Mike Prager

Awesome aftermath Spectators turn out in Riverfront Park to watch the Spokane River flow at 38,500 cubic feet per second. The river crested Monday about a foot above flood stage. Photo by Dan McComb/The Spokesman-Review

1. (Flooding at a glance) 2. Kingston, Idaho, resident Tom Rahm and his dog, Endo, help their neighbor evacuate Friday. Photo by Craig Buck/The Spokesman-Review 3. Colfax residents turned out Friday morning to shore up a levee against the rising Palouse River. Photo by Christopher Anderson/The Spokesman-Review

Rueben Tiersma, 9, and John Meredith, 11, watch for debris in Tekoa. Photo by Christopher Anderson/The Spokesman-Review

Spectators gather outside the Ridpath after Tuesday's shootings. Photo by Dan Pelle/The Spokesman-Review

Lewis and Clark students Adelia Vanderwalde and Heather Shauvin are forced to jump a puddle at Third and Howard on Monday. Photo by Colin Mulvany/The Spokesman-Review

Firefighter Grant Cragun pushes water out the doors at the YWCA on Friday afternoon after a pipe apparently burst in a corridor near the children's center, sending a small stream of water into the parking lot. The YWCA will be open today and cleanup should be completed over the weekend. Photo by Sandra Bancroft-Billings/The Spokesman-Review

Jumping Jack Frost. Students at St. Patrick's School, cooped up without recess all week, dashed into the cold for jumping jacks and a lap around the school yard Thursday. Photo by Colin Mulvany/The Spokesman-Review

Dr. Jim Pittman checks patient Mary Bartol's temperature during an exam at a low-cost clinic run by Gonzaga University's nursing program in the East Central Community Center. Photo by Colin Mulvany/The Spokesman-Review

Maleng

A national trend to require competency tests for entry-level school teachers is gaining momentum in Washington state. Lawmakers in Olympia are pushing three bills for basic skills tests, and the State Board of Education is debating the issue. "There's not a good teacher in this state who would oppose a competency test," said Rep. Don Benton, R-Vancouver, who sponsors one bill. "We want some basic competency skills verified before they come into the teaching profession."

SFCC physical therapy assistant student, Mary Jo Hemmerling checks her lab before starting a muscle test on fellow student Kathy Fischer. Photo by Colin Mulvany/The Spokesman-Review

The 5.4 inches of snow that fell Wednesday in Spokane brought this week's total to 16 inches, but forecasters warn that a really big snowfall may be coming Friday night. "Things could get messy during the first part of the weekend," said John Livingston, meteorologist in charge of the National Weather Service in Spokane. In the meantime, forecasters are calling for on-again, off-again snow showers.

Flooding from the Columbia River just gives Jeff Wright of Longview, Wash., more room for fun. The National Weather Service has issued a flood watch for western sections of the river today, which is overflowing with snowmelt. Photo by Associated Press

The National Weather Service got a new pair of glasses on Sunday. A $200 million high-technology weather satellite over the Pacific Ocean went into operation last weekend, replacing a 9-year-old outdated version.

1. It's one step at a time for St. Augustine's Church maintenance man Jeff Johnson who has to remove snow from the church's front stairway Friday morning. About 4 inches blanketed the Spokane area. Photo by Dan Pelle/The Spokesman-Review (photo ran only in the Spokane edition) 2. Snow job. Ric Gallaway got to break out the old snow blower after Friday's early morning snowstorm in Coeur d'Alene. Photo by Craig Buck/The Spokesman-Review (photo ran only in the Idaho edition)

WSU architecture student Mike Skidmore sets up computer equipment in his new Spokane classroom Tuesday. Photo by Shawn Jacobson/The Spokesman-Review

Ferris High School student Elizabeth Wallace studies English at EWU. Photo by Shawn Jacobson/The Spokesman-Review

Snowboarders and skiers hit the slopes Friday at 49 Degrees North. Photo by Shawn Jacobson/The Spokesman-Review

Whitworth professor James Waller is leaving with 16 students this week on a monthlong trip to study prejudice in America. Photo by Shawn Jacobson/The Spokesman-Review

Slick roads were to blame for a rear-ender between a U.S. Postal Service vehicle and a 48-passenger STA bus at the corner of 14th and Monroe on Thursday. Postal carrier Sheri Bartlett was traveling at a slow rate of speed but was unable to stop. No one was injured, but the mail was a little later than usual. Photo by Dan Pelle/The Spokesman-Review

The man who murdered his drug-abusing wife by stabbing her 31 times with a butcher knife was granted leniency Tuesday by a Spokane judge. Thomas "Rick" Birnel will serve only half of the minimum prison term set by sentencing guidelines: five years. Superior Court Judge Kathleen O'Connor said Cookie Birnel's history of drug abuse and angry outbursts contributed to the violence.

A peacock leads Terry Rhouds, right, and his son Zachery through one last walk in the wild as hundreds of visitors took advantage of free admission to the zoo on its last day of operation. Photo by Dan McComb/The Spokesman-Review

Leaded gasoline was once the fuel that powered Detroit's gas-guzzling V-8 engines. As of Monday, it will go the way of rumble seats as the federal government outlaws the sale of leaded fuel to protect the nation's health.

Only 6 inches of snow fell in Spokane in the past two months, leaving most people wondering when, or if, winter will arrive. Winter officially started at 12:17 a.m. today as the sun reached its lowest point in the skies of the Northern Hemisphere. Weather experts say it's not too late for heavy snow in the lowlands and a healthy snowpack in the mountains.