Eastern Adams County's Only Independent Voice Since 1887
Eastern Adams County's Only Independent Voice Since 1887
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OLYMPIA - The Washington Department of Ecology issued a drought emergency for nearly all of the state July 14. Seattle, Tacoma and Everett are excluded from the drought declaration, as they have stored water, according to the DOE. A drought emergency declaration means water supply is projected to be below 75% of average, and there is a risk of undue hardship to water users and uses. With a formal drought declaration in place, DOE is authorized to take certain measures for the purpose of providing emergency drought relief,...
RITZVILLE – Travelers using both directions of Interstate 90 between the Tokio interchange and east to the Lincoln County line are encouraged to plan additional travel time to prevent delays. Crews working for the Washington State Department of Transportation began the I-90 Tokio to Lincoln County line paving project on Monday, July 12. Due to the extreme heat throughout the region, a single lane closure needs to remain in the work zone for additional cooling time for the newly paved asphalt. The additional curing and c...
RITZVILLE — Road work on Interstate 90, eastbound, will cause lane closure at milepost 231.3 near Tokio Road, just east of Ritzville. The Spokane Regional Transportation Management Center said the closure will begin at 9:15 a.m. Monday, July 12, and last until about 6 p.m. Travelers should expect delays....
PASCO - A heat advisory has been issued for the area for 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. Saturday, July 10. The National Weather Service is predicting highs of 100 degrees Saturday and 98 here Sunday. Areas of northern Oregon and the upper Yakima Valley are also under a Red Flag Warning, meaning weather conditions are conducive to wildfire growth. "Saturday will be very hot with temperatues warming into the upper 90s and lower 100s (around Eastern Washington)," according to the Red Flag...
CHENEY - Rodeo action got underway this afternoon, Friday, July 9, with matinee slack competitions in Tie-Down Roping and Barrel Racing. Slack is offered when too many competitors enter into an event for the main rodeo performances. Tie-Down competitors in slack included: • Travis James of Colville • Brett Hale of Tenino • Kass Kayser of Ellensburg • Jeff Coelho of Echo, Ore. • Augie Robinson of Nampa, Idaho • Riley Carel of Enumclaw Barrel Racing entries included: ...
PALOUSE FALLS - The Frank County Sheriff's Office responded to Palouse Falls about 4:45 p.m. Thursday, July 8, after a report of an Oregon woman sliding off a trail. The woman, whose name was not released, suffered minor injuries and was able to walk out of the falls basin, a report said. She was treated for bruises and scrapes, a report said....
OTHELLO — A Kennewick man was taken to a hospital this morning after his vehicle struck debris and flipped along state Highway 17. Anthony D. Parrella, 35, was taken an area hospital following the 6:52 a.m. crash, the Washington State Patrol reported. Parrella is facing a second-degree negligento driving charge in connection with the crash. According to a patrol report, Parrella was northbound in his 2004 Toyota on the highway when he struck debris south of Booker Road. He lost control and the vehicle overturned. Neither d...
SPRAGUE — The Interstate 90 Sprague Lake Rest Area will close overnight, in both directions, from 9 p.m. Thursday, July 8, until 6 a.m. Friday, July 9. During this time the rest area will be closed to travelers and drivers will need to find an alternate location, according to the Washington State Department of Transportation....
LIND – Volunteer firefighters quickly responded to a vehicle that caught fire in the southbound lanes of Highway 395, about four miles north of Lind Thursday afternoon, July 1. The vehicle fire had begun to spread to sagebrush and cheatgrass on the side of the highway, just days after a fire torched 2200 acres in the same area. "It was burning in sage brush about two and a half feet tall, and the flames were about 10 feet tall," Fire Protection District No. 1 Chief Scott Kembe...
RITZVILLE - The Lind-Ritzville-Sprague Broncos baseball team was honored at a banquet last week, with individual athletes named for awards. Owen Telecky, a junior, won the CY (young) award for the Best Pitcher. Senior Jay Harder won Silver Slugger for Best Hitter. Sophomore Cooper Miller won Most Improved. Chase Galbreath, also a sophomore, won the Coaches Award. The Broncos baseball team is coached by Jason Hilzer, assisted by Dustan Arlt....
RITZVILLE – A banquet honoring the Lind-Ritzville-Sprague Broncos football team held last week named individual players for awards. Captains Awards went to seniors Carson Ayers, Doug Morris and Jay Harder. Blake Esser, a sophomore, was named Most Improved. The Most Inspirational award was given to Doug Morris. Cooper Miller, a sophomore, was named Special Teams Player of the Year. The Spirit of a Bronco award was given to Jay Harder. The Broncos are coached by Greg W...
RITZVILLE - Northeast 2B league basketball teams named their All-League players, with three Bronco girls and two Bronco boys receiving this distinguished honor. For the NE 2B Girls All League Basketball, Bronco Dakota Killian, a junior, was named to the 1st Team. Senior Janaye Wilkie was named to the 2nd Team; and Julia Klein, a senior, was named to the 3rd Team. The girls are coached by Steve Wellsandt, assisted by Shannon Court. For the NE 2B Boys All League Basketball, Bron...
RITZVILLE – Lind-Ritzville School District's Athletic Director, Greg Whitmore, was named the Washington State Athletic Director of the Year by the Washington State Secondary Athletic Administrator's Association (WSSAAA). The honor was bestowed upon Whitmore at the State Athletic Director Conference in Kennewick Friday, June 25. "This is a pretty big deal, to get this award," Lind-Ritzville High School Principal Kevin Terris, who accompanied Whitmore to the state conference, s...
WASHTUCNA – School principal Micheal Amend announced the Washtucna School District has been approved to move to a four-day week for the 2021-22 school year. “Days will be a bit longer, we’ll start one week earlier, and students and staff will be in school Monday through Thursday,” Amend said, adding staff will have all-day professional development one Friday per month. Amend said reasons for applying to the Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction for the permit included the ability for the district to attract...
Power shortages, rolling brownouts and blackouts? In the Pacific Northwest? One regional utility alone – Avista – had brownouts that affected 15,307 ratepayers last Monday, 6,793 last Tuesday and another 602 last Wednesday. Other utilities, too, had brownouts. I know we’ve had a day or two of record-setting high temperatures. But that’s not an excuse to shut down power to residents and businesses here in Eastern Washington. Columbia River basin dams generate roughly 44% of...
RITZVILLE – Katie Sloan is the new Adams County Clerk, sworn in to her position Wednesday, June 30. She was to begin taking over responsibilities in her new role the following day. Formerly employed as the Superior Court Administrator, Sloan said she would be performing duties in both offices until the vacancy is filled. The Superior Court Administrator is responsible for maintaining the Judge's calendar, scheduling bench and jury trials, and responding to incoming c...
A friend of mine, let’s call her Mary, began college at the University of Washington in 1967 and graduated with an undergraduate degree in 1971. According to the university’s records, she paid $3,160 (in 2020 dollars) for her final year of in-state tuition. Mary’s granddaughter, Emma, graduated after four years from the University of Washington in 2020 and paid $10,630 for her final year of in-state tuition. Essentially, school administrators more than tripled tuition at the state’s premier public university during that 50-ye...
1 years ago The Ritzville Journal-Times July 7, 1921 THIEVES BLOW SAFE AT ICE PLANT The safe at the Ritzville Ice and Creamery Company was blown by thieves last Friday night about 12:30. The night watchman at the mill reports three shots were fired, but as shots in the night are frequent occurrences in the neighborhood nothing was thought of it at the time. Evidently foiled in the first two attempts the burglars prepared the last charge with such care that the heavy door...
WASHINGTON, D.C. – A proposed federal act’s acronym is named after Malden since it is designed to help rural communities find government aid after a disaster. The Making Aid for Local Disasters Equal Now (MALDEN) Act is designed to speed up disaster assistance. The bill is named after the Town of Malden, which was 80% destroyed by the Babb Road Fire in 2020. Congresswoman Cathy McMorris Rodgers, R-5th District, introduced the bill on June 15. “The devastation caused by the B...
OTHELLO – The city was awarded $1,350,000 in grants from the Washington State Recreation and Conservation Funding Board, which will be used to improve Lions Park. The city plans to use the funding to replace 1950's playground equipment and playground surfacing with a new Pride Rock Playground. Both the equipment and surface will make the area accessible to people with disabilities. Landscaping and furnishings will also be added to offer shade and comfort during Othello's hot summers. The city will also be using part of the f...
OLYMPIA — More than $14 million in COVID relief grants from the Washington State Department of Agriculture were awarded to 839 businesses across the state. The four main sectors include agritourism farms, farmers’ market organizations, craft beverage producers, and shellfish organizations. “These grants will boost the Washington state agricultural industry, helping prevent business closures and supporting the health and diversity of Washington State’s overall economy,” WSDA Director Derek Sandison said. “Our economy nee...
RITZVILLE – Adams County Fire Protection District No. 1 Board of County Commissioners enacted Fire Danger Burn Restrictions during a special meeting Thursday, June 29. Resolution 2021-1 restricts unauthorized open burning, unauthorized recreational fires and the burning of all combustible materials which may include, but are not limited to, outdoor burning of yard vegetation or waste, non-emergent agriculture burning, exploding gun targets, bullet tracer rounds, fire pits, any open flame; and fireworks. The restrictions a...
RITZVILLE – Governor Jay Inslee is refusing requests to declare a drought emergency in Washington state. "As the extremely hot temperatures have reminded us, much of eastern Washington, including our wheat-growing regions, is in the middle of a drought. This is a huge concern for me and other wheat growers in the area," Senator Mark Schoesler (R-Ritzville) said July 1, adding two wheat industry officials sent a letter to Inslee June 15 asking him to declare a drought emergency which would provide affected farmers with a...
RITZVILLE – Law enforcement officers arrested a man for theft and criminal trespassing after a residential video showing a man taking a bicycle from a home was forwarded to the police department. Brian Massy of Ritzville, age 33, was arrested and booked into Adams County Jail on charges of Criminal Trespassing in the 2nd degree and Theft in the 3rd degree early Friday morning, July 2. Chief Dave McCormick said video from a residence in the 200 block of East 10th Avenue showing the subject taking a black and silver Schwinn bic...