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A fire that broke out at approximately 3:30 a.m. last Wednesday caused serious injuries to two La Conner area women who had to be air-lifted to Harborview Medical Center in Seattle. The fire gutted a home on Downey Road, and according to Fire District 13 Chief Roy Horn, the cause may have had something to do with the severe windstorms during the night. On Tuesday, Deputy Fire Marshal Mark Anderson said the investigation is nearly complete and they believe the cause was an unextinguished candle,...
UPDATED A fire that broke out at approximately 3:30 a.m. Wednesday caused serious injuries to two La Conner area women who had to be air-lifted to Harborview Medical Center in Seattle. The fire gutted a home on Downey Road, and according to Fire District 13 Chief Roy Horn, the cause may have had something to do with the severe windstorms during the night. The two women and an 8-year-old boy, the grandson of one of the women, were inside the home when the fire started. The child escaped unhurt....
La Conner Middle School seventh grader Charity Jordan is on her way to the Scripps Spelling Bee, in the Washington DC area for the second year in a row. Charity, 13, won the regional spelling bee last Saturday after competing against 32 others and spelling B-O-L-S-H-E-V-I-K. Bolshevik is the old name for the Russian Social Democratic Party, which was renamed the Communist Party after it seized power in the October Revolution of 1917. Before competing in the regional bee, Charity out-spelled 12...
The La Conner Volunteer Fire Department has a new chief, and a new way forward. Chief Josh Morrison, 35, accepted his new position last Wednesday after he was voted in unanimously by his fellow volunteer firefighters. He immediately put into motion plans to equip the town’s firefighters with uniforms, establishing a “sleeper” program, with volunteers manning the station round the clock and attracting new recruits. Morrison brings years of firefighting and leadership experience to his new post....
The Swinomish Indian Tribal Community has brought in a veteran law enforcement officer with local ties to the Swinomish Police Department. Lou D’Amelio started on Tuesday, filling the role left open when former chief Andrew Thorne and three other officers left suddenly during a “reorganization” three months ago. Last Friday D’Amelio retired from his job as Administrative Captain for the Anacortes Police Department, where he had worked for 25 years. Since he has taught police science and adminis...
There has been a lot of activity at the old “Lighthouse” building on La Conner’s S. First Street. The structure has been sitting mostly vacant since 2010, when Palmers Restaurant closed and the building went back to the bank. California businessman Michael Girdner bought the century-old building last year for $385,000 and has been working with the town and state governments for the necessary permits to turn the 7,500-square-foot building into an indoor mall with galleries and retail shops...
Swinomish Police apprehended a man described as a violent sex offender who was holding a woman hostage around 7 p.m. on Tuesday. Officers were able to rescue the woman and then stopped the suspect from fleeing by shooting out the passenger side tires of the van he was attempting to drive away. Chief of Police Andrew Thorne said nobody was injured and Crayton Todd Williams, 38, was arrested and faces numerous charges stemming from the incident, which occurred inSwinomishVillagenear the entrance...
After investigating for more than a year, the Northwest Clean Air Agency has issued a notice of violation to the Shell Puget Sound Refinery at March’s Point. This stems from Feb. 20, 2015, when a foul stench settled on La Conner and the Swinomish Reservation because noxious, stinking chemicals were accidently spewed into the atmosphere by the refinery. “This incident sickened many people in the community, and people felt unsafe in their homes and at work,” said Mark Asmundson, executive director of the Northwest Clean Air Agency. Accor...
Wild winds and a storm tidal surge caused downed trees, flooding and power outages throughout the La Conner area Thursday and again on Sunday. Thursday morning wind-driven waves came crashing over Chilberg Road near the old Hope Island Inn, and two houses on McGlinn Drive were attacked by the sea. Nearby resident and Fire District 13 firefighter Wood Weiss said, “I’ve lived here since 1999, and I have never seen anything like that. It was the most intense presentation, and you feel helpless figh...
Members of the Swinomish Indian Tribal Community re-elected two incumbents and turned out one incumbent in its Senate election held on Sunday. Brian Porter, who serves as vice chairman of the 11-member tribal governing body, ran unopposed and garnered 267 votes for his position 3 seat. Incumbent Kevin Paul, who was challenged by Melissa Edwards Miller, was handily re-elected to his third six-year term with 214 votes to Edwards’ 87 for Senate Seat 4. Incumbent Tandy Wilbur, a 15-year Senate veteran, was defeated on Sunday by Joseph Williams, w...
Swinomish Police caught the suspect who was wanted in the stabbing death of a 21-year-old Auburn man. After allegedly stabbing Jaseree Fountain numerous times last Thursday, Auburn Police sent out a bulletin to be on the lookout for the murder suspect, Fritz Ratcliffe, who was thought to be en route to Oak Harbor. Swinomish Officer John Riddle was staged at the Swinomish Chevron station on Highway 20, when dispatch notified officers in the area that the suspect was driving a silver Dodge Charger and possibly en route to Oak Harbor. “Officer J...
What appeared to be a derelict boat sank at a tribal dock on the Swinomish Channel last week. According to Swinomish Environmental Compliance Manager Scott Andrews, although there was fuel aboard the vessel, there was not a significant amount released into the water. “There was only a slight sheen on the water,” he said. “Not enough to bring the oil booms out.” When the boat was recovered, 130 gallons of diesel fuel was pumped from fuel tanks aboard the 34-foot tribal fisher. The sinking was reported at 10 a.m. last Wednesday when somebod...
After tragedies involving elderly residents, Fire District 13 has launched a program aimed at giving families peace of mind. Fire Chief Roy Horn said morning check-in calls to residents could prevent tragedy. A recent example is when an elderly resident had fallen and was down for 36 hours before being discovered, he said. “Good morning District 13!” is Fire District 13’s new program for people who would like to be checked in on more often than family or friends are able to call on them. In the mornings between 9 a.m. and noon, a fire departmen...
For more than 30 years, day or night, Dan Taylor has rushed to help every time someone in town was having a crisis. Now La Conner’s 74-year-old fire chief is putting away his turnout gear as he retires from responding to fire and medical aid calls. Taylor will stay on as the town’s fire warden with administrative job duties, including fire code building inspections. Taylor first joined the La Conner Volunteer Fire Department in the spring of 1984 and became the department’s chief on Janua...
Return tourists will be relieved to find out that we now have a 21st Century parking meter that will only take plastic as payment. But along with the new parking meter comes a new price. It is now $4 per day to park, still a bargain when compared to the daily fees in other locales. The Town Council approved the increase earlier this month. This is the first time the price of parking in La Conner has gone up since 1997, when the lot was built, and the fee was set at $3 per day. The $1 increase is partly due to credit card company charges to the...
A house fire on the Swinomish Reservation claimed the life of a small dog early Friday morning. The call came in at 6:07 a.m. on Friday, and firefighters from Fire District 13, with backup from La Conner Fire Department, responded to the home on Swinomish Avenue near the intersection of Snee Oosh Road. “We were on scene in 4 minutes,” said District 13 Chief Roy Horn. “We were able to keep the fire contained, since we got there before it was too big.” The fire was contained to the home’s carport area, and the attic was partially damaged....
Remember mindlessly dropping that junk mail into that blue bin in the lobby of the La Conner Post Office? Chances are you might have recently found yourself picking up that mail off the floor with the sudden disappearance of the post office recycle bin. Until last week, post office box renters could shed their unsolicited mail at the post office before taking their necessary mail home. Postal Service cutbacks put a stop to that. “Last year USPS stopped approving funding for recycling,” said La...
With a New Year, comes a new commander at La Conner’s Sheriff’s station. Effective this week, Skagit County Sheriff’s Sgt. Kelly Howell takes the reins from Sgt. Jenny Sheahan-Lee, who has been in charge of La Conner’s police protection for the past three years. Sheahan-Lee will become the detective sergeant for the county’s law enforcement agency. La Conner contracts with the Sheriff’s Office for the town’s police protection. Besides being in charge of the La Conner detachment, Howell will a...
The Swinomish Fish Company has recalled two of its “Native Catch” brand products due to potential contamination with a bacterium that causes botulism. According to a press release by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, Swinomish Fish Company voluntarily recalled both its “Traditional Native Catch Salmon Bacon” and “Peppered Native Catch Salmon Bacon.” The product was sold in Skagit County and was also distributed in Florida. Brian Genge, CFO of Swino-mish Fish Company said, “The fish w...
Bobbie Butterworth walked out of her Shelter Bay home on Saturday to a heartbreaking sight — the nativity scene in her front yard had been smashed to bits. Swinomish Police Chief Andrew Thorne said Butterworth told police that neighbors reported hearing noises Friday night. In the morning, when Butter-worth discovered that the figures in her nativity scene had been destroyed, she called the police. Swinomish Officer Aaron Nelson responded to the call. For years, the Butterworth’s S...
