August 11 - 17, 2022
FREE
Community Newspaper of Blaine and Birch Bay HHHECRWSSHHH Postal Customer
IN THIS
ISSUE
Discover Birch Bay Days parade returns, page 3
Whatcom County Council news, page 5
Drayton Harbor Maritime Festival photos, pages 15-16
PRSRT STD U. S. Postage PAID Permit NO. 87 Blaine, WA 98230
Old Blaine city hall demolition work begins Blaine man arrested for vehicular assault after I-5 crash By Ian Haupt
s Skycorp crews started demolishing old city hall around 11 a.m. August 9. Blaine Public Works Department previously expected the demolition to take three days, followed by a week of clean up. The 1927 building, at 344 H Street, needed to come down because it had asbestos and wasn’t structurally sound. Blaine City Council hasn’t determined what it will do with the city-owned property once the property is cleared. Photo by Grace McCarthy
Blaine man arrested on suspicion of controlled substance homicide for Blaine woman’s death By Ian Haupt Whatcom County Sheriff’s Office (WCSO) deputies arrested a Blaine man August 3 who, after a long investigation, was found responsible for a Blaine woman’s death in May 2021. The woman reportedly overdosed, and fentanyl was found in her system. Tanner Allen Larson, 31, was booked into Whatcom County Jail at 6:17 p.m.
August 3 on suspicion of one count of controlled substance homicide, three counts of possession of a controlled substance, two counts of counterfeit substance violation and five counts of delivering a controlled substance, according to jail records. On May 7, 2021, Blaine Police Department (BPD) officers responded to the death of Aeschli Wilkinson, 30, in the 700 block of E Street, WCSO spokesperson Deb Slater wrote in an August 4 news release.
First monkeypox case in Whatcom County Whatcom County Health Department (WCHD) confirmed the county’s first monkeypox virus case, or MVP, August 2 in a resident in their 50s. The person was isolating at home after likely being exposed in King County. WCHD is working to find anyone who may have been a close contact to the first confirmed person to be infected with monkeypox in Whatcom County, according to an August 3 press release that announced the first case. The health department has a limited amount of vaccines to
give to the resident’s close contacts. “It is important for people to know that risk to the general public remains low,” said Amy Harley, co-health officer for WCHD, in the press release. “We have been preparing for the possibility of MPV in Whatcom County for the last few months. The U.S. has successfully controlled outbreaks of MPV in the past. This virus is not spread as easily as Covid-19 and we already have vaccines and treatments available.” Monkeypox causes a rash that appears
similar to bumps, sores, blisters or ulcers and can cause flu-like symptoms. People infected with monkeypox aren’t likely to get seriously ill, according to WCHD, although it can be serious for people who are immunocompromised, pregnant and children. The first Whatcom County resident was not hospitalized. The Washington state Department of Health confirmed the first monkeypox case in the state in King County on May (See Monkeypox, page 3)
When the medical examiner’s toxicology report found fentanyl in Wilkinson’s system, BPD requested WCSO to assist in the investigation of a possible controlled substance homicide death. The investigation found Wilkinson had been in contact with Larson about obtaining painkillers. Slater wrote, according to the messages, Larson sold Wilkinson (See Larson, page 2)
INSIDE
A 20-year-old Blaine man was arrested for vehicular assault after a Ferndale passenger was transported to the hospital following an Interstate 5 car crash on August 7. A 2010 white Toyota Corolla drove into a disabled car and flipped into the median south of Peace Portal Drive on I-5 August 7. The Corolla passenger, 19-yearold Isabella N. Martinez of Ferndale, sustained injuries and was taken to the hospital, while the driver was arrested. A Washington State Patrol (WSP) report shows drugs or alcohol were believed to be involved, which remains under investigation. Dylan Matthew Ferry, 20, of Blaine, was booked into Whatcom County Jail at 2:48 a.m. August 8 for vehicular assault and driving with a suspended license, according to jail records. Around 10:17 p.m. August 7, a 2017 white Volkswagen Jetta was disabled from an earlier crash in the right lane of southbound I-5 near milepost 273, south of Peace Portal Drive, according to WSP. All occupants had exited the vehicle. The Corolla, driven by Ferry, was headed southbound on I-5 and collided with the disabled Jetta. The Corolla came to rest on its top in the median, while the Jetta was pushed to the shoulder, according to the report. Martinez was taken to PeaceHealth St. Joseph Medical Center, treated for her injuries and released the day of the accident, PeaceHealth spokesperson Beverly Mayhew said in an email to The Northern Light. Both Ferry and Martinez were wearing seat belts at the time of the crash, according to the report. The car crash closed both lanes of southbound I-5 while first responders were on scene, according to a Washington State Department of Transportation tweet. Whatcom County District Court records show Ferry had a preliminary appearance August 8.
Coming Up . . . . . 14 Classifieds . . . . . 11 Letters . . . . . . . . . 4 Police . . . . . . . . . 14 Tides . . . . . . . . . . 14
TheNorthernLight
@TNLreporter
@TheNorthernLightNews
TheNorthernLight.com
ThisFLYERS Week’s
Rite Aid
