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Community Newspaper of Blaine and Birch Bay
June 17 - 23, 2021
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IN THIS
ISSUE
Blaine City Council candidates, page 5
Southwest sets BLI flights, page 5
PRSRT STD U. S. Postage PAID Permit NO. 87 Blaine, WA 98230
Covid-19 rates very low among vaccinated, page 13
Blaine graduates move their tassel
21
26 th
Semiahmoo golfers to play 90 holes in one day for Alzheimer’s Association By Ian Haupt
(See Golf, page 6)
s Blaine High School class of 2021 graduates moved their tassels to the left in a June 11 outdoor graduation at Blaine High School. Photo by Ian Haupt
NTSB releases report on Custer train derailment By Grace McCarthy A report issued on June 10 by the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) examines how the tank cars were operated during last December’s train derailment. The report does not determine probable cause of the derailment, and the FBI and Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) are left to conclude their investigations. The report comes after Seattle’s National Public Radio station affiliate KUOW published a June 7 article with documents obtained from union officials representing
BNSF’s rail crews that alleged the incident was sabotage. A 106-car train en route to Ferndale derailed around 11:40 a.m. December 22, 2020, forcing evacuations within a halfmile radius of the 7500 block of Portal Way. Ten tank cars carrying highly flammable crude oil derailed, with three of the cars releasing 29,000 gallons of petroleum, according to the NTSB report. However, the Washington State Department of Ecology reported in January that most of the oil was recovered, except for 5,400 to 8,000 gallons.
New taphouse coming to downtown Blaine By Grace McCarthy An innovative part taphouse, part escape room is coming to the cornerstone of downtown Blaine this fall. With Gateway 1890 Taphouse Seafood & Grill in the works, Rustic Fork owners Gary and Kristen Slavin are bringing family-friendly entertainment to the former Rawganique building at 428 Peace Portal Drive. Gary said he wanted the taphouse to be connected to Blaine, with “gateway” re-
ferring to Blaine as the door to the Pacific Northwest and “1890” referring to the year Blaine was incorporated. Murals with historical images of Blaine, Birch Bay and Semiahmoo will remind people of Blaine’s history, while an orange-and-black color scheme will tie the taphouse into present day Borderite pride. “I want to bring back the feel of what Blaine used to be like,” said Gary, who grew up visiting Birch Bay and Blaine. Gary said he decided to open a taphouse in Blaine because of the lack of taphous-
es in north Whatcom County. All beers will cost $7 and be brewed along the West Coast, from Seattle to California. The taphouse will also serve wine for around $5 that can be paired with a charcuterie board or dessert. “It’s an opportunity to bring different craft beers down the coast,” Slavin said. “Instead of driving 20 minutes to Bellingham, people can try a brewery from six to seven hours away.” (See Gateway, page 3)
Fires burned uncontrolled for two hours as 120 people evacuated surrounding homes and businesses. Although there were no injuries, the NTSB report says BNSF estimated damages to surpass $1.5 million. A Bonneville Power Administration Custer substation security camera showed the train move forward, split in two, according to the report. The report outlines that the train became separated between (See Train, page 3)
INSIDE
A Semiahmoo Golf and Country Club golf pro, staff and members have committed to playing 90 holes of golf Monday, June 21 for The Longest Day, a fundraising event to advance the care, support and research of the Alzheimer’s Association. Golf pro Jeff Mehlert said, based on donations, the team is committed to playing 90 holes right now, but might play 100 if they make it to $10,000. “We might play 100 anyway.” Lucas Burzycki, Shaun Richmond, Noah Voges, Steve Ghysels and Mehlert will start playing at sunrise the day after summer solstice and continue throughout the day until they’ve completed five rounds at the Semiahmoo Golf and Country Club for Alzheimer’s caregivers. One or more of their holes can be sponsored with a $25 per hole donation. With over $7,200 already raised, the team has quadrupled its original donation goal of $1,800, according to the donation page. “It’s super cool and encouraging,” Mehlert said about people’s response to a benefit that happened serendipitously. One of the golfers met a Longest Day event organizer, Mehlert said, while retrieving a mishit ball from the organizer’s yard. The group already had plans to play a
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