The year 2022 in review

RITZVILLE — Last year, 2022, was chock full of news. Here’s a look back at top stories from each month:

January

Hospital suspends visitation

Ritzville — Citing increased coronavirus cases, East Adams Rural Healthcare is prohibiting patients from having visitors at its 903 S. Adams St. hospital and clinics.

The prohibition on visitors comes as Gov. Jay Inslee halts all non-emergent surgeries and medical procedures at hospitals in Washington state. It’s the third time the governor has ordered a halt to all non-emergency surgeries since declaring a statewide emergency Feb. 29, 2020

February

Two dead in crash near Ralston

RALSTON – Two people were killed in a head-on crash on state Highway 261 Wednesday evening between Washtucna and Ritzville.

John M. Gielisch, 65, of Ritzville, and Edward D. Bartlett, 63, of Yelm, were pronounced dead after the 6:24 p.m. crash near Milepost 54, north of Ralston, the Washington State Patrol reported.

Gielisch was northbound in a 1992 Ford Explorer when he crossed the center line and hit the southbound 2020 GMC Terrain, driven by Bartlett, the patrol reported. The impact sent the Terrain into the ditch and the Explorer stopped in the center of the highway, prompting its closure for several hours.

March

Housing development under consideration

Ritzville – A Western Washington Company is considering a plan to build a new housing development near Weber Road.

Windsor Engineers of Vancouver is considering the development on 40 acres within city limits, officials said. The land – currently in agricultural use and owned by the Galbreath family – is a triangle-shaped parcel north of Weber and east of First Avenue.

According to Travis Tormanen, a partner at Windsor Engineers, the land is being studied for a possible housing development to address a shortage of places to live in the area.

April

Sheriff’s Office gets armored vehicle

The Adams County Sheriff’s Office has received an armored vehicle provided by the U.S. military. The 14-18-ton vehicle known as an MRAP, short for mine-resistant ambush protected, is designed to withstand explosive attacks and ambushes. They were used extensively during the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, and are now being acquired by law enforcement agencies for use in the US.

Attorney puts ‘teeth’ in ordinance

RITZVILLE – The City Council discussed amending the nuisance ordinance of the city code during its April 19 meeting. The ordinance applies to unsightly or unsanitary conditions on property within the city.

Some council members and Mayor Linda Kadlec believe the existing ordinance does not have enough “teeth,” they said, particularly when it comes to abatement of infractions after a show cause hearing. City Attorney John Kragt, who is also the city attorney for Colfax, has been working on the updates including proposed changes to the handling of abatement costs.

Under proposed changes, the city would be able take action to clean up the property and bill the person responsible for the violation. The charges are due in 30 days, under the proposal. If payment is not received, the city would have the option of using a collection agency.

May

Weapons offense leads to arrest

Washtucna – A Spokane couple is facing weapons and other charges after an incident in the 400 block of South Main Street on Monday, April 25.

Armando A. Reed, 44, and Angel M. Stella, 27, were booked into the Adams County Jail.

Reed is charged with unlawful possession of a firearm, aiming or discharging a firearm or dangerous weapon, felony harassment-threats to kill, criminal impersonation, tampering with physical evidence and making false/misleading statements to law enforcement officers, records show.

Stella is facing possible charges of second-degree rendering criminal assistance, making false/misleading statements to law enforcement officers and tampering with physical evidence, records show.

NE2B track championships decided

COLFAX - Both the boys and girls Lind-Ritzville/Sprague/Washtucna track teams finished eighth at the Northeast 2B League Championship on Tuesday, May 3, at Colfax High School.

Ten boys and girls teams competed. Davenport won the boys meet, while St George’s (Spokane) won the girls meet.

The Broncos’ girls 4x100 relay team of Emmy Klewin, Myra Miller, Sydney Kinch and Claire Wellsandt placed 2nd in the race with a time of 57.71, losing by just over a second to the team from Colfax.

June

Two Bronco girls win championships

CHENEY – Two Lind-Ritzville athletes brought home state titles Saturday from the culminating 1B/2B/1A track and field meet at Eastern Washington University.

Junior Myra Miller won the state 2B girls discus championship May 27. Meanwhile, senior Sydney Kinch won the girls pole vault. Miller won with a personal best throw of 125-05, beating out Lexi Lafferty of Okanogan by 1 foot 4 inches. Kinch won the 2B girls pole vault championship, clearing 10-00.00; Alana Ross of Kalama was second with a height of 9-09.00.

July

Lind ag pilot killed in plane crash

LIND – An experienced local crop-dusting pilot was killed in a plane crash Saturday, July 2.

Pilot Gavin Morse, 38, of Lind, was pronounced dead at the scene in a field west of town, the Washington State Patrol reported. There were no other occupants on board.

Lind Fire, EMS and Adams County Sheriff’s Office deputies responded to the 300 block of Lind-Warden Road, near the North Roxboro Road intersection, after receiving reports of a downed plane there about 5 p.m., records show.

The aircraft, an Air Tractor AT602 agricultural plane, was registered to Gemtrek LLC, a Warden-based company co-owned by the deceased and his wife, Erin Morse.

Morse has been a commercial agricultural pilot since 2007.

August

Fire sweeps south of Lind

LIND - A series of fires broke out last week across Eastern Washington, including a blaze that destroyed several homes and outbuildings in rural Adams County and the Lind area on Thursday, Aug. 4.

While the fast-burning blaze was short-lived, it destroyed six homes and multiple outbuildings, Federal Emergency Management Agency officials said Friday, noting it had been declared as a disaster.

Council considers proposed annexation

RITZVILLE – The city may be growing in the near future to include more property near the Interstate 90-State Highway 261 interchange.

H & L Reimer Family L.L.C. has submitted a letter of intent allowing annexation of a property adjacent to the corporate limits.

If accepted, the proposed annexation would be zoned as “tourist commercial.” The letter of intent provided no details about the type of business to be located on the property.

Residents balk at water restrictions

LIND – With the August 4 fire under control, some Lind residents are wondering why the city continues to enforce a ban on lawn watering. These concerns led 22 Lind residents to attend a city council meeting on August 9.

During the public comment portion of the meeting, resident Darla Shaver asked how many gallons of water were sold last year. The council provided no answer. Steve Nelson, an engineer who attended the meeting by phone, noted that declining aquifers are not restricted to Lind. “Nor,” he said, “is aquifer depletion related to water sales.”

The council and audience then debated the availability of various wells for pumping water. In one case, a well pump motor was stolen months ago and engineer Nelson explained that it could take 6 to 9 months to get a replacement part. He also remarked, “The reality is, until you have an emergency, you can’t obtain emergency funding.”

September

Revenue shortfalls impact projects

Ritzville – The pandemic may be waning, but its effects are still being felt. At the Adams County commissioner’s meeting on September 20, Public Works Director Todd O’Brien discussed his department’s struggles.

He noted that fuel tax revenues have been roughly $1 million less than anticipated. This, in turn, has adversely impacted the county’s public works projects. That’s because vehicle fuel taxes provide the lion’s share of funds for road maintenance and preservation, he said.

The county hopes to address revenue shortfalls by lengthening project completion times and hiring more employees. “We want to do the best we can with what we’ve got,” he said. “But that’s a lot less than we anticipated two years ago.”

October

Broncos crush

Reardan

REARDAN – It took all of 14 seconds for the Lind-Ritzville, Sprague, Washtucna and Harrington Broncos to show why they are one of the top 2B schools in the state. That is how long it took for Brock Kinch to return the game’s opening kickoff 86 yards for a touchdown.

The Broncos went on to defeat the Screaming Eagles 46-7 in NE2B action on Oct. 14.

November

Columbia Basin Project gains momentum

Ritzville – It all started a hundred years ago.

Back then, government officials and others saw great potential in the high desert lands of Adams County and surrounding areas.

Originally, the Columbia Basin Project — with Grand Coulee Dam as its centerpiece — was designed to provide irrigation water to over a million acres of land in the central part of Washington State, including the counties of Adams, Douglas, Franklin, Stevens, Okanogan, Grant, Lincoln and Walla Walla.

But the project stalled and remains unfinished.

Columbia Basin Sustainable Water Coalition Executive Director Michele Kiesz wants to change that. In April of this year, the Bureau of Reclamation declared the Columbia Basin an “at-risk” watershed.

“That ruling allowed us to get enough funding to begin the planning process,” she said.

Deputies recover stolen signs

RITZVILLE - The Adams County Sheriff’s Office is investigating the thefts of multiple traffic signs last week.

Investigators received information that led them to a location in the 1800 block of East Franz Road.

During execution of a search warrant there Nov. 23, deputies recovered several signs, records show.

“Deputies recovered stolen road signs that belonged to the Public Works Departments of Adams County, Franklin County and Lincoln County,” Sheriff Dale Wagner said. “Also recovered were road signs belonging to the Washington State Department of Transportation, Burlington Northern Railroad, the United States National Park Service and other unknown entities.”

December

Festivals group gets new board

Ritzville - At the city’s Main Street parade this year, band teacher Jennifer York discovered a troubling fact: The float representing the Ritzville Festivals Association was taking a farewell lap due to a lack of volunteers.

So a few weeks ago, York and her friends accepted the challenge.

“We’ll continue to work with the Miss Lind-Ritzville (formerly the Distinguished Young Women/Junior Miss) team,” York said.

York sees an exciting future for the revived organization. “We want to build on past traditions and move the organization forward,” she said.