Both the northbound and southbound portions of the bridge dropped into the river sometime before 7 p.m., according to Washington State Patrol trooper Mark Francis.

Francis said several cars were on the bridge when it collapsed, and some are now in the water.

Xavier Grospe, 62, who lives near the river, said he could see three cars with what appeared to be one person per vehicle. The vehicles were sitting still in the water, partially submerged and partly above the waterline, and the apparent drivers were sitting either on top of the vehicles or on the edge of open windows.

“It doesn’t look like anybody’s in danger right now,” Grospe said.

It’s unclear how many people were injured in the collapse, but at least one person has been rescued.

Rescue crews are on the water in at least three boats tending to a semi-submerged car and truck, both of which are tangled in the wreckage of the bridge.

Bart Treece with the Washington State Department of Transportation was unsure when the bridge was last inspected.

“All of our bridges in the area are pretty old,” he said.

Washington state was given a C in the American Society of Civil Engineers’ 2013 infrastructure report card and a C- when it came to the state’s bridges. The group said more than a quarter of Washington’s 7,840 bridges are considered structurally deficient of functionally obsolete.

Southbound traffic is being routed off at State Route 9, while northbound traffic is being routed off at George Hopper, according to WSDOT.

This is a developing story that will be updated when more information is available.

Trooper Mark Francis said people were in the water, but it was not clear how many or the extent of injuries. He did not know what caused the collapse.

A Skagit Valley Herald reporter at the scene said a sheriff’s office rescue boat has arrived and rescue crews were looking for people in the water.

The reporter saw one person sitting atop one vehicle in the water and could see a second vehicle as well.

Crowds of people lined the river to watch the scene unfold, and drivers were told to stay away.
The four-lane north and southbound bridge, built in 1955, was used by 70,000 vehicles daily, according to 2010 statistics. This story will be updated when more information is available.

The incident has closed all northbound and southbound lanes.

School officials have completely locked down the Burlington High School. School activities will be re-scheduled for tomorrow.

“… with safety our prime consideration at Burlington-Edison, we instituted our normal protocol,” Setterlund wrote.

“We will continue to investigate to determine the identity of the individual or individuals who wrote the message so that they can be dealt with according to district policy,” Setterlund wrote.

StashFest is a two-day sale of unique and remarkable fabrics–
for quilting, fashion, and home decor–with thousands of yards to choose from. And StashFest Insider Visits. And a gigantic Book Sale. And lots of Door Prizes–given away every hour! Find out who this year’s Presenters and Insider Visit hosts are by visiting:

http://stashfest.com/

April 17 & 24, 2013; 10am-3pm

Teri will begin the two-day Workshop teaching crazy quilt block construction, and the second day will be devoted to learning embroidery stitches. During the Workshop, you will have the opportunity to study antique crazy quilts from the Museum’s Permanent Collection. Learn at your own pace in a relaxed environment!

read more

Who are Kaffe Fassett and Brandon Mably? Ask a quilter and they will tell you: quilters and fabric designers. Ask a knitter and they will tell you: knitters and knitting pattern designers. They will both be correct. In fact, Kaffe, and his studio partner, Brandon have worked in many different media, including: needlepoint, mosaics, rugmaking, tapestries, yarn and fabric design, and costume & set design. Kaffe’s newest book, “Kaffe Fassett Dreaming in Color” (2012), is an autobiography, in which he shares rich, detailed stories about his lifelong creative journey as well as hundreds of glorious photos taken along the way.

Kaffe Fassett is a prolific author of books on color and design in craftwork. A recent book, Kaffe Fassett’s Simple Shapes Spectacular Quilts (2010), is full of quilts composed of their signature fabric designs made from simple squares, rectangles, and diamonds. Many of Kaffe’s quilts are created as a joint effort with Liza Prior Lucy who does much of the sewing for his quilts. At left, Bordered Diamonds from the Kaffe Fassett’s Simple Shapes Spectacular Quilts book. Image courtesy Abrams Books.

In addition to designing fabrics and quilt patterns, Brandon Mably designs knitwear patterns for Vogue Knitting and Rowan Yarns, and leads workshops in knitwear design and use of color throughout the world. Brandon has been the Studio Manager of Kaffe Fassett Studio in London England for many years and has worked closely with Kaffe in the design, creation, and execution of knitwear, tapestry, patchwork, mosaic, and mixed media artwork. This exhibit will feature knitwear by Brandon.

Kaffe and Brandon have been collaborating for many years; adding new fabric lines to their colorful collections each year and designing new quilting and knitting patterns. Their most recent collaboration is a new knitting book, Knitting with the Color Guys (2012). Image at right: Zigzag Throw by Brandon Mably from the Knitting with the Color Guys book. Image courtesy Kaffe Fassett Studio.

This exhibit will feature both quilts and knitting.

If you have any questions or concerns regarding this work, please contact Steven Lange, Project Manager with the City of Anacortes at 360.293.1920.

Dated this 14th day of March, 2013.
H. Dean Maxwell, Mayor

No public testimony will be received and no action will be taken.

1st & Commercial
Port Warehouse Event Center

Ticket Price:
$40 Saturday advance includes wine tasting, keepsake glass, food tastes, and entertainment
$20 advance Saturday—designated driver ticket includes food and entertainment
$45/$25 at the door.

Tickets available at the chamber office 819 Commercial Avenue

Nationally recognized, the goal of the EnviroStars Program is to give businesses incentives and recognition for reducing hazardous waste, while giving consumers an objective way to identify environmentally sound businesses. Clean Marina Washington was created in 2005 as an expansion of the EnviroStars program and is an incentive-based certification program in which marinas assess their operations and implement improvements to better protect the environment. The two programs continue to work seamlessly as one program in Kitsap County and four other western Washington counties.

The Skyline Marina, which opened in 1695, just completed its initial certification and was awarded the 5-Star rating by the Health District. The Anacortes based Marina was first certified at the 4-Star level in December 2005 and has been re-inspected annually to maintain this level for three years. As a result of continually improving internal operating processes and procedures, and by expanding its outreach and education programs, the marina earned a 5-Star rating.

Police were called to shots fired at an apartment complex in the 300 block of Ball Street about 5 p.m. and found a person dead on a landing, Sedro-Woolley Police Lt. Lin Tucker said.

Another person reportedly ran down the street and flagged down a car containing people he knew and also was shot, Tucker said. Tucker could not confirm ages or any other information about those shot. Police have no suspect information to distribute, but they cordoned off the apartment complex area and deployed a K-9 unit to search for the shooter. An air unit arrived to assist shortly after 7 p.m.

Posted on: http://skagitcountyinsider.com/

Couples Massage Special
Our side by side 2 60 min Swedish style massages are THE perfect February treat!
Only $150 ($175 value)

For more information:
phone: (360) 299-2112
website: http://www.majesticinnandspa.com

Offer Expires: February 28, 2013