Klog

Streets in the downtown Kelso-Longview area are bare and wet, but we’re getting some reports that snow is sticking in the hills around town this morning. The Weather Service says that there’s still a possibility of some low-elevation snow today and tomorrow, as a cold and wet weather system continues its crawl across the region. The snow level is expected to hover around 500 feet, and could drop down lower during some of the heavier showers. They also say that there’s a possibility of some small hail in some of these showers. A winter weather advisory remains in effect through tomorrow morning for the Coast Range and the Cascade Foothills, with between 6 and 12 inches of snow possible in those locations. Forecasters say that things are expected to improve quite a bit by tomorrow afternoon. No major problems were reported with yesterday’s gusty winds and rain, though there were a few reports of trees coming down. One of those was right in downtown Kelso, when a large tree fell in the 100 block of Oak Street. Witnesses say that a car was damaged and the street was blocked, but no one was hurt. Guild Road in Woodland was also closed for a time yesterday, due to falling trees. The latest incident took place around 9:30 pm, when a tree came down into some lines on Hazel Dell Road, but that also did not do any significant damage.

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The City of Kelso is starting the process of finding a new City Manager, as Denny Richards abruptly resigns, planning to fill in with the City of Gig Harbor as the interim City Administrator. This chain of events got started with the resignation of Gig Harbor City Administrator Rob Karlinsky, who’s accepted a job as the City Manager for Kenmore. The Daily News reports that the Richards, 68, formally announced his resignation at a special Kelso City Council meeting held last night, saying that he’d been approached by Gig Harbor’s mayor over the weekend. It’s noted that Richards has long-time connections to the Gig Harbor area; he served there as the city Chief of Police, leaving in 1995 to become City Manager for Fircrest. Richards’ wife still lives in Gig Harbor, and he commutes from Kelso on the weekends to be with her. At last night’s meeting, the Kelso City Council voted to conduct its own search for a City Manager, instead of hiring a recruitment firm, a move that’s expected to save the city about 24 thousand dollars. Mayor David Futcher says that they plan to look in-house to find an interim City Manager, hoping to find a permanent replacement within three months.

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Richard Donald Lloyd Janssen, 33, of Longview will spend the rest of his life in prison, after being found guilty of his “third strike” under Washington’s repeat offender law. The Daily News reports that Janssen was found guilty of first-degree assault with a deadly weapon, with that conviction coming out of a jury trial held last month. He was accused after he attacked a fellow inmate at the Cowlitz County Jail, slashing at his neck with a razor blade. In a hearing held on Monday, Superior Court Judge Marilyn Haan sentenced Janssen to life in prison without the possibility of parole. He also received another five years for using a dust mop to attack jail personnel. Even with the life sentence, Janssen’s still has another court date, with a trial pending for allegedly firing a sawed-off shotgun at Corrections Officers in the Highlands, an incident that took place about a year ago. That trial is currently scheduled for April 9th.

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Larry Joe Hensley, 43, and Kenneth Alan Doble, 37, of Castle Rock are admitting that they were illegally using cracked corn to lure ducks and geese in for hunting. Today’s Daily News has the story about the guilty pleas from the two men; they were arrested late in 2010, after a Fish and Wildlife Enforcement Officer caught wind of their baiting activities. Hensley and Doble were hunting from a blind set up near some Department of Transportation wildlife habitat off of Sandy Bend Road. Authorities set up a monitoring station, keeping an eye on the blind and the area around it. Cameras recorded Hensley pouring cracked corn on the ground, followed by the shooting of ducks and geese as they came in to eat. Hensley was charged in U. S. District Court, accused of violating the Federal Migratory Bird Act; he pleaded guilty, and was fined more than $7,500. His hunting privileges were also suspended for a year. Doble was charged in Cowlitz County District Court, accused of having no migratory wildlife license, along with three additional charges. He was find $536, with another $3,750 suspended.

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The captain of a freighter registered to the country of Malta was taken into custody by the Coast Guard in Astoria yesterday, after they found that the man was running his ship while intoxicated. The 738-foot “Laconia” was undergoing a routine Customs inspection, preparing to come up the Columbia River. Customs agents notified the Coast Guard that the captain seemed to be under the influence. Coast Guard personnel administered a breath test, and found that the captain’s blood alcohol level was above .04, the legal limit for commercial vessel operators. They also say open containers of alcohol were found in the captain’s quarters. The captain was arrested and handed over to the Coast Guard Investigative Service. He’ll be taken to a Federal detention center in Portland some time today. The Coast Guard says that the Laconia will need a replacement captain before it’s allowed to leave Astoria.

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Today is the deadline to pre-register with the Cowlitz AmeriCorps Network, as they get ready for their upcoming service project at the Wake Robin Outdoor Learning Center, just west of Longview on Coal Creek Road. On March 10th, they’re planning a work day at the center, doing trail maintenance, brush removal, laying bark chips and light construction. The project will run from 9 am to 4:30 pm on that day, and lunch will be provided. You will need to bring your own gloves. Contact Carrie Thompson at 442-2335 to get signed up.

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It’s time to batten down the hatches again, as the Weather Service warns of another strong winter storm that’s supposed to blow in later today. At 10 am today, a high wind warning goes into effect on the South Washington and North Oregon coastal areas, going until 10 pm tonight. 70 mph gusts are possible on the beaches and headlands out of this system, with the strongest winds expected from Tillamook, then extending south. Locally, winds are expected to increase to between 15 to 25 mph late this afternoon, with gust of up to 35 mph. Snow levels will also be dropping, with a possibility of low-level snow coming out of this system. They say that it’s more likely for the snow level to be around 500 feet, with an inch or two expected at that elevation. There’s a winter weather advisory up for the Coast Range and the Cascade Foothills, starting at noon and going until 6 am Thursday. Six to 12 inches is expected between 500 and 1,000 feet in the hills both west and east of us. There’s also a winter weather advisory for the Columbia River Gorge, starting at 2 pm today and running until 6 tomorrow morning. One to four inches of snow is possible in that area. There’s even a winter storm watch for the Hood Canal, with one to two inches of snow expected in areas like Shelton, Potlatch, Hoodsport and Brinnon, starting this afternoon and running through late tonight.

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Apparently, someone has been shooting animals at Lake Sacajawea, with a number of carcasses found yesterday in the park. Longview Parks personnel alerted Longview Police yesterday afternoon, after the bodies of four nutria were found at the lake. They say that it looks like the nutria were all shot and killed some time over the weekend. There’s been no information released on the type of weapon that might have been used, and there’s also no information on possible suspects. If you have any information on these shootings, call Longview Police at 442-5800, or call CrimeStoppers at 577-1206.

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