Did you miss your news last week? Here’s a selection of the week’s top news items from across Snohomish County as they appeared in The Herald. For the full stories, go to www.heraldnet.com.
Sunday, Sept. 25
Clash stalls reopening of highway. For almost two years, the Mountain Loop Highway has been out of the loop, and some residents in Darrington are pressuring federal officials to fix the flood-damaged backcountry road. Not so fast, an environmental group says. Pilchuck Audubon Society of Everett opposes reopening the damaged section of road, preferring instead to maintain it as a corridor for wildlife, hikers and bicyclists.
Scott Morris
Monday, Sept. 26
Machinists, Boeing agree. The Boeing Co. has reached a tentative contract agreement with its striking Machinists union workers, after a weekend bargaining session in Washington, D.C. Union members will vote on the three-year pact Thursday, and could be back on the job as soon as Friday. Union leaders are recommending they accept it.
Bryan Corliss
Tuesday, Sept. 27
Snohomish teens help father escape. Flames were burning a path to the master bedroom of a Snohomish mobile home Monday when two teenage boys realized their father was still inside. While their mother ran to a neighbor’s house to call 911, brothers Jason Barcus and Bryan Oliver broke out the back window of the master bedroom, climbed inside and pulled their father to safety as smoke filled the room.
Scott Pesznecker
Wednesday, Sept. 28
Is transit the answer? Pop quiz: What do you get when you mix a continual traffic jam with record high gasoline prices? Answer: a train or bus ride. At least that’s what transit officials hope, especially Sound Transit, which has struggled to find riders for its $385 million Everett-to-Seattle commuter train. The number of Sounder riders has climbed steadily since June, when a second Sounder train was added to the Everett-Seattle route. In June, gasoline prices started their record climb to more than $3 a gallon in some areas.
Lukas Velush
Thursday, Sept. 29
Natural gas rates to rise 13 percent. State regulators approved Puget Sound Energy’s request Wednesday to increase natural gas rates by 13 percent, or more than $11 a month for the average home. The utility serves much of Snohomish County. Under PSE’s new rate, which takes effect Saturday, the average household would see its monthly bill increase by $11.31 to about $96.50.
Eric Fetters
Friday, Sept. 30
Helicopter wreckage found. The U.S. Coast Guard has located the wreckage of a medivac helicopter early this morning off the Edmonds coastline. The bodies of a pilot, Steve Smith, 59, from Whidbey Island, and two Seattle flight nurses aboard the Airlift Northwest helicopter have also been located. The helicopter disappeared sometime overnight. Dispatchers reported losing contact with the helicopter about 9 p.m. The helicopter was returning to Arlington Municipal Airport from Harborview Medical Center in Seattle. Edmonds residents in the 8400 block of Talbot Road reported hearing a crash sometime about 9:13 p.m.
Herald staff
Saturday, Oct. 1
Surviving on TV wasn’t in the cards. For the season premiere of “Survivor: Guatemala” in September, 21-year-old Brianna Varela had a huge party at her house in Edmonds. More than 60 friends and relatives showed up to watch her kick off her quest for $1 million as one of the popular reality show’s 18 contestants. For the second episode, there was another huge party. But when the third episode rolled around Thursday night, Varela found herself watching it in a lonely hotel room in New York City. That could mean only one thing: The tribe had spoken.
Victor Balta
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