Moonlight Paddle seeks volunteers

Soap Lake holds traditional

SOAP LAKE – The waters of Soap Lake will be lit up on Aug. 13 for the Moonlight Paddle, where residents decorate their water vessels to as far as their imagination yields. “The Moonlight Paddle has been going on for many years, and we always do it with the full moon in August,” Soap Lake Chamber of Commerce President Cindi Rang said. The Moonlight Paddle features a race earlier in the day, before a free ride later in the evening and into night. Their non-motorized vessels are decorated with features that help them glow in the dark, with prizes to those deemed the best decorated. “We have a contest with prizes for the funniest, the most colorful, the best theme,” Rang said. “Almost everybody wins a prize in some category. The most use of lights, the loudest.” ...

Ephrata's Tuesday Night Tennis League continues on

Players raising money for EHS Tennis

EPHRATA – For the previous three Tuesday evenings, the tennis courts have been filled with tennis players enrolled in the Tuesday Night Tennis League. The league, now in its third year, is made up of players of all ages, with the proceeds going toward the Ephrata tennis programs. “We’re like $100 away,” Ephrata Boys Tennis Head Coach Ayla Ecalbarger said of how far the league is from their fundraiser goal...

Othello births for July 2022

Othello Community Hospital shared the following birth announcements with the Columbia Basin herald for late June and early July...

StoryCorps stops in Soap Lake

Group works to preserve the local voices of small town history

SOAP LAKE - In between recording sessions in Moses Lake in July, StoryCorps made a two-day detour to Soap Lake on July 24 and 25.

Warden boosters bring in football players for camp

WARDEN – The Warden High School football field will be full of players Thursday and Friday, as part of the mini football camp hosted by the team’s booster club.

Lake Wenatchee and Wenatchee River to open for sockeye fishing amid strong returns

WENATCHEE – Amid a record return of sockeye salmon to the Columbia River, fishery managers in Washington’s North Central region announced that sockeye fishing will open on Lake Wenatchee and the Wenatchee River.

GCSO Motor Traffic Unit

EPHRATA - The motor traffic unit investigates traffic collisions involving fatalities and serious injuries, as well as being in charge of traffic enforcement and traffic safety education.

November options narrowed after primaries

Unofficial county election results as of Aug.2

COLUMBIA BASIN - While Grant and Adams county voters had plenty of options in the Aug. 2 primary, the point of the August ballot is to narrow down options in November to no more than two candidates for each race. The results posted below are unofficial and do not include all ballots. Mail-in ballots or ballots with signature issues needing to be rectified before they are counted are not included. Results of the primaries are expected to be certified by Aug. 16 at the county level and Aug. 19 at the state level, according to the Washington Secretary of State’s website. Only contested races are included below and additional coverage will be provided as ballot totals are finalized...

Vantage Highway fire causes haze, threatens 40 structures

Blaze impacts about 8,000 acres so far

VANTAGE - A fire is burning on the western side of the Columbia River north of Vantage along the Vantage Highway, leading to the mobilization of state resources to combat the roughly 10,500-acre blaze which threatened about 40 structures Monday. “We have resources from all across the state because this is a state mobilization fire now,” said Grace DeBusschere, public information officer with Kittitas Fire District 7. “We have (Washington State Department of Natural Resources) ground resources from all across the state. We have local fire district resources and mutual aid partners.” A small amount of Bureau of Land Management land is also involved in the fire, so BLM staff are on hand to assist as well, along with Department of Fish and Wildlife responders. The state mobilization order, authorized by Washington State Patrol Chief John Batiste at the request of Kittitas County District 4 Fire Chief William Rose, allows those additional resources to respond to the fire, DeBusschere said. Efforts to contain the blaze, which caused a haze of smoke across much of northern Grant and Kittitas counties, include aerial firefighting apparatus such as planes and helicopters. Boats with first responders aboard could also be seen from the Frenchman Coulee area moving around the area impacted by the fire, which she said was spreading in a northerly direction as of Monday at about 2 p.m. No cause has been identified for the fire at this time; however, it is thought to have started around 1 p.m. Monday. The fire caused the evacuation of the city of Vantage, along I-90 on the east end of the bridge over the Columbia River. No injuries or structure losses have been reported at this time, DeBusshere said...

Fire near Ephrata quickly brought under control

EPHRATA - A fire early Tuesday morning burned about 100 acres of federal land just outside of Ephrata between Road A and Drumheller Road, according to first responders. Grant County Fire District 13 Chief Jim Stucky said the fire was reported about 2 a.m. from an address off of Road A NW. Stucky said the fire was brought under control by about 4:30 a.m. and that there were no injuries or damages to power lines...

Judge hits 43rd HR, Yanks beat Ms 7-2

NEW YORK (AP) — Aaron Judge hit his major league-leading 43rd home run, Jose Trevino had his first multihomer game and the New York Yankees beat the Seattle Mariners 7-2 Monday night in a series opener between teams bulking up for the postseason.

Seahawks coach Pete Carroll tests positive for COVID-19

RENTON, Wash. (AP) — Seattle Seahawks coach Pete Carroll has tested positive for COVID-19, the team announced on Monday.

Basin seniors calendar for August 2022

Ephrata: Lunch at the senior center Join community members each weekday at noon at the Ephrata Senior Center at 124 C Street NW in Ephrata. Lunch comes with a hot entree, salads, veggies, a starch and homemade desserts. Refreshments are included. Meals are $7 for members and $8 for nonmembers. Dinners are also available but reservations are encouraged. Contact the center by calling 509-754-2382. Defensive Driving Course Contact the senior center at 509-754-2382 to sign up for a defensive driving class. The Evergreen Safety Council course is six hours long and can help seniors qualify for a discount on their automobile insurance, if their insurance provider participates in the program. (Call your insurance provider to ask if they participate.) Exercise classes Join instructor Terry Troutman for beginners yoga each Tuesday at the senior center. Register online by clicking the Center link at the top of the Ephrata Senior Center website at ephrataseniorcenter.org. Classes are $22 per month or $8.50 per drop-in session. The Ephrata Senior Center also offers Stay Active & Independent for Life - SAIL - classes at no cost 2-3 times per week. Go thrifting! The Ephrata Senior Center operates a senior thrift shop. The shop offers a wide variety of products and is open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Wednesday through Friday of each week. Contact the shop, located at 604 Basin Street NW at 509-754-9605.

Cougars MBB to play in quadruple-header

PULLMAN – The Washington State Cougars will travel to Dallas in December to take part in the second-annual Pac-12 US LBM Coast-to-Coast Challenge, the conference announced on Monday. The Cougars will face off against Baylor on December 18 at the American Airlines Center, with tip-off tentatively scheduled for 7 p.m. The last time the two teams met was at the 2010 Diamond Head Classic in Honolulu, where the Cougars defeated the Bears 77-71. WSU holds a 3-1 advantage in all-time meetings against Baylor, their only defeat being a 58-52 loss in 2008 in Pullman. "Playing Baylor this season gives us an incredible opportunity to see where our program rates against one of the best programs in the country," Washington State Head Coach Kyle Smith said. "Baylor has championship DNA and NBA talent all over their roster. It's a testament to the growth of our program that we are even considered for the event."

WBA tournament casts in the Basin

OTHELLO – The Washington Bass Association, composed of members from around the state, met at Potholes reservoir this weekend for their Team Club Tournament on Potholes. “It’s just for those in the WBA,” WBA President PJ Koshi said. “It’s a club tournament only.” The tournament was organized in a way that gives anglers a rest during the day. “We’re doing a slightly different format, something we have done in the past,” Koshi said. “This time on Saturday we’re having a siesta in the middle of the day.” Koshi said that the decision to include a break in the middle of the day was done for many factors, with the main being travel. “The travel factor for us,” Koshi said of the decision. “We’re a Western Washington-based group, so we’re going to be going over there camping and when you’re camping at Potholes, you’re not really there to do a whole lot else.” Fishing was divided into sections from dawn on Saturday morning to 11:30 a.m., then back out at 4:30 p.m. until 8 p.m. on Saturday evening. Fishing continued on Sunday from dawn until 1 p.m. Each session had a fish limit, with five in the first session, three in the second session and five again in the third session...

Race for Life coming to Moses Lake

BMX riders work to kick cancer's backside

MOSES LAKE – Moses Lake BMX will be hosting its annual Race for Life on Friday, raising money for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. “This is annual, we do it every year,” Moses Lake BMX Communications Director Bethany Beck said. “All the Moses Lake riders have the opportunity to each individually raise money that goes to the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society.” The Race for Life Series began in 1981 after Todd Kingsbury from Michigan discovered he had Leukemia. Once learning of the diagnosis, his friends and the American Bicycle Association began the Race for Life event. Riders do their own fundraising online and pool the money in together, with rewards given to those who reach certain fundraising tiers. According to the USA BMX Foundation, those who raise from $50 to $299.99 will receive a shirt and wristband, from $300 to $499.99 will receive a jacket and over $500 will receive a free entry fee to the 2022 Grand Nationals. “We have several riders who have already hit a couple hundred bucks already,” Beck said...

Allegations against former SLSD super unfounded

Accusations of inappropriate sexual relations unproven

SOAP LAKE — The investigation into the alleged misconduct of former Soap Lake School District Superintendent Sunshine Pray – which was conducted by Clear Risk Solutions – has been released and states that the allegations were unfounded. Four main allegations were made against Pray in the two separate documents. The four allegations were that Pray had sex with a student, that Pray had an inappropriate relationship with a former student, that Pray had a romantic relationship with a subordinate teacher and that Pray had a romantic relationship with a school board member. Each document states that investigator Tony Zeman would not make conclusions about policy violations but each conclusion did state that each allegation was unfounded. Each allegation was also denied by Pray and also denied by all but one of those she was accused of having inappropriate relationships with...

Moses Lake and partners put on play to promote water education

'Yarely' will hit the stage this Saturday

MOSES LAKE - “Yarely,” a musical play, free for the public, will come to McCosh Park Saturday. “It’s a drama with a message,” said Mike Riggs who is a part of the musical side of the play. The hunt for Yarely is put on through a partnership between Grant County Conservation District, the City of Moses Lake, the Moses Lake Watershed Council, and Columbia Basin Allied Arts, with additional financial support from Cascade Marina. According to the Moses Lake Watershed Council’s website, the play is about how different organizations are tackling harmful algae blooms in Moses Lake – and what the public can do to help make a difference. Riggs said everyone is affected by the toxic blue green algae in Moses Lake and that he thinks this play will be beneficial for people to learn more about it. The play will be held at Centennial Amphitheater in McCosh Park on Aug. 6 during the farmers market at 9:30 a.m. and 11 a.m. The poster for the event states it features local writers, actors, and musicians. Some of those include Emily Katlyn Duvall, Jeff Ames, Zoe Sterner, Nathaniel Stuart, directed by Ron Sawyer along with live music from Swing Shift. Rebecca Pettingill may be reached at [email protected].

Ephrata man killed in collision near Coulee City

COULEE CITY — An Ephrata man was killed when he hit the back of a car while riding his motorcycle Sunday morning. Dennis Armour, 68, died at Confluence Health-Central Washington Hospital Sunday, according to a press memo from the Washington State Patrol. The collision occurred at about 9 a.m. roughly nine miles southwest of Coulee City. Armour was following a car driven by Ashley Offer, 39, Renton, when Offer slowed down to turn into the Blue Lake rest area, the WSP memo said. Armour ran into the back of Offer’s vehicle; his motorcycle came to rest on the northbound shoulder. Offer’s car came to rest in the northbound lane. Offer and two passengers in her car, Steven Horner, 37, Renton and a six-year-old boy, were not injured.

Former Moses Lake nurse sentenced for morphine theft

SPOKANE — A Moses Lake woman was sentenced to 18 months in federal prison after she was convicted of tampering with medications while on the job as a registered nurse. Esther Ray Tuller, 41, was convicted of taking morphine from the supply at Confluence Health-Moses Lake Clinic and using the substance herself between August 2019 and April 2020, according to a press release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Eastern District of Washington. “Tuller used syringes to remove morphine from at least 17 vials, and then ingested the morphine as part of her own opioid addiction,” according to a press release from the USAO. “She then replaced the morphine with a saline solution, and attempted to glue the caps back onto the vials to make them appear intact.” At least one Confluence Health patient had to seek emergency treatment after receiving one of the vials Tuller had emptied and refilled with saline solution, the press release said. The case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration Diversion Group and the Food and Drug Administration Office of Criminal Investigation.