The only injury from a house fire in Ballard on Sunday morning was a singed paw. The fire started just after 7 a.m. along Northwest 64th Street. Everyone got out safely, including a cat named "Bonito" who was rescued, then ran back into the fire and had to be pulled out again. Bonito's owner wasn't home at the time, however his roommate says he had his headphones on and didn't even notice the fire at first.
- PUB DATE: 4/29/2018 9:43:56 PM - SOURCE: seattlepi.com

Residents of Skagit Valley Mobile Manor received free smoke alarms Saturday as part of the American Red Cross campaign Sound the Alarm. The nationwide campaign, which kicked off Saturday, has a goal of installing 100,000 alarms in communities at high risk of fires in 16 days. “Smoke alarms save lives,” Red Cross Northwest Region CEO Alex Dieffenback said in a news release.
- PUB DATE: 4/29/2018 6:04:32 AM - SOURCE: Skagit Valley Herald (GoSkagit.com)

For any kind of volunteer organization, putting in 1,000 hours of work is considered good, according to Phil Slagle, a member of the Cowlitz County Search and Rescue Team. Last year, his team put in almost 13,000 hours. The Cowlitz team is made up of more than 60 members, all volunteers. It’s also always growing.
- PUB DATE: 4/28/2018 9:11:46 PM - SOURCE: Longview Daily News

Voters in Tumwater were wise - and decisive - in their vote to uphold the city ban on personal use of fireworks during the Fourth of July holidays. More than 60 percent of voters in Tuesday's special election opposed Initiative 1, which sought to repeal a City Council-approved ban. The ban took effect in December and followed the citywide advisory vote in 2016 that was decided by just 78 votes.
- PUB DATE: 4/28/2018 8:12:50 PM - SOURCE: Olympian

At long last, Luke Carpenter is pager-less and sleeping in. Until about 4:30 a.m., even. That’s pretty late by his standards, though one of his immediate goals is, understandably, to improve that situation. But relaxation takes practice and while he’s an expert at many things, the ability to chill out remains a glaring omission on the man’s otherwise impressive curriculum vitae.
- PUB DATE: 4/28/2018 2:49:01 PM - SOURCE: Bainbridge Island Review