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Lights & Sirens » 2011 » May (Page 2)

Lights & Sirens

Go behind the yellow tape with The News Tribune

Archives: May 2011

May
29th

Woman killed in possible homicide-suicide was Sumner teacher

A couple found shot to death Friday in their Enumclaw house have been identified as Amy and Zachary Erwin, both 42.

Enumclaw police found the husband and wife inside their home in the 1700 block of Washington Avenue about 7:30 p.m.

A handgun was found at the scene and detectives are treating the deaths as a possible homicide-suicide. They are still investigating.

Amy Erwin was a teacher at Victor Hills Elementary School in Sumner.

The couple had children, but they were not home at the time of the shootings.

May
29th

4 injured in hit-and-run on Interstate 5 in Centralia; Tacoma man arrested

Four women were injured late Saturday night in a hit-and-run collision on Interstate 5 in Centralia.

The Washington State Patrol says that a 30-year-old Tacoma man was driving a 1997 Mitsubishi Montero at a high rate of speed on northbound Interstate 5 and struck the rear of a 1994 Cadillac DeVille.

He fled the scene, but was apprehended a little while later by the Centralia K-9 unit, the State Patrol said.

The four women in the Cadillac – ranging in age from 58 to 71 – all sustained back injuries and were taken to Providence Centralia Hospital. The women were

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May
28th

Puyallup woman dies after being hit by car near Chelan

A 30-year-old Puyallup woman, who reportedly was pregnant, has died after being struck by a car in central Washington.

Lisa D. Palmer was on the southbound shoulder of Highway 97A south of Chelan when she was hit just before noon Friday by a 2004 Volvo station wagon, the Washington State Patrol reported.

The driver, John D. Batjer, 69, of Redmond, fell asleep, the patrol said. He was headed north on the highway, crossed the center line and struck the guardrail on the southbound side, the patrol said.

Neither he nor his passenger, Deborah Batjer, 66, was hurt, the patrol said.

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May
28th

Tacoma man cited, toddler hurt in Oregon wreck

A 23-year-old Tacoma man has been cited for driving under the influence of intoxicants after a wreck early Saturday morning on Interstate 5 near Eugene, Ore., in which a toddler and a female passenger were thrown from the car.

Oregon State Police cited Alejandro Samaniego at Sacred Heart Medical Center at RiverBend in Springfield, Ore., where he was taken after the crash, a police news release said.

He also was cited for reckless driving, four counts of recklessly endangering another person, failing to properly restrain a child passenger and not having an operator’s license, police said.

The single-car crash happened

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May
28th

UPDATE: Toddler swept away in river is Puyallup police officer’s son; fund to be established

The 2-year-old boy who died Friday after being swept into the Greenwater River east of Enumclaw during a family camping trip is the son of a Puyallup Police officer, the department confirmed this afternoon.

A fund to help with funeral costs and other expenses is being set up; account details will be released when available, Capt. Dave McDonald wrote in a news release.

He didn’t provide the officer’s name.

The boy’s other parent also is a law enforcement officer, working for a different agency, McDonald said.

We appreciate you keeping the officer’s family and friends in your thoughts and

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May
27th

Toddler’s death: rivers deeper, colder than normal

The water was too deep, the river too strong and the boy too young.
He was 2½, and he died Friday. He’d been camping with his parents in the Greenwater area, east of Enumclaw. One uncertain step, and the rain-swollen Greenwater River swept him away, according to Ed Troyer, Pierce County Sheriff’s spokesman.
Troyer gave this account of the incident: The boy’s mother and a family friend, who also brought children, were making lunch at a campsite near the river. The boy’s father was due to arrive later. Both parents work for local law enforcement agencies. Troyer declined

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May
27th

Updated: boy swept into river has died

Updated, 6:55 p.m. A 2 1/2 year-old boy swept into a river while camping with parents in the Greenwater area has died, according to Ed Troyer, Pierce County Sheriff’s spokesman.

Updated: Pierce County Sheriff’s spokesman Ed Troyer says the 2 1/2-year-old boy swept into the river in the Greenwater area has been found, but his condition is unknown.

The boy was reportedly swept away in the river this afternoon while on a camping trip with his family in the Greenwater area.

Members of the Pierce County Sheriff’s Department swift water rescue, dive and search-and-rescue teams are responding to the area

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May
27th

Fire burns in building of defunct paper mill in Steilacoom

A fire broke out Thursday night in one of the remaining buildings at the old Abitibi-Consolidated paper mill in Steilacoom.

Crews are now letting the flames burn out.

“We are letting it take its course,” said Ron Schaub, chief of Steilacoom’s Public Safety Department.

The old paper mill is being torn down. A bystander noticed smoke coming from the property Thursday night and called 911, Schaub said.

Crews arrived to find flames in the rafters of a building along the back of the property, Schaub said. Firefighters poured 2,000 gallons of water on the flames.

The fire was knocked down

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