In brief: Immigration status won’t make ballot
A ballot measure to repeal a city law that bars police officers from making arrests based solely on immigration status did not collect enough signatures to qualify for the ballot.
The petition, sponsored by the statewide group Respect Washington, fell 37 votes short of the threshold needed to put it on November’s general election ballot.
According to the county elections department, 2,440 signatures were approved of the 3,620 handed in. Nearly 15 percent of the signatures were invalidated because they belonged to voters who live outside of Spokane. Another 9.5 percent were deemed invalid because the person who signed is not registered to vote.
Even though they failed this go-around, petition organizers can add to the current batch of signatures. To appear on the February special election ballot, petition organizers will need to collect more than three times as many signatures than they’ve so far collected by Oct. 12.
Comet may be visible at twilight
Astronomers said Monday that a comet passing near Earth has suddenly brightened and may be visible to the unaided eye after sundown.
Photos of the comet taken in recent days show two distinct tails. Although it’s more easily seen from the southern hemisphere, in northern latitudes it will be near the horizon at twilight, located below Jupiter and Venus in the western sky.
The comet orbited around the sun on July 6 and the apparent warming caused it to shed dust and gas, allowing it to brighten and show classical tails pointing away from the sun, but at different angles.
The comet made its closest pass to Earth Monday night.
It’s labeled C/2014 Q1 PanSTARRS, for its discovery last August by the Panoramic Survey Telescope & Rapid Response System.
Boaters rescued near San Juan Island
SEATTLE – The Coast Guard said one of its helicopters has rescued four people after their 23-foot pleasure boat ran aground near San Juan Island in northwest Washington.
The agency said the four were taken to a nearby road Monday afternoon to be checked by waiting medics. The Coast Guard said they had no reported injuries.
Another vessel reported that the boat had run hard aground. A Coast Guard helicopter crew from Port Angeles flew to the scene and saw the boat rocking heavily. All four occupants were able to get off the boat and onto nearby rocks. From there they were hoisted aboard the helicopter.
Car show in CdA strictly European
Cavallinos in Coeur d’Alene, a three-day car show featuring European models from around the Northwest, will return to the city Friday through Sunday.
A free Ferraris show will be held in City Park from 9 a.m. to noon Saturday. Drivers and owners will share a “stay in school” message with kids and young adults. Visitors may cast votes for their favorite car. At noon the drivers head out for a lap around Lake Coeur d’Alene.
On Sunday, over 100 European cars from the region will join the Ferraris at McEuen Park for a charity car show benefiting the Children’s Village, a Coeur d’Alene shelter for children in crisis. The three-hour show will include BMW, Porsche, Mercedes-Benz, Ferrari, Fiat, Alpha Romeo and other European cars. Afterward, the drivers will embark on a 6-mile parade through Coeur d’Alene streets, ending in the Riverstone development.
Information: www.cavallinosincoeurdalene.com
Derailed train was within limit
BILLINGS – A train that derailed and spilled 35,000 gallons of oil in northeastern Montana was traveling within authorized speed limits, federal officials said Monday as they continued to probe the accident’s cause.
The Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railway train loaded with crude from North Dakota was traveling 44 mph before Thursday’s wreck, U.S. Federal Railroad Administration spokesman Matthew Lehner said.
Officials have said the maximum authorized speed in the area is 45 mph.
Twenty-two cars on the BNSF train derailed near the small town of Culbertson. Lehner said the tank cars were a model known as the “1232,” which is built under a 2011 industry standard intended to be more crash-resistant than earlier designs.
Father breaks boy’s fall from window
ALOHA, Ore. – An Oregon toddler was in critical condition after falling from a third-story window, landing on his father.
Washington County Sheriff’s Office said the child’s mother was giving her two sons a bath Sunday evening in the community of Aloha when the 2-year-old boy tried to get a look through the window at his father, who was walking the family dog below. The screen gave way and the child fell. The father prevented him from landing directly on pavement.
The father called out for help, and a neighbor came running and started CPR on the boy. A deputy soon arrived and together they revived the boy. Paramedics came and took the boy to a Portland hospital.
Labor Council cancels Inslee address
SEATTLE – The state’s largest labor organization has canceled a speaking invitation for Gov. Jay Inslee due to lingering tensions over Boeing tax breaks and a worker pension freeze.
The Seattle Times reported the Democratic governor had been set to headline the Washington State Labor Council’s annual convention Thursday in SeaTac.
Council President Jeffrey Johnson said he told Inslee it would be better if he didn’t speak after talking with other union leaders.
Johnson said feelings are “pretty raw” in the labor community over the governor’s role in securing Boeing’s $8.7 billion tax break during a special session in 2013. Members also resent his pressure on the Machinists union to vote on a contract in 2014 that froze the company’s traditional pension.
Inslee spokesman David Postman said canceling the governor’s speech was Johnson’s decision.