In brief: Park rangers find body below cliff
LONGMIRE, Wash. – A park official said rangers have recovered a body from the base of a cliff at Mount Rainier National Park.
Spokeswoman Patti Wold said the rangers began searching Monday morning after investigating a vehicle that had been parked for several days at Ricksecker Point on the south side of the park. The rangers found identification in the vehicle and linked it to a missing persons report.
The rangers located the body after searching on the ground and by helicopter. Wold said injuries to the body are consistent with a fall from great height.
A helicopter crew took the body to the Lewis County coroner.
The coroner’s office had not released an identity by Tuesday afternoon.
Federal money approved for storm damage
SEATTLE – President Barack Obama has ordered federal aid to help state and local efforts to recover from a severe storm in July that pounded parts of northeast Washington.
Obama on Tuesday signed a Washington disaster declaration. Federal money is available to state and eligible local governments for emergency work and to repair or replace facilities in Ferry and Okanogan counties and the Colville Indian Reservation.
The July 20 storm brought severe winds, thunder, flooding and hail to the region. It knocked down trees and power lines, damaged roads and left many without shelter.
Murder charge filed in road-rage killing
SEATTLE – King County prosecutors have filed a murder charge against a 29-year-old Seattle man accused of fatally shooting another man at a north Seattle intersection.
Charging documents filed Tuesday accuse Thomas Dinh Bowman of firing five shots, three of which struck 43-year-old Yancy Noll in the head. The two were stopped at a red light on Aug. 31.
Prosecutors say Bowman tried to conceal the crime by replacing the window and tires on his BMW. Staff at a tire shop where Bowman had his tires changed told investigators that Bowman and his wife insisted on taking the four old tires with them.
Documents also show that police found a stash of guns in his home.
Bowman is being held at the King County Jail without bail. His arraignment is set for Oct. 8.
Gregoire to promote trade in India, S. Korea
OLYMPIA – Gov. Chris Gregoire leaves Sunday on a 10-day trade mission to India and South Korea.
Gregoire announced Tuesday that she’ll be leading a delegation of nearly 50 people from the state’s business community, education and government.
She arrives in Hyderabad, India, on Tuesday followed by stops in Delhi and Mumbai. She’ll then head to South Korea, where she will visit a Costco and a Popeye’s restaurant where she’ll serve customers french fries made from Washington-grown potatoes.