DRIVER PINNED AFTER HIGHWAY 12 CRASH
• An 18-year-old Salkum resident is being treated at Providence Centralia Hospital after a single-vehicle wreck on U.S. Highway 12 that left his legs trapped beneath his car early this morning. Troopers and aid called about 4:30 a.m. to the area near Jackson Highway found Roberto A. Sanchez had rolled his 1996 Hyundai and was ejected, according to the Washington State Patrol. The car was probably 30 feet off the south side of the roadway and up against a tree, not really visible to passing traffic, according to Lewis County Fire District 5. The patient didn’t know how long he’d been there or remember what happened, Firefighter Maria Kennedy said. “He called himself in,” Kennedy said. “If he didn’t have a phone, I don’t know how long he’d have been sitting there; probably until the sun came up.” With help from a crew from Lewis County Fire District 6, troopers, a deputy and a paramedic, they were able to safely raise the car and remove the young man, Kennedy said. By that time, he was alert and oriented and doing surprisingly well, she said. The investigating trooper concluded Sanchez had been traveling eastbound and fallen asleep, without a seatbelt. He was cited for second-degree negligent driving, according to the state patrol.
DRIVER KILLED IN CAPITOL FOREST
• A 53-year-old Tacoma man is dead after a wreck in the Capitol Forest yesterday, in which a UTV went off the road, down an embankment and rolled. Richard S. Daniel was driving a 2014 Kawasaki KRT800 – also known as a side-by-side, according to Trooper Guy Gill – on the B-Line Road just west of the C-Line Road at Rock Candy Mountain, according to the Washington State Patrol. Troopers called about 1:30 p.m. found his two passengers unhurt. The crash was blamed on going too fast.
BRUSH IGNITES NEAR WINLOCK HOME
• Firefighters from three surrounding departments joined Lewis County Fire District 15 yesterday afternoon when a brush fire broke out north of Winlock. Crews called about 4:15 p.m. to the area near Tennessee and Nelson roads found grass, trees and blackberry bushes burning and heading toward a home, District 5 Firefighter Maria Kennedy said. “We immediately put a defensive line around the residence,” Kennedy said. District 5 Chief Gregg Peterson, who served as incident commander, said it covered probably less than an acre and two small outbuildings burned. Nobody was hurt, personnel from the state Department of Natural Resources took over and will be determining the cause, Peterson said.
MISSING GUN FOUND
• Centralia police recovered a firearm stolen in Everett during a traffic stop at Cherry Street and Tower Avenue late yesterday afternoon. The case is under investigation, according to the Centralia Police Department.
DRUGS
• A 38-year-old Kelso woman was arrested for possession of methamphetamine last night after contact with an officer about 9 p.m. at Main and Yew streets in Centralia. Lisa M. Cahoon was booked into the Lewis County Jail, according to the Centralia Police Department.
AND MORE
• And as usual, other incidents such as arrests for warrants driving under the influence; responses for misdemeanor assault … and more.
Tags: By Sharyn L. Decker, news reporter