Windstorm causes wrecks and kills a skier

Wild weather battered the state Friday, killing a cross-country skier and causing multiple accidents on a three-mile stretch of I-5.

As evening fell, dozens of vehicles were caught in the string of rush-hour collisions on southbound I-5 near McChord Air Force Base, the Washington State Patrol said.

No serious injuries were reported in the mess, which within half an hour had traffic backed up traffic for seven miles. It took three hours to get traffic flowing again.

The skier’s death occurred in Chelan County. A 71-year-old Cashmere man was struck by a chunk of a 6-inch tree that shattered into four pieces as winds gusted to 47 mph. One section struck Ewald F. Duttlinger as he skied near the Icicle Creek fish hatchery.

Olympia

Legislator apologizes for racial slur: A state senator called another legislator a racial epithet during an argument over a bill, prompting some black leaders to demand the senator’s resignation while others defended his character. Sen. Alex Deccio, R-Yakima, used the racist slur against Rep. Tom Campbell, R-Roy, during a meeting about health insurance reforms on Thursday night. Both men are white. Deccio has apologized to Campbell, the other people in the meeting and the House Republican caucus. The 81-year-old senator said he also plans to personally apologize to all the black members of the Legislature.

Kerry earns endorsements: Sen. John Kerry, the Democrats’ national front-runner for the presidential nomination, on Friday picked up the endorsement of Washington’s senior House member, U.S. Rep. Norm Dicks, and Rep. Rick Larsen, D-Wash. Democratic Sen. Patty Murray said she will stay out of the pre-convention fight among seven presidential hopefuls. Sen. Maria Cantwell is expected to endorse Kerry, and Reps. Jay Inslee and Brian Baird are reported ready to announce their backing, too. Gov. Gary Locke is expected to announce his choice soon, picking between Kerry and Howard Dean.

Federal Way

School evacuated after lab explosion, fire: Students at Federal Way High School were evacuated Friday afternoon after an explosion in the chemistry laboratory burned a teacher and two boys during an experiment. The explosion occurred shortly before 1:30 p.m. when a teacher was showing how different metals and chemicals produce different color flames, and she added some methanol during the experiment, said public information officer Monica Colby of the Federal Way Fire Department. The victims suffered burns to their hands, arms and faces, she said. The burns were not considered life-threatening, she said. The teacher and one of the students were taken to Seattle’s Harborview Medical Center. The other student who was burned was taken to St. Francis Hospital in Federal Way.

Yakima