Established as The Skamokawa Eagle in 1891
Established as The Skamokawa Eagle in 1891
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Flooding has always been part of the landscape for Gary Burkhalter, who grew up dairy farming with his parents in Grays River. It’s work he continues to do with his wife Susan, along with their children, and includes their grown son, Austin. “Flooding has been here and always will be here,” Burkhalter said. While this natural occurrence really only causes problems once or twice a year, it can be disruptive to all who live and in the Burkhalters’ case, work, in the area. Burkhalter Dairy is locat...
The U.S. House took a broadly bipartisan vote Tuesday to fund the government into the new year, though the measure must pass the Senate by the end of the week if Congress is going to avoid a partial government shutdown. The 336-95 House vote was the first major legislative test for Speaker Mike Johnson, the Louisiana Republican who took on the role after the former speaker was ousted after passing a similar bipartisan short-term funding bill in late September. A total of 93 House Republicans...
The Cowlitz-Wahkiakum Council of Governments (CWCOG) recently finalized a three-year contract with the Washington Transportation Safety Commission to operate the Target Zero program for Cowlitz, Wahkiakum, and Lewis Counties. The federal government requires each state to have a Strategic Highway Safety Plan (SHSP); Target Zero is Washington’s plan. The Washington State Target Zero vision is “zero deaths and serious injuries by 2030 from traffic involved accidents.” Target Zero was created to “guide the community toward the vision of zero de...
THURSDAY Westside Play & Learn Group, Valley Bible Church, 9:30-11 a.m. Eastside play and learn group, St James family center 1:30-3 p.m. Johnson Park Board 10 a.m. West End Food Pantry, Johnson Park, 1- 5 p.m. Johnson Park Community Center Library & Computer Center noon—5 p.m. Senior Citizen Luncheon, Hope Center, Noon. Senior Citizen Luncheon, Rosburg Hall, Noon. Cathlamet Fire Department, 7 p.m. Skamokawa Fire Department, 7 p.m. Grays River Fire Department, fire/ambulance, 7:30 p.m. Puget Island Fire Department, drill night, 7 p.m. D...
Following three days of outages, many of the Washington State Department of Transportation public web services are restored, the agency reported Friday. A cyberattack hit the department starting Tuesday, cutting online access to statewide traffic cameras, ferry trackers and oversized freight permitting. As of Friday morning, ferry schedules, some ferry tracking on the mobile app, mountain pass conditions, the agency’s real-time travel map, traffic cameras, and online commercial vehicle permits had been restored, according to the department. M...
A Longview man died last Friday while hunting with his son in the woods above Skamokawa. The Wahkiakum County Sheriff’s Department received a call at 4:48 p.m. from the son who became concerned when his father did not return to their vehicle. His father was last seen around 7 a.m.; he was 81 and had a heart condition. A search began at 8 p.m. on state land at the end of Middle Valley Road and the man was found less than two hours later, about a quarter mile from the truck, according to U...
Rosburg resident Darrel Trotter was honored by the Marine Corps League Daniel E Crockett Detachment 1228 at their annual ball in Astoria this weekend when he was named Gene Bolstad Law Enforcement Officer of the Year. The award is named for a Washington State Patrol Trooper who died on duty in 1957 while trying to rescue a teenager caught in a strong rip current at Long Beach. Each year it is awarded to an outstanding law enforcement officer in Pacific or Wahkiakum County. "The local veterans...
It seems Cathlamet is becoming a destination for sailing clubs. “We got some good news on another regatta through the Willamette Sailing Club,” Wahkiakum County Port 1 Manager Todd Souvenir told the Port 1 Board of Commissioners last Thursday. If it works out, there could be three regattas this summer, with one in July, one in August, and another one, potentially in early May. Organizers are expected to visit in January to consider logistics. Mackenzie Jones, the administrative assistant for...
Elk enjoying a rest near Skamokawa. Photo by Ian Brandon....
Eagle photographer Ian Brandon hit the road during this weekend’s high water event. Clockwise from bottom left: drenched eagles along Altoona Pillar Rock Rd; Grays River highwater and fall colors at Rosburg Hall; the historic Grays River covered bridge was under flood watch conditions; a misty view of Pillar rock along the Columbia River....
The results are coming in. Officials counted 1,337 votes on Tuesday night. The next count was scheduled for Wednesday at 5 p.m., after the Eagle went to press. At that time, there were 150 more ballots left to count, and more were likely to arrive in the mail. With 3,490 registered voters in Wahkiakum County, the turnout stood at 38.31 percent on Tuesday. In contested races, incumbent Patty Anderson leads challenger Kandice Merz 783-334 in a bid to hold onto her seat with the Wahkiakum School...
The acquisition, the state's largest in more than a decade, would bring more than 9,000 acres in Wahkiakum County into public ownership The Washington State Board of Natural Resources approved the $55 million purchase of more than 9,000 acres of forestland in Wahkiakum County during its meeting Tuesday at the Natural Resources Building. Each of the four properties is adjacent to lands already sustainably managed by the Washington State Department of Natural Resources to generate revenue for...
The Town of Cathlamet coffers could receive a big boost by year’s end. Following an executive session at the end of their meeting on Monday, the town council gave a green light to the lease of the town’s cell tower site in Rosedale to a telecommunications company for a period of 50 years, for no less than $500,000, to be paid in full prior to December 31, 2023. Parameters have been approved for the lease, but documents are not yet finalized. “It is my hope that this will help with the many...
The Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) has filed a proposed rule to create a program that permits qualified individuals to relocate beavers involved in human-wildlife conflict as an alternative to lethal removal. The public is invited to submit comments about the proposed rule though Dec. 18. If adopted, the proposal would revise a state code in order to create a beaver relocation permit program that identifies beavers to be relocated, specifies the requirements for permittees, release sites, and conditions during temporary...
On August 24, The Eagle reported that Wahkiakum School Board candidate Kandice Merz received a donation from the Family Policy Institute of Washington. Last week we ran a letter to the editor that repeated this claim. After an online reader pointed out that Merz had not in fact received a donation from the FPIW, but rather a personal donation from a member of the FPIW, we reached out to candidate Merz for clarification. She stated that she had received a personal donation from a member of FPIW. A representative from the FPIW confirmed this....
The Wahkiakum County PUD Board of Commissioners will save some money in coming years with a decision they made on Tuesday to switch their Puget Island Water System plan to something General Manager Dan Kay calls a “swamp.” As he points out, he didn’t come up with the name, which is actually SWSMP, an acronym for Small Water Systems Management Program. Plans are required for water systems like the ones run by Wahkiakum PUD. They identify what the utility needs to maintain or improve their syste...
“I spoke too soon,” said Mayor David Olson in an email to business and political officials last week. The mayor, who has been a passionate advocate for installing an electric vehicle (EV) charging station at the intersection of Main & Butler, shared that “although the light is on” the charger is still in need a few finishing touches before it is ready for use. These include small technical adjustments and updates to the card system. Cathlamet Clerk-Treasurer Sarah Clark anticipates the updates will be completed in the next week or so. “All plan...
THURSDAY Westside Play & Learn Group, Valley Bible Church, 9:30-11 a.m. Eastside play and learn group, St James family center 1:30-3 p.m. Johnson Park Board 10 a.m. Johnson Park Community Center Library & Computer Center noon—5 p.m. Senior Citizen Luncheon, Hope Center, Noon. Senior Citizen Luncheon, Rosburg Hall, Noon. Cathlamet Fire Department, 7 p.m. Skamokawa Fire Department, 7 p.m. Grays River Fire Department, fire/ambulance, 7:30 p.m. Puget Island Fire Department, drill night, 7 p.m. District No. 4 Fire Department, 7 p.m. Food Addicts M...
A Skamokawa man was arrested in connection to an alleged theft from an Ace of Spades gambling pool hosted by the Duck Inn and operated by the Peninsula Moose Lodge, according to official court documents on file at Wahkiakum Superior Court. Ryan D. Helms, 30, was charged with Theft in the First Degree. His attorney, Ted DeBray, entered a plea of not guilty on his behalf on October 12, and Helms was released on his own recognizance. A court date has been set for January....
Interviewing three Naselle Grays River Valley seniors was a reminder of what can happen when students find their niche and run with it. Derek Suomela, Lewis Hoff and Alia Lebovitz are exceptional young people, all of whom are well-equipped to become scientists in robotics automation. These students not only know what field they love to work in, but they also know who they are as individuals. They are enrolled in the Running Start program while in their senior year. This puts them a year ahead...
As Finland saw traffic fatalities plummet last year, Washington tallied a record number of deaths on its roads. Next month, state lawmakers and transportation officials will travel to the Nordic nation to learn how it's succeeded in making traveling safer on its roadways. Sen. Marko Liias, D-Edmonds, chair of the Senate Transportation Committee, will be part of the contingent making the trip in December. The plan is to visit Helsinki where he said there's been no traffic-related deaths this...
Volunteers from the Wahkiakum Autism Fund have been busy lately. After brainstorming with local teachers and therapists for children with special needs, the local charity, which works to raise awareness and funds to support children with autism and special needs in Wahkiakum County, purchased and installed a new indoor specialized therapy swing. The new swing is available to all Wahkiakum students and is located in the special needs classroom in J.A. Wendt Elementary. Called a bolster swing, it...
On Saturday, the Pioneer Community Association threw a belated 125th birthday party for the Pioneer Church, which is now known as the Pioneer Center. After a ribbon cutting, PCA President Suzanne Holmes revisited the years of fundraising and renovations, sharing dozens of pictures of the structure, the problems and the solutions, and some of the people who helped along the way. That included Craig Bjorge, whose name joined six others on a plaque recognizing them for "their support and effort...
Cows grazing in a field on Little Island. Temperatures in Wahkiakum County have dropped significantly in recent days, with lows in the 30s, creating foggy mornings and clear cold blue skies in the afternoon. This week, temperatures should rise again, with rains returning. Photo by Ian Brandon....
A court in Hong Kong on Oct. 30 dismissed illegal gun possession charges against state Sen. Jeff Wilson of Longview, according to press accounts and Wilson’s office. Wilson, 63, did not have to enter a plea after the judge in the West Kowloon Magistrates Court issued what is called a blind-over order. A blind-over order is an agreement between the court and the defendant to maintain good behavior for a specified period — two years in Wilson’s case. A blind-over order is neither a punishment nor a conviction, according to the Hong Kong Free...
