CHRISTMAS DAY FIRE CHASES WINLOCK COUPLE OUTSIDE
• A Winlock couple awoke Christmas morning to a house filled with smoke and a fire burning items next to their gas fireplace. Firefighters from Lewis County Fire District 15 and three neighboring departments called about 5:30 a.m. to the single-story home on the 1100 block of Mill Street knocked down the flames fairly quickly, keeping the fire damage to a minimum, according to Firefighter Patrick Jacobson. However, the home sustained a lot of smoke damage, he said. No injuries were reported. The cause isn’t yet known, he said.
DRUGS
• A call about a man with a knife trying to break into a trailer on the 1200 block of Harrison Avenue in Centralia early yesterday ended with an arrest for possession of methamphetamine with intent to deliver, according to the Centralia Police Department. Officers called just before 3 a.m. reported that Jerome A. Markert, 36, threw down the knife, fled on foot and then fought with police when he was caught. Police say he also he also tossed a set of scales while he was being chased. Markert, a Chehalis resident, was booked into the Lewis County Jail, according to the Centralia Police Department.
• A 21-year-old Pe Ell resident was arrested for possession of methamphetamine yesterday evening after police contacted what they described as a suspicious vehicle in a motel parking lot on the 1300 block of Lakeshore Drive in Centralia. A drug sniffing dog from Winlock “alerted” on the vehicle, according to police and a subsequent search turned up drugs. Tyler P. Chavez was booked into the Lewis County Jail, according to the Centralia Police Department.
• Centralia police arrested a 48-year-old Olympia man around 8 p.m. on Sunday at the 1200 block of Harrison Avenue in Centralia for a warrant and then possession of suspected methamphetamine and heroin with intent to deliver, according to the Centralia Police Department. Donald L. Peters was booked into the Lewis County Jail, according to the Centralia Police Department.
• A traffic stop about 10 p.m. on Saturday at Mellen Street and Interstate 5 ended with two individuals getting arrested for possession of methamphetamine, according to Centralia police. Frank L. Mako, 27, of Chehalis, and Ashley A. Guntrum, 25, of Centralia, were booked into the Lewis County Jail, according to the Centralia Police Department.
• A 26-year-old Centralia man was arrested for possession of methamphetamine with intent to deliver after a traffic stop about 2 a.m. on Saturday along the 1100 block of South Market Boulevard in Chehalis, according to police. Douglas M. Capelli was booked into the Lewis County Jail, according to the Chehalis Police Department.
THEFT
• A Matthews compound bow, a Mead telescope and a baby monitor were reported missing after a burglary on the 100 block of Kiona Road outside Randle, the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office reported this morning. It happened sometime between 7 p.m. on Sunday and 5:30 a.m. yesterday, according to the sheriff’s office. The loss is estimated at $2,100.
• Police were called about 1 a.m. on Saturday about a residential burglary on Southwest 13th Street in Chehalis. Among the items missing were a television, a game system and a laptop computer, according to the Chehalis Police Department.
• Police were called on Saturday to the 700 block of South Gold Street in Centralia about an overnight burglary to a garage. Among the items missing were a table saw and a chain saw, according to the Centralia Police Department.
• Centralia police took a report yesterday morning from the 1700 block of Midway Court where someone had broken into a truck over the weekend and stolen the battery and about four gallons of gas.
• Police called about 9:30 p.m. on Saturday to the 300 block of North Rock Street in Centralia were told a laptop computer was stolen from a vehicle.
• A GPS device, CDs and other items were reported missing from a car prowl on the 3000 block of Borst Avenue in Centralia on Saturday.
VANDALISM
• Two young women were jailed after allegedly taking baseball bats to a car early Saturday on the 400 block of Oakview Avenue East in Centralia. A deputy called about 4 a.m. was told the vandalism to the 1997 Buick Park Avenue was related to an argument over an ex-boyfriend, according to the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office. Arrested and booked into the Lewis County jail for first-degree malicious mischief were Melissa R. Salazar, 20, and Mariann J. Hylton, 23, both of Centralia, according to the sheriff’s office.
• Centralia police were called Saturday morning to the 700 block of G Street in Centralia where someone had broken the windows out a vehicle.
• Chehalis police were called Friday to Southwest William Avenue and a complaint someone had thrown pudding on a house.
BARTENDER ASSAULTED
• A 33-year-old Centralia resident was arrested after an incident just before 2 a.m. on Saturday a the 500 block of North Tower Avenue in Centralia in which police were told he refused to pay his tab and took a swing at a bartender. Shane P. Harless reportedly left the bar and was later located by police. Harless was booked into the Lewis County Jail for misdemeanor assault and third-degree theft, according to the Centralia Police Department.
OCTOBER CRANE ACCIDENT IN DRYAD PROMPTS CITATION
• The state Department of Labor and Industries fined another state agency after concluding the October accident in which a crane tipped over as it was removing the temporary bridge in the Dryad-Meskill was caused by failing to deploy the outriggers to the crane. Inspectors found the operator was attempting to lift a 577-pound section of the so-called Bailey Bridge, with the boom extended out about 77 feet, according to a Labor and Industries spokesperson. The state Department of Transportation was fined $4,550 and has appealed the citation, according to spokesperson Hector Castro. KOMOnews.com reported at the time three workers suffered minor injuries.
Tags: By Sharyn L. Decker, news reporter