Man killed in snowmobile accident
A 36-year-old man died in a snowmobile incident Thursday night near Black Pine Lake, northwest of Twisp, Wash.
James R. Comer of Lake Stevens, Wash., was snowmobiling with about 20 other experienced riders in a popular snowmobiling area at about 3 p.m. when he decided to break off from the group.
Okanogan County Sheriff Frank Rogers said it appeared Comer later lost control of his snowmobile when climbing a hill and it rolled on top of him.
Other riders went looking for Comer after 5 p.m. and reported the discovery of his body to deputies at 6 p.m.
Rogers said the county had several snowmobile accidents last year, but no fatalities.
Driver badly hurt in Highway 2 crash
A 54-year-old Sandpoint man was in critical condition at Sacred Heart Medical Center on Friday evening following an early-morning accident on Highway 2 near Sandpoint.
According to Idaho State Police, Ronald Lee Collins was traveling westbound in his 1995 Chevy Blazer when he tried to pass another vehicle, hit ice and spun off the road. The car rolled multiple times down an embankment and Collins was ejected.
He was taken to Bonner General Hospital and then flown to Sacred Heart Medical Center in Spokane, where he was in intensive care.
The accident is under investigation. According to ISP, Collins was not wearing a seat belt.
New Year’s Day closures on Monday
With 2006 starting on a Sunday, most closures and service disruptions for New Year’s Day will come on Monday.
Here’s a look at what’s open and closed:
• Government offices – Closed Monday.
• Garbage pickup – Delayed one day in Spokane County. No change in Kootenai County.
• Postal service – Express mail delivered on Sunday and Monday. No regular service Monday.
• Parking – No meter enforcement Monday in downtown Spokane.
• Malls – NorthTown, Spokane Valley, Silver Lake and River Park Square shopping malls will close at 6 p.m. tonight and open at 11 a.m. Sunday.
• Buses – Spokane Transit will operate on a Sunday schedule both New Year’s Day and Monday.
• Ski resorts – Open all weekend.
• Libraries – Closed today, Sunday and Monday.
• Liquor stores – State-operated stores closed Monday.
Post Falls mayor hospitalized after surgery
Post Falls Mayor Clay Larkin had heart bypass surgery Thursday.
City Administrator Jim Hammond said the operation went well and that Larkin, 69, is expected to resume his official duties in four to six weeks. Council President Scott Grant is the acting mayor.
Hammond said Larkin went to the doctor after feeling some discomfort. After several tests it was determined that bypass surgery was needed.
Larkin is recovering at Kootenai Medical Center. He is unable to receive phone calls or visitors at this time.
This is the second time the mayor has had heart surgery. About 19 years ago he had triple-bypass surgery.
In January 2001, Larkin had surgery for an aneurysm in one leg. Larkin slumped onto his chest during a City Council meeting, just minutes after being sworn-in as Post Falls’ eighth mayor. He was taken to the hospital by ambulance. The same night, Coeur d’Alene Mayor Steve Judy also was rushed to KMC by ambulance after feeling sharp pains in his chest during a council meeting. Doctors suspected Judy had an adverse reaction to two antibiotics he was taking for strep throat.
The mayors ended up side-by-side in the emergency room.
Snowmobiler, 13, in collision with log truck
A 13-year-old girl is in stable condition after the snowmobile she was riding collided with a log truck Friday on a county road near Priest Lake.
The Bonner County Sheriff’s Department didn’t release the victim’s name but reported that the teenager had a leg injury with unknown possible internal injuries.
The accident happened about 2:45 p.m. near East Shore Road. The girl was transported by ambulance to Sacred Heart Medical Center in Spokane. Emergency medical personnel requested Med-Star, but the helicopter was unable to respond because of weather conditions, the report said.
Idaho State Police is investigating the collision.
Baby sitter, 24, accused of biting children
Bozeman
Bail has been set at $50,000 for a man accused of biting two toddlers several times after they refused to go to bed.
Lannie L. Hendrickson, 24, of Bozeman, is charged with two counts of assault on a minor.
Hendrickson baby-sat the children, ages 1 and 2, on Tuesday night. The next day, the mother found bruises and bite marks on the children’s shoulders, arms and legs, according to court records.
They say Hendrickson, arrested Wednesday, admitted spanking and biting the children multiple times because they would not go to bed.
The $50,000 bail set by Justice of the Peace G.L. Smith is twice what prosecutors requested. Smith said the alleged criminal behavior “concerns this court tremendously.”
Church hopes funds will roll in with Angel Soft
Pendleton, Ore.
Bake sales? Been done. Car washes? So 2005. And pop can drives can fall flat.
So the Rev. Rick Oliver, pastor of the First Church of God in Pendleton, cast about for a new idea to raise money for sending 18 people on a mission to Costa Rica and settled on … toilet paper?
Oliver hit on the idea of selling toilet paper after hearing about a baseball coach on the East Coast who successfully sold the product.
As for the brand, what else? It’s Angel Soft – Oliver’s church took delivery of a truckload of it from a Portland distributor this week.
The church is selling the toilet paper either by the roll or by the case, and offers free delivery with the purchase of a case or more.
Oliver now is a practiced hand with his toilet paper sales pitch.
“The rolls are larger than the standard, with 450 sheets per roll, and it’s two-ply,” he told the East Oregonian newspaper. “We’ve heard all the jokes. People really enjoy that it’s Angel Soft, but what else would a church sell?”