Snow advisory issued for this morning
The National Weather Service has issued a snow advisory for the Spokane and Coeur d’Alene areas through 10 a.m. today, warning that snow could cover area roadways.
A mix of rain and snow was expected to turn to snow Sunday evening, as temperatures dipped below freezing, bringing accumulations of 2 to 4 inches in areas above 2,000 feet, including Spokane’s South Hill, forecasters said.
The valleys of Spokane and Spokane Valley can expect between 1 and 2 inches. Between 2 and 4 inches is expected in the Coeur d’Alene and Post Falls areas by midmorning.
By Tuesday, skies will be mostly sunny with a high near 38, forecasters said.
– Sara Leaming
Coeur d’Alene
Sheriff staff to get pay for unused vacation
Kootenai County will have to pay some Sheriff’s Department employees for weeks of unused vacation due to a worker shortage.
Kootenai County Undersheriff Tad Leach says the Sheriff’s Department prevented most sworn deputies and jail officers from using their vacation time and forced them to work 12-hour shifts. The county policy says employees forfeit vacation time in excess of 240 hours if it’s not used by the end of the year.
Officials say it will cost up to $30,000 to buy back the vacation time.
– Associated Press
Sandpoint
Fisheries manager says trout program working
Efforts to kill predatory lake trout and rainbow trout are helping the kokanee population rebound from near collapse in Lake Pend Oreille.
“We still have the ability to get out of the hole we’re in,” Ned Horner, a fisheries manager with the Idaho Department of Fish and Game, told Idaho Fish and Game commissioners on Thursday.
More than 27,000 lake trout have been caught by anglers since May of last year, and another 21,165 have been caught with a netting program this year, the Bonner County Daily Bee reported.
An incentive program for anglers has also led to more than 12,000 rainbow trout being taken from the lake since May 2006.
– Associated Press
Manufacturing jobs up in Bonner County
A sharp increase in manufacturing jobs in Bonner County is helping the region economically, an official said.
“There are a lot of counties in this nation that would like to be in this position,” said Kathryn Tacke, an economist with the Idaho Department of Labor.
Nearly 3,000 new jobs – a 27 percent increase in total payroll jobs – have been added since 2000. Manufacturing jobs increased 65 percent during that time with 904 new jobs.
The increase occurred even though jobs were lost by the timber industry and Sandpoint-based Coldwater Creek, which does more than $1 billion in sales annually.
– Associated Press