In brief: Plane crash kills at least six

A small plane crashed Saturday in waters off Kodiak Island in southern Alaska, killing at least six of the 10 people on board, authorities said.

The plane, a Piper Navajo Chieftain, crashed in shallow waters near the island’s snowy shores soon after taking off at 1:48 p.m., according to the Coast Guard.

A private float plane from a fish processing company pulled four people from the wreckage soon after the impact. Another person swam to shore, said State Troopers spokeswoman Megan Peters.

After the tide receded, troopers pulled five bodies from the water, Peters said. The pilot was among the dead, she said.

The charter flight operated by Kodiak-based Servant Air was heading to the small community of Homer on the Kenai Peninsula, a quick 100 miles by air, said Ted Panamarioff, who acted as spokesman for the company.

Servant Air is a local company that serves half a dozen communities on the large island in south-central Alaska, 225 miles southwest of Anchorage.

VANCOUVER, B.C.

Quakes measured off Pacific coast

A trio of strong earthquakes struck early Saturday off the British Columbia coast about 142 miles west of Port Hardy.

The first quake struck at 2:39 a.m. with a preliminary magnitude of 5.3. That was followed by a tremor of 6.7 in the same region about 20 minutes later and then a third earthquake of magnitude 6.5.

Guy Urban, of the Alaska and West Coast Tsunami Warning Center, said the center sent out a tsunami information statement letting people know a large earthquake had occurred. But the center had received no reports of any quake-related injuries, and no tsunami warning was issued.

BOISE

Control tower part of airport upgrade

City and state leaders say a new $12.8 million air traffic control tower will allow the regional Boise Airport to expand.

When completed next year, the 268-foot tower will replace the current tower, which is 35 years old and 65 feet tall.

It is part of a $28 million project to improve the Boise airfield, including installation of equipment to allow instrument landings during low visibility and fog that have forced flight cancellations or delays in the past.

The tower is a joint effort of the city of Boise, the Federal Aviation Administration and other organizations.

PORTLAND

Cities eligible for storm aid

Gov. Ted Kulongoski has declared a state of emergency for Umatilla County to help cope with the impact of a Pacific storm that spread high winds and damage through parts of the state.

The cities of Adams, Athena, Milton-Freewater, Pilot Rock and Weston were the hardest hit, according to the governor’s office.

“We actually had houses that had their roofs blown off,” said J.B. Brock, emergency services manager in neighboring Union County.

The emergency declaration allows Umatilla County to immediately receive any state assistance needed and begin processing requests for individual assistance through the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

The storm that slammed into the West Coast on Friday interrupted travel on the two main interstate freeways in Oregon.

Shipping traffic was stalled after high winds and surf forced the Coast Guard to close the Tillamook Bay and Columbia River bars.

State transportation officials warned of hazardous driving conditions, especially in the mountains.