Posts Tagged ‘By Sharyn L. Decker’

New earthquake analysis leads to lowering Riffe Lake reservoir

Friday, February 17th, 2017
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Mossyrock Dam on the Cowlitz River sits at the west end of Riffe Lake. / Courtesy photo by Tacoma Power

By Sharyn L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

CHEHALIS – Recently revised earthquake predictions, which portend failure of the spillway gates of the Mossyrock Dam have prompted the the dam’s owner to begin considering seismic retrofits.

In the meantime, Tacoma Power plans to keep less water in the reservoir which is Riffe Lake to reduce the amount of downstream flooding if a big one should strike.

Tacoma Power announced this week the changes it is implementing.

They want to keep the level of Riffe Lake 30 feet lower than normal, according to Chris Gleason, the community and media services manager for Tacoma Public Utilities.

The United States Geological Survey recently revised its earthquake predictions for the Cowlitz River basin, information that was passed along to the owner of the hydroelectric dam in November, according to Gleason.

Riffe Lake, more than 23 miles long, is 778.5 feet when full.

The probability of a large earthquake is low, and the issue isn’t the dam itself, according to Tacoma Power.

But, preliminary analysis concluded that specific seismic events could render the spillway gates useless, which could cause considerable downstream flooding, according to the utility.

A spillway is the part of the dam that water flows through. The four spillways are located high in the middle of the dam.

According to Gleason, they’ve submitted their plans to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission which will review and accept or modify the proposal.

They are required keep the lake below 745.5 feet during December and January, so it’s currently close to their lower level proposed, and they will maintain it there for the foreseeable future, according to Gleason.

The new lower level is expected to be in place into the next decade.

Mossyrock Dam, a concrete structure completed in 1968 is the state’s tallest dam. It produces enough electricity for 78,000 homes.

No concrete arch dams have failed due to earthquakes, according to Tacoma Power.

Boating, swimming and fishing will remain possible on Riffe Lake, but access could be limited.

Two Tacoma Power-owned boat launches are anticipated to be usable during the summer, but two others will be closed. They are considering a new swim beach at Mossyrock Park.

The seismic retrofits they are beginning to consider won’t take place for years. The development and implementation of possible solutions involves substantial analysis, planning and federal approval, according to Tacoma Power.

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On the east side of the dam are the piers that hold the spillway gates in place. / Courtesy photo by Tacoma Power

Sirens: Daily police and fire roundup

Friday, February 17th, 2017
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BUSTING IN

• Centralia police were called at 2 o’clock this morning to the 300 block of North Tower Avenue on a report of forced entry to an apartment. Several persons of interest were contacted and the investigation continues, according to the Centralia Police Department.

DOMESTIC ASSAULT

• A 34-year-old man was arrested yesterday after allegedly forcing his way into his significant other’s home, taking two cell phones, car keys and a 2003 Pontiac Grand Am and leaving her with a swollen lip. The victim at the 200 block of Roe Road in Winlock called the sheriff’s office shortly after 6:30 a.m. yesterday and a deputy arriving at 7:38 a.m. found the woman also had a sore right hand from the encounter, according to the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office. A mirror and two doors had been broken, Chief Deputy Dusty Breen said. The suspect, Adam C. Sullivan, was located a short time later and the items recovered, according to Breen. He was booked into the Lewis County Jail for first-degree burglary.

KID ASSAULT

• Police responded to the 900 block of Johnson Road in Centralia following an 11:50 a.m. call yesterday about a fourth-degree assault involving two juveniles. No arrests were made, as of this morning, according to the Centralia Police Department.

VEHICLE PROWL

• Chehalis police were called to 100 block of Southwest Cascade Avenue yesterday evening where someone had stolen fuel from a vehicle sometime during the previous two days.

VANDALISM

• Centralia police were called just after 11 a.m. yesterday to the 400 block of North Pearl Street where someone had spray painted graffiti on a building sometime during the previous week.

• Police were called to the 600 block of West Center Street in Centralia yesterday regarding damage to a window.

• A deputy called over to the Lewis County Jail yesterday regarding a kiosk in a housing unit getting broken viewed video and then talked with a suspect who stated he just got frustrated and blew a fuse, according to the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office. Kirk D. Jackson, 54, of Olympia, was re-booked for second-degree malicious mischief, according to the sheriff’s office. The damage is estimated at $1,000.

AND MORE

• And, as usual, other incidents such as arrests for warrants, obstructing, protection order violation, misdemeanor domestic assault; responses for alarm, dispute, harassment, trespassing, shoplifting, theft of a meal, civil issue, suspicious circumstances … and more among 135 calls for local law enforcement and / or fire-emergency medical services in the 24-hour period ending about 7 a.m. today.

News brief: Short gunshot investigation

Friday, February 17th, 2017

By Sharyn L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

CHEHALIS – Centralia police this morning began investigating after they were advised a hospital in Thurston County had a victim of a gunshot, who claimed he was shot in the Centralia area, but couldn’t provide an exact location.

Officers were notified about 5:35 a.m. but by the time they arrived to the hospital, the patient had already left, according to the Centralia Police Department.

Police Sgt. Kurt Reichert said it’s starting to look as though the incident actually occurred in the Seattle area, and they are reaching out to police there.

The male is associated to an address up north and local officers learned an incident did occur up north, according to Reichert.

Hospitals are required to notify police of gunshot wound patients, and sometimes such victims intentionally provide misinformation, Reichert said.

Sirens: Daily police and fire roundup

Thursday, February 16th, 2017
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GUNS STOLEN

• Someone made forced entry to a home on the 300 block of Willow Lane in Centralia and stole firearms, according to a report made to police about 9:45 a.m. yesterday.

GO-CART STOLEN

• Centralia police were called about 8:20 a.m. yesterday for a burglary to a shed in a fenced area at the 1700 block of Harrison Avenue. A go-kart was missing, according to the Centralia Police Department.

TRAILER STOLEN

• Centralia police were called just after 4 p.m. yesterday to the 300 block of North Tower Avenue to take a report that a utility trailer had been stolen sometime during the previous week.

FRAUD

• Centralia police took a report about 10 a.m. yesterday that a stolen check was “washed” and then cashed at a financial institution on the 1300 block of South Gold Street.

OTHER THEFT

• Chehalis police took a report yesterday from a location along North National Avenue about the theft of an EBT card.

VANDALISM

• Someone spray painted someone else’s vehicle at the 300 block of North Pearl Street in Centralia, according to a report made to police about 9:30 a.m. yesterday.

DRUGS

• Chehalis police were called yesterday to Green Hill School because a student-inmate allegedly was in possession of suspected marijuana. The police department will be waiting for the results from testing, according to the Chehalis Police Department.

AND MORE

• And, as usual, other incidents such as arrests for warrants, trespassing, driving under the influence; responses for alarm, dispute, harassment, dine-and-dash, hit and run, third-degree theft, civil issue, unfounded report, protection order violation, clogging of toilet, suspicious circumstances … and more among 133 calls for local law enforcement and / or fire-emergency medical services in the 24-hour period ending about 7 a.m. today.

Sirens: Daily police and fire roundup

Wednesday, February 15th, 2017
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•••

Updated at 6:23 p.m.

TRAFFICKING STOLEN PROPERTY

• A pair of Longview residents were arrested last night while allegedly selling property they knew to be stolen in connection with an approximately 9 p.m. call associated with a location on the 100 block of North Cedar Street in Centralia, according to the Centralia Police Department. Alisha M. Wilson 32, and Charles J. Stephens, 36, were booked into the Lewis County Jail for first-degree trafficking in stolen property, and charged today with the same offense in Lewis County Superior Court. Charging documents in the case indicate a man contacted police after he logged in to a popular sales application called Let’s Go, and spotted a pair of construction drywall stilts and two steel floodlight which had been stolen in a neighbor’s break-in the night before. An arrangement was made to meet the sellers at Fuller’s on South Tower Avenue and police waited nearby, according to the allegations. A judge this afternoon set their bail at $5,000.

THEFT

• Chehalis police were called about 12:30 p.m. yesterday to the 1100 block of Southwest Cascade Avenue to take a report of the break-in to a storage area in which a butane stove, butane bottles and a 400 watt inverter were missing.

WARRANTS

• Centralia police report this morning that two people were arrested for outstanding warrants at the 1600 block of Windsor Avenue yesterday afternoon. The case is under investigation, according to the Centralia Police Department. A Chehalis K-9 officer and his partner assisted Centralia in a Joint Narcotics Enforcement Team case beginning at the same time, about 1:13 p.m., according to the Chehalis Police Department. According to charging documents, police got a tip on where 30-year-old Cory R. Aldrich was and went to the home. Officers spent a significant amount of time trying to get Aldrich to come out, but because he refused, the SWAT team was called in and gas canisters deployed, the documents relate. Aldrich had an outstanding warrant from the state Department of Corrections because he was on supervision, but became unavailable in October. Eventually he exited the house without incident but police found in what they believed was his room a 45 caliber handgun, a baggie with suspected heroin and three glass pipes containing suspected methamphetamine, according to the documents. He was charged today in Lewis County Superior Court with second-degree unlawful possession of a firearm, possession of meth and heroin and escape from community custody. His bail was set at $50,000.

MAN HITS GIRL

• Centralia police were called to the 400 block of North Ash Street in Centralia about 5:45 p.m. yesterday where they took a report that a 23-year-old man had punched an 11-year-old girl. No arrest had been made as of this morning, according to the Centralia Police Department.

DRUGS

• A traffic stop at the 500 block of North Market Boulevard in Chehalis about 1:20 p.m. yesterday and an outstanding arrest warrant led also to the arrest of a 36-year-old Winlock man for a violation of the Uniform Controlled Substances Act, according to the Chehalis Police Department. Shawn E. Anderson was booked into the Lewis County Jail, according to police.

VANDALISM

• Chehalis police were called yesterday by an individual who said that after an argument with a man over a handicap parking spot at the 1600 block of Northwest Louisiana Avenue, she came out after shopping and found paint was scratched in various places on her 2016 Kia Soul.

FROM THE COURTHOUSE

• A rural Chehalis resident convicted of ongoing sexual abuse of two female relatives has been given a sentence with a minimum of 160 months and a maximum of life in prison. Conlan M. Craig, 19, was arrested this summer and subsequently pleaded guilty to one count of second-degree child rape and one count of first-degree child rape. The original allegations suggested incidents began when he was as young as 10 to 12 years old and the girls were as young as 5 years old. His lawyer David Arcuri told the judge the charges had been amended to include only activity after he turned 18 to make sure when he was sentenced, he would be on lifetime supervision. He was sentenced last Wednesday in Lewis County Superior Court. Lewis County Deputy Prosecutor Melissa Bohm said today the Indeterminate Sentencing Review Board will decide when Craig is allowed to be released.

AND MORE

• And, as usual, other incidents such as arrests for warrants, trespassing, disorderly conduct, third-degree malicious mischief, driving under the influence, driving with suspended license; responses for alarm, dispute, shoplifting, third-degree theft, civil issue, vehicle collision, suspicious circumstances … and more among 124 calls for local law enforcement and / or fire-emergency medical services in the 24-hour period ending about 7 a.m. today.

News brief: Glenoma house fire victims died of smoke inhalation

Wednesday, February 15th, 2017

By Sharyn L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

CHEHALIS – The three residents of the home that caught fire in Glenoma last week died from smoke inhalation, according to the Lewis County Coroner’s Office.

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Frost Creek Road

Coroner Warren McLeod this morning identified them as Alice M. Lauer, 83,  Lynn L. Lauer, 72, and Dennis L. Watson, 51.

The fire broke out in the single-story home on the 100 block of Frost Creek Road early last Thursday morning. Once the blaze was extinguished and the scene cooled down, responders were able to retrieve three bodies from inside.

The Lewis County Sheriff’s Office and a fire investigator are jointly investigating the incident.

Chief Deputy Dusty Breen has said they knew the house was occupied by a husband, his wife and adult son, but the formal identification was made by the coroner’s office.

Coroner McLeod indicated this morning the cause of death for each victim has been ruled as asphyxia secondary to the inhalation of combustible materials.

Authorities have not not said what they think ignited the fire.
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For background, read “Glenoma fire, death investigation continues” from Friday February 10, 2017, here

Sirens: Daily police and fire roundup

Tuesday, February 14th, 2017
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DISTURBANCE CENTRALIA

• A 16-year-old boy was booked into the Lewis County Juvenile Detention Center for harassment related to allegedly making threats at the 1000 block of Scammon Creek Road yesterday afternoon. Officers called at 4:24 p.m. report they also had probable cause for second-degree assault related to a previous incident and a different victim, according to the Centralia Police Department.

FRAUD CENTRALIA

• Joshua D. Ward, 29 of Randle, was arrested and booked into jail after allegedly trying to cash a forged check at a local bank. Police called just before 1:30 p.m. to the 200 block of West Main Street in Centralia booked him in to the Lewis County Jail for forgery, according to the Centralia Police Department.

FRAUD CHEHALIS

• Chehalis police took a report yesterday from an individual who said he got a message from a tax business telling him his refund had been credited to his account; he said he believed his W-2 form had been stolen, according to the Chehalis Police Department.

TOOLS TAKEN

• Police were called just after 7:30 a.m. yesterday to the 900 block of Orton Street in Centralia where someone had stolen tools from a building which was being renovated, according to the Centralia Police Department.

MISSING MEDS

• Centralia police were called about 9:15 p.m. yesterday to a report of the theft of medication at the 900 block of South Scheuber Road.

VEHICLE PROWL

• Chehalis police were called to the 2100 block of North National Avenue at 10 a.m. yesterday where someone had tried to siphon fuel from someone else’s vehicle. A siphoning hose was left behind in a gas tank, according to the Chehalis Police Department.

KIDS AND KNIVES

• Officers responded to the 400 block of Main Avenue in Morton about 5:05 p.m. on Friday to a juvenile reportedly chasing a group of kids with a knife. The situation is pending further investigation, according to the Morton Police Department.

AND MORE

• And, as usual, other incidents such as arrests for warrants, misdemeanor assault, driving with suspended license; responses for alarm, dispute, vandalism, third-degree theft, civil issue, runaway teen, vehicle collision, suspicious circumstances … and more among 140 calls for local law enforcement and / or fire-emergency medical services in the 24-hour period ending about 7 a.m. today.