October 10 - 16, 2019
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Community Newspaper of Blaine and Birch Bay HHHECRWSSHHH Postal Customer
IN THIS
ISSUE
Blaine attorney becomes state bar president, page 5
City to acquire 665 Peace Portal, page 7
New harbor building to feature cannery art, page 15
PRSRT STD U. S. Postage PAID Permit NO. 87 Blaine, WA 98230
B.C. woman’s death at boat launch found to be an accident By Jami Makan An elderly woman from B.C. was found dead in a vehicle that was fully submerged in water at the boat launch in Blaine Harbor. At about 7:20 a.m. on September 29, Blaine police officers responded to a call from boaters who had launched their boat from the public boat launch on Milhollin Drive in Blaine. The boaters had noticed that a vehicle was fully submerged in water underneath their boat, and called the police immediately. An officer responded to the scene and paged a diver from Whatcom County Search and Rescue. The diver arrived on scene, put on his scuba gear and went into the water. The vehicle was four or five feet below the surface of the water, and the diver observed an occupant inside the vehicle. Numerous firefighters and paramedics also arrived at the scene and were prepared to perform life-saving measures. However, it was determined that the safest course of action was for the diver to attach a cable to the submerged vehicle from a tow truck, which then removed the vehicle and its occupant from the water. Once the vehicle was out of the water, paramedics pronounced its occupant deceased at the scene. After the next of kin were notified and an autopsy was conducted, the victim was identified as 87-year-old Eleanor Lenzner of B.C. The autopsy revealed the cause of death to be drowning. “Ms. Lenzner came into the United States by way of the Peace Arch port of entry,” said Blaine police sergeant Michael Munden. “Once she entered Blaine, police believe she became disoriented and ended up driving down the boat launch into Drayton Harbor. It is believed that Ms. Lenzner went into the water at low tide and was unable to get out. At this time, her death is believed to be an accident.” The victim’s son, Jeff Lenzner, contacted The Northern Light to advise that his mother was a retired elementary school teacher who volunteered in her community. (See Boat launch, page 10)
s Kids searched through hay bales for coins and other treasures during the Banner Bank Kids’ Money Hunt, which was part of the second annual Rocktoberfest on October 5 in downtown Blaine. The event also featured pumpkin painting, a cake walk, live music, food vendors and other family-friendly attractions.
Photo courtesy of Jesse Creydt
Birch Bay residents arrested for burglary, theft of firearms By Jami Makan Three Birch Bay residents were recently arrested for their alleged involvement in a burglary that was interrupted by the victim when he returned home from work. On September 16 at about 5:30 p.m., Whatcom County Sheriff’s Office (WCSO) deputies responded to a report of an interrupted burglary at a residence in the 3600 block of Birch Terrace Drive in Custer. The homeowner had arrived home from work and found an unidentified female sitting on his front porch. When he asked her
what she was doing, she responded that she was “waiting for a friend” and then hurried away carrying a duffel bag. The homeowner entered his home and found that it had been ransacked and that numerous items were missing, including four firearms, ammunition, tools, a TV and stereo equipment, as well as clothing. The homeowner immediately called 911 to report the burglary. WCSO deputies arrived and noticed two men sitting in a nearby vehicle. They approached the males and identified them as Joshua Stroud, 38, and Danny Stroud, 39, of Birch
Bay. The men stated that they were visiting a “friend” in the area to buy some wheels. After they denied their involvement in the burglary and their vehicle was inspected and found to be empty, they left the scene. As the deputies continued their investigation, they discovered that three buildings had been broken into on the property: the main residence, a garage and a shed. With the help of a K-9, they also began to discover the missing property that had been stolen. Property was stashed in several locations around the land, including behind the shed, near the front porch and
County health department warns of fentanyl-laced drugs By Oliver Lazenby Due to recent overdose deaths in northwest Washington, Whatcom County health officials issued a warning on October 4 about risks to illicit drug users. “Whatcom County health officials are strongly encouraging people who use illicit drugs to understand the risk for fatal overdoses, especially overdoses from fentanyl,” the county’s press release said. Fentanyl is an opioid that’s up to 100 times more powerful than other opioids,
according to the health department. It is most often seen in pills and white powders, including counterfeit pills that are made to look like prescription drugs. The warning comes during the King County sheriff’s office’s investigations of several overdose deaths since mid-September that it believes are linked to fentanyl. King County health department officials have attributed recent fentanyl-related deaths to teens ingesting counterfeit drugs that they thought were legitimate oxycodone tablets. Several counterfeit pills
in King County overdoses had “M30” stamped on them, the King County sheriff told the Seattle Times. The county health department also urges people to return unused pain medications to a Whatcom Med Return kiosk for safe disposal. There’s a kiosk at the Blaine Police Department and another at Unity Care NW in Ferndale. For more prescription return locations, visit whatcommedreturn.org. For more information, see the county’s press release at bit.ly/33cmSkY.
INSIDE
(See Burglary, page 10)
Letters . . . . . . . . . 4 Sports . . . . . . . . . . 6 Classifieds . . . . . 11 Coming Up . . . . . 14 Police . . . . . . . . . 14 Tides . . . . . . . . . . 14
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