In brief: ‘Fools Float’ on Tuesday
Tuesday will mark the 15th “Only Fools Float On The First” Spokane River Float sponsored by the Northwest Whitewater Association.
The “Fools Float” traditionally kicks off the whitewater boating season for the club, which runs whitewater rivers across the region year-round.
The float will launch from the north end of the city’s sewage treatment plant.
Participants begin gathering at 10:30 a.m. and should be on the water by noon. The float finishes seven miles downriver at the Plese Flats takeout in Riverside State Park.
Boaters negotiate the Class III Bowl & Pitcher and Devils Toenail rapids in craft ranging from traditional rafts to the hybrid “cataraft” pontoon-style boats and kayaks.
Past association president Bob Rockser started the tradition with three rafters and a kayaker in 1994. The event has grown to include two dozen or more boaters.
All are experienced whitewater boaters and are outfitted with proper cold weather gear, such as dry suits, to protect against water temperatures of about 35 degrees.
The Northwest Whitewater Association is a Spokane-based club of self-outfitted whitewater boating enthusiasts.
The Web site is www.northwestwhitewater.org.
– Staff reports
Pullman
Stuck plow, drifts close highways
A section of State Route 195 south of Pullman was closed Sunday due to high snow drifts and a snowplow that became stuck trying to clear the highway.
Washington State Patrol closed about 20 miles of the highway between Pullman and the Idaho state line.
The state Department of Transportation snowplow was stuck at milepost 8.8, near Colton, in drifts 5 feet tall and 60 feet long, the agency said.
A transportation department crew tried to pull the plow free, but the cable broke. They planned to get a road grader to the scene to attempt to free the plow.
The state Sunday night also closed State Route 272 from Colfax east to the Idaho state line, also due to drifting snow.
Staff reports
Spokane Valley
No one injured in mobile home fire
Christmas lights may have caused a Spokane Valley mobile home to go up in flames about 11 a.m. Sunday, according to those who lived in the home.
Spokane Valley firefighters extinguished the blaze, which destroyed the structure.
Four adults were left homeless. They’re receiving emergency assistance from the Red Cross.
No one was injured, the Spokane County Fire Department reported.
The home was at 7307 E. 7th St.
– Paula Davenport