10A
THE DAILY ASTORIAN TUESDAY, MARCH 22, 2016
Bombings: President Obama pledged Tower: Council’s
to help Belgian authorities seek justice unanimous vote was
Continued from Page 1A
‘Acts of war’
“We are at war,” French
Prime Minister Manuel Valls
said after a crisis meeting in
Paris. “We have been sub-
jected for the last few months
in Europe to acts of war.”
Added French President
Francois Hollande: “Terror-
ists struck Brussels, but it was
Europe that was targeted, and
it is all the world which is con-
cerned by this.”
(XURSHDQ VHFXULW\ RI¿-
cials have been bracing for a
major attack for weeks, and
warned that the Islamic State
group was actively prepar-
ing to strike. The arrest Fri-
day of Salah Abdeslam, a
key suspect in the Novem-
ber attacks in Paris, height-
ened those fears, as investi-
gators said many more people
were involved than originally
thought and that some are still
on the loose.
The Islamic State group
claimed responsibility for the
Brussels attacks, saying in a
posting on the group’s Amaq
news agency that its extremists
RSHQHG ¿UH LQ WKH DLUSRUW DQG
“several of them” detonated
suicide belts. It said another
suicide attacker struck in the
subway.
The posting claimed the
attack was in response to Bel-
gium’s support of the interna-
tional coalition arrayed against
the group.
Police found and neutral-
ized a third bomb at the airport
once the chaos after the two ini-
tial blasts had eased, said Flor-
ence Muls, a spokeswoman for
the airport told The Associated
Press. Bomb squads also deto-
nated suspicious objects found
in at least two locations else-
where in the capital, but neither
contained explosives, authori-
ties said.
Michel said there was no
immediate evidence linking
the attacks with Abdeslam.
After his arrest, Abdeslam told
authorities he had created a new
network and was planning new
attacks.
‘We are at war.
We have been subjected
for the last few months in
Europe to acts of war.’
Manuel Valls
French prime minister
‘Stand in solidarity’
U.S. President Barack
Obama pledged to “do what-
ever is necessary” to help Bel-
gian authorities seek justice.
“We stand in solidarity with
them in condemning these out-
rageous attacks against inno-
cent people,” Obama said in
Havana, where he was closing
a three-day visit.
Western Europe has lived
for decades under the threat
of violence from homegrown
nationalist and revolutionary
movements. Muslim extremists
from North Africa and the Mid-
dle East have attacked civilian
targets without warning, rang-
ing from France’s 1960s war in
Algeria through Libya’s 1988
downing of an airline over
Scotland to the 2004-05 attacks
on the public transportation
systems of London and Madrid.
Certain neighborhoods in
Brussels, like the Molenbeek
quarter, have bred extrem-
LVWVDQGVXSSOLHGIRUHLJQ¿JKW-
ers. Plotters linked to the Paris
attacks and others have either
moved through or lived in parts
of the city.
the second, louder explosion
brought down ceilings and rup-
tured pipes, mixing water with
victims’ blood.
“It was atrocious. The ceil-
ings collapsed,” he said. “There
was blood everywhere, injured
people, bags everywhere.”
“We were walking in the
debris. It was a war scene,” he
said.
Video taken moments after
the explosions showed travelers
huddled next to airport check-in
counters and lying near lug-
gage and trolleys as dust and
WKHFULHVRIWKHZRXQGHG¿OOHG
the air. Dazed people stum-
bled from the scene, some with
clothes and shoes blown off.
Anthony Deloos, an air-
port worker for Swissport,
which handles check-in and
EDJJDJHVHUYLFHVVDLGWKH¿UVW
explosion took place near the
Swissport counters where cus-
tomers pay for overweight
baggage. He and a colleague
said the second blast hit near a
Starbucks cafe.
“I jumped into a luggage
chute to be safe,” Deloos said.
Subway bombing
Airport explosions
The subway bombing came
Tuesday’s explosions at the after 9 a.m., killing 20 people
airport in the Brussels suburb of and wounding more than 100,
Zaventem came shortly after 8 Mayor Yvan Majeur said.
a.m., Belgium time, one of its
“The metro was leaving
busiest periods. Belgian Health Maelbeek station for Schuman
Minister Maggie de Block said when there was a really loud
11 people were killed and 81 explosion,” said Alexandre
wounded. Eleven people had Brans, 32, wiping blood from
serious injuries, Marc Decra- his face. “It was panic every-
mer of the Gasthuisberg hospi- where. There were a lot of peo-
tal in Leuven told broadcaster ple in the metro.”
VTM. The nails apparently
Near the entrance to the sta-
came from one of the bombs.
tion, rescue workers set up a
Zach Mouzoun, who arrived makeshift medical treatment
RQDÀLJKWIURP*HQHYDDERXW center in a pub. Dazed and
PLQXWHV EHIRUH WKH ¿UVW shocked morning commut-
blast, told BFM television that ers streamed from the metro
School: It seeks to settle into
a permanent site south of town
FORVHGLQIRU¿QDQFLDOUHD-
sons and fears for student safety.
6L[WHHQ ¿UVWJUDGHUV ZHUH The building, now shuttered,
lies in the tsunami inundation
enrolled as of March 1.
The academy did not provide zone.
information on how many pro-
spective kindergarten students
The vision
were planning to attend.
In 2013, community resi-
Dougherty and Roley said dents sought to bring a charter
without enough students, the dis- school to Cannon Beach, with
trict would be unable to make the goal of hosting kindergarten-
necessary adjustments in pro- HUVWKURXJK¿IWKJUDGHUV
JUDPVFODVVVL]HDQGVWDI¿QJ
The school planned to open
Cannon Beach Academy in fall at a temporary location at
met the condition of provid- 171 Sunset Blvd., in a vacated
ing a Common Core instruc- space that once housed the Can-
tional plan. However, it lacked non Beach Athletic Club.
a state-approved English lan-
Last week, the Cannon Beach
guage learners program, the let- Design Review Board approved
ter read. The program the school the academy’s application for
proposed to use was outdated. ³PDMRU PRGL¿FDWLRQV´ WR WKH
All charter schools are required existing building, to convert the
to use programs approved by the space into a charter school.
state.
The school seeks to eventu-
Cannon Beach Elementary ally settle into a permanent site
Continued from Page 1A
south of town and east of U.S.
Highway 101.
The district has denied the
academy’s proposal several
times, citing lack of an adequate
location and not enough startup
funds.
In October, the Seaside
School District board of directors
unanimously approved a three-
year contract with Cannon Beach
Academy. Under the district’s
conditions, the charter school
would serve at least 44 kinder-
JDUWHQDQG¿UVWJUDGHVWXGHQWVLWV
¿UVW\HDU0RUHJUDGHVFRXOGEH
added over time.
Hull was unavailable for
comment Monday.
In October, Hull said
none of the conditions were
unreasonable.
“I think we can achieve every
condition imposed,” he said at
the time.
Columbia Memorial Hospital
tXXXDPMVNCJBNFNPSJBMPSH
entrances as police tried to set
up a security cordon.
The airport was ordered
closed for the rest of the day
and CEO Arnaud Feist said the
facility would be closed all of
Wednesday and perhaps even
ORQJHU0RUHWKDQÀLJKWVWR
Brussels were diverted or can-
FHOHGDFFRUGLQJWRÀLJKWWUDFN-
ing service Flightradar24.
The metro also was ordered
closed as the city was locked
down. By the end of the work-
GD\FLW\RI¿FLDOVVDLGUHVLGHQWV
could begin moving around on
the streets of the capital and
train stations were reopening.
But Peter Mertens of the Bel-
gian crisis center said the threat
of more attacks “is still real and
serious.”
Travelers Àed
At least one and possibly
two Kalashnikovs were found
in the departure lounge at the
airport, according to a Euro-
SHDQ VHFXULW\ RI¿FLDO LQ FRQ-
WDFWZLWKD%HOJLDQSROLFHRI¿-
cial who spoke on condition
of anonymity because he was
not authorized to talk about the
ongoing investigation. It was
not immediately clear whether
WKH ¿UHDUPV ZHUH XVHG LQ WKH
attacks.
7UDYHOHUVÀHGWKHDLUSRUWDV
quickly as they could. In video
shown on France’s i-Tele tele-
vision, men, women and chil-
dren dashed from the terminal
in different directions. Security
RI¿FHUV SDWUROOHG D KDOO ZLWK
blown-out paneling and ceiling
SDQHOVFRYHULQJWKHÀRRU
Marc Noel, 63, was about to
ERDUGD'HOWDÀLJKWWR$WODQWD
to return to his home in Raleigh,
North Carolina. A Belgian
native, Noel said he was in an
airport shop buying automotive
PDJD]LQHV ZKHQ WKH ¿UVW EODVW
struck about 50 yards away.
“People were crying, shout-
ing — children. It was a horri-
ble experience,” he said, adding
that his decision to shop might
have saved his life. “I would
probably have been in that
place when the bomb went off.”
a lifeline after several
years of frustration
Continued from Page 1A
Verizon will seek a one-
year extension of a lease at
Coxcomb Hill that is set to
expire in August to give the
company time to identify a
site. A second one-year exten-
sion might be necessary.
“I think that’s a pretty good
deal,” Sandstrom said of the
terms.
A lifeline
While the city and Verizon
must work out lease arrange-
ments at Reservoir Ridge for
a new tower that could attract
interest — and revenue — from
other tenants, the City Council’s
unanimous vote was a lifeline
after several years of frustration.
Police Chief Brad Johnston,
who has led the negotiations
for the city, said partnering with
Verizon on a new tower can
help the city reduce costs.
“From the very beginning
of this project, we’ve been try-
ing to convince a private com-
pany to do something that ben-
H¿WV WKH FLW\´ -RKQVWRQ VDLG
“That’s been one of those over-
arching things in this. We’re
trying to compel them to do
things for us, to save us money.
“We’re tying our wagon to
their horse, if you would, to
make sure that we can get to
where we want to go.”
In the middle
City staff has been caught
between the City Council,
Verizon and the Friends of the
$VWRULD &ROXPQ WKH LQÀXHQ-
tial private benefactors who
have raised money to preserve
the historic landmark and tour-
ist attraction.
The City Council directed
city staff in 2013 to move the
overburdened communica-
tions tower off Coxcomb Hill
after the Friends objected to a
new pole.
A master plan at Coxcomb
Hill, according to the Friends,
will not get completed unless
the tower is removed. “It can’t
be done with those facilities
there. It simply can’t,” said
David Olson, a Portland tele-
communications expert who
serves on the board of direc-
tors for the Friends of the
Astoria Column.
Working with the Friends
and Converge Communica-
tions, a private telecommuni-
cations consultant in Portland,
the city had reached an agree-
ment last year with Verizon on
new towers at Reservoir Ridge
and Shively Park. The His-
toric Landmarks Commission
and the Planning Commis-
sion approved the monopole at
Shively Park.
On appeal
But Ron Zilli, a forester
who lives near Shively Park,
appealed the approvals to the
City Council, arguing that the
monopole was incompatible
with the historic park.
Zilli demonstrated that the
monopole would have been
much more visible than the
city and Verizon had origi-
nally described, convincing
a majority on the council to
uphold his appeals and reject
the monopole.
City Councilor Drew Her-
zig, who sided with Zilli, said
Monday night that it would
have been better had the pub-
lic been involved sooner in the
negotiation process.
Herzig had pressed the city
last year to itemize the roughly
$70,000 the city spent to reim-
burse the Friends of the Asto-
ULD&ROXPQIRUWKHQRQSUR¿W¶V
behind-the-scenes work with
Converge Communications
and Verizon.
“I think what we’ve
learned is that, as much as pos-
sible, from here on in, we need
to keep it as public, as trans-
parent, as possible,” he said.