HEADLINES & HISTORY SINCE 1879 Goldendale, Washington
WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 4, 2024
Vol. 145 No. 36
$1.00
Town hall meeting today Congressman Dan Newhouse (WA-04) will host a telephone town hall session today, September 4, to hear from constituents of Washington’s Fourth District. The meeting will be from 5:30 to 7 p.m. Anyone interested in joining the event can RSVP at https:// tinyurl.com/yu5y5hmk.
County puts hold on lithium batteries RODGER NICHOLS FOR THE SENTINEL The Klickitat County Commission meeting on August 27 was quick and generally quiet. The biggest development was a vote to sign resolutions enacting moratoriums on the bulk storage and warehousing of lithium batteries and on the siting, installation or development of battery energy storage systems (BESS) within the unincorporated areas of the county. The vote was not unanimous as Commissioner Jacob Anderson felt the commission was rushing things. “We don’t have any literature or factual basis that staff has been able to find that shows 50 12-volt lithium batteries are an imminent public safety threat, do we?” he asked. He also said that the county doesn’t even have a definition of BESS in its ordinances. “I want to make sure that nothing slips through because we don’t have a definition of BESS.” His was the lone dissenting vote on both items. Heather Jobe gave an update on the recent primary elections, noting the county had a 49 percent turnout, above the state average of 40 percent. She said the office was preparing a mandatory recount in the commissioner of public lands race. Washington uses a top two primary system, allowing the top two vote getters to move on to the general election, even if they are both from the same party. In this race, the top spot was clear, but the race for the person to face them in the primaries was so tight it required a mandatory manual recount. The last time there was a statewide recount in a Washington State primary was in 1960, she said, and the last time in a general election was in 2004 in the Rossi vs. Gregoire contest for governor. “The difference in that race was 133 votes,” she said. “This one, statewide, is a difference of 51 votes, which is .0064 percent. The RCW requires that if the difference is less than 2,000 votes, and less than one half of one percent that there be a recount.” And although the recount will cost the county approximately $6,500, she said the state is picking up the tab because it’s mandated. She also responded to a comment made during the public comment period about the budget work starting late in the year, “In addition to the jail taking from my time,” she said, “this budget posed an extremely difficult starting point, with the deficit being much more substantial than in prior years. This required much more work and effort from me, finding and correcting errors in the initial entries, analyzing and developing summaries and dashboards in order to educate the board.” And HR Director Robb Van Cleave gave an update on the jail transfer. “You’ve heard me talk ad
See County page A6
STILL BURNING: The Williams Mine fire is still only 31% contained, though many of the personnel fighting it have moved on.
CONTRIBUTED: DARLISA BLACK
Williams Mine fire still spreading Size: 12,161 acres. Containment: 31%. Personnel: 174. The Williams Mine Fire continued to spread Monday in the Mt. Adams Wilderness near Morrison Creek. The fire consumed down logs and other fuels on the ground, with gusty winds pushing the fire to the east. It has crossed Morrison Creek but is west of the South Climb Trail. Scooper airplanes and a “heavy” helicopter dropped water on the fire to slow its spread.
A strategic firing operation was conducted to consume fuels around the Morrison Shelter yesterday. This reduced the intensity of the main fire when it reached this area. The La Grande Interagency Hotshot Crew arrived at the fire and has been working with the local Cascade Initial Attack crew on preparing the South Climb Trail for use as a control line if necessary. They are cutting the down logs near the trail and moving the wood away from it. Brush
and small trees are also being cut as needed to make the trail a safe place to stop the fire if it continues to spread to the east. Prep work will continue today. A dozer did some road repairs on the FS Rd 550 to allow dump trucks to access the South Climb trailhead. Piles of limbs, small trees, and other woody debris will be hauled away from this area to be piled in a safe location. Overnight, thunderstorms rolled through the area, bringing lightning and some showers. To-
day fire personnel will be evaluating how the storm affected the fire and fuels. The rain may make fine fuels like grass and brush too wet to burn, but will do little to affect the flammability of down logs and snags. Ground and air resources will be watching for new fires ignited by lightning and are prepared to take suppression action. SAFETY: Most schools, including Trout Lake School, are now back in session. Hunting season is also starting.
SENTINEL FILES
THE OLDEST CONTINUOUSLY OPERATING BUSINESS IN KLICKITAT COUNTY: The Goldendale Sentinel celebrates 145 years of continuous publication this year. Over the next several issues, we’ll be sharing our history, pictures, and stories from almost a century and a half of news. Not shown in this picture: anyone from the current staff. Below: can you find The Sentinel sign in this picture?