Taholah Man Rolls Vehicle

Negligent driving sent a 61 year old Taholah man to the hospital on Wednesday.

The Washington State Patrol says that the 61 year old was driving northbound on SR109 on Wednesday afternoon when the accident occurred. According to their report, the man was headed toward Taholah and approximately 20 miles north of Ocean Shores when he left the roadway. When his Purple 2006 Chevrolet HHR struck the dirt embankment it rolled over before coming to rest on its wheels facing southbound.

The driver was taken to Grays Harbor Community Hospital following the accident. According to WSP, the driver was not wearing a seat belt. His vehicle was totaled on scene.

The Taholah driver was charged with 2nd Degree Negligent Driving.

More Possible Tsunami Debris Found Along Washington Coast

Another large piece of debris has washed ashore along the Washington coast in Pacific County that may be from the tsunami. This time, it is a large cylinder over 19’ long and 3’ in diameter.

A spokeswoman for the Washington Marine Debris Task Force, Virginia Painter, says that any official determination is unlikely because there are no markings.

The cylinder looks like a long pipe with end caps.

A park ranger found the debris this week on Long Beach. Painter says it will be removed.

The state Fish and Wildlife Department is checking for any invasive species in the seaweed clinging to the cylinder.

Grays Harbor Deaths Include Less Accidental and More Suicide

Grays Harbor Coroner Dan Burns has released his annual report for 2012, and said that the accidental deaths were down, but suicides were up.

According to Burns, there were 621 deaths within the county in 2012. The majority of these were either expected or required no further investigation. In 2011, 641 deaths were recorded.

There were 22 accidental deaths in 2012, which is lower than the prior 5 year average of 23 accidental deaths per year. Of those, 14 were alcohol or drug related.

There were 7 traffic deaths within the county in 2012. 6 of the 7 traffic deaths, or 86%, involved alcohol or drugs. Over the past 8 years about 66 % had alcohol or drugs in their system at the time of their death. This applies to all traffic related deaths; driver, passenger, or pedestrian.

Burns noted that there was a very dramatic increase in suicide deaths in 2012. 20 suicides were recorded last year. This is almost twice the number of the prior 5 year average of 10.2 per year. The last time the county saw 20 suicides in a year was in 1997. Overall, Burns says that we had been seeing an overall decline in suicide deaths the past 15 years. Between 1997 – 2001, there were an average of 14.8 suicide deaths per year, compared to 2002 – 2006 when we averaged 12 suicides per year.

The most dramatic change came in homicide deaths last year. 5 homicides were seen in 2012. The previous 5 year average was 1.4 homicides per year. The homicide rate on average had been decreasing the past 15 years.

Crude By Rail Public Meeting Sees Standing Room Only Crowd in Aberdeen

Hundreds gathered at the Rotary Log Pavilion on Wednesday evening to learn about crude by rail and the projects currently being proposed at the Port of Grays Harbor.

Port Executive Director Gary Nelson spoke to the standing room only crowd, describing what bringing crude oil into Grays Harbor would entail. According to Nelson, if all 3 proposed projects came to fruition it would bring over 100 permanent on site jobs to the port, plus additional temporary jobs.

Nelson started the evening by explaining the Port’s mission statement to “best utilize our resources to facilitate, enhance and stimulate international trade, economic development and tourism for the betterment of the region.”

As to “Why Grays Harbor?” Nelson said that rail access, excess Harbor shipping capacity, and experienced labor with ILWU Local 24 make Grays Harbor an attractive port to investors.

Questions from the crowd primarily dealt with the ecological impacts as well as the increased rail traffic. Nelson answered questions directly related to port operation, but diverted many questions to the various agencies in attendance.

Imperium Terminal Services, LLC, Westway Terminal Company, U.S. Development Group, LLC, Greater Grays Harbor, Inc., Puget Sound & Pacific Railroad, the Washington State Regulatory Assistance Office, and the U.S. Coast Guard all had representation.

Nelson told the crowd that all projects are currently in the very early stages, and the conversation would continue with the public. He said that while crude by rail presents many questions, we can’t “sit on our laurels” and the port is “always looking for the next new thing” to increase local commerce.

Aberdeen and Hoquiam Police Block Street to Serve Search Warrant

2 people were arrested following a search warrant on the 100 block of 8th Street in Aberdeen that involved multiple officers. Aberdeen and Hoquiam Police, as well as SWAT, Drug Task Force, and Department of Corrections were on scene to serve the warrant.

The over 3000 square foot home was known to house at least 9 people who were either known or well known to police.

A patrol officer was able to develop a case last week regarding the home that led to the warrant.

2 people at the home were arrested for unrelated warrants.

Captain John Green says that APD has received numerous complaints from residents regarding the home, both day and night.

Killer Whale Off of Grays Harbor Coast

The Northwest Fisheries Science Center reports that a killer whale, labeled K25, was “tagged” off the coast of Grays Harbor. The K in the designation signifies being part of the K Pod of whales.

On December 2011, NOAA was authorized to begin satellite tagging killer whales. In February 2012, the first satellite tag was deployed on an adult male, J26, in the Strait of Juan de Fuca.

NWFSC researchers tagged an adult male, K25, in Puget Sound on December 29, 2012 with a satellite-linked tag. As of today K25 has been tagged for one month and was last tagged traveling along the Washington Coast west of Grays Harbor.

Tagging and tracking of the whales is intended to assist in developing a recovery plan for the endangered species. The Recovery Plan identifies the threats and research priorities for the population. One of the highest priorities identified for SRKW was to determine their travel patterns in the winter. Although their summer routes are well defined, their movement during the winter months, where they spend the vast majority of their time, is not known.

Lincoln Street Accident Sends Hoquiam Woman to Hospital

An accident on Lincoln Street in Hoquiam this morning closed one lane and sent a Hoquiam woman to the hospital.

A 45 year old Hoquiam woman driving a 1996 Chevrolet Blazer was southbound on Lincoln Street when the accident occurred. A 40 year old Aberdeen man, driving a full size 1993 Ford Van, was turning into the 7-11 parking lot. According to Hoquiam Police Sergeant Strong, his view may have been obstructed due to a log truck in the center lane. When he turned across the southbound lane, the 2 vehicles struck head on.

The southbound lane was blocked for approximately 45 minutes following the accident. Traffic was diverted onto side streets and into the northbound lane.

The Hoquiam woman was transported to Grays Harbor Community Hospital for neck and back pain. The Aberdeen man and his passenger were uninjured.

The 40 year old driver was cited on scene for making an improper turn as well as additional traffic violations.

Detectives Seeking Additional Victims in Child Porn Investigation

Detectives from the Washington State Patrol Missing and Exploited Children’s Task Force arrested a 43 year old Graham resident on allegations of Possession/Distribution of Child Pornography.

Detectives initiated the investigation in mid-January based on a cyber tip. Detectives discovered the suspect had traded sexually explicit images and videos involving underage children. The images depicted young girls ranging in age from 6 to 14 years old and were traded using email and social media accounts.

Detectives traced the suspect to a residence in Graham. A search warrant was executed on the suspect’s vehicle and residence. During the search, additional images and videos were located. Teryle C. Smith, age 43, was arrested without incident and booked into the Pierce County Jail. The investigation is ongoing and additional charges are expected.

Detectives have reason to believe, based on images discovered during the search warrant, that there are additional underage victims that have not been identified. Detectives encourage anyone believing their child may have been victim of Mr. Smith to contact MECTF detectives at 360-704-2400.

Aberdeen School Board Adds Student Member

The Aberdeen School board has discussed adding student representatives on the board and last night added a new member to their council, senior student representative, Jordan Wolfe. Wolfe believes she is up for the challenge and is eager to start.

Wolfe plans on getting insight from the ASB officers at the District’s Elementary Schools and Miller Jr.High to discuss certain topics at the school board meetings. School Board President Doug Smith thanked Wolfe for volunteering for the position.

Wolfe is scheduled to officially sit in at the next school board meeting on Tuesday, February 12.

Crude by Rail Informational Meeting Tonight in Aberdeen

The Port of Grays Harbor will be giving an opportunity for the public to learn more about crude by rail and the projects currently being proposed at the Port tonight starting at 6 pm at the Rotary Log Pavilion.

Imperium Terminal Services, LLC, Westway Terminal Company, and U.S. Development Group, LLC will have representatives on hand to present information about their proposed projects. Representatives from Greater Grays Harbor, Inc., Puget Sound & Pacific Railroad, the Washington State Regulatory Assistance Office, and the U.S. Coast Guard have also been invited.

“We invite the public to take advantage of this opportunity to learn more about what CBR is and how it works, as well as learn about the job creation and economic impacts these projects could have on Grays Harbor” said Port Executive Director Gary Nelson.

There will be an overview presentation on CBR at 6 pm, and following that presentation, those who attend will have the opportunity to present their questions about the projects.