Cleanup continues after the flood
Four flood events impacted the area

The 2022 year blew in on major storms which flooded the coast. Team Rubicon is in the county to assist with the flood damage clean up which is estimated to take up to another month to finish.

During the stormy week, Pacific County had four flood events according to the Pacific County Emergency Management Director Scott McDougall.

The Willapa Harbor Chamber of Commerce was delighted to hold a ribbon cutting ceremony on January 13 for K2 Fitness in Raymond.

K2 Fitness, owned by Matt and Chelsea Kempton, officially opened their doors on October 25 of 2021. They offer health and fitness classes for members of all ages and fitness levels. They also offer personal training through Brenden Greenfield. The coaches provide skilled and proper training to all their members and approach exercise and fitness as a lifestyle. They don't focus on fancy workouts - just the basics that are proven to challenge and improve an individual's daily living activities.

Willapa Printing Boutique has moved to a new location at 337 7th Street in Raymond. Owner Michelle Layman is thrilled about the new location, which offers much more space for her classy line of apparel and other products at affordable prices.

"We are so thrilled to have a larger space - a space where we aren't tripping over things and where we can show off the beautiful boutique styles we have and the large selection of customizable apparel we stock," Layman told the Herald.

The transition of moving took some time.

Children in the foster care system have different programs available to them when they transition out of the system. Not all the programs are available in Pacific County, but one of the programs called the Foster Youth to Independence Voucher is supported in the county.

The program is part of the Systems of Care Section of the Adolescent Programs (AP) Division of the Department of Children, Youth, and Families (DCYF).

"AP Housing works with community partners to ensure that eligible young people prepare early for the transitions they make into emerging adulthood," said Adolescent Housing Program Manager Greg Williamson. "We help them experience supported transitions into safe, stable, and appropriate housing when they leave foster care placement, and enter the next phase of our care. We also help eligible families to access housing that supports them being with their children."

SOUTH BEND - Last week's heavy rainfall, snow-melt runoff and fierce winds thwacked the South Bend School District buildings with fierce force. It closed the schools for two days (Thurs. and Fri.), which will be made up at the end of the school year. Fortunately, a quick response helped prevent significant damage.

"We had water over almost the entire campus," South Bend Superintendent of Schools Dr. Jon Tienhaaran told the Herald Saturday. "Crews worked all night on Thursday, running pumps and mopping up water as it entered through the front doors of Koplitz Field House. After 6:00 a.m., the water began to recede. Koplitz Field House was dry with no water reaching the wood floor.

SOUTH BEND - Too much rainfall, nasty winds, and high tides, created havoc as flooding moved into South Bend in several areas with some residents needing to be evacuated last Thursday. The South Bend Police Department and city crews worked diligently to sustain normalcy with the impacted flooded areas.

"The flooding was bad in several places throughout the city," South Bend Police Chief Lucas Stigall told the Herald.

A vehicle slammed into a gas pump at Galey's Grocery last Tuesday (Dec. 28) at mid-afternoon causing the pump to burst into flames and be totally destroyed. The driver was driving eastbound on Route 6 when he turned left into Galey's and rammed into an ice machine and then struck the gasoline pump near the doorway to the store. The impact of the collision caused the pump to land some 20 feet from its original place, while aflame.

Last week, COVID-19 cases started breaking numbers as the Omicron variant surged. New York state reported breaking their single daily high on Wednesday, December 29 with 67,000 new infections, and Michigan broke their record on Tuesday, December 28 with 12,929. Christmas Eve saw Washington's record broken with 6,140 daily cases.

Even though restrictions have eased, we are still in the middle of a pandemic. Deputy Health Officer for Pacific County Dr. Steven Krager posted a video on Youtube on December 23 discussing the newest variant that is well on its way to becoming the most dominant strain.

Santa made a stop at the Raymond Elks #1292 on Monday, December 20! Thanks to everyone who came by for the fun... Happy Holidays!

The City of Raymond has been awarded a Transportation Improvement Board (TIB) grant for $1,172,612 to reconstruct Willapa Place Way, which is the loop from SR101 to SR101 going past McDonalds.

This is the road that runs between SR101 and the Thriftway parking lot. During the rainy season, the entrances to Willapa Place Way is often covered with flood water. It is also full of bumps and potholes.