REPORTER
Mercer Island
Serving the Mercer Island Community Serving community Since since 1947 1947
Tons of trash hurt Thrift store
Red sun in the ‘Black Zone’
It’s back to school Tuesday Sept. 2 The big yellow school buses will roll once again through the Island on Tuesday morning, Sept. 2, as a new school year begins. Drivers are asked to be on the lookout for students and families headed to school. The Mercer Island School District reminds drivers to stop when the lights flash and the stop paddle is extended on yellow school buses. It is the law.
YFS shop changes donation policy, cancels remodel plans By Celina Kareiva ckareiva@mi-reporter.com
Jazz at Farmers Market Sunday Jazz Connection will fill the air with music at the Mercer Island Farmers Market between 11 a.m. and 2 p.m., Sunday Aug. 31, at Mercerdale Park. The group features Island physician Edgar Steinitz on saxophone. The ensemble plays Gershwin and favorite jazz standards.
Lifelong Learning classes to begin Osher Lifelong Learning Institute classes begin next week. For more on classes offered and to register, visit: www.osher. uw.edu. See more information on Page 14.
Government offices closed but trash will be picked up Most government offices will be closed on Monday. But trash and recycling will be on schedule. Republic Services will pick up garbage, yard waste and recycling on Labor Day, Monday, Sept. 1. If Monday is your regular collection day, put your carts at the curb as usual. Customers can expect their scheduled collection days to remain the same during this holiday week.
Ross Coyle / Kent Reporter
The sun is swamped as smoke rises hundreds of feet in the air above the town of Winthrop last week as fires — and now floods, continue to create havoc and misery in North Central Washington.
On the front line of a stubborn wildfire A newspaper reporter who is a medic with the Washington National Guard describes days in the ‘black zone’ By Ross Coyle
Kent Reporter / Sound Publishing, Inc.
Through a series of interesting circumstances, I found myself sitting in a military Humveeambulance on the black zone of the Carlton Complex Fire. Widely hyped as the largest wildfire in state history, the complex demanded the National Guard's activation – the first time
in 20 years – to assist with digging fire lines, medical and logistical support. While hearing about the manpower and logistics necessary to help fight a wildfire is one thing, seeing it in person is an eye-opening experience. From the training we received to the sheer size of the incident command center, it was amazing to see how many resources could be mobilized in such a quick timeframe. My unit, C-Co/181 Brigade Support Battalion, volunteered eight medics to the cities of Omak and Okanogan to help with the fire's eastern region. To serve on fire crews, a wildland firefighter earns his red card, a certification that proves
he has completed training. The National Guard pushed 300 soldiers through this training in four days to get them ready for firefighting, myself and seven other medics included. Training included fire behavior and equipment usage, as well as fire shelter training. The emergency shelters were particularly hard to stomach for some soldiers. One incredulous soldier, looking at the shelter, exclaimed "that's supposed to save my (expletive) life?" The six-foot-long, two-foothigh aluminum covers are designed to be deployed if fire crews are surrounded by a fire. They’re claustrophobic and can reach temperatures of 500 degrees if they’re actually used. The odds of surviving in one of the shelters comes out to about 50/50, but it’s better to use it and die then die and not try. As medics, we received little
The Mercer Island Thrift Shop is changing its donation guidelines, aligning them with other similar businesses like Goodwill, to accept only items that can be sold in-house or in bulk to other recycle markets. What seems like a minor tweak to store policy could in fact save the Thrift Shop lots of money. Already, the Thrift Shop contributes about $750,000 annually to the Youth and Family Services (YFS) budget, money that goes toward programs ranging from mental health counseling to drug and alcohol prevention. Youth
Trash | Page 9
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WIldfire | Page 3
A New PArtNershiP is Formed
Betty DeLaurenti, John L. Scott Real Estate Mercer Island Top Producer for 22 years, is pleased to welcome Martin Weiss as her business partner. Martin brings his knowledge of real estate, finance and customer service to her 30 years of trusted experience. Together Betty and Martin look forward to providing both insight and innovation while meeting all of your real estate needs.
Martin Weiss • 425.417.9595 martinweiss@johnlscott.com
Betty deLaurenti • 206.949.1222 bettyd@johnlscott.com