Woman killed in crash identified

A woman killed Friday in a three-vehicle collision in Laurelhurst has been identified by the King County Medical Examiner's Office as Joan Chalk of Seattle.

Chalk, 79, was riding in a Lexus sedan when it was struck by a sport-utility vehicle traveling south on Sand Point Way Northeast near Children's Hospital & Regional Medical Center, Seattle police said. The Lexus then spun and struck a Honda. Police said the driver of the sport-utility vehicle may have been speeding.

The driver of the Lexus, an 80-year-old man, was taken to Harborview Medical Center. No one else was seriously hurt, police said. The accident is under investigation.

Seattle

Man seriously hurt jumping into rail car

A Seattle man was seriously injured Saturday night trying to cross through a slow-moving train.

As the train was rolling slowly in the 900 block of Alaskan Way South around 7 p.m., two men jumped into a rail car to get to the other side of the track. The car had no floor and one man fell through it, police said. His companion pulled him out from underneath.

The injured man was taken to Harborview Medical Center with serious injuries.

Government Camp, Ore.

Portland-area climbers rescued

Five climbers stranded on Mount Hood were rescued late Saturday and returned safely to Timberline Lodge, the Clackamas County Sheriff's Office said.

All five were reported in good condition and "good spirits," deputies said.

Through the use of a global-positioning system and a mountain-locator unit the climbers carried, the rescue went more quickly than anticipated, the Sheriff's Office said.

Spokesman Jim Strovnik said the Sno-Cat used in the rescue was equipped with a locator unit that homed in on the one the climbers carried.

Strovnik said the climbers apparently got caught in a whiteout and could not see to get back down the 11,239-foot mountain, Oregon's tallest.

The climbers were all from the Portland area.

Seattle

Olympia diocese gets new bishop

The rector of an Austin, Texas, church was elected Saturday as the eighth Episcopal Bishop of Olympia.

The Rev. Dr. Gregory Rickel will succeed the Rt. Rev. Vincent Warner, 66, who will retire in September after 18 years as bishop diocesan.

Rickel, 43, describes his current church in Austin as historically African American but in an "inclusive multicultural community."

Rickel has been a consultant for the stewardship office of the Episcopal Church Center in New York since 1997. He has been married to his wife, Marti, for 22 years; they have a 10-year-old son, Austin Morris.

In voting at Seattle's St. Mark's Cathedral, Rickel received 224 lay votes out of a possible 369 and 106 clergy votes out of a possible 207.

Vancouver, B.C.

Tiger that killed woman euthanized

A tiger that fatally mauled a 32-year-old woman at an exotic-animal farm in British Columbia has been euthanized, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) said Sunday.

Cpl. Scott Ksionzik said the 3-year-old Bengal tiger, which attacked the woman while at least one of her children watched, was "humanely euthanized with the consent of the owner."

Authorities said a necropsy on the animal will be conducted later this week.

Tanya Dumstrey-Soos of 100 Mile House, B.C., was attacked Thursday at Siberian Magic, owned by her fiancée, Kim Carlton.

Investigators believe the cat began clawing at Dumstrey-Soos' dress as she stood outside its cage, then grabbed her legs.

A number of children witnessed the attack, RCMP Constable Annie Lineau said.

The mauling has led to calls for government action. The Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals has called for legislation banning the ownership of exotic animals.

On Friday, Agriculture Minister Pat Bell said he'll work with authorities to determine whether legislation or a change in regulations is needed.

Times staff and news services