Region in brief: Snow expected in mountains
Snow accumulations of up to 12 inches were expected in the mountains of Eastern Washington and North Idaho over the weekend.
According to a winter storm warning issued Saturday by the National Weather Service, 6 to 12 inches of snow was expected in the mountains above 3,500 feet. The warning was in effect from 7 a.m. Saturday until 4 a.m. today.
The snowfall was expected to be heaviest in the mountains around Sandpoint, Chewelah and Metaline Falls, the weather service said.
Gusting winds are expected in the region throughout the weekend, with 30- to 40-mile-per-hour gusts on mountain ridges.
Family homeless after duplex fire
A fire believed to have started on an attached deck outside a northeast Spokane duplex early Saturday left at least one family homeless.
Firefighters were called to the duplex at 1506 E. Desmet Ave. about 4 a.m. after a report of a structure fire. Heavy smoke was seen billowing from the roof and eaves of the home as crews arrived, Spokane Fire Department officials said.
It took firefighters about 20 minutes to extinguish the fire and another two hours to mop it up. No injuries were reported.
The cause of the fire was under investigation.
10,000 visited Mobius preview
A preview of the exhibits to be featured at the new Mobius Science Center drew 10,000 visitors during its two-month run at the NorthTown Mall, demonstrating the need for a science center in the Spokane area, organizers said.
MobiusLab – an interactive mobile exhibit for children 8 and older and adults – spent two months at the north Spokane mall offering exhibits similar to those that will be featured at the new center.
The Spokane Park Board approved a 50-year contract this summer with Mobius Spokane, a nonprofit group formed four years ago by the union of the Inland Northwest Science and Technology Center and Mobius Kids, the children’s museum.
The deal allows Mobius to go forward with a $29.5 million complex, to be built on city-owned land on the north edge of Riverfront Park. Construction will begin in 2011 and is set to be completed in fall 2012.
Stepmother gets 3 years for abuse
Seattle – A woman who isolated and starved her stepdaughter has been sentenced to more than three years in prison, far below what the victim asked the judge to impose.
Rebecca Long, 45, was sentenced to three years and five months in King County Superior Court on Friday. The victim, now 15, had asked for an exceptional sentence of 11 years, “One for every year she made me feel ashamed of myself and abused me,” she told the court.
The Seattle Times reported Judge William Downing gave Long a sentence at the top range for first-degree criminal mistreatment.
Long entered an Alford plea to first-degree criminal mistreatment in September. She was arrested last year after her stepdaughter was discovered at age 14, weighing just 48 pounds.