SEATTLE – No longer can travelers from Seattle take a ferry to Victoria, B.C., to receive a guaranteed flu shot.
The Victoria Clipper ended the package deal Thursday because the clinic that had been providing the vaccine could no longer guarantee a supply, said Darrell Bryan, executive vice president of Clipper Navigation Inc.
“Clipper understands and respects that Canada’s first priority for allocation of the flu vaccine is to its own citizens,” he said. “Although we are pleased to have been able to help many American senior citizens and other high-risk people, without a guaranteed supply of vaccine available … it would be irresponsible for us to continue to sell the flu shots.”
The ferry began offering the “flu cruises” Oct. 21 as a response to the shortage of flu vaccine in the United States. For $105 – a discount off the normal round-trip fare of $115 – hundreds of people took the scenic 21/2-hour ride north through the San Juan Islands and got a flu shot at the Clipper’s Victoria terminal.
Associated Press
Des Moines: Victim of fire inhaled toxins
A man who died in a garage fire after gasoline spilled out of a truck that was being repaired died partly from inhaling toxic fumes, investigators said. David Russ, 61, identified Wednesday as the dead man, also had burns on more than 90 percent of his body, investigators in the King County Medical Examiner’s Office said. Russ and two other men was trying to replace the fuel pump on a pickup truck Monday when the leaking fuel caught fire as the trio tried to push the truck out of a detached garage. All three ran outside, but Russ went back in and was trapped when the roof collapsed, Fire Battalion Chief Victor Pennington said.
Associated Press
Olympia: Man arrested in shooting at motel
A man has been arrested in a fatal shooting outside a motel and restaurant, police said. A patrol officer who noticed a vehicle matching the description of one reported leaving the scene arrested a 47-year-old Olympia man without incident Wednesday afternoon in a shopping mall parking lot, police spokesman Dick Machlan said. The suspect was being held for investigation of first-degree murder in the fatal shooting of a man believed to be in his 20s or 30s Tuesday afternoon on a hillside behind Bailey’s Motor Inn.
Associated Press
Longview: Police find $12,500 in phony bills
Longview police confiscated $12,500 worth of uncut counterfeit $100 and $50 bills Wednesday afternoon and arrested a man suspected of running the operation. It’s too early in the investigation to establish whether the 38-year-old is the primary counterfeiter behind a rash of fake bills that have shown up recently in the area, said Sgt. Steve Rehaume. He said detectives were surprised that the suspect was so cooperative. “He just came out and said, ‘I got $12,500,’” Rehaume said. The Secret Service has joined the investigation, he said.
The Daily News
Vancouver, Wash.: Small car splits in crash
When 19-year-old Joshua Hicks’ car collided with another Wednesday evening, it was ripped in half and both sections careened down a 50-foot embankment, police said. Hicks, who was wearing a seat belt, found himself sitting in the front half of the 1992 Daihatsu in a business parking lot. The back half of the Daihatsu rolled to a stop in a wooded area about 100 feet away. Hicks, of Vancouver, and the other driver were treated and released Wednesday at Southwest Washington Medical Center. Police said they hadn’t determined how the two vehicles collided to cause such unusual damage to the Daihatsu. “It’s the kind of crash where you generally see people with far more serious injuries,” officer Jim White said.
The Columbian
Des Moines: Mutilated chicken on church cross
A mutilated chicken was hung on the rooftop cross of a church, the latest episode in a series of vandalisms, police say. The chicken, apparently a pet stolen from a nearby home, was found by one of the 70 members of Marcus Whitman Presbyterian Church on Monday. Previous vandalism in the past two weeks included broken light bulbs, a shattered window, graffiti, a scattering of satanic literature around the property and an attempt to burn a Bible near the entrance, police say. “It’s really disturbing,” said the Rev. Rob Caudillo. “But one of our biggest concerns, aside from the property damage, has to do with the heart and souls of the people doing this stuff.”
Associated Press
Renton: Ikea workers cash in on Bonus Day
The Ikea store reported that its employee Bonus Day on Saturday rang up $3 million in sales, the most ever in a single day for any Ikea store in the world. The entire net proceeds from that day’s record-setting sales went to the store’s employees as an annual reward for their hard work from owners Bjorn Bayley and Anders Berglund. Had the bonus been divided equally, each worker would have received more than $6,200 for a single day’s work. The $3 million figure was well over the Renton store’s goal of $2 million in sales.
King County Journal
Oregon: Derailment shuts city’s water system
The city of Riddle shut down its water system Thursday after a train derailment spilled an estimated 4,500 gallons of diesel fuel into Cow Creek, the town’s main water source. Eric Quinn, Riddle’s public works director, said residents were reporting an odor and bitter taste in the water. Riddle residents have been told not to use the water until further notice. The fuel spilled after the derailment Tuesday evening of a dozen cars carrying lumber. Schools in the town will be closed today due to the shutdown.
Associated Press
Portland International concourses evacuated
Three concourses at Portland International Airport were evacuated Thursday morning after a minor security breach, authorities said. Steve Johnson, spokesman for the Port of Portland, said planes at the airport were grounded for about an hour before the concourses reopened at 7:20 a.m. The breach was triggered when three men were going through security checks with a bag that needed extra screening, Johnson said. Instead, the three just kept walking, he said. The bag contained nothing unusual.
Associated Press
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