BRIEFLY

‘Suspicious death’ under investigation

NEWPORT – Pend Oreille County Sheriff deputies are investigating what Sheriff Glenn Blakeslee termed “a suspicious death.”

According to a Nixel notice sent about 8:30 p.m. Monday night, people were advised to avoid Gray Road, between Scotia and Highway 2 due to heavy police activity. By 10:30 p.m. Gray Road was re-opened.

Blakeslee said the family hadn’t been notified yet and investigators were trying to confirm the cause of death.

Water report confirms safe drinking

NEWPORT – The 2023 Water Quality Report for the city of Newport found no violations according to standards set by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the state of Washington This report is required by the federal Safe Drinking Water Act. Testing was performed between Jan. 1 and Dec. 31, 2023.

With arsenic coming in at .00318 milligrams per liter (mg/L) and total nitrates registering 3.05 mg/L, the report came well below the minimum risk for health concerns. Nitrates should be under 10mg/L. The current EPA standard for arsenic is 0.010 mg/L or parts per million (ppm).

Copper and lead came well below .001 mg/L.