Newport Miner August 6, 2014

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PEND OREILLE COUNTY FAIR TIME FAIR SCHEDULE PAGE 4B-5B

The Newport Miner THE VOICE OF PEND OREILLE COUNT Y SINCE 1901

Wednesday, August 6, 2014

www.pendoreillerivervalley.com

Volume 111, Number 27 | 2 Sections, 20 Pages 75¢

Second storm causes widespread outages Estimated $1 million in damages for PUD BY DESIREÉ HOOD OF THE MINER

NEWPORT –The Matkin family was on their deck on Elu Beach Road on Diamond Lake when a second windstorm blew through Pend Oreille County, Saturday, Aug. 2. It was a very hot day and they were watching some kids on a neighboring dock play in the high winds with white caps rising behind them. Nobody thought a second storm was coming. They heard a snap and within seconds a giant Cottonwood was crashing down on them. The Matkins’ pregnant daughter Lianne Paul stepped away from the tree as it crashed into the deck. They all barely escaped. This scene was repeated throughout the south county and Priest River area, luckily with only minor injuries reported minutes later when the storm died and a normal summer day continued. But power was out again for many. The second storm, which switched direction hitting new trees, caused another round of power outages and property damage for thousands of area residents. Some people’s power had just been restored from the windstorm Wednesday, July 23, when this storm blew through leaving a debris filled path in its wake. “This second storm is most unwelcome. People are justifiably tired of going without power and becoming frustrated,” PUD SEE STORM, 2A

MINER PHOTO|FRED WILLENBROCK

PUD crews worked late Sunday, Aug. 3, to restore power to the Diamond Lake Water and Sewer District office on South Shore Road where essential controls for the system are located. The crews had just finished the emergency response to the storm Wednesday, July 23, when this storm tore through the region with 50-60 mph winds.

‘Two-for’ hits the region

Woman critically injured at Diamond Lake now in satisfactory condition SPOKANE – A Spokane teacher who was critically injured July 23 when a tree fell on her boat at Diamond Lake was in satisfactory condition at Providence Sacred Heart Hospital in Spokane Tuesday, Aug. 5. Marci Wetzel and her husband, Chris, and one of their five children were in a boat when

MINER PHOTO|FRED WILLENBROCK

This cottonwood tree fell across the deck of Mark and Lori Matkin on Elu Beach Road on Diamond Lake Saturday, Aug. 3. (See video at The Miner Online.) The Matkin family was standing on the deck when the tree blew over, just missing them as they ran for cover. Branches from a tree next door that also fell were shoved through the neighbor’s house by the powerful wind.

the windstorm hit. As they reached shore and attempted to get the boat taken care of, a huge, 90-year-old tree fell on them, according to a post at www.giveforward.com/fundraiser/m995/wetzel-family-fundraiser, a funSEE INJURY, 2A

EDITOR’S NOTE: Bob Lutz is a climatologist at Sacheen Lake that contributes to The Miner. He wrote this first person account of Saturday’s storm, explaining what caused the second storm, and a warning for a possible third.

BY BOB LUTZ SACHEEN LAKE CLIMATOLOGIST

Seems we had a “two-for” … Two severe storms back to back in almost as many

weeks. What are the chances? They say things come in three’s, so I guess we will wait for the next hammer to drop! I had a meeting with John Livingston at the National Weather Service in Spokane on Friday and we could not find any evidence of a tornado when we looked at the radar SEE WEATHER, 2A

Man pleads guilty to murdering mother Sentencing set for Aug. 21; jail time from 11 to 20 years BY DON GRONNING OF THE MINER

NEWPORT – Matthew Swancara, 25, pleaded guilty to

BY DESIREÉ HOOD OF THE MINER

These young women were greeted by various tribal royalty at the Kalispel Tribe’s 39th annual Pow Wow, held Aug. 1-3 in Usk. The storm disrupted the Saturday night performance but it was one of the best pow wows in years, organizers said. See more pictures on page 8A.

her home on Juanita Lane in Elk in 2013. Swancara faces a sentencing range of about 11-20 years in prison when he is sentenced Aug. 21. Deputy prosecutor Dolly Hunt told SEE MURDER, 10A

PUD looks at fiber rates

MINER PHOTO|DON GRONNING

Royal greeting

Swancara

second degree murder in Pend Oreille County Superior Court Thursday, July 31, for stabbing his mother, Sally Swancara, 56, to death at

NEWPORT – The Pend Oreille Public Utility District Board of Commissioners is

holding a public hearing, Tuesday, Aug. 19, at 11:15 a.m. at the Newport Conference Room to discuss raising CNS fiber rates. SEE FIBER, 9A

B R I E F LY East Branch LeClerc Creek Road closes Monday NEWPORT – A portion of East Branch LeClerc Creek Road will be closed Monday, Aug. 4, through Aug. 22. In order to improve native fish habitat, the Colville National Forest is replacing two culverts on the road, Forest Road 1934000. The road will be closed about 4 miles east of the junction with the Middle Branch LeClerc Creek Road. The work includes clearing the culvert locations, excavating for new culvert installation, and backfill operations. The road will be impassable during construction time and no detour is planned. A temporary closure order has been executed to

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enforce the closure during this time period. Similar work and road closure will be occurring on the Middle Branch of LeClerc Creek Road about 1 mile east of the junction with the Paupac Road starting in mid to late August for about three weeks. Both the East and Middle Branch of LeClerc Creek Roads are located in Pend Oreille County, approximately 30 miles north of Newport on the east side of the Pend Oreille River.

Hospital phones up and running NEWPORT – The new phone system at Newport Hospital 7B-9B

and Health Services is operational, following a complete system breakdown in late June, when a bird flew into a transformer. The district, including Newport Hospital, two clinics and Newport Long-Term Care, was without phone service for several days. River Mountain Village Assisted Living was not affected. The event caused the district to replace the aged, copper phone system with a new Voice Over IP (VoIP) system. District CEO Tom Wilbur said the system is installed and working. The staff is now learning what all the system is capable of. “We’re back where we were (before the old system failed),” Wilbur said.

OPINION

4A

RECORD

6B

SPORTS

2B

LIFE

1B

POLICE REPORTS

6B

OBITUARIES

6B

PUBLIC NOTICES

7B-9B

BONNER COUNTY FAIR

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