‘Sticks’ that respect the fish – and the flavor, D1
Lotz of luck Silvertips head to season opener sans star goalie, C1 WEDNESDAY, 09.17.2014
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Problems still plague 787 Back Assembly lines were slowed; workers say program is behind
pay bills: $2.5M Three cities expected the invoices sent by Fire District 1 for retroactive raises for its employees, but didn’t expect the cost to be so substantial. By Sharon Salyer Herald Writer
Construction expect that landscaping will be the only major work remaining along the rebuilt roadway. The grove will belong to Oso, to the survivors of the slide and to the families who lost loved ones.
EDMONDS — The cities of Edmonds, Mountlake Terrace and Brier have been hit with unexpected bills totaling $2.5 million from Fire District 1 to pay for retroactive pay raises for its employees for the past two years. Edmonds got the biggest bill, $1.67 million. Although the city was expecting to eventually get a bill for the back pay, “we were definitely taken aback at the size of the bill,” said Mayor Dave Earling. Mountlake Terrace was billed $661,318. Arlene Fisher, the city manager, said that Fire District 1 officials understand “it’s a significant amount of money for any city, regardless of how big or small your budget is.” Brier has been billed $256,240. Mayor Bob Colinas said that his city expected, and budgeted for, an increase but “we weren’t anticipating that much of an increase.” All three cities contract with the fire district to provide fire and paramedic services. “I think in the weeks to come, we’re going to be reviewing some details from Fire District 1 related to this invoice,” he said. All three cities contract with the fire district to provide fire and paramedic services. Edmonds Mayor Earling said his city, too, is asking for a breakout of the costs. “We just want to get all the information we can,” he said. “We’re trying to work with them.” Earling said the bill would have an impact on the 2015 Edmonds budget, but it’s too early to know what changes might be needed. The wage issue for the fire
See TREES, back page, this section
See PAY, back page, this section
By Dan Catchpole Herald Writer
EVERETT — Untimely work and substandard supplier components continue to be a drag on Boeing’s 787 Dreamliner program, say factory workers and others familiar with the production process. The problems prompted the aerospace giant last month to slow the two 787 assembly lines at Paine Field. From midAugust until early September, no new airplanes rolled out of the
factory. Meanwhile, an unusual number of 787s were parked on the Boeing flight line and in other areas of the airport. The slowdown was part of a production-rate plan drafted two years ago, and that production is getting smoother, said Debbie Heathers, a spokeswoman for the Dreamliner program. “We know that changing a program’s rate can result in disruption, and we scheduled time to address this.” Boeing increased 787 production to 10 planes a month at
the beginning of the year. The monthly workload is roughly split with seven planes rolling out of the factory here and three produced by Boeing’s plant in North Charleston, South Carolina. Most months this year, eight 787s were started on assembly lines in Everett. In North Charleston, work was begun on an average of 2.6 planes per month. But in August, the two plants “loaded” a total of seven planes on the assembly lines — three in
South Carolina and only four in Everett. No airplanes were loaded on the Everett assembly lines during the second half of August, according to several sources in the factory. The production rate appears to have returned to normal in September. During August, 787 workers had to work 10- and 12-hour days and on Saturdays, several workers said, to fix problems. Overtime in Boeing factories is See 787, Page A2
OSO MUDSLIDE
43 trees to honor those killed in disaster They will be part of the new stretch of Highway 530, which is expected to be completed weeks ahead of schedule. Herald Writer
OSO — Forty-three trees are to be planted in a small grove east of Steelhead Drive.
They’re hardy evergreens that grow well in Pacific Northwest soil — vibrant even in the muddy, rainy season. The trees will honor the 43 people who died in the Oso
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the buzz
By Kari Bray
VOL. 114, NO. 219 © 2014 THE DAILY HERALD CO.
INSIDE
Business . . . .A13 Classified . . . . B1
Comics . . . . . .D4 Crossword . . .D4
mudslide six months ago. They are among the finishing touches on a new stretch of state Highway 530 through the site of the March 22 mudslide. Road construction is wrapping up weeks ahead of schedule. By the end of the month, the state Department of Transportation and contractor Guy F. Atkinson
Primitive as can be Not a single luxury — even “Meet the Press”: An upcoming reality show on Discovery takes two U.S. senators, one a conservative Republican, the other a liberal Democrat, and maroons them on a remote South Pacific island (Short Takes, Page D6). Dear Abby. . . .D5 Good Life . . . .D1
The senators say they hope the show inspires their colleagues to work together and get things done — which could happen, if Congress decides to devote itself to fashioning loincloths from palm fronds. It’s a beautiful day, we’re giving this record away: Apple has released a tool
Horoscope . . . B6 Lottery . . . . . .A2
Obituaries. . . .A6 Opinion. . . . .A15
that lets you remove the new U2 album that was sneakily inserted, spam-like, into about 500 million iTunes music libraries (Business Briefly, Page A13. For a review of the album, see Page D6). The Irish supergroup was widely criticized for the move, but the Association of Low-Cost Viagra Sellers Sports . . . . . . . C1 Short Takes . . .D6
plans to give them a special citation for outstanding achievement. Too easy: A fast-moving wildfire has destroyed about 100 structures in the Northern California town of Weed (Page A12). You may insert your own “smoking Weed” joke here.
— Mark Carlson, Herald staff
Muddled 72/58, C6
DAILY
MARK MULLIGAN / THE HERALD
Boeing 787 Dreamliners sit on the flight line at Paine Field in Everett on Monday.
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