In brief: Car hits meter; tavern evacuated
Firefighters evacuated a Spokane tavern and closed a portion of Broadway Avenue late Friday after a car hit a natural gas meter, causing a leak.
About 20 people were in the Broadway Bar and Grill, 1811 W. Broadway, when one of them called 911 at 10:21 p.m. to report the odor of natural gas, said Battalion Chief Dan Brown, of the Spokane Fire Department.
Firefighters were able to shut off the gas after the evacuation.
Whoever hit the meter at the back of the building didn’t stick around, Brown said. “It was essentially a hit-and-run.”
Illegal tire spikes found on road
LEWISTON – Officials with the Idaho Department of Fish and Game say they found a device apparently designed to damage tires of vehicles illegally using a closed road near Soldier’s Meadow Reservoir.
“It is in an area that is being used by people off-roading or mud-bogging,” Senior Conservation Officer Mark Hill told the Lewiston Tribune. “It is an unlawful act by somebody to take the law in their own hands to deter people from off-roading. At least that is what it appears to be.”
The device is a concrete-filled tire with three rebar spikes sticking out. Hill said the device was not buried when officials found it, but it appears to have been buried at one time with just the rebar spikes protruding into the road.
“It could cause tremendous damage to somebody,” said Hill. “That is the thing about it. It could have extreme circumstances if someone were to hit it.”
Man arrested in Times mailings
SEATTLE – The FBI has arrested a 35-year-old Seattle man after envelopes containing a suspicious white powder were sent to the Seattle Times.
FBI spokeswoman Robbie Burroughs said the man arrested Friday will have an initial court appearance Monday.
The Times reports that Fire Department hazmat teams were called to the newspaper office on two consecutive days in early October after envelopes containing an unknown powder arrived in the mailroom. Burroughs declined to say Friday what the substance was or whether it was dangerous, saying more information would be released when charges are filed.
Seattle Times spokeswoman Jill Mackie said, “We are very pleased to hear an arrest has been made.”
Crew rescues man who fell off cliff
ASTORIA, Ore. – The U.S. Coast Guard says it sent a helicopter to rescue a hiker who fell off a cliff along the Oregon Coast on Saturday.
The hiker was near Seaside when he fell about 15 feet. Rescuers couldn’t reach him, so a helicopter crew was dispatched.
The Coast Guard said the man was taken to the hospital with head injuries.
There was no immediate word on the his condition, and his identity was not immediately made public.