State & Regional News | The Daily Chronicle

Thurston County seeks home owned by man who allegedly broke settlement after marijuana grow investigation

Dating back to 2019, the Thurston County Narcotics Task Force had opened two criminal investigations into an illegal marijuana-grow operation inside an Olympia home. Hieu Huynh, as the … more

Shea Johnson / The News Tribune (TNS) | 10/4/24

Mount Rainier glows in the distance under the Northern Lights, which were visible as far South as Florida during a powerful geomagnetic storm that hit the Earth on Friday, May 10.

Western Washington expects northern lights this weekend when a 'strong' solar storm blasts Earth

The aurora borealis is expected to be visible in Washington from Friday through Sunday as the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Space Weather Prediction Center issued a G3 (Strong) … more

Rosemary Montalvo and / The News Tribune (TNS) | 10/4/24

Bill Nye and Jay Inslee talk about climate change and public health during a visit to Johnston Ridge Observatory at Mount St. Helens in July 2021.

Bill Nye 'the science guy' backs Washington's carbon market as it faces repeal

OLYMPIA — Famed science educator Bill Nye will grace Washingtonians' screens this fall in an ad for the group working to protect the state's carbon market as it faces a survival test in the … more

Claire Withycombe / The Seattle Times (TNS) | 10/4/24

3.9 magnitude earthquake hits Vancouver, B.C., area Friday morning

An earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 3.9 hit the Vancouver, British Columbia, area early Friday morning, according to the Pacific Northwest Seismic Network. The quake occurred just … more

The Seattle Times (TNS) | 10/4/24

Joint Base Lewis-McChord leadership greets Team McChord Airmen as they return from a deployment at JBLM Oct. 4. (Team McChord Airmen return from deployment)

After being deployed to Kuwait and helping deliver aid to Gaza, JBLM airmen back in U.S.

Several Joint Base Lewis-McChord airmen who deployed to Kuwait for six months returned to their families Friday. The members were assigned to support combat operations throughout their … more

Puneet Bsanti / The News Tribune (TNS) | 10/4/24

Lewis County District 6 and the Washington State Department of Natural Resources work to extinguish a brush fire off of southbound Interstate 5 just south of exit 77 on Thursday, Aug. 1.

Washington state tribes receive $800,000 for wildland fire training

The Washington State Department of Natural Resources has initiated a program to enhance access to wildland fire training for tribal members, following the allocation of $800,000 in legislative … more

By The Columbia Basin Herald (TNS) | 10/4/24

Sen. Maria Cantwell listens during a roundtable discussion at Cascade Community Healthcare in Centralia on Thursday, Aug. 8.

Cantwell gains support for anti-fentanyl bill

Sen. Maria Cantwell, D-Washington, has obtained support from the Spokane police chief and other Washington leaders for her Stop Smuggling Illicit Synthetic Drugs on U.S. Transportation Networks Act … more

By The Columbia Basin Herald (TNS) | 10/4/24

Providence Professional Center at 1010 South Scheuber Road in Centralia.

Providence to sell four Vancouver clinics to PeaceHealth

PeaceHealth has agreed to buy four Providence medical clinics in Vancouver by the end of the year, the two nonprofit Catholic health systems announced Thursday. PeaceHealth, which is … more

By Kristine de Leon / The Oregonian / TNS | 10/4/24

State Sen. Kevin Van De Wege, D-Lake Sutherland, is pictured in this photo from his campaign website.

Van De Wege resigns Washington state Senate seat

Democratic state Sen. Kevin Van De Wege, who lost his bid for Washington public lands commissioner in August, resigned from his legislative office Wednesday, three months before the end of his term. … more

By Jerry Cornfield / The Washington Standard | 10/4/24

Driver crashes car in a yard, then spits in officer’s face, Thurston County sheriff says

Thurston County Sheriff Derek Sanders said on social media Friday morning that a man was arrested in the Yelm area after crashing his car into someone’s front yard, then shoving and spitting in … more

By Ty Vinson / The Olympian | 10/4/24

The strange, putrid smell overnight between Tuesday, Sept. 24, and Wednesday, Sept. 25, throughout the region was tracked by the National Weather Service of Portland with wind patterns. The smell originated in Cowlitz County before burning the nostrils of Clark County residents but was also reported throughout the Portland area and north to Centralia and Chehalis

Last week’s Southwest Washington odor still remains a mystery

Officials say the source of the smell that reportedly caused headaches and sore throats from Centralia to Portland last week is still undetermined. Despite reports of negative reactions, Brittny … more

By Matt Esnayra / The Daily News | 10/4/24

An adult coho salmon launches itself out of the water at the top of the fish bridge located at the Cowlitz Salmon Hatchery at the Barrier Dam.

WDFW seeks public comment on strategy to prioritize fish passage barrier removal

The Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) is seeking public input on a draft statewide strategy to prioritize the removal of small-scale barriers that prevent salmon and steelhead from … more

WDFW | 10/4/24

A sea lion sticks its head above the water near the Barrier Dam in the Cowlitz River in April 2023.

Washington state researchers to use drones to survey seals and sea lions

The Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) has finalized a drone use plan that authorizes staff to conduct pinniped research and management surveys in the state’s coastal and inland … more

WDFW | 10/4/24

A home undergoing renovations to be raised for flood resilience is pictured during the Chehalis Basin Strategy Legislative Site Tour in Bucoda on Friday, Sept. 27.

‘A huge piece of mind’: Office of Chehalis Basin project elevates Bucoda home to reduce flooding concerns

Shawn Selfridge’s house stands out among his neighbors in the small South Thurston County town of Bucoda. A homeowner for six years, a flood roughly five years ago sparked concerns that … more

By Mitchell Roland / mitchell@chronline.com | 10/4/24

‘Sadistic’ Oregon man gets extra-long sentence 44 years after college student’s murder

Louise Tucker opened the faded yellow cover of the baby book — her seventh — flipped past the milestone memories to a blank page and put down the words no mother should write. Her … more

Zane Sparling / oregonlive.com (TNS) | 10/4/24

Arrest made in random attack on 61-year-old woman at Fred Meyer in Oregon

A Tigard man has been arrested after police say he attacked a woman at a Fred Meyer grocery store last month. Tigard police responded to a call from the grocery store on Southwest 72nd Avenue … more

Tyler Brown / oregonlive.com (TNS) | 10/4/24

The Gold Hill Historical Society Museum transforms into a "Goonies"-themed haunted house for the month of October.

Spooky Oregon town has a ‘Goonies’ haunted house with a ‘real’ ghost named Willie

Inside the Gold Hill Historical Society’s “Goonies”-themed haunted house, visitors can expect to encounter favorite characters from the Oregon-filmed movie: Chester Copperpot, the … more

Samantha Swindler / oregonlive.com (TNS) | 10/4/24

First-grade teacher in Oregon repeatedly struck student in front of classmates, lawsuit says

The mother of a 7-year-old boy has filed a $350,000 lawsuit against the Tigard-Tualatin School District, claiming that the boy’s first-grade teacher struck him at least a half dozen times in … more

Aimee Green / oregonlive.com (TNS) | 10/4/24

An armored sheriff's deputy vehicle was seen moving out of a residence in the 5400 block of Northeast 71st Street, where police shot and killed Michael D. Williams in a hours-long standoff.

Man shot to death by Southwest Washington police during standoff in September identified

The Cowlitz County Sheriff’s Office has publicly identified Michael D. Williams as the man killed in a Sept. 27 shootout with police in Vancouver. A Vancouver officer shot and killed … more

The Oregonian / oregonlive.com (TNS) | 10/4/24

Republican Gubernatorial candidate Dave Reichert looks on at the crowd during a rally at Merten Ranch in Toledo on Saturday, Aug. 24.

Diesel and passenger-only ferries find a port in Washington state governor's race

There's one thing Washington Attorney General Bob Ferguson and Dave Reichert, the former congressman and King County sheriff, agree on. Both candidates for governor have said the state ferry … more

Nicholas Deshais / The Seattle Times (TNS) | 10/4/24