News, views and advertising of the Grand Coulee Dam Area
News, views and advertising of the Grand Coulee Dam Area
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Following the death of a city employee, Coulee Dam is considering requiring all employees to be vaccinated against COVID-19. Councilmember Dale Rey raised the question during a council meeting last Wednesday. Rey remarked on the recent death of one employee and a positive coronavirus test of another, although he said he was speculating on the cause of death. “Our town employees not only interact with each other and with us, but they also interact with and communicate with and are around members of the community,” Rey said, so requiring vaccinat...
Grand Coulee Police 10/12 - A man and woman on Alcan Road and Yakima Street were arrested and taken to jail for burglary. The man was known to stay at a residence there, but the owner said he was not allowed in a storage shed where both had stored items without permission. The two had allegedly picked a lock to enter the shed and retrieve their own items. They were found there and arrested. Drug paraphernalia was also found. The man was adamant that the shed was unlocked, and that he didn’t break in. 10/14 - A man was cited for driving under t...
Following a year of work, the friendly merger of Coulee Dam Federal Credit Union and STCU will culminate this weekend. All five CDFCU branches will be closed Friday, then reopen Monday as STCU, though it will take a while longer to change exterior signage, a credit union press release said Tuesday. Nearly all CDFCU employees have chosen to make the move to STCU, meaning credit union members will continue to see the same familiar faces at their favorite branch. The employees are maintaining...
A friendly merger that has been in the works for a year will culminate in one month when CDFCU and STCU are joined, giving CDFCU’s 14,400 members access to a broader suite of products and services. In preparation for the merger, Spokane-based STCU mailed information to CDFCU members in late August, outlining how their accounts will transition into STCU accounts, and other need-to-know information. More detailed information, specific to each member, will be provided prior to the merger, a press release from STCU said this week. Other recent m...
William Douglas "Bill" Morger Sr., formerly of Elmer City and Coulee Dam,Washington, passed away after a long illness in Scottsdale, Arizona, on Wednesday, September 1, 2021. Bill was born in Fort Collins, Colorado, on August 23, 1937, to Marvin and Josephine Morger. Bill was one of 12 children. Bill spent his early life in Colorado, moving to the central California valley at the age of three years. Most of his youth was spent in central California, where his family owned many businesses... Full story
Grand Coulee 9/7 - A woman told police she would move her camper from Osborn Bay, where a person can only camp for four days, after a mechanical issue was solved in the camper. 9/8 - Police checked on a dog in a truck on McGovern Street that had been there overnight. The small dog did not appear in distress and a window was cracked. Police opened the door and left some water on the floorboard for the dog. A man said he would call police if the truck and dog were still there later that day. - Police responded to milepost 26 on SR-155 near...
The speed limit between Electric City and Grand Coulee, currently at 45 miles per hour, could drop to 30 with the construction of a new pedestrian/bike pathway. The Star would like to know whether you want the speed limit lowered. With pedestrians regularly traveling the stretch of road, a pathway is seen as a way to give them a safe place to walk or ride their bikes. In 2018, the project was accepted for a $672,410 grant from the Washington State Department of Transportation with a 5%, $35,390 match from Electric City. The original ped... Full story
Grand Coulee Police 8/10 - Fuel was reportedly siphoned out of a city vehicle parked at the city shop on Grand Avenue, as well as fuel siphoned out of a fuel pump. - A 2001 Ford F150 rear ended a 2017 Ford F150 near the intersection of SR-155 and the SunBank Resort turnoff. The information was turned over to a state patrolman who took over the situation. - A one legged, unlicensed man was allowed to move his vehicle which was partially blocking the roadway of Continental Heights. - A woman was advised by police to get a no contact order from...
Grand Coulee Police 7/29 - Police were unable to find a gold Nissan Pathfinder reported to have been speeding and passing cars on double yellow lines on SR-174 heading into Grand Coulee. - A wallet with an ID, credit cards, and about $100 was found at the Grand Coulee Dam Visitors Center after the laser light show and turned into police. Police were able to find contact info for the Idaho man, who retrieved his wallet. 7/31 - Police told people who had been shooting at Osborn Bay about burn restrictions that restrict target shooting in the...
A loud US Army training exercise on a hillside above town drew a different kind of fire at Coulee Dam’s city council meeting July 28, a small-caliber complaint compared to the big guns that alarmed citizens late at night July 22. Bob Hendrickson told the council he was disappointed that people had not been given any notice that a training was about to happen that might sound like a terrorist attack against Grand Coulee Dam. He said that he and many other people he talked to had worried about that as they listened to automatic weapons and w...
Loud gunfire that woke and frightened Coulee Dam residents Thursday night was part of a “routine military training,” a US Army spokesman said. The repeating racket that started about 10:30 sounded to some former military men like 50-caliber automatic weapons. Flashes from multiple gun barrels could be seen on the hillside above the Third Powerhouse on the east side of Grand Coulee Dam. And one caller reported seeing flames at the top of the north end of the powerhouse. The weapons fire, which continued until after midnight, woke at least one...
(Editor’s note: The writer asked that his letter to Bureau of Reclamation Power Manager Coleman Smith be included on this opinion page) Dear Mr. Smith: I am writing in regard to an incident that happened last night, July 22. At about 10:30 PM we were startled by loud automatic weapons fire up towards the top of the east side of the dam. I was extremely alarmed by this situation as the gunfire was coming from multiple locations. As you are aware the Grand Coulee Dam is considered a target and has lots of security in place. We all know this. T...
Grand Coulee Police 7/19 - Police responded to Burdin Boulevard on a report that a white pitbull had a fawn in its mouth. The reporting party told police that the dog dropped the fawn when approached and the fawn ran off. They were also told the dog was chasing a cat at 4 a.m. as well, and frequently gets out and causes problems. Police went to the house belonging to the dog owner. The dog was inside and growled at the officers from inside the house. Police were unable to contact the owner. The dog is unregistered with the city, according to...
A $4.9 billion pumped-storage hydropower project has been given preliminary nods by regulators for a site 35 miles upstream from Grand Coulee Dam, near Creston. Similar to the proposed Banks Lake Pumped Storage Project being developed for the Grand Coulee area, the 2,650-Megawatt Halverson Canyon Pumped Storage project got a preliminary permit from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. Developer Daybreak Power Inc. says the project "would connect to the nearby Bonneville Power...
A fire across SR-174 from the Lakeview Terrace trailer park was nipped in bud before it could spread through the dry terrain July 17. The fire scorched under half an acre, burning multiple older vehicles, including an old camp trailer, tires, and garbage, according to Grand Coulee Fire Chief Ryan Fish. The cause of the fire is still under investigation. The fire started at about 1 p.m. when fire departments of Grand Coulee, Coulee Dam, and Elmer City responded, as well as Bureau of Reclamation...
As a farmer, former state director of Agriculture, chairman of the Congressional Western Caucus, and congressman representing one of the most flourishing agricultural regions in America, I fully understand the extent to which water is truly the lifeblood of Central Washington and our economy. Hot summers, several years of low snowpack, and the severity of recent drought across the West illustrate how important it is that we reinvest in the water infrastructure our farms and communities were built upon — much of which is over a century old at t...
Local popular target-shooting spots are technically illegal because of federal laws, but state agencies say they are unable to enforce federal laws. A Star article June 16 examined the legality of a popular shooting range at Osborn Bay where a wildfire took place last month. The fire didn’t start at the main shooting range, as “Wildfire brings scrutiny of illegal shooting range” had reported, but at a former shooting area located roughly a quarter to half a mile south of the main shooting range, according to Electric City Fire Chief Mark Payne...
B Street’s closure has been extended as construction on the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation’s fire station remains at a standstill. Grand Coulee’s city council passed a motion last month to allow Mayor Paul Townsend to sign a new agreement with the USBR for the continued closure of B Street near the construction site of the bureau’s fire station. Officials of the bureau attending the June 15 meeting via Zoom included Doug Anderson, chief engineer at the Grand Coulee Dam; Colby Clifford, the contracting officer for the fire station; and Misty Gates,...
Don't even think about lighting a firework, smoking or target shooting on public lands in these conditions. The Bureau of Land Management on June 29 announced fire restrictions in the BLM's Spokane District, a temporary ban that takes effect on July 1 in 21 counties including Grant, Lincoln, Okanogan, Douglas locally, as well as Adams, Asotin, Benton, Chelan, Columbia, Ferry, Franklin, Garfield, Kittitas, Klickitat, Pend Oreille, Spokane, Stevens, Walla Walla, Whitman, and Yakima. "The fire... Full story
With a recent wildfire started by a ricocheted bullet adding to safety and noise issues, target shooting at Osborn Bay is a concern for some, and the federal agency that owns the area says it is illegal to target shoot on their lands. In response to the June 5 fire at Osborn Bay, Electric City resident Jerry Kennedy submitted a public comment in an email that was read at Electric City’s June 8 city council meeting. The area lies within city boundaries. Kennedy lives less than a mile north of a common, unofficial shooting range there where a s...
At least three areas in the surrounding countryside are used locally as shooting ranges, possibly all illegally. That may offer an opportunity to improve. Last week, a firefighter friend in Ephrata noted he and his fellow firefighters had been listening to their scanners expecting to be called by Electric City to help fight the Osborn Bay fire. He was surprised to learn it had started from the spark of a ricochet in an outdoor, unofficial, make-do shooting area. “Around here, we shoot at the (real) shooting range,” he said. Washington Fla...
Richard "Dick" Beery age 86, of Coulee Dam, Washington, passed away peacefully on May 23 2021, at Coulee Medical Center. Dick was born April 29, 1935, at Mason City Hospital (Coulee Dam) to Carlisle "Bill" and Elizabeth Beery. He married Jeanie Rauch on July 21 1962, in Grand Coulee, Washington. He was proceeded in death by his wife Jeanie of 43 years. Together they raised two children. He is survived by his daughter Lisa Ray (Todd) and their daughter Sierra Ray; son Mark Beery (Denise) and... Full story
A fire at Osborn Bay in high winds Saturday forced two people there to stay in the water for hours as flames came near enough at times that they could feel the heat. The fire near Osborn Bay, south of Electric City burned approximately 30 acres of sagebrush, dry grass, trees, and other vegetation in high winds on Saturday after a bullet ricocheted and started the fire. Electric City Fire Chief Mark Payne said the fire started at approximately 12:55 p.m. when a man shooting in the area reported...
Hotter and drier summers seem to be the trend in climate changes locally as the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration released the new U.S. Climate Normals for 1991-2020. The NOAA is part of the Department of Commerce and updates the climate normals every 10 years using a 30-year range of data. Comparing the 1991-2020 data to the previous 1981-2010 data shows that the Spokane area, like much of the western U.S., is experiencing hotter and drier summers. Including here. "Vegetation drie...
A fire near Osborne Bay south of Electric City is burning sage brush and other vegetation in high winds. Helicopters from the Department of Natural Resources and the Bureau of Land Management are helping fight the fire along with fire fighters from the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation, and the departments from Electric City, Grand Coulee, Coulee Dam, Elmer City, and Lincoln County. Electric City Fire Chief Mark Payne said the fire started at approximately 12:55 p.m. and is suspected to have started... Full story