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| March 10, 2011 Shelton Mason County Journal |  |
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Thursday, March 10, 2011
Year 125 -- Week 10 -- 9 Sections -- 50 Pages -- Published in Shelton, Washington -- $1
Transit
By NATALIE JOHNSON
This month, the
Mason Transit Authority
(MTA) debuted three
shiny new 35-foot buses
on routes throughout
Mason County
Each of the buses
cost about $380,000,
said Transit Authority
Maintenance Manager
Mike Oliver.
Oliver said that these
three new Gillig coaches'
are replacing three
15-year-old buses.
These three new
coaches were purchased
using federal grant
A herring gull stands on the shore of Hammersley Inlet in Shelton earlier this week.
Journal photo by Kelly Riordan
funds plus matching
fund from within the
MTA's budget, Oliver
said. -
"Most all of our
new vehicles are
purchased through
a grant process," he
said. "They're federal
and state (grants) and
the state
of the
if it is
federal government
State [Department of
Transportation]. I think
our matching funds for
this round were about 20
percent or 30 percent."
The total $1.7 million
purchase of these three
new buses is not the
last MTA plans to make
in the next year and a
half. It also plans to add
nine other smaller new
vehicles, Oliver said.
Because of the
substantial cost of these
new vehicles, and the
budget woes that most
governmental entities
have faced for the past
several years, MTA has
extended the useful life
of its buses from the
federal guideline of 12
years to 15.
"The majority of the
vehicles we have
See Transit on page A-7
By KEVAN MOORE
A fire in the heating, ventilat-
ing and air conditioning system
at Fir Lane Health and Rehabili-
tation Center in Shelton on Sun-
day morning forced the evacua-
tion of the entire nursing home.
All llT Fir Lane residents
were evacuated safely and tak-
en to Shelton Health and Re-
habilitation. Fire officials said
that only one female Fir Lane
resident was treated for smoke
inhalation and released without
the need for hospitalization.
"The staff of Fir Lane went
beyond the call of duty to ensure
all the residents were evacuat-
ed," noted Fire District 5 Chief
Richard Knight. "This was a
very lucky day for Fir Lane.
Everything worked as planned.
When you have large events like
this it takes all the resources
working together."
Fire District 5 was first called
to the nursing home at the cor-
ner of North 13th and Alpine
Way at about 9:20 a.m. After
seeing smoke coming from one
of Fir Lane's wings, firefighters
called for additional resources
from adjacent fire departments.
The 22 residents in that wing
had already been evacuated
when crews arrived.
Fire District 4 Chief Bob Bur-
bridge, who responded to the
fire and served as spokesperson
on the scene, said "those
folks rocked" in referring
Courtesy photo by Robin Stuart
Firefighters evacuate residents of Fir Lane Health and
Rehabilitation Center this weekend during a fre.
to the Fir Lane staff that initi-
ated the evacuations in those
early minutes of the emergency.
Some 55 firefighters from
seven districts ultimately re-
sponded and the remainder of
the nursing home's residents
were evacuated.
"All the fire departments
came together and operated
under one command and man-
agement system which is why
things were so effective," Bur-
bridge said.
The fire was contained to the
room that housed the HVAC
system, which was just inspect-
ed last month, and Fir Lane res-
idents were allowed to return to
the other two wings.
Fire District 5 Assistant Chief
Tim McKern said that firefight-
ers were able to clear the entire
scene by 1:50 p.m.
By KEVAN MOORE
Shelt0n PoIice Chief Terry Daven-
port is leaving the department and
will start a new job with the state
next month.
Davenport, who took over the de-
partment in April of 2001, is leaving
to work as a program manager for
the Washington State Traffic Safe-
ty Commission in Olympia. That
group's main goal is to have zero
traffic fatalities and greatly reduced
traffic injuries by 2030.
Chief Davenport said that he
wasn't actively seeking a different
job, but couldn't pass up the "once
in a lifetime" chance to take on a
leadership role in improving traffic
safety.
"I've always had a passion for
traffic safety and this is something
that will allow me to do more in that
area," Davenport said.
Davenport said that one of his
greatest accomplishments during
his tenure in Shelton was combin-
ing separate fire and police dispatch
centers into one entity known as
MACECOM.
"I've been very happy in Shelton,"
Davenport added.."The opportunties
that have been given to me as a re-
sult of working here have been phe-
nomenal and I've had great support
from the commissioners."
Community Calendar B-3
Entertainment/Dining B-3
Journal of Record A-6
Obituaries B-6
Opinions, Letters A-4
Sports C-1
Weather A-5
IIIIIJlJlJl!!llll!l!!l!l!lllll
led to fatalities
By KEVAN MOORE
North Mason residents are reeling
from the loss of three young men in an
alcohol-involved, single-vehicle wreck
early Sunday morning about a mile
north of Allyn.
Each of those boys, along with two
others that were seriously injured,
were previously North Mason School
District students.
Those killed were Bryan Black-
burn, 22, NMHS class of 2008; Daniel
Tedder, 20, PACE class of 2009; and
Tyler Jankunas, 20, NMHS/Homelink
class of 2009.
The driver of the vehicle, James
Schuchard, 20, was extricated from
his driver's seat and airlifted to Har-
borview Medical Center in Seattle
where he was listed in satisfactory
Each of those boys
... were previously
North Mason School
District students.
condition early this week. The state
patrol said that alcohol and/or drugs
were a factor in the wreck and that
Schuchard will likely face vehicular
homicide charges.
The fifth victim in the wreck, Ben-
jamin Blackburn, 18, was able to walk
at the crash site, but was transported
to Mason General Hospital in Shelton
for further treatment.
A complete story on the fatal colli-
sion can be found on the cover of this
week's Belfair Herald.
Journal file photo
Shelton Mayor
John Tarrant
announced he
would not run
for reelection.
Tarrant to forego mayor's race
By NATALIE JOHNSON
After serving more than
a decade in the office, Shel-
ton Mayor John Tarrant an-
nounced at the end of Mon-
day's city commission meet-
ing that he did not plan on
running for another term.
"I'm not planning on run-
ning for mayor again," he
said. "I'm keeping my options
open."
Tarrant would not elabo-
rate on what those options
might be, but commented to
the Journal that he was a
"political critter."
Tarrant said that he looked
forward to working with the
other two city commissioners
for the remainder of his term.