KNAPPA BOYS MAKE THEIR CASE FOR A NO. 1 RANKING • PAGE 10A
145TH YEAR, NO. 121
DailyAstorian.com // MONDAY, DECEMBER 18, 2017
ONE DOLLAR
Amtrak train hurtles off overpass
Multiple people were killed
By RACHEL LA CORTE
Associated Press
TACOMA, Wash. — An Amtrak
train making the first-ever run along
a new route hurtled off an over-
pass this morning near Tacoma and
spilled some of its cars onto the high-
way below, killing at least six people,
authorities said.
Seventy-eight passengers and five
crew members were aboard when the
highway median just south of DuPont.
“The only car that is on the tracks
is the rear locomotive. There are sev-
eral cars that are hanging over the
overpass,” Karnes said.
In a statement, Amtrak said the
train that derailed was Train 501,
offering service from Seattle to
Portland.
The train was making the inaugu-
ral run on the new route as part of a
$180.7 million project designed to
speed up service by removing passen-
train derailed about 40 miles south of
Seattle before 8 a.m., Amtrak said.
The Pierce County Sheriff’s Office
said several vehicles on Interstate 5
were struck by falling train cars and
multiple motorists were injured. No
fatalities of motorists were reported.
Chris Karnes was on the train,
three or four cars back from the front.
“I’m not sure what got hit. I’m not
sure what happened,” Karnes said.
Medical tents were set up in the
KOMO-TV
See AMTRAK, Page 4A
An Amtrak train derailed about 40 miles south of Seattle.
Judge OKs
takeover of
Riverwalk
Inn property
LIGHT
SHOW
By EDWARD STRATTON
The Daily Astorian
A judge has approved Param Hotel
Corp.’s plan to take over the Astoria River-
walk Inn next year and pay the debts of for-
mer operator Brad Smithart to the Port of
Astoria, the city and Clatsop County.
The Port’s lawyer has indicated the
agency will appeal the decision.
In a notice of judgment filed Friday, Cir-
cuit Court Judge Dawn McIntosh ruled the
Port is obligated to lease Param the hotel for
two years, beginning in November, with a
five-year lease-extension option. Param will
pay the Port $5,000 and 7 percent of gross
sales per month.
Param, a Portland-based hotelier, sued the
Port two years ago after not being chosen as
Smithart’s successor, despite the Port Com-
mission voting to give the company Smi-
thart’s remaining lease for paying his debts.
Param’s lawyer, Colin Hunter, claimed the
Port had violated a contract created by the
vote and shown favoritism toward the hotel’s
See TAKEOVER, Page 4A
Photos by Colin Murphey/The Daily Astorian
Above: The Astoria Column is strung with decorative lights, captured here in a long exposure photograph. Top: Decorations outside
the Clatsop County Circuit Court, captured in a long exposure photograph combined with a zoom effect.
Holiday lights brighten season
Coast Guard crew
allegedly recorded
a sexual assault
By NATALIE ST. JOHN
EO Media Group
By COLIN MURPHEY | The Daily Astorian
W
From left to right: Stephanie Usselman, Carrie Clarke and
Casey Kohl spend time in downtown Astoria illuminated by
decorative lights strung up along the streets.
ith the holiday season upon us, The Daily Asto-
rian wanted to display colorful photos of beau-
tiful lights, but we also wanted to show the fes-
tive decorations in a new way.
These images were captured by placing a digital camera
on a tripod and slowing down the exposure or shutter speed to
anywhere between two and four seconds. Normally, the effect
would be a sharp image of twinkling lights. But we wanted to
go a step further and do something a little more interesting. By
combining a slow exposure with a slow zoom, what you get
(if you’re lucky) is a streak of light shooting out from a central
point in the frame. And if there are lots of lights, as is common
with a string such as the ones hanging from the Astoria Column,
what you get is dozens of streaks of light.
ILWACO, Wash. — Two Coast Guard
members allegedly recorded the rape of an
unconscious 35-year-old woman while sta-
tioned in Ilwaco.
Guillermo J. Gutierrez, 27, of Ilwaco,
and Salvador Zamora Jr., 24, of Tacoma,
were arrested by the Pacific County Sheriff’s
Office on Thursday on suspicion of voyeur-
ism and second-degree rape.
The Coast Guard is conducting an inter-
nal investigation.
“We take these allegations seriously,”
said Petty Officer First Class Levi Read, a
spokesman for the Coast Guard.
See ASSAULT, Page 4A
A love of volunteer work on North Coast
Johnson works as the
outreach coordinator
for history center
By BRENNA VISSER
The Daily Astorian
C
ANNON BEACH – Liz Johnson
has thought about leaving the North
Coast a few times. But there’s something
special that always brings the Seaside
local back.
“The people. They make this area
special,” she said. “Anytime something
happens, there’s always someone there
ready to help in any situation.”
It’s a quality she finds special possibly
because of how often she has assumed
the role to be ready to help. As the out-
reach coordinator for the Cannon Beach
History Center and Museum, Johnson is
the one behind the scenes, helping with
tasks as small as changing light bulbs
to coordinating the Cottage and Garden
Tour, the museum’s largest event of the
year.
It’s through her love of volunteering
that she came to work for the museum.
“I grew up working in hospitality. I
Brenna Visser/The Daily Astorian
See JOHNSON, Page 4A
Liz Johnson is the outreach coordinator for the Cannon Beach History
Center and Museum.