Gay Portland councilman elected mayor

Portland

Councilman Sam Adams easily won the Portland mayoral race, making this city the largest in the U.S. to ever elect an openly gay mayor.

Adams avoided a November runoff, with 58 percent of the votes after more than 80 percent of the ballots were counted Tuesday night. Businessman Sho Dozono had 34 percent and almost a dozen minor candidates split the rest.

Adams, 44, said his main goals are improving the economy, reducing the dropout rate in schools and preparing for an influx of people to the region.

Seattle

Plane crash kills Keiko trainer

One of two men who died in a plane crash in New Jersey was the Seattle trainer who prepared Keiko the whale for release into the wild.

Stephen Claussen, 41, was in New Jersey to study how proposed offshore wind turbines might affect birds and water mammals. He was best known for his work with the whale star of the movie "Free Willy."

Plane owner John Ambroult of Eastham, Mass., also died in the crash last weekend.

Skamania County

Bodies of 2 men recovered from river

The bodies of two tribal fishermen were recovered Tuesday near the mouth of the Wind River, according to the Skamania County Sheriff's Department.

Tribal officials identified the two as Gailen Espirito and Rommel Strom. They had been fishing with James Peter Jr., whose body was recovered Sunday.

The three members of the Confederated Tribes of the Yakama had been missing since May 7, when they didn't return from a fishing trip.

Seattle

State will share in drug settlement

Washington state will get a share of the $58 million national settlement with Merck & Co. over allegations that it used deceptive tactics to promote its blockbuster painkiller Vioxx, which was withdrawn from the market in 2004 because it raised risk of heart attack and stroke in some patients.

Washington Attorney General Rob McKenna said Tuesday that the state stands to receive $1.6 million from Merck's settlement with 29 states. In addition, the settlement bars Merck from publishing articles or studies ghostwritten by researchers with potential conflicts of interest and using scientific data to deceive doctors, McKenna's office said.

Washington will use the money for consumer education and attorneys' fees.

Seattle

Stabbing victim collapses on street

A man was stabbed Tuesday night in the Capitol Hill neighborhood.

Police and witnesses said the wounded man staggered westbound on East Pike Street from near Broadway, then collapsed in the 1500 block of Harvard Avenue about 9:30 p.m. He was bleeding from at least one abdominal wound, police said.

Police said the man, whose name wasn't released, is in his 30s or 40s.

He was taken to Harborview Medical Center, but his condition wasn't available.

Seattle

Crash victim died of natural causes

An 81-year-old woman whose car rolled over in a busy intersection in downtown Seattle on Monday afternoon died of natural causes, according to the King County Medical Examiner's Office.

Kathryn Salzinger was driving near Eighth Avenue and Marion Street when she died of an aneurysm and cardiovascular disease, authorities said.

Washington Pass

North Cascades Highway reopened

Crews reopened the North Cascades Highway at 3 p.m. Tuesday.

The state had closed the highway on May 15, after warm temperatures caused a snowslide from an avalanche chute below Liberty Bell Mountain, just east of Washington Pass.

On Monday, avalanche technicians found another, larger slide in the same area.

Department of Transportation crews cleared the slides, repaired a sinkhole and cleared about a half-dozen clogged culverts.

Deception Pass

Missing diving student identified

The woman who disappeared while diving near Deception Pass has been identified as a Walla Walla University student.

A spokeswoman for the Seventh-day Adventist university at College Place, Rosa Jimenez, says Shari Booth was taking a scuba class at the Rosario Marine Laboratory.

The 19-year-old freshman from Brush Prairie, Clark County, was reported missing Monday and was not found in a search involving helicopters, searchers and divers with the Skagit County sheriff's office, and volunteers and boaters.

Walla Walla University contracts with a professional diving business to provide scuba classes. Classes are postponed pending an investigation.

The Coast Guard said late Monday night it was suspending the search pending further developments.

Fall City

Vandalism halts water service

Some 31 customers have been without water service in the area served by the Fall City Water District as a precaution after vandalism was discovered Monday.

The damage, at a water tank serving the Lake Alice area south of Interstate 90, was discovered about 9:30 a.m. Monday, said Terri Divers, operations manager.

Padlocks were cut on a gate and a security ladder, she said, but no evidence of contamination or other damage was found.

As a precaution, however, water service was stopped to the 31 affected homes as laboratory tests could be performed on water samples.

Service is expected to be restored today, she said. The water district serves about 1,000 customers in the Fall City area.

Seattle and Tacoma

"Drive Nice Day" proclaimed

Wednesday is the proclaimed "Drive Nice Day," where motorists in Seattle and Tacoma can compete against each other for a $10,000 prize.

Observation teams will be at high-traffic locations in both cities during the morning rush hour to score drivers on their driving behavior. The winning city gets $10,000 from Allstate Insurance for drivers' education.

Longview

Hospital absolved after doctor's suicide

A hospital in Longview has been absolved in the suicide of a podiatrist charged with bicycle theft in Washington state and Utah.

State Health Department reviewers found no wrongdoing or negligence in the death of 35-year-old Dr. Jacob Jonathan Bos, and spokesman Donn Moyer says no citations are being issued.

Bos was found hanging from a belt Feb. 22 in a bathroom in the psychiatric ward at St. John Medical Center. According to police reports, he was being checked every half-hour, but pillows had been arranged under the blankets to make it look as if he were sleeping.

Bos was admitted to the hospital Feb. 7 after two earlier suicide attempts. He had been charged with stealing and selling $55,000 worth of racing bicycles in Washington state and Utah.

Seattle Times staff and news services