In brief: Moses Lake man killed in collision

A 22-year-old Moses Lake man was killed in a head-on collision Sunday morning about 8 miles south of Ephrata, the Grant County Sheriff’s Office said.

Jaycob Weaver was driving a 2005 Cadillac CTS south in the 5000 block of Dodson Road North when he crossed the centerline about 11 a.m. and struck a 1997 Toyota 4Runner driven by Gaudencio Lopez Luis, 22, of Moses Lake.

Weaver was pronounced dead at the scene. The Grant County Coroner’s Office will conduct an autopsy to determine cause and manner of death. Weaver’s family was notified.

Luis and his four passengers were all injured and transported to local hospitals. All are expected to recover.

Weaver was wearing a seat belt, as were all occupants in the 4Runner. Alcohol does not appear to be a factor in the collision, the Sheriff’s Office said.

Fire blamed on cellphone battery

An exploding cellphone battery ignited a fire Saturday night in a senior living apartment building in Post Falls.

The fire on East 19th Avenue near Keystone Court started about 8 p.m.

A resident told investigators she was trying to replace the SIM card on her cellphone when the contacts touched the contacts on the battery, which exploded and set a chair and curtains on fire.

The blaze quickly spread through the woman’s apartment and into neighboring apartments, the Post Falls Police Department said.

Responders evacuated neighboring apartments, and all occupants got out safely. Three of the five apartments sustained fire damage and one had smoke damage.

15-year-old killed in police chase

MISSOULA – The Flathead County Sheriff’s Office said a 15-year-old boy died in a crash near Hungry Horse during a police pursuit in northern Montana.

KECI-TV in Missoula reported that authorities said the victim was the driver of a car that was being pursued by the Columbia Falls Police Department at the time of the crash about 12:30 a.m. Sunday.

Flathead County Sheriff Chuck Curry said the car left the road, traveled down an embankment and struck a tree.

Police said two other male occupants of the car were injured. There was no immediate word on their condition.

The crash is under investigation by the Montana Highway Patrol.

Missing climber went to get stove

MAPLE GROVE, Minn. – A Minnesota native who apparently died while climbing Mount Rainier had a passion for climbing and the outdoors, the man’s father said.

Searchers on Saturday recovered a body believed to be that of 25-year-old Kyle Bufis, formerly of Maple Grove. A helicopter had spotted the body of a deceased male climber near the summit.

Mount Rainier National Park spokeswoman Patti Wold confirmed Sunday that the body is off the mountain. The Pierce County medical examiner’s office did not release the man’s identity Sunday morning, saying it was working on notifying next of kin.

Bufis, who lived in Springdale, Utah, was part of a three-climber team when he went missing during extreme weather near Liberty Saddle on Thursday night. The three got caught in high winds and whiteout conditions as they descended on the challenging Liberty Ridge route on the north flank of Mount Rainier, said Bufis’ father, Jeff Bufis, of Maple Grove.

The three men hunkered down in a crevasse, only to discover their cook stove had been left at another stop about 50 yards up the mountain, Jeff Bufis told the Star Tribune, based on information he got from others.

“Kyle volunteered to go get it,” he said. “That was the last time they saw him.”

The two other climbers managed to send a text for help and descend on their own to a base camp late Friday.