18-year-old survives rollover crash
An 18-year-old survived after being ejected from his Chevy Blazer when it rolled six times early Friday, according to the Washington State Patrol.
The young man was driving southbound on the Newport Highway just north of Spokane when he apparently fell asleep at about 3:36 a.m. The 1989 Chevy Blazer then drove up a 100-foot embankment before it began to roll, Trooper Mark Baker said.
During the crash, the man – who was not wearing a seat belt – was ejected from the SUV. Emergency crews initially believed the young man suffered a broken back, and he was transported to Deaconess Medical Center.
“From what I understand, he only suffered relatively minor injuries and not as serious as they once thought,” Baker said.
Coeur d’Alene
District says lake safe for swimming
The Panhandle Health District on Friday declared Lake Coeur d’Alene safe for swimming after recent floods.
Water quality tests performed by the Idaho Department of Environmental Quality showed that levels of lead and cadmium were “below levels of concern for drinking water, therefore primary contact activities such as swimming should not be a concern,” according to a health district news release. Levels of E.coli, naturally occurring bacteria, also were below levels considered safe for swimming.
Tests were performed at Sanders Beach, City Beach and at the center of the lake.
EUGENE, Ore.
Detectives find cash hidden in gas tank
Lane County detectives investigating a drug-dealing operation found $72,000 in cash hidden in the fuel tank of a car parked at a home where three males had been arrested on drug charges.
After the arrests they got a warrant to search the car and found a secret compartment in the tank.
Detectives have been investigating the drug ring for more than three months and have arrested at least six people.
BOISE
Diocese ordains six new priests
The Roman Catholic Diocese of Boise has ordained six new priests, five of them bilingual to help serve the state’s growing Hispanic Catholic population.
It’s the single largest group of priests to be ordained in the diocese’s 115-year history in Idaho.
The diocese estimates Hispanics make up more than half of the 166,000 Catholics in Idaho.
Bishop Michael Driscoll hasn’t announced where the priests ordained Thursday will be assigned, but they likely will be sent to areas where the diocese has seen Catholic parishes grow with the influx of Hispanic immigrants, diocese spokesman Michael Brown said.
Hispanics make up the largest minority group among Idaho’s 1.5 million residents. Their numbers grew by more than 43 percent from 2000 to 2007, according to the most recent U.S. Census Bureau estimates. Census figures released in April showed 147,426 people in Idaho claimed Hispanic heritage in 2007, compared with 102,901 in 2000.
SEATTLE
B.C. men accused of drug running
Federal agents have arrested two men they say were involved in a major Canadian drug running enterprise with ties to the Hells Angels.
Robert J. Shannon and Devron D. Quast, both 38 and from British Columbia, made their initial appearances Friday in U.S. District Court in Seattle after being arrested Thursday night in Ferndale.
They were indicted along with seven others marijuana and cocaine conspiracy charges, and their arrests followed a three-year investigation during which agents seized more than 1,300 pounds of cocaine, 7,000 pounds of marijuana and about $3.5 million. Over the course of the investigation 38 people have been charged with drug trafficking and related offenses.
In some instances drugs were hidden inside hollowed out logs on logging trucks and inside a propane tank. Prosecutors say Quast even provided insurance for marijuana suppliers, paying them $425 per pound if any load was lost or seized by law enforcement.
RICHLAND, Wash.
Hanford contractor fined for spill
The federal government has fined a contractor at the Hanford Nuclear Reservation $302,500 for safety violations related to a spill of radioactive waste last summer.
The spill occurred July 27, when workers at the site were pumping the toxic waste from an underground tank. When a pump blocked, they tried to unblock it by running it in reverse, but 85 gallons of waste spilled onto the ground.
The U.S. Department of Energy, which manages cleanup at the highly contaminated site, said it was concerned about the delay by contractor CH2M Hill Hanford Group in detecting the spill and also “long-standing engineering lapses” that led to the spill.
“It was only mere chance that prevented personnel from being directly contaminated by significant quantities of tank waste during the course of the event,” said a letter sent Thursday to the DOE contractor from the Energy Department’s Office of Health, Safety and Security.
The federal government created Hanford in the 1940s as part of the top-secret Manhattan Project to build the atomic bomb. The fine would have been greater, but the Energy Department reduced it by $192,500 because of CH2M Hill’s actions since the spill.
“DOE found your event investigation to be detailed and thorough and found your corrective actions to be appropriate,” the letter said.