April 15 - 21, 2021
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WSDA seeks new hornet regulations, page 5
Lummi member selected as poet laureate, page 10
PRSRT STD U. S. Postage PAID Permit NO. 87 Blaine, WA 98230
Lt. King retires from Blaine police, page 15
Woman arrested Ready, set, go! Racing through Birch Bay ... in connection to man’s body found in Semiahmoo By Grace McCarthy
(See Homicide, page 3)
s Birch Bay Road Race event organizers estimate about 280 people ran in a 5k, 15k and 30k that started and finished near Birch Bay Waterslides on April 10, while an additional 240 people participated in the virtual race. Photo by Chuck Kinzer/Ckimageart.com
Restaurants allowed to continue plaza use for extent of emergency proclamation By Grace McCarthy Restaurants can continue using the H and G Street plazas until the city’s emergency proclamation is rescinded, following a 7-0 Blaine City Council vote at its April 12 regular meeting. City manager Michael Jones had recommended to council that if they wished to allow continued use of the plaza, they should extend it until June 30 which would be 75 days after all adults are eligible to receive a Covid-19 vaccine. “I think it’s a workable option for the city manager, although it might not have been his top choice,” mayor Bonnie Onyon said during the meeting. “I think it’s certainly workable.”
After Whatcom County entered Phase 3 on March 22, Jones said he notified Drayton Harbor Oyster Company (DHO) – the only business using the plaza space – to remove its belongings before the end of the city’s 30-day compliance period on April 22. Councilmembers voted at their March 22 meeting to reevaluate the emergency order expiration date at the April 12 meeting. DHO co-owner Steve Seymour said later in a phone interview that the restaurant appreciates the extension for plaza use, and was prepared to stop using the H Street plaza by April 22. The plaza, he said, has allowed the restaurant’s employees to keep working because the restaurant can only seat 15 people inside with 50 percent
Birch Bay man arrested for alleged elder abuse By Ian Haupt A Birch Bay man was arrested April 3 for alleged elder abuse after a 71-year-old woman’s son and granddaughter found her lying face down on the floor in her own feces. Robert William Savage, 52, was arrested on suspicion of first-degree criminal mistreatment along with a warrant for an unrelated burglary case, according to the affidavit of probable cause (APC) filed by the Whatcom County prosecuting attor-
ney’s office. Whatcom County Sheriff’s Office deputies responded to the 7000 block of Jackson Road after the woman’s son requested a welfare check. The woman’s son and granddaughter had not heard from the woman since mid-March, according to the affidavit. Savage, who lives in the trailer and takes care of the woman, spoke with the deputies when they arrived. He allegedly told deputies the woman was sleeping and he didn’t want to wake her. The affidavit says
deputies had no reason to doubt Savage and left. The woman’s granddaughter then called Savage and asked to speak to the woman. Over the phone, the woman made “a single groan,” according to the APC. The woman’s son and granddaughter visited the trailer the following day, April 2, and found the woman lying face down on the floor wearing a nightgown that was soiled in her own feces and urine while (See Elder, page 15)
capacity. “The extension gets us into the good weather time of the year, so hopefully we can accommodate our guests with the existing space we have,” Seymour said. “We try to do the best for our employees and the community.” Jones presented council with four options to extend the plaza use during the April 12 meeting, in order of Jones’ most desirable to least desirable options (council chose the second option). The first option was Jones’ recommendation to extend plaza use until June 30 and the second option, which council (See Plazas, page 3)
Coming Up . . . . . 14 Classifieds . . . . . 11 Letters . . . . . . . . . 4 Police . . . . . . . . . 14 Sports . . . . . . . . . . 6 Tides . . . . . . . . . . 14
INSIDE
Whatcom County Sheriff’s Office (WCSO) arrested a 62-year-old Bellingham woman after finding probable cause to charge her in connection with a man’s body found in Semiahmoo Park on April 7. The man had suffered multiple gunshot wounds. Deputies booked Lynda Clare Mercy into Whatcom County Jail on suspicion of second-degree murder around noon on April 13, according to Whatcom County Jail records. On April 7, Blaine Police Department (BPD) officers responded to a call around 1:30 p.m. about a man’s body, later identified as Thomas Flood, found in Semiahmoo Park. Flood, 67, was a resident of south Whidbey Island, WCSO reported. The Whatcom County medical examiner ruled the death as a homicide. WCSO assisted BPD in investigating the murder. Flood’s white 1994 Ford Econoline van was abandoned in Fairhaven around 4 p.m. on April 7. On the morning of April 8, deputies found the van and later asked the public for information on the vehicle’s whereabouts between 4 a.m. and 4 p.m. on April 7. Police are asking people to report if they saw anything unusual near Semiahmoo Park the early morning of April 7. On April 12, WCSO narrowed in on a person of interest, later identified as Mercy, when surveillance footage showed her driving Flood’s van around 3 p.m. the day his body was found. Footage from the AM/ PM gas station on Airport and Bennett drives showed Mercy, dressed in all black boots, pants, jacket and gloves making a purchase in the gas station. “This case is an excellent example of law enforcement and community members working together to identify and take the suspect in this case into custody,” WCSO undersheriff Doug Chadwick said in a statement. “Our investigators have worked day and night to piece together this case and follow up on tips provided
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