In brief: Man struck, killed after vehicle crash
One person was killed Wednesday morning after a two-vehicle crash near the Sprague Avenue on-ramp to westbound Interstate 90.
The driver of one of the vehicles was walking across Third Avenue after the crash, talking on his cellphone, when he was hit and killed by a separate vehicle, the Spokane County Sheriff’s Office reported.
The incident began when a van allegedly made an improper turn across the median from the Sprague on-ramp onto Third Avenue and hit a car. The driver of that car, a 30-year-old man, walked north across Third to talk to the driver of the van.
When the man was walking back across Third to his car, he was hit by another vehicle traveling west on Third. The driver of that vehicle was not injured and was not cited for any infractions, a news release from the Sheriff’s Office said.
The 30-year-old man, however, was taken to a local hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
The driver of the van in the initial collision was cited for an improper turn.
Man dies after car fails curve, hits tree
A Montana man died Tuesday when the car he was driving went off the road north of Chewelah and hit a tree just before midnight.
Jacob A. Stachofsky, 37, of Three Forks, Mont., was pronounced dead at St. Joseph’s Hospital in Chewelah.
A passenger in the car, David M. McGilvra, 19, of Northport, Wash., was airlifted to Providence Sacred Heart Medical Center in Spokane, where he was treated and released.
Stachofsky was driving a 1994 Honda Civic south on Cozy Nook Road about a mile north of Chewelah about five minutes before midnight. The car sped straight through a curve, hit a tree and came to rest on its top, the Washington State Patrol reported. Both men were wearing seat belts.
The WSP believes alcohol or drugs were involved.
Scammers call claiming to be police
A recent string of scam calls promises Spokane County residents that a clean criminal record is just a phone call away.
Throughout the past several months, citizens have received calls from scammers claiming to be from the Spokane County Sheriff’s Office saying there’s a warrant out for their arrest and that whoever they’re living with may be charged for harboring a wanted person, according to a Sheriff’s Office news release. The caller says that if they pay a fee their record will be cleared.
When the scammers call, caller identification will display the Sheriff’s Office administration number.
The Sheriff’s Office never tells people they can pay their way out of a warrant, Deputy Craig Chamberlin said.
“We either go find them, or when we contact them and find out they have (a warrant),” Chamberlin said, “that’s when we take them to jail.”
Victims or anyone with information should call Crime Check at (509) 456-2233.
One person dead after four-car crash
One person died after a four-vehicle collision in Spokane Valley on Wednesday.
The crash occurred at 5:19 p.m. and blocked both eastbound lanes of traffic on Trent Avenue, according to a Washington State Patrol news release. Alcohol or drugs may have been involved in the crash, the WSP said.
The victim died at Providence Sacred Heart Medical Center at 6:11 p.m., according to the news release. No further details were provided about the victim.
Crews rescue man who fell into well
SPANAWAY, Wash. – A fire official said crews rescued a 68-year-old man who fell down an abandoned, 20-foot-deep well on his Spanaway-area property.
Central Pierce Fire & Rescue spokesman Ed Hrivnak said the man was taken to a hospital for treatment of what appeared to be minor injuries.
The News Tribune in Tacoma reported that the spokesman said the man was in his shed Wednesday evening when the concrete floor underneath him broke away and he fell into the dry well below.
The fire department said the man’s wife saw him fall and called 911.
Blue dye will be used to spot dam seepage
The Bureau of Reclamation will inject a safe, biodegradable blue dye upstream of Grand Coulee Dam today to determine the path of seepage near the Right Powerhouse, the bureau said in a news release.
The test may discolor the pool immediately below the dam. The dye is harmless to humans, animals and the environment.
Seepage is coming from around one of the many limestone blocks that make up the dam. The troublesome block is situated some 200 feet below the water’s surface along the Columbia River’s east side, across the river from the Visitor Center.
The seepage poses no threat to the public, the news release said.