheriff’s office.

Breen states all parties are accounted for and the sheriff’s office doesn’t believe there is a continuing risk to the public.

Anyone with information on the incident is asked to call the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office at 360-748-9286 or Lewis County Communications at 360-740-1105.

Flames devour part of Oakville’s center

Wednesday, July 5th, 2017
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Firefighters attack blaze in downtown Oakville on Tuesday night. / Courtesy photo by Shannon Abbott Olson

By Sharyn L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

CHEHALIS – A fire possibly caused by fireworks swept through a former hardware store and two other buildings in the center of Oakville last night and closed the highway for several hours.

Nobody was hurt but the only structure still standing on that side of the block is the tavern, according to Grays Harbor Fire DIstrict 1 Firefighter Shawn Burdett.

The fire department was dispatched at 10:03 p.m. for a structure fire possibly ignited by fireworks on U.S. Highway 12 – also known as Pine Street at that point – near Newton Street, according to authorities.

Burdett said they arrived to find the building fully engulfed in flames and called for mutual aid.

“It was so much black smoke,” said Cassie Henry who has lived in the town her entire life.

Henry said she had been watching the fireworks display at the reservation when a column of dark smoke from downtown drew her and many others away from the show and to the sidewalks where they watched the blaze.

The hardware store her dad’s good friend owned when she was a kid was burning, she said.

“It felt like we lost a community member, to be honest,” Henry said. “We’re going to miss looking at that building.”

Burdett said the old liquor store on one side and the little house on the other side were also a total loss.

The Washington State Department of Transportation put a detour in place, closing the highway in both directions until about 7 o’clock this morning.

District 1 was joined by crews from Grays Harbor Fire DIstrict 5, West Thurston Regional Fire Authority and also Riverside Fire Authority out of Centralia.

“With the help of many, many brave men and women, we got the fire out,” Burdett stated in a message earlier today, and thanked the neighboring fire departments for their assistance.

News brief: Centralia firefighters douse two fires on Independence Day

Wednesday, July 5th, 2017

By Sharyn L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

CHEHALIS – The occupants of a Centralia home are displaced after a fire yesterday which caused moderate damage, according to Riverside Fire Authority.

Firefighters were called about 4:30 p.m. to the 500 block of South Oak Street on a report there was smoke inside the house, according to Fire Capt. Scott Weinert.

“On arrival, crews located a fire on an exterior corner of the residence,” Weinert wrote in a brief summary of the incident. “The fire was burning inside an exterior wall.”

A crew removed some of the siding and put the fire out, according to Weinert.

There was some smoke damage to the interior of the home.  The cause is under investigation.

It was just a little more than an hour later the fire department was called to a fire that broke out in brush and tall grass on undeveloped property at the 2900 block of Cooks Hill Road. It’s cause has not been determined either, according to the fire department.

“Witnesses in the area did report seeing and hearing fireworks being discharged prior to seeing the fire,” Weinert said.

News brief: Head-on crash west of Tenino leaves one dead

Wednesday, July 5th, 2017
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Old 99 is closed during investigation. / Courtesy photo by Thurston County Sheriff’s Office

By Sharyn L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

CHEHALIS – A driver in his late 30s was killed yesterday morning when his car crossed the centerline and hit an oncoming pickup truck on Old Highway 99 west of Tenino.

The driver of the 2007 Chevrolet pickup, a man in his 60s, was flown to Harborview Medical Center in Seattle, according to the Thurston County Sheriff’s Office.

Sheriff’s Sgt. Carla Carter said deputies were called to the scene near Tilley Road South at about 8 a.m. His condition is unknown this morning, according to Carter.

The roadway was closed yesterday between Tilley and Violet Prairie roads while the sheriff’s office investigated.

The causing driver had been traveling northbound in a 2004 Acura, according to Carter.