In brief: Driver held after allegedly ramming officers’ cars

A 19-year-old man faces a felony assault charge after allegedly ramming his car into two police vehicles while attempting to flee Saturday.

Nash Teal is suspected of first-degree assault and possession of a stolen motor vehicle.

Police spotted him getting into a stolen 1998 Nissan truck just before noon, according to Spokane police Officer Brian Eckersley. The truck was stolen earlier Saturday when the victim was warming it up on the north side of town. 

Several officers surrounded Teal with their vehicles in an attempt to block him from fleeing. Police say Teal purposely rammed an unmarked police car and a patrol car while trying to escape. 

Officers were able to block the vehicle, but Teal led them on a short foot pursuit before they took him into custody, Eckersley said. 

One officer was treated at a hospital for a minor hip injury sustained during the arrest.

Man dies in collision near Spokane airport

Spokane police say one man is dead following a crash near Spokane International Airport late Saturday afternoon.

Spokane International Airport Police and Spokane Police Department officers responded to a two-vehicle collision at the intersection of West Airport Drive and South Spotted Road at 4:02 p.m., according to Sgt. Jason Hartman.

The driver of one vehicle, an adult male, was transported to Providence Sacred Heart Medical Center, Hartman said. He was pronounced dead shortly after arriving at the hospital. No one else was taken to the hospital.

Traffic leaving the airport was detoured around the collision scene, causing minor delays.

The cause of the collision was under investigation. The name of the deceased driver was not released.

7.5 quake felt in Alaska; tsunami warning canceled

JUNEAU, Alaska – A powerful earthquake sparked a tsunami warning for hundreds of miles of Alaskan and Canadian coastline, but the alert was canceled when no damaging waves were generated.

The magnitude-7.5 quake and tsunami warning that followed caused concern in some coastal communities, with alarms sounding and people rushing to higher ground for safety.

But the Alaska Tsunami Warning Center later said the waves were too small to pose a threat, reaching just 6 inches above normal sea level in places such as Sitka and Port Alexander.

The temblor struck at 1 a.m. Saturday and was centered about 60 miles west of Craig, Alaska, the U.S. Geological Survey said.

The quake was followed by several aftershocks, including a 5.2 quake felt in southeastern Alaska and British Columbia.

The Alaska Earthquake Information Center said the quake was widely felt but it received no reports of damage.

Eighth passenger killed in bus crash identified

PENDLETON, Ore. – Authorities have released the identity of another victim killed in a charter bus crash in Eastern Oregon last weekend.

Oregon State Police on Saturday identified the eighth fatality as Seokmin Moon, a 55-year-old man from Maple Ridge, B.C. They also released the name of his wife, 53-year-old Choonja Moon, who is being treated at Harborview Medical Center in Seattle.

Nine people were killed and 38 injured when the tour bus crashed through a guardrail and 200 feet down an embankment along Interstate 84 east of Pendleton. The bus was returning to Vancouver, B.C., after a nine-day trip.

Authorities are withholding the identification of the ninth person killed pending notification of next-of-kin.