BRIEFS

HALLOWEEN AT SHERIFF'S OFFICE

DAYTON - On Halloween Day from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m., the Columbia County Sheriff's Office will be offering bags of treats at no charge. Costumes are encouraged. The staff is bringing back this Halloween tradition for the first time since 1992. This year's goodie bags will include tasty treats, 9-1-1 educational materials, coloring books and stickers.

RELAY FOR LIFE

DAYTON -- Twenty-one teams and 300 participants are expected at Dayton's Relay for Life that benefits the American Cancer Society. The event will be help Sept. 17 and 18 at the Dayton Athletic Complex on South Cottonwood. Saturday's Survivor Lap will open the event at 3 p.m., followed by a hamburger dinner that is free for all registered cancer survivors. The traditional luminaria ceremony will take place at 8 p.m. Saturday. Luminaria will be lit to honor cancer victims in the area. After a night of walking and running on the track, starting at 4:30 a.m. Sunday is a sausage and biscuit breakfast. Closing ceremony will be at 7 a.m. Sunday. For more information, call 382-4741.

COURTHOUSE TO GET NEW WINDOWS

DAYTON - The Columbia County Commissioners learned this week the county received one bid to repair a window in the courthouse and to replace windows in the judge's chambers. The bid was awarded to Summit Contracting and Construction for $8,700.

WIND PROJECT COMPLETE

POMEROY - Puget Sound Energy recently erected the last of the 149 wind turbines that will power its Lower Snake River Wind Project Phase I. Completion of the project took about six months, according to a release from the company. Crews will now focus on finishing two large substations and 8 miles of high-voltage transmission lines that will send the turbine electricity to a Bonneville Power Administration substation. From there, the renewable energy will move onto the region's electric grid.

FAMILY FUN DAY

WALLA WALLA - Games, activities and an afternoon of fun at Family Fun Day will kick off this year's United Way campaign Sunday, Sept. 18, at the YMCA, 340 S. Park in Walla Walla.

The annual event features free family-oriented activities hosted by United Way and its partner agencies. Activities take place from 1-4 p.m. both on the grounds outside, and inside the YMCA. Among the free fun activities planned throughout the afternoon are an open swim, rock climbing, Frisbee toss, softball throw, sack races, three-legged races, balloon toss, arts & crafts projects and preschooler activities.

All families are invited to join in the fun and enjoy the afternoon, McDevitt said.

For more information, call the United Way office at 509- 529-1183.

DRIVE HAMMERED CAMPAIGN

WALLA WALLA -- The results are in from the recent Drive Hammered, Get Nailed enforcement campaign conducted from Aug. 19 through Sept. 5.

In Walla Walla, Garfield and Asotin Counties, officers on routine and extra patrols arrested 30 motorists for driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs (DUI) and statewide, law enforcement officers arrested 1,824 drivers for DUI.

In Walla Walla, Garfield and Asotin Counties, the Clarkston, College Place and Walla Walla Police Departments, the Garfield County Sheriff's Office and the Washington State Patrol participated in the extra DUI patrols, with the support of the Walla Walla County Traffic Safety Task Force. The extra patrols were funded by a grant from the Washington Traffic Safety Commission.

More than 40 percent of the DUI traffic deaths occur in Washington during the summer months. That is why these extra patrols are so important and are helping to make a difference. According to preliminary 2010 data, the number of DUI traffic deaths decreased by 16.5 percent compared to the previous five year average.

For additional information about the Washington Traffic Safety Commission, visit www.wtsc.wa.gov.

NAVIGATION LOCK CLOSES

KAHLOTUS - Lower Monumental Dam's navigation lock will close to commercial and recreational vessels during three separate periods between Sept. 12 and Oct. 4, operations officials with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Walla Walla District announced.

The lock closure is necessary to restore the protective coating system on the downstream lock gate. The coating system below the waterline needs to be reapplied, before the inclement weather of fall and winter begins, to prevent damage to the steel gate structure, according to officials at the dam, located at Snake River Mile 41.6. The three closure periods are detailed as follows:

Sept. 12 - Lock closes to river traffic from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Sept. 28-30 - Lock closes to river traffic beginning at 8 a.m. on Sept. 28 and reopens Sept. 30 at 8 p.m.

Oct.1-4 - Lock closes to river traffic from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Each day during this scheduled work period, the lock will be available to commercial vessels from 8 p.m. to 8 a.m.

Operations officials do not anticipate that this navigation lock repair work will affect public vehicle crossings at the dam.

WANT TO PLANT TREES?

WALLA WALLA - Volunteers can join forces with U.S. Army Corps of Engineers park rangers at Mill Creek Dam and Bennington Lake located in Walla Walla, as they honor National Public Lands Day on Saturday, Sept. 24, from 8 a.m. to 12 p.m.

Public Lands Day is the nation's largest, single-day volunteer event to benefit public lands.