Articles from the September 3, 2020 edition


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  • Sullivan Family Farms grand opening Saturday

    From Staff and News Service Reports, Cheney Free Press|Updated Sep 10, 2020

    WILLIAMS LAKE, Wash. – Sullivan Family Farms is holding the grand opening of its farm stand this Saturday, Sept. 12, at 14411 W. Williams Lake Road. The grand opening takes place from 9 a.m. – noon, and will feature prizes such as T-shirts, sunflower bunches, locally made pop tarts, cookies and a grand prize spring subscription to customers who come early. According to a news release, the farm was founded by Louise Sullivan, her sons and their families. In her recovery process from a long-term abusive relationship, Sul...

  • Level 2 evacuations in place for fire near Deep Creek

    Drew Lawson, Staff Reporter|Updated Sep 10, 2020

    A Level 2 Evacuation notice has been given by Fire District No. 10 for residents between Deep Creek and Brooks Rd due to a vegetation fire in the area west of Airway Heights and Fairchild Air Force Base Monday afternoon. Residents from Deep Creek to Ritchey Road are asked to be ready to leave "at a moment's notice," per an emergency alert from Fire District No. 10. South Christensen and South Brooks roads are currently closed. Highway 2 closed momentarily Monday afternoon due...

  • Haz-mat incident in Cheney

    From Staff and News Service Reports|Updated Sep 9, 2020

    CHENEY -- Emergency response crews are onsite at a hazardous materials incident at Centennial Mills in downtown Cheney, 601 1st St. According to an alert posted on the city's website, 1st Street is closed between C Street and College Avenue. Residents are asked to avoid the area if possible. According to an employee, the incident involves a chlorine leak that happened as a result of a broken chlorine bottle at the Archer-Daniels Midland facility. Response teams from Cheney... Full story

  • World's biggest, fastest undercutter arrives in Ritzville

    Katie Teachout, Staff Reporter|Updated Sep 9, 2020

    RITZVILLE – The world’s biggest undercutter train is in Adams County through this Friday. The train, arrived about 8 p.m. Wednesday, Aug. 26, according to Burlington Northern Santa Fe’s Dwayne Streeter. “It’s the world’s biggest, fastest undercutter,” Streeter said. “The RM802 UC01.” The undercutter cleans the ballast underneath the railroad track. “It cleans mud holes, sort of like fixing potholes in the road,” Streeter said. “It replaces the ballast.” “An undercutt...

  • Coat drive underway

    Updated Sep 7, 2020

    By Cheney Free Press CHENEY – The annual Cheney Helping Cheney Coat Drive will take place, albeit it will be a bit different this year due to the coronavirus mandates. The Cheney Helping Cheney Coat Drive is accepting new coats only this year, officials said, noting new coats can be dropped off at Copy Junction, 1921 First St., now through Oct. 12. Distribution will begin Wednesday, Oct. 14, at Cheney Outreach, 616 Third St., officials said. There is no qualifying criteria to get a coat. Anyone who wants or needs coats can g...

  • Angele Edna Borninkhof

    Updated Sep 3, 2020

    JULY 27, 1951-MAY 11, 2020 Angele Edna Bornninkhof, long time Cheney resident passed at her home May 11, 2020. Cremation has taken place; Angie's remains are to be place next to her mother in Shelby, Montana. Angele (Angie) was born in Toole County, Shelby Montana. She attended Shelby Public school between 1957 and graduated from Shelby High School in 1979; the home of the Tigers and the Coyotes. Angie left Shelby and lived in various locations in Spokane, before settling in... Full story

  • Updated Sep 3, 2020

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  • Crews control brush blaze

    DREW LAWSON, Staff Reporter|Updated Sep 3, 2020

    MEDICAL LAKE — Fire crews reached 100% containment on a 310-acre fire just east of the city by the end of their shift Aug. 29. Authorities responded to a fire burning in dry grass, brush and light timber north of state Highway 902, east of Bartholomew Road, at 12:32 p.m. Aug. 27. The fire -- later dubbed the Bartholomew Fire -- burned northeast of the city and onto Fairchild Air Force Base. One primary residence and three outbuildings burned, according to Guy Gifford of the s...

  • Fairchild celebrates 64th birthday of KC-135

    DREW LAWSON, Staff Reporter|Updated Sep 3, 2020

    FAIRCHILD AIR FORCE BASE-On Aug. 31, 1956, the KC-135 stratotanker took its first flight off base. 64 years later, the refueling tanker continues to be the model used by the base for refueling missions and deployments. The base celebrated the "birthday" of the KC-135's first Fairchild flight Monday. That KC-135 flight occurred two years after the Air Force purchased the first 29 of an eventual 732 plane fleet. The prototype was the Dash 80, designed in 1954 at the beginning...

  • Deputies investigate shooting

    Roger Harnack, Publisher|Updated Sep 3, 2020

    MEDICAL LAKE – One person is in serious condition at an area hospital and two others are being questioned in connection with an early morning shooting today, Aug. 27. The shooting occurred at about 3:50 a.m., Spokane County Sheriff’s Office Cpl. Mark Gregory said, noting it occurred at a home in the 800 block of North Howard Street. One man was shot; and a man and a woman were detained for questioning, he said, noting that the names have not yet been released. As of 10 a.m...

  • Probe: Prison isn't at fault in inmate's death

    Updated Sep 3, 2020

    STAFF AND NEWS REPORTS AIRWAY HEIGHTS — An investigation into the death of an inmate at Airway Heights Corrections Center has concluded the prison isn’t at fault. According to findings released last week, the Washington State Patrol concluded the state Department of Corrections is not to blame in the June 2 death of convicted pedophile 70-year-old Robert Munger while in prison. Munger, who was previously convicted of raping multiple children, was struck about 14 times in the head by cellmate Shane Goldsby, who also sto...

  • Drones to study redds

    Updated Sep 3, 2020

    LEAVENWORTH — The state Department of Fish and Wildlife will partner with a Washington State University graduate student next month using drones to look for salmon spawning nests in streams. The plan is to scan the upper Wenatchee River for the nests, called redds, officials said. The search will include areas near Tumwater Campground, Blackbird Island and Dryden. The drones, flown by student Daniel Auerbach, will take high-resolution photos and videos, officials said. The images will be used to evaluate salmon p...

  • West Plains Police News

    Updated Sep 3, 2020

    CHENEY Aug. 25 Bicycle found in 1200 block of Second Street. Agency assist in 300 block of North 11th Street. Involuntary committal at Frontier Behavioral Health Harassment reported in 200 block of South Cheney-Spangle Road Aug. 26 Essa A. Aldhafeeri, 22, arrested for second-degree assault in 200 block of North 11th Street Girl, 17, and boy, 15 arrested for third-degree shoplifting (liquor) in the 2700 block of First Street Trespassing reported in 100 block of West First Street Verbal domestic dispute in the 700 block of...

  • Federal judge rules I-1639 constitutional

    Roger Harnack, Cheney Free Press|Updated Sep 3, 2020

    TACOMA — A U.S. District Court judge has ruled that gun-control measure Initiative 1639 is constitutional. U.S. District Court of Western Washington Judge Ronald Leighton, a Whitworth University graduate, issued his ruling Monday on the gun control measure. Under I-1639, semi-automatic rifles are redefined as “assault rifles,” adults 18-20 are barred from having semi-automatic rifles, and dealers are required to sell safes and gun locks and prohibited from selling them to ou...

  • Target shooting banned on state-managed lands

    Updated Sep 3, 2020

    OLYMPIA — Two state agencies have banned target shooting on the lands they manage in their efforts to prevent wildfires. The state Department of Fish and Wildlife and the state Department of Natural Resources have banned target shooting until further notice. “We implemented several fire risk prevention measures for WDFW lands in Eastern Washington earlier this summer,” Fish and Wildlife Lands Division Manager Cynthia Wilkerson said. Hunting is allowed to continue, she said. Target-shooting restrictions will remain in effec...

  • Authorities seek help with poaching case

    Updated Sep 3, 2020

    TYLER -- The state Department of Fish and Wildlife is seeking information in a mule deer poaching case. According to the agency, a rancher recently found a mule deer shot illegally shot on private land along Chapman Lake Road, about half a mile east of Chapman Lake. Game wardens believe it was shot sometime during the evening of Aug. 25. The entire carcass of the 4x5 point deer was left. “This is not only a crime, but also pointless,” agency Region 1 Police Capt. Dan Rahn said Thursday, Aug. 27. “The shooting was outsi...

  • JoAnn Joyce Mehl

    Updated Sep 3, 2020

    JoAnn Joyce Mehl was born in Eagle Grove Iowa, May 19, 1943. Her parents Gaylord Amos Mehl and Leora Mae Newcomb raised JoAnn with her older brother Larry and younger sister, Marilyn in Iowa until JoAnn was 11 years old. They then moved to Tucson, Arizona where she lived the remainder of her youth. She Graduated from Rincon High school in 1961 after which she hopped into her Coral Lark convertible and set her sights from the dust and heat of Arizona to the ocean breezes of... Full story

  • Historical spot to honor Mann's ultimate sacrifice

    DREW LAWSON, Staff Reporter|Updated Sep 3, 2020

    REARDAN - Joe Mann lived in Reardan scaling church steeples and overcoming broken collar bones in football games because he didn't want to sub out before graduating from the high school in 1941. He died at age 22 making the ultimate sacrifice in World War II, jumping on a grenade at age 22 to protect his companions from a German attack in 1944. He posthumously received the highest war decoration for his highest sacrifice, the Medal of Honor, in 1945. Now, his family ranch...

  • Bradley Donald McHenry

    Updated Sep 3, 2020

    Survivors are wife of 58 years, Diane, daughter Xandra Victor [Ardell] and twin grandchildren Halie and Joe Champlin. His parents Donald and Joyce McHenry, preceded him in death. After graduating from North Central, Whitworth and U of W in Civil Engineering, he and his wife became young owners of Bunkers Resort on Williams Lake. He operated and developed the property with the future always in sight for nearly 60 years. Brad loved hunting Canadian geese, fishing for trout, steelhead and salmon. He was a collector of old wester... Full story

  • Support Eastern Washington independence

    Updated Sep 3, 2020

    In the recent primary, King County overwhelmingly voted for “Unlawful Inslee.” “Unlawful” because a flu-like virus that does not increase the death rate does not constitute a disaster that warrants emergency powers. “Unlawful” because “the governor must terminate said state of emergency proclamation when order has been restored in the area affected” (Revised Code of Washington 43.06.210). “Unlawful” because mandates that suspend the Bill of Rights violate the supreme law of the land. Unlawful Inslee is King County’s pick....

  • Gov. Inslee funding unnecessary union job

    Liv Finne, Contributor|Updated Sep 3, 2020

    Most schools in Washington state will remain closed this fall. Some school districts are tightening their belts in anticipation of the COVID-19 budget cuts that are coming. But last week Gov. Jay Inslee bypassed the Legislature and the decisions of local school districts to protect the jobs of unionized school bus drivers. He’s made sure money will keep flowing for school buses that are not carrying school children. His next step may be to keep the money flowing to school buildings — even with no students. Here is the bac...

  • It's time to call a special legislative session

    ROGER HARNACK, Publisher|Updated Sep 3, 2020

    Last week, the Idaho House of Representatives approved legislation calling for Gov. Brad Little to end his state’s emergency declaration. Shortly thereafter, the Idaho Senate followed suit, albeit approving different legislation. Maybe that’s what our governor, Jay Inslee, is afraid of. Maybe he’s afraid our elected legislators will end his shutdown and tackle an ailing budget that he has yet to responsibly address. Or maybe he just enjoys muzzling other political leade...

  • West Plains Briefs

    Updated Sep 3, 2020

    Salnave work almost done CHENEY — The state Department of Transportation says only minor punchlist items remain to be finished on the Salnave Road repaving project. The work began June 1 after Shamrock Paving was awarded a $3.58 million project. The project included repaving about 4.3 miles of roadway with a hot-mix asphalt to make the road surface smoother, officials said. Nearly 2 inches of the old asphalt has been replaced, officials said. Expect nightly closures MEDICAL LAKE — Nightly closures of state Highway 902 wil...

  • Hazelwood Square construction begins

    DREW LAWSON, Staff Reporter|Updated Sep 3, 2020

    AIRWAY HEIGHTS—It may not be possible to catch the latest flick at the cinema, but residents driving east on Highway 2 may notice the bustle of construction in the adjacent lot. That construction is for the Hazelwood Square project, a three-phased, 7.5 acre commercial development that promises to bring more businesses to town. Baker Construction & Development of Spokane is the general contractor, while Ryan Zane of Bernardo Wills Architects, PC was the lead architect. The ownership group, Sadaqa Group LLC, signed on the H...

  • What's on tap for Airway Heights?

    DREW LAWSON, Staff Reporter|Updated Sep 3, 2020

    AIRWAY HEIGHTS—As city population is anticipated to continue growing and the mission expands at Fairchild Air Force Base, the city planning and public works departments are developing plans for future city growth, business expansion and transportation improvements. The downtown plan is one major development in the works. Three scenarios have been posed for public feedback, as reported in the Aug. 27 edition of the Cheney Free Press. A decision on which scenario to proceed with is expected by April, principal planner H...