Head to Darrington for the music, memories A&E
FRIDAY, 07.17.2015
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EVERETT, WASHINGTON
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WWW.HERALDNET.COM
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75¢ (HIGHER IN OUTLYING AREAS)
Ice caves’ future uncertain Access to area blocked as officials consider options following death
$39.3M targeted for Hwy. 531 work Money will be used to widen a 1 ½-mile stretch in Smokey Point that has experienced rapid growth in the past 20 years. By Kari Bray Herald Writer
community meetings have not yet been scheduled. For now, the caves remain closed with a barricade in front of a bridge on the trail and rangers assigned to turn people away. Two people caught in the cave collapse remain in a Seattle hospital, including David Santana, 25, whose sister, Annalisa Santana, 34, died July 7. He’s still listed in critical condition in the intensive care unit. U.S. Forest Service officials say they are gathering information about the tragedy with plans of consulting scientists. This week, they are reviewing what happened and meeting with Snohomish
ARLINGTON — The busy stretch of Highway 531 near the city’s airport and industrial park is set to get an update local leaders and business owners have been seeking for 20 years. That’s thanks to $39.3 million being included in this year’s state transportation package, signed by the governor this week. The money will pay to widen a mileand-a-half segment of Highway 531, also known as 172nd Street Northeast. The road branches off Highway 9 and cuts through Smokey Point, connecting the Arlington Airport, industrial park, commercial centers and residential neighborhoods to each other and to I-5. The area grew up quickly over the past two decades, adding new businesses with hundreds of employees and new shopping centers with steady streams of customers. The size of the road, though, didn’t keep pace. “It’s the key corridor that carries people from our industrial businesses behind the airport to I-5,” Arlington Mayor Barbara Tolbert said. The road narrows to two lanes at 43rd Avenue Northeast, just as it reaches the city’s industrial heart. There’s no middle turn lane, no sidewalks and minimal shoulder space, Tolbert said. That makes the route dangerous and can slow traffic to a crawl during peak commuting hours.
See CAVES, Page A2
See HIGHWAY, Page A5
PHOTOS BY MARK MULLIGAN / THE HERALD
Terry Haber, of Mountlake Terrace, shows her granddaughter, Krystina Person, 8, where the Big Four Ice Caves have been closed at the location where the ice caves trail is blocked at the bridge over the South Fork Stillaguamish River on Thursday afternoon. The family is camping in Verlot over the weekend, and they had not visited the ice caves in years. They turned around where the trail was closed and headed back to the parking lot and picnic area, which are still open to the public.
By Eric Stevick Herald Writer
A sign along the ice caves trail warns of avalanche danger and notes that the trail is closed at the South Fork Stillaguamish River.
VERLOT — In the 10 days since the Big Four Mountain Ice Caves collapsed and killed a California woman and injured five others, people have been left to wonder what the future holds for the popular yet dangerous hiking destination. The U.S. Forest Service can expect an earful of advice. Some want to make sure the ice caves remain open. Some want them closed. Others have ideas about limiting access, seasonal fencing and more forceful warning signs. They are planning to gather public comment but
Summit’s goal: Improve health, quality of life Herald Writer
the buzz
EVERETT — Hundreds of leaders in medicine, business, government and social services plan to gather next week to kick off an initiative that could reshape the way health care is viewed and practiced in Snohomish County. The Edge of Amazing
Community Health Summit is a sold-out daylong event Thursday that includes talks and panel discussions designed to get more organizations working together on initiatives to help improve the health and quality of life of everyone in the county. The event at Xfinity Arena marks the official launch of the Providence Institute for a Healthier Community and the
Brown boxes But no stampedes at store entrances: Amazon. com says it sold more stuff during its Prime Day event Wednesday than on last year’s Black Friday, despite complaints on social media that the products on offer were less than scintillating (Page A9) Top brass at the Seattlebased company say they’ll
definitely do Prime Day again. It’s a good thing Amazon’s not a brickand-mortar store, because we’d hate to see stampedes for doorbuster deals on Tupperware, shoe horns and dietary supplements. Surfing the vast cultural wasteland: “American Idol” host Ryan Seacrest’s got a new show in which he knocks on the doors of
Snohomish County Health Leadership Coalition’s “LiveHealthy 2020” initiative. The timing is ripe for a rethink because health care costs are still rising nationally, turning into an economic and moral problem in addition to a medical one. “Medical care alone cannot substantially improve our community’s health a lot beyond where it is today; clinicians
ordinary Americans, who can then win prizes, meet celebrities or have a dream come true (Short Takes, Page D6). Not sure which celebrities we’d want to meet, but The Buzz’ dream come true would definitely be to say “Hey Seacrest, get off my lawn.” Don’t know much about history: On this
understand this,” said Scott Forslund, the director of the leadership coalition and a senior director of the Providence Institute, which is based at Providence Regional Medical Center Everett. Research done so far has indicated that just improving healthy habits among the population could cut medical costs anywhere from 20 percent for diabetes and mental disorders to 50 percent for
day in 1917, the British royal family adopted the surname Windsor, replacing the German names Saxe-Coburg and Gotha (Today in History, Page D6). While certainly awkward during wartime, the German names would have gone well with Prince Harry’s infamous Nazi costume.
— Mark Carlson, Herald staff
heart disease, he said. “It is social determinants, such as stable housing, income, education, social connectedness, these kinds of attributes predict about 50 percent of how long people will live and the quality of their life,” Forslund said. The ultimate goal is to develop initiatives that affect people’s See HEALTH, Page A5
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