Collision causes delays on SR17 Monday

MOSES LAKE - A collision early Monday morning resulted in delays for travelers along SR 17 for several hours.

Winter storm watch issued for Basin

SPOKANE — The National Weather Service issued a winter storm watch Monday for large parts of the Columbia Basin. A winter storm watch means that conditions are favorable for a winter storm event that is a threat to life or property, according to the National Weather Service website, but that the event’s occurrence, location and timing are still uncertain...

UW offense shines in Apple Cup

Huskies deliver as Coug's defense sputters in second half

PULLMAN – During WSU’s three-game win streak over Stanford, Arizona and Arizona State, the Cougars jumped out to early leads that held true despite only scoring 20 combined points in the second half of the wins. The second-half offensive woes reared their head again in the Cougs’ 51-33 loss to Washington in the Apple Cup, their eighth loss in the previous nine meetings of the rivalry. “Just not doing our job, individually,” WSU quarterback Cameron Ward said in a postgame press conference. “Whether that’s with me, like the third-and-19 I threw a (pass) for one yard, that’s completely on me. Everyone’s responsible for it, we all take accountability for it.” ...

Kraken rally to beat Ducks 5-4 for 5th straight win

ANAHEIM, Calif. (AP) — Matty Beniers had a goal and two assists, Daniel Sprong scored the tiebreaking goal early in the third period and the Seattle Kraken tied a franchise record with their fifth consecutive victory, 5-4 over the Anaheim Ducks on Sunday night. Jared McCann, Alex Wennberg and Vince Dunn scored in the first period for the streaking Kraken, who then blew a two-goal lead late in the second period before rallying for their 10th win in 12 games. Martin Jones made 25 saves in his 11th victory of the season for Seattle, which has lost in regulation just once over the past four weeks during a surge that began with the 2-year-old Kraken's first five-game winning streak.

Making a community meal

Business people, volunteers serve holiday cheer on Thanksgiving

MOSES LAKE — Business owner Paul Carney knows a thing or two about being down and out. The owner of EDUBS C/S, which creates custom low-rider cars as well as sells clothing and low-rider lifestyle accessories, said there was a time in his life some years ago when the closest thing he had to home was the streets of Las Vegas. “As a former homeless addict, I remember those lonely, depressing, hopeless feelings and thoughts that came with the holidays when I was alone on the streets. A significant amount of my homeless friends back then were vets,” he said...

Weather forecast for Nov. 28

This week's weather looks to be cold again with lows in the teens and highs around 30.

Knights return to 1A title game with 57-21 win over Freeman

MOSES LAKE – On a cold and foggy evening at Lions Field in Moses Lake, the Royal Knights clinched their sixth state title game appearance since 2015 with a 57-21 win over Freeman on Saturday. “It feels great,” Royal Head Coach Wiley Allred said. “Nerve-racking along the way sometimes, but great. These kids have been unbelievable. We were supposed to be a little bit down (this year), we had a great group of seniors and a great team last year. These kids have worked really hard to get to the position they’re in.” Quarterback Dylan Allred completed 13 of 20 passes for 198 yards in the first half alone, throwing three touchdowns to receiver Edgar De La Rosa of six, 52 and 10 yards through the first 24 minutes. Allred added a 33-yard rushing touchdown in the first quarter to give him four total touchdowns before the half...

Business owners celebrate Small Business Saturday

MOSES LAKE — Mai Houvener wanted to make sure anyone looking for books to buy on Small Business Saturday knew exactly where to go. The owner of Sandbox Bookstore in downtown Moses Lake, Houvener posted a fairly creative sign in front of the Smith Martin Building she share’s with Mason’s Place coffee house, Ties That Bind Yarn, Ag World Support Systems and other local businesses. “This way books,” the sign said, with a big pink arrow pointing to the front entrance. Next to the arrow below pointing down Third Avenue, the sign read: “That way? Bears, maybe? We wouldn’t risk it.” ...

Council votes to accept outreach grant

Moses Lake could save tens of thousands by reaching out to frequent 911 callers.

MOSES LAKE — Last week, the Moses Lake City Council voted to accept a $108,000 grant from the Association of Washington Cities to help the city avoid the cost of sending out ambulance crews when medical help is not really required. According to Moses Lake Fire Chief Brett Bastian, the MLFD emergency medical service responded to 4,050 calls in 2021, of which 1,012 did not require transporting anyone. Under current Medicare rules, Bastian said ambulance calls in which no one is transported cannot be billed, and those runs cost the city roughly $1.4 million that cannot be recouped. “If the call volumes continue, we will need even more than the two new firefighters we’ve asked for,” Bastian told the city council. “We’ve seen an increase in EMS patient calls, and it’s 20% higher than it was two years ago.” ...

Zach Edey scores 23, No. 24 Purdue tops No. 6 Gonzaga 84-66

PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — Zach Edey and his Purdue teammates were admittedly too excited early on for the chance to compared themselves to one of the top teams in the country. Once the 24th-ranked Boilermakers calmed down, they showed they are worthy of their own consideration as a top team after a thorough 84-66 thumping of No. 6 Gonzaga in the semifinals of the Phil Knight Legacy tournament on Friday night.

Wenatchee approves $142 million 2023 budget

WENATCHEE — The city of Wenatchee approved a $142 million budget for 2023 at a special council meeting. Council members on Nov. 17 had a public hearing before approving the general fund, the city's main operating fund — which includes $35.3 million of recurring expenses and $31.7 million in recurring revenues. Officials said they weren't concerned about the $3.6 million gap. "Our recurring expenses are barely more than our recurring revenues, but the budget is a conservative planning document, said Brad Posenjak, city finance director, in an interview. "We actually expect that our revenues to come in above budget and expect our expenses to come in under budget." ...

State AG calls for retail crime unit

OLYMPIA — Washington Attorney General Bob Ferguson said Tuesday he is asking the state legislature for $1.5 million annually to fund the creation of a 10-member organized retail crime unit, according to a press release from the Attorney General’s office. The request follows Ferguson’s convening of an organized retail crime task force to improve cooperation between law enforcement agencies in dealing with organized retail crime, which involves the theft of goods from retail stores for resale. Such criminal activity costs major retailers billions in losses every year, the press release noted...

Hanford Reach steelhead fishery closed

RICHLAND/PASCO — The Hanford Reach has closed its steelhead fishing and retention from Nov. 20 until further notice.

Merry and bright

All-out holiday decorating takes a lot of work, planning and holiday spirit

MOSES LAKE — Now that the Halloween and Thanksgiving holidays are over, it’s time to prepare for the big one. For a lot of us, Christmas decorating means setting up the tree, dusting off the Nativity scene and maybe hanging some twinkling lights around the front window. But some folks like to take decorating to a whole different level, with lights upon lights upon lights and inflatable figures of every variety that can turn a neighborhood into a winter wonderland. For those who go full Griswold, there’s a lot of work that goes into it. “It's taken probably two and a half to three weeks this year to get everything up,” said Alan Coulter, whose holiday displays are considered legendary in Moses Lake. “When we moved here in the Montlake neighborhood about 20 years ago, we only had a couple of inflatables. This year, we have 75 inflatables, we’ve got 30 walk-through illuminated arches, three-quarters of a mile of extension cords laying out there and close to 15,000 lights. So yeah, it's grown.” ...

Vikings look to gel as season begins

Returning sophomores set foundation as team identity builds

MOSES LAKE — The Big Bend Community College men’s basketball team is looking to improve on its 7-17 finish from a year ago as the 2022-2023 season begins on Friday. With players from all around the country, the team had to wait out the off-season to practice together as a unit. Practices began in mid-September. “The talent’s there,” BBCC Head Coach Mingo Scott said. “The question with all teams is, it’s never about talent, it’s about them coming together and gel. Believe in one another and play together.” Scott, who played at Big Bend from 1991-92 and is in his sixth season at the helm of the program, brings a former player’s mentality to the Vikings...

MLFD honors grade schoolers who spotted fire

MOSES LAKE — The Moses Lake Fire Department honored two elementary school students on Tuesday for their quick thinking in recognizing a house fire early and calling for help. “The Moses Lake Fire Department would like to recognize Johsua and Olive Hardy for quickly recognizing a dangerous situation and letting their parents step in and take action,” said Heidi Merritt, MLFD administrative coordinator, during a regular meeting of the Moses Lake City Council...

Icy roads result in increased accidents

GRANT COUNTY — Icy roads led to a busy day for first responders across Grant County on Tuesday. “Unfortunately, every year on the first day (of icy weather), there's always multiple accidents,” said Grant County Fire District 7 Administrator Josh Chambers. “Now, we don't usually see the fatalities we saw yesterday, but it's always pretty chaotic that first day; people have a hard time adjusting to the icy roads.” Chambers said they responded to two weather-related calls. The first call was a motor vehicle fatality and the second was a medical call because parents did not feel comfortable driving their child to the hospital on the icy roads. While they also responded to a second fatality, they do not believe that one was related to the weather...

ML Council OKs $111.5 million 2023 budget

MOSES LAKE — At a regular meeting on Tuesday, the Moses Lake City Council formally adopted the city’s $111.5 million 2023 budget, including $15 million to build a new police station on North Central Drive. The adopted budget is 33% greater than the $83.6 million the city approved for 2022. “There’s significant support for a new police station,” said City Manager Allison Williams, referring to a summer survey of residents the city conducted. The largest item in the city’s 2023 budget is the general fund, which pays for regular city operations like police and fire protection, administration, parks and recreation, the library and administration. The council approved a general fund budget of $35.1 million, a 13.3% increase from the 2022 budget, including $11.4 million for the Moses Lake Police Department (up 16.6% from 2022), $5.4 million for the Moses Lake Fire Department (up 9.2%) and $7.5 million for parks and recreation (up 3%)...

Knights prep for semifinal clash

ROYAL CITY — Royal Head Coach Wiley Allred said playing in Saturday’s 1A state semifinal playoff game was normal for the Knights. “It’s more the norm than the exception, which is kind of fun,” Allred said. “Credit to the kids, we have been able to do it. We have a set structure and schedule for the week; I think that helps. It’s almost the expectation, that’s what we aim for and hopefully, we can finish this week off.” The No. 1 seed Knights, who have won five of the previous six state titles, now prepare for a matchup against No. 12 Freeman. Even with school closed on Wednesday due to icy weather and Thanksgiving Thursday, players will be focused on the task at hand...

Man arrested after standoff in Grand Coulee

GRAND COULEE - A man is in jail for several charges after a standoff with police Monday evening. According to Grand Coulee Police Chief John Tufts, the incident started about 3:30 p.m. when two bail bondsmen went to a Grand Coulee residence to arrest Christopher Scott Morgan, 38, on a Spokane County warrant...