Measles exposure possible at Sea-Tac

Seattle

An airline passenger who was contagious with measles passed through Seattle-Tacoma International Airport on March 26, possibly exposing others to the disease.

The passenger flew on Northwest Airlines Flight 33 from Amsterdam to Seattle, where she switched to Horizon Airlines Flight 2243 to Portland. The woman, who is in her 20s, developed a rash two days later, on March 28.

Measles is contagious from about four days before the rash appears and for four days afterward. The woman left Portland for Amsterdam on March 29 aboard Northwest Flight 92.

When someone who is infected with measles sneezes or coughs, he or she can spread the virus through the air, infecting others.

King County public-health officials are contacting three King County residents who were seated close to the woman on the Seattle flight. They advise that passengers aboard Flight 33 as well as any people who were in the S and C concourses and the S concourse train on March 26 between 3:25 p.m. and 7 p.m. contact a doctor if they become ill.

Measles symptoms appear a week to 21 days after exposure and include fever, rash, cough and red, watery eyes.

Kent

Van driver sought in morning shooting

Kent police said they are looking for the driver of a blue van who reportedly pulled into a parking lot at the Lake Meridian apartments around 11 a.m. Tuesday and fired shots at the boyfriend of a tenant.

The victim, who was hit in the face, buttocks, foot and leg, was headed into surgery at Harborview Medical Center in Seattle later Tuesday, police said. The wounds did not appear to be life-threatening, medics reportedly told police.

Police spokesman Paul Peterson said the incident began when a 26-year-old woman, who lives in the apartment complex in the 14900 block of Kent-Kangley Road, pulled into a parking spot with her boyfriend.

A blue van immediately pulled up behind them, and gunshots were fired into the passenger side of the tenant's car, police said. The woman put the car into gear, drove over a curb and the lawn and sped off to a medical clinic in Covington, police said.

"She got out of there as fast as she could," Peterson said.

Medics responded to the clinic and transported the man to Harborview.

Kitsap County

Poulsbo man killed in accident

A Poulsbo man died Monday night after driving his pickup off the road in the 11800 block of Brownsville Highway Northeast in Kitsap County.

Leonard Bentley, 66, died at the scene of the 8:21 p.m. crash, said Kitsap County sheriff's spokesman Scott Wilson. Bentley apparently failed to negotiate a turn, then drove off the shoulder and down a 6-foot embankment. His truck struck a tree, Wilson said.

No other vehicles were involved. The Kitsap County Coroner's Office is awaiting toxicology tests to determine whether drugs or alcohol played a role in the crash.

Seattle

Community group receives grant

A Seattle community group is one of 15 organizations and school districts around the state to receive a state grant to help prevent kids from dropping out of school.

The state Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction on Tuesday announced a total of $2 million in two-year Building Bridges grants. The grants, established last year by the Legislature, will focus on identifying kids at risk of dropping out and providing them coaches and mentors, encouraging dropouts to return to school, and providing alternative educational opportunities such as online courses and technical education.

Applicants for the $118,000 to $175,000 grants had to show a commitment to partnerships and demonstrate how the money would enhance their efforts to keep kids in schools. They had to provide 25 percent matching funds.

In Seattle, the grant was awarded to Communities in Schools of Seattle, a nonprofit organization that supports Seattle Public Schools students. Several other area school districts and nonprofits also received grants, including the Federal Way and Granite Falls districts.

Snohomish County

Investigators searching for man

Snohomish County sheriff's investigators are seeking details on the whereabouts of a 47-year-old man from the Edmonds area who disappeared March 28.

Christopher Miller vanished after speaking with his fiancée that day, said sheriff's spokeswoman Rebecca Hover. Miller called on his way home from work in Renton.

Deputies have tried to reach Miller on his cellphone, but it appears that the phone battery is dead, Hover said. Detectives don't believe Miller was the victim of a crime.

Miller could be driving a white 1998 Kia Sephia with Washington license plate 491VNY.

Anyone with information is asked to call the Sheriff's Office tip line at 425-388-3845.

Seattle

Jury selected in Haq's trial

A jury of six men and six women, plus three alternates, were selected Tuesday afternoon in the trial of accused Jewish Federation shooter Naveed Haq.

The panel was whittled down from an unusually large group of prospective jurors after an initial summons of 3,000 and weeks of questioning by attorneys. Haq is accused of the July 28, 2006, shooting at the Jewish Federation of Greater Seattle that left one woman dead and five injured.

King County Superior Judge Paris Kallas will rule on pretrial motions this week, and opening arguments in the case are expected Monday. Haq has pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity and faces life in prison if convicted.

Seattle Times staff and news services