Examiner Haunting of Coupeville all month long
The Whidbey
www.whidbeyexaminer.com
Thursday, October 2, 2014
50¢
Haunted happenings
VOL. 20, NO. 8
Broken bolts temporarily shut down Coupeville ferry routes By Megan Hansen Co-Editor
Megan Hansen photo
Later this month, the corn maze at Engle Farm will be filled with all kinds of spooky personalities thanks to the Coupeville High School Drama Troupe. The haunted maze will run 5-8 p.m. Oct. 17-19, Oct. 24-26 and Oct. 31.
Community rallies for October fun By Megan Hansen Co-Editor
Not many people would want their dreams to become reality around a spooky holiday like Halloween. They might just be nightmares. But for Coupeville Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Linda Eccles, she’s ecstatic to see her Halloween dreams of ghosts and goblins come to fruition. Eccles dreamed of having a communitywide event, and with the help of local businessman Matt Iverson and others, the Haunting of Coupeville is coming alive this month. “So many people are just getting involved and enjoying the whole thing,” Eccles said. “It’s really exciting to see.” The haunting will feature events and activities all month long — from corn mazes and pumpkin patches to parades and haunted houses. The town has always hosted a scarecrow corridor and Sherman Farms has always done a pumpkin patch. Eccles said she was brainstorming ideas on ways to expand on that.
More details inside — Pumpkin patch — Corn maze — Great Pumpkin Race — Scarecrow Corridor — Events calendar That’s when Iverson came up with the idea of having a corn maze at Engle Farm and the ideas just started pouring in. “It was great how everything came together,” Eccles said. “Matt’s really been the driving force.” And help is coming from all corners of the community. The Coupeville Historic Waterfront Association is hosting multiple events including pumpkin races and a carved pumpkin contest. Crocket Farm is hosting a Halloween dance and Haunted Barn. The art school will host pumpkin painting and the library is holding a costumed pet
parade. The Coupeville Boys and Girls Club is hosting a costume 5K run. Members and groups from all over the community are getting involved. Students from Coupeville High School’s wood shop class helped cut out directional scarecrow signs and tombstones. The high school drama troupe will be haunting the corn maze at night. Students are getting excited about the haunting and coming up with ideas for characters and playing with stage makeup. Drama troupe advisor Peg Tennant said
See Haunting, page 20
The Coupeville ferry was temporarily out of service last Thursday after crews found broken terminal equipment. Washington State Ferries spokeswoman Marta Coursey said around 10:30 a.m. crews discovered movement in the transfer span and apron at the terminal. The transfer span is the part of the terminal that cars drive over to board the vessel. “Crews immediately launched a rescue boat, which found several bolts connecting the apron hinge were sheared off or broken,” she said. The terminal was shut down for several hours, resuming limited service at 1:15 p.m. Vehicle weight restrictions were limited to 32,000 pounds and loading and unloading was limited to single-lane travel. During the closure, ferries missed eight sailings between 10:15 a.m. and 12:30 p.m. “Overnight temporary repairs were made to the transfer span, restoring full, two-lane loading without weight restrictions,” Coursey said Friday. The temporary repairs consisted of crews reinforcing the hinges with bolts. A draft to make permanent repairs is currently in the works. “The plan will be reviewed and implemented as soon as possible,” Coursey said. “In the meantime, Washington State Ferries is confident the temporary repairs will allow full access from Coupeville without weight or loading restrictions.” Terminal staff have a system in place for checking the terminal every week. Coursey said they will ensure extra diligence in reviewing the checks and balances in place on the apron mechanism.