STUDIO BASIN: Grant County Sheriff Joe Kriete and an All-American athlete

MOSES LAKE -- On this episode of the STUDIO BASIN podcast, Managing Editor Rob Miller sits down with Grant County Sheriff Joe Kriete to discuss a recent marijuana bust in the Ephrata area, National Night Out and safety for the upcoming Grant County Fair.

Fun night out

Mattawa National Night Out features police, firefighters and monster burritos

MATTAWA — All across America, communities turned out for National Night Out the first week of August, when police, firefighters and other community agencies throw a party and invite the whole town to see what they do. But in Mattawa, they took it a little further and combined National Night Out with a back-to-school event.

NEWS BITES for August 12, 2024

EPHRATA – A 40-year-old Ephrata man was injured due to a one-vehicle collision in the late morning on Friday according to the Grant County Sheriff’s Office. There was a semi-rollover collision at North Frontage Road just East of Adams Road. Jesus Villa Ambriz was driving a 2003 tractor-trailer westbound on North Frontage Road when his vehicle failed to make a northbound curve. Villa Ambriz sustained life-threatening injuries and was airlifted to an area hospital.

Legals for August, 16 2024

Back to school

Quincy students get ready for school at health fair, school opening dates announced

QUINCY — There’s still some summer left, but it won’t be long. Quincy Community Health Center helped children and families get ready for school with backpacks and pencils, health and resource information, fire hats and the chicken dance at the Back-to-School Health Fair Tuesday. Mary Jo Ybarra-Vega, outreach and behavioral health coordinator for QCHC, said it’s of of the organization’s recognition of National Health Center Week, and a longtime tradition in Quincy. “Every year we do a back-to-school health fair, and we’ve been doing it, I think, 20 years now,” she said.

Legals for August, 12 2024

Agri-Service Demo Derby begins Tuesday

MOSES LAKE — The engines will roar, the dirt will fly and a whole lot of metal will go crunch Tuesday and Wednesday at the Agri-Service Demo Derby, held at the Moses Lake Roundup Rodeo grounds at the Grant County Fairgrounds.

Ceremony at Ephrata Armory signals change of command

EPHRATA — Golf Company, the Ephrata unit of the Washington Army National Guard, received a new commander in a ceremony Saturday morning that included a literal handing over of the unit emblem

Soap Lake mayor, mayor pro-tem step down

City council appoints new mayor pro tempore, considers careful mayoral selection

SOAP LAKE – Allen DuPuy stepped down as the Soap Lake Mayor at the city council meeting on Aug. 7. DuPuy was elected as the mayor on Nov. 29, 2023, after he beat incumbent Michelle Agliano. DuPuy served eight months of his four-year term.

Votes show likely Herrera Beutler vs Upthegrove in race for lands commissioner

(The Center Square) - In a race that remains too close to call for the second-place finisher, Republican Jaime Herrera Beutler has secured her top spot for Washington state’s next public lands commissioner.

Moses Lake Roundup begins Thursday

MOSES LAKE — The 81st Moses Lake Roundup Rodeo begins Thursday and there’s no shortage of riders. “We had a record number of contestant entries this year, 583, which is probably close to 60, 70 more than we had last year,” said Tyler Brown, treasurer of the Moses Lake Roundup Board. The rodeo follows the Agri-Service Demo Derby, which is happening today and tomorrow in the rodeo grounds at the Grant County Fairgrounds. Information on the Demo Derby and the Grant County Fair is in the Monday edition of the Columbia Basin Herald.

FIRE REPORT: Retreat Fire remains steady as containment improves

NACHES – The Retreat Fire is the largest fire in Washington as of Tuesday. The fire has scorched 45,600 acres of land but is 70% contained as of Tuesday – a 10% improvement from the prior day. The cause of the fire is still under investigation.

FIRE REPORT: Kittitas County has a multi-fire outbreak

KITTITAS COUNTY — On Friday and Saturday, Kittitas County saw an outbreak of eight fires, six of them being 10 acres. The fires include from largest to smallest: Thomas Mountain Fire, 10 acres; Stave Creek Fire, 10 acres; Davis Peak Fire, 1 acre; Anna Bell Drive Fire,1 acre; Waptus Fire, 0.5 acre; Bear Creek Fire, 0.5 acres and Skeeter Creek Fire, 0.1 acre.

EWU men’s hoops add three to staff

CHENEY – Eastern Washington men’s basketball announced three new hires on Friday, with Will Turgeon and MicGuire Monson named as Eagle assistant coaches and Alex Hobbs hired as the director of Player Development.

Federal bill calls for open primaries nationwide

(The Center Square) – A new bill pending in Congress would mandate open primaries across the country, giving roughly 23.5 million registered independents a chance to nominate candidates for federal office.

FIRE REPORT: Kachess Complex continues burning

CLE ELUM — The Kachess Complex consists of three lightning-sparked fires that began in the Cle Elum Ranger District of the Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest on August 9 and 10, 2024, according to InciWeb, an interagency wildfire-tracking website.

Roaring good time

Agri-Service Demo Derby and motorcycle barrel racing draws enthusiastic crowd

MOSES LAKE — There’s something very American about a demolition derby: only a country as obsessed with cars as ours would make a sport out of destroying them. It’s a game of high-speed bumper cars played with tons of metal, roaring engines and flying dirt making the air – and sometimes the audience – as gritty as a spaghetti western.

Battle Buddies fundraiser brings in $10,000

Ephrata Legionnaires pull together to support nonprofit fighting PTSD with all four paws.

EPHRATA - The American Legion Art Semro Post and Unit 28 held a fundraiser Saturday to raise money for Northwest Battle Buddies, a nonprofit that gifts professionally trained service dogs to veterans battling Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, also known as PTSD.

FIRE REPORT: 1,500 acres scorched in Douglas County

COULEE CITY — On Saturday evening a fire broke out near state Route 17 and Road 9 Northeast in Douglas County. The fire burned approximately 1,500 acres, according to Douglas County Sheriff’s Office. Crews got to the fire, and most of the initial attack was contained by 11:30 p.m. on Saturday night. The responding agencies included Grand Coulee Volunteer Fire Department, Electric City Fire Department, Coulee City Fire Department, Douglas County Fire District 3, Douglas County Fire District 5 and others.

Wilson Creek School District to implement four-day week

WILSON CREEK — The Wilson Creek School District will hold classes four days per week for the 2024-25 school year. Students will attend classes Monday through Thursday, with the school day beginning a few minutes earlier and ending a few minutes later.