Serving Franklin County, WA
Serving Franklin County, WA
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PASCO – As the sun is climbing into the sky Saturday, Oct. 14, the morning will darken as the annular solar eclipse takes place. The annular solar eclipse is set to begin locally at about 8:08 a.m. and end about 10:43 a.m. The maximum eclipse – about 83.3% here – occurs at about 9:22. Weather permitting, Adams County residents can watch the moon pass in front of the sun, blocking out most of the sunlight. The 2-hour, 35-minute event is different than a total solar eclip...
PASCO — The Federal Emergency Management Agency will test the national public alert system at 11:20 a.m. (our time) today, Wednesday, Oct. 4. The test will mean all cell phones and broadcast companies will "tone out" at that time. If your mobile phone is within range of an active cell tower, you should receive the test. Wireless providers will be transmitting the test for a 30-minute window, but each phone is expected to sound the tone only once. A backup test is set for Oct. 11. The tests are planned to ensure emergency i...
RITZVILLE – Law enforcement officers across Adams County are sporting pink badges in observance of Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Both the Adams County Sheriff’s Office and Othello Police Department announced the badges in social media posts. Deputies will wear the pink badges from Monday, Oct. 2, through the end of the month. “Our dedicated law enforcement deputies will be wearing pink badges as a symbol of our solidarity with those diagnosed with breast cancer and to raise awareness about this critical issue,” Sheriff...
Three Othello Police Department officers recently graduated from the Basic Law Enforcement Academy in Pasco. The recent graduates are Rene Sandoval (not pictured), Mario Mercado and Brock Denney. The trio were sworn into office Monday, Sept. 25....
OTHELLO – A local teenager will be sentenced Nov. 13 after entering an Alford plea in the Oct. 6, 2022, shooting death of a Quincy girl. Justin Yair Gonzalez-Luna, 18, of Othello, entered an Alford plea to charges of second-degree murder and second-degree assault on Tuesday, Sept. 26. The Alford plea means a defendant concedes he will likely be found guilty during a trial, but does not admit actual guilt. Gonzalez-Luna is accused of shooting to death a 16-year-old Quincy driver and shooting and injuring her 16-year-old p...
The Adams County Sheriff's Office has a new deputy on patrol. Sheriff Dale Wagner administered the oath of office to Oscar Munoz on Monday, Oct. 2. Munoz is from Othello and a Washington State University graduate, having received a four-year degree in criminal justice....
TUMWATER – The state’s minimum wage will jump 54 cents per hour on Jan. 1 On Friday, Sept. 29, the state Department of Labor and Industries announced it will raise the minimum wage from $15.74 per hour to $16.28 per hour effective Jan. 24. That’s an increase of $4.28 per hour in the last five years. According to agency officials, Labor and Industries establishes the rate based on the urban consumer price index. The new ages applies to all workers ages 16 and older. State law allows for a “training wage” of $13.84 per hour...
PASCO – Democratic leaders say they are willing to let a federal court redraw the disputed boundaries of the 15th Legislative District to better reflect its Latino population. The district includes Othello, Pasco, Grandview, Sunnyside and other communities surrounding the Hanford Nuclear reservation, as well as the western panhandle of Adams County. Last month, in Soto Palmer v. Hobbs, U.S. District Court Judge Robert Lasnik concluded legislative maps drawn in 2021 by the Washington State Redistricting Commission for the Y...
OTHELLO – A local man is in the Benton County Jail facing charges in connection with an attempted shooting in Othello on Sept. 8. Dario Ochoa Jr., 23, remains in jail on a first-degree assault charge, records show. He is being held without bail. According to Othello police, Ochoa was arrested following a shooting at about 10:48 p.m. Sept. 8 in the 1100 block of East Oak Street. Police were called to the scene after a report of multiple gunshots being fired, records show. Officers found the alleged victim walking along the s...
OLYMPIA – Gov. Jay Inslee wants legislation to investigate the possibility fossil fuel companies are profiteering from high gas prices in the state. “Well, people are tired – are sick and tired – of oil and gas companies profiteering on this,” Inslee said last week. “You know, we’re finding companies have profits much higher in our state than other places, and we need to get to the bottom of that. It’s unacceptable to be profiteering.” Profiteering is defined as the act or activity of making an unreasonable profit on the sal...
OLYMPIA – Washington state fuel prices fell for the first time in months, but still remain above $5 a gallon. Despite the decrease, the Evergreen State still has the second-highest gas prices in the nation, behind only California. At the beginning of the year, the average price at the pump in Washington state was $3.84 per gallon. As of Monday, the average price of a gallon of regular unleaded gas in Washington is $5.06, down from $5.09 the week prior, according to AAA data. Per AAA, the average price of gas in California t...
OTHELLO —The Adams County Development Council is planning two career days for students. The Career Showcase is set for Oct. 19 at Lind-Ritzville High School in Ritzville and Oct. 24 at Othello High School in Othello, according to the Adams County Development Council . Local businesses are sought for each. Businesses interested in participating will be set up both inside and outside schools, with spaces available sized 10 by 10 feet, 10 by 20 feet and 10 by 30 feet. There isn’t a cost to participate. Participating stu...
OTHELLO – A local man was arrested Thursday, Aug. 31, after allegedly attempting to light a trailer on fire. Isabel Junior Rocha III, 38, of Othello, was booked into the Franklin County Jail at about 6:53 a.m. Thursday, jail records show. As of press time, he remained behind bars without bail. He is being held on charges of fist-degree arson, harassment and resisting arrest on a contract with Adams County, records show. Rocha was arrested early Thursday morning after deputies dispatched for a disconnected 911 call d...
PULLMAN – A $1.8 million grant from the National Institutes of Health will help Washington State University researchers determine if new drugs used to treat COVID-19 may be linked to hearing loss. There are no reports of COVID-19 medications causing hearing loss, but with more than 900 new drugs to treat the virus available or in clinical trials, side effects can occur. “We already know some antibiotics and chemotherapy drugs can cause hearing loss. What we don’t know is what other medications are out there that can cause...
OTHELLO – The annual Othello Fair and Rodeo returns to Adams County this week, with events running from today through Saturday, Sept. 13-16. The fair brings a midway, carnival rides, live music, livestock, 4-H and FFA projects. There will also be typical “fair food,” such as elephant ears, funnel cakes, spoon tacos, burgers and much, much more. And you won’t want to miss local farmers putting their skills to the test in the hay bucking contest. In conjunction with the fair, the rodeo brings two types of horsepower – one featu...
OLYMPIA — As required by state law, political party declarations voters must sign when participating in the 2024 Presidential Primary were certified Tuesday morning by Secretary of State Steve Hobbs. Washington’s voters do not register as members of a political party. However, Revised Code of Washington 29A.56.050 requires voters to declare on their ballot envelopes whether their party of preference is Republican or Democratic to have their votes counted in the Presidential Primary. The voted ballot inside the envelope wil...
CONNELL - The race for City Council Position No. sure has a lot of "pH." That's because today's certification of Aug. 1 primary election results determined Preston Hart and Patrice Hebel will advance to the general election. Hart topped a three-candidate field that also included Stephanie Hallman. Preston received 140 votes, or 50.91%. Hebel finished second with 68 votes, only 6 ahead of Hallman (with 62). Only the Top 2 candidates advance from the primary to the Nov. 7...
RITZVILLE – Adams County Development Council Executive Director Kyle Niehenke doesn’t sugarcoat the obstacles to commercial development here. Yet, he remains optimistic. At the weekly Adams County Commission meeting Aug. 1, Niehenke discussed his attendance at a recent commercial conference in Las Vegas, Nev. “I wouldn’t say all the feedback about Ritzville was positive,” he said. “Developers don’t hold back. They share their honest opinions.” He observed that some locals have the mindset that “it’s just too expensive here,...
OTHELLO – The Police Department has received multiple reports of a black bear in corn fields north of the city. "At least one photograph has been posted giving the sightings even more credibility," the department said Aug. 1. "Citizens are being advised to be aware and alert when walking in the area north of town." The state Department of Fish and Wildlife reported the bear was also spotted near the city limits along Lee Street and 14th Avenue. State officials said seeing a b...
WASHINGTON, D.C. – The U.S. Department of Agriculture last week announced loan interest rates, effective Aug. 1. The department’s Farm Service Agency loans provide access to capital to help agricultural producers start or expand farming operation, purchase equipment and storage structures or meet cash flow needs. For emergency, operating and ownership loans, the agency set the rates as follows: • Operating – 4.875% • Ownership – 5.000%; 3.000% with joint financing. A downpayment of 1.500% is required • Emergency – 3...
OTHELLO – A 1-year-old boy was struck by a car Aug. 1 and airlifted to a regional medical center for care. The Adams County Sheriff’s Office released little information on the incident, but noted it is not a criminal case. The child’s condition was not reported. On Monday, Aug. 1, deputies were dispatched to the 800 block of Poncho Villa Lane for a report of a vehicle hitting a child, records show. The child was transported to a a local hospital before being airlifted to a regional medical center for care, records show....
MESA – An Othello man was killed and six others injured in a five-vehicle pileup Aug. 7 about three miles north of town. Jesus Camacho-Augustine, 21, of Othello, was pronounced dead at the scene near Milepost 10 of state Highway 17. Nicholas L. Abbott, 28, Valentin Galvez-Gonzalez, 24, and Estella DeJesus Gonzalez, 31, all of Othello, were injured in the crash, as were Anthony J. Mawer, 25, and Camden J. Love, 23, both of Vancouver, the Washington State Patrol reported. A juvenile was also injured; the state patrol failed t...
OTHELLO – A Connell resident is among the five men arrested July 29 in a reverse prostitution sting. Cesar Chavez-Alcala, 28, of Connell, is facing charges in Othello District Court, along with Victorina Garcia, 45, of Mattawa; Isaias Zarata-Pineda, 41, and Juan Salas-Camacho, 61, both of Moses Lake; and Javier Gonzalez-Arroyo, 31, of Othello. All were all arrested for misdemeanor patronizing a prostitute, according to police. During the sting, investigators arrested the five “sex buyers” and interviewed at least one sex w...
LIND - Preliminary primary election returns show Jamie Schmunk and Jim Weidemann leading Town Council races. At the end of counting Tuesday night, Aug. 1, Schmuck had 62 votes (37.8%) to lead the race for Town Council Position No. 4. Myra J. Horton was second with 47 votes (28.66%). In the race for Town Council Position No. 2, Weidemann led with 53 votes (32.32%), followed by James N. Dworshak in second with 44 votes (26.83%). Only the Top 2 advance to the Nov. 7 general...
CONNELL — Candidate Preston Hart has a commanding lead in the Aug. 1 primary election race for City Council Position No. 5. but it's a dead heat to see who will be the runner-up. After the end of the first day of counting Tuesday, Hart had 108 votes, or 51.92%. His count exceeded the tally for the remaining two candidates, Patrice Hebel and Stephanie Hallman. The women were tied for second with 48 votes each, or 23.08%. Election officials said late-arriving ballots should break the tie before the election is certified Aug. 1...