River Valley Beacon

26/07/2024

The Beacon - July 16, 2024

No, it's not Back to the Future of Groundhog Day, just playing a little catchup. Apologies for the oversight and thanks for reading!

25/07/2024

The Beacon - July 23, 2024

We honor logging past and look forward to this week's celebration in our annual Timber Salute, which includes four bonus pages. Thanks for reading, have a great week, and see you down at Timber Days!

19/07/2024

18/07/2024

Reinbold resigns

PRIEST RIVER - WBCSD Zone 3 Trustee Troy Reinbold has resigned from his position on the board.
Board Chair Margaret Hall made the announcement at the top of tonight's meeting. She said he was doing so due to work and family obligations.
The board will most likely accept his resignation during a July 31 special meeting and declare the seat vacant at that time.
"I do want to thank him for his service and greatly understand he had a lot of commitments he was dealing with," Hall said. "

15/07/2024

Fatal Crash on Dufort Rd near Otts Basin Rd

SAGLE - Idaho State Police is investigating a four-vehicle collision on Dufort Rd. There were multiple serious injuries along with one fatality.
Just before 11:46 a.m. this morning, Idaho State Police (ISP) troopers responded to a multi-vehicle motorcycle crash on Dufort Rd.
During the investigation it was determined that a motorcycle going westbound on Dufort Rd. crossed over the center dividing lines while negotiating a right-hand turn. The 68-year-old male of Post Falls, Idaho was struck by a truck pulling a camper trailer and fatally injured in the crash.
Two additional motorcycle riders were seriously injured due to a secondary crash. Both riders were transported to a local hospital via Life Flight helicopters.
No other injuries were reported.
The roadway was closed in both directions for approximately four hours. Next of kin was notified.
Bonner County Sheriff’s assisted with investigating the incident. Alcohol and drugs are not considered to be a factor of the crash.
The incident remains under investigation.

10/07/2024

The Beacon - July 9, 2024

As if this heat wave isn't enough, here comes a new issue hot off the presses. Thanks for reading and stay cool!

08/07/2024

PORPA Sprints cancelled

04/07/2024

Happy Fourth of July! We are traveling for the holiday and will unfortunately miss the local fireworks shows. So, we are hoping that our wonderful readers would snap a few shots and send us their best ones to be published in next week's issue. We appreciate the help and look forward to seeing the photos. They can be of the big shows including Priest River, Kalispel Tribe, Priest Lake, a home display, or just a shot brimming with red, white and blue!

02/07/2024

The Beacon & Beacon Bonus - July 2, 2024

Happy Tuesday! We hope you're in the mood for some news because we have a double dose of it for you. Find both issues at your favorite local establishments. Thanks for reading and have a great week!

02/07/2024

The Beacon - June 25, 2024

Playing a little catch up from last week before tomorrow's Beacon and Beacon Bonus hit newsstands. Thanks for reading and have a great week!

28/06/2024

Calling all Hoopfest teams! We would love to stop by your court and check out the action, so please let us know local team names and/or players. Thanks and good luck!

25/06/2024

***UPDATE*** It appears service has been restored.

Water main break on Larch Street in Priest River.

A water main on Larch Street has been damaged and is leaking significantly. The Public Works Department is working diligently to isolate the broken pipe to repair the damaged section and restore services as fast as possible. We appreciate your patience.

19/06/2024

The Beacon - June 18, 2024

Happy Tuesday! Thanks for reading and have a great week!

12/06/2024

The Beacon - June 11, 2024

Dust off your diploma and letterman's jacket for a graduation-themed edition of The Beacon. Thanks for reading and have a great week!

10/06/2024

The Beacon & Beacon Bonus - June 4, 2024

A little housekeeping before we sprint into another busy news week. We apologize for the delay getting these digital versions out and hope you found your hard copies. Thanks for reading and have a great week!

30/05/2024

WBCSD superintendent candidate withdraws from consideration

29/05/2024

The Beacon - May 28, 2024

We put a bow on another week of news from around the River Valley with this free online edition. Thanks for reading and have a great week!

22/05/2024

Happy election Tuesday! We hope you found time to hit the polls and reward yourself with a relaxing read of this week's paper. Thanks for reading and have a great week!

18/05/2024

The Beacon - May 14, 2024

We hope you found your free hard copy at dozens of great local businesses, but if not here is a digital version that we hope does the trick. Thanks for reading and have a great weekend!

15/05/2024

Bonner County man claims $2M Powerball prize

BOISE – When the fuel pump on Nathan Wood’s truck started making strange noises last Monday he pulled into the nearest gas station, Arnie’s Payless Gas on Highway 200 in Kootenai to see what the trouble might be. Since he was already there, Wood purchased his regular Idaho Lottery tickets – two Powerball and two Mega Millions for last week’s draws on Monday and Tuesday nights.
A few days later, the local farmer from Sandpoint found out he had won $2,000,000 when his wife heard the news that there was a big Powerball winner from Bonner County and checked their tickets.
“She told me we had matched all five of the white balls on Powerball,” described Wood on sharing the good news with his wife. “I couldn’t believe it. And then, I went back to planting onions.”
All Idaho Powerball tickets include PowerPlay, a feature that multiplies prizes on all non-jackpot winning tickets. Wood’s Powerball ticket matched all five of the first numbers, but not the Powerball number, making his ticket a $2,000,000 winner.
Once his big win sunk in, Wood said he contacted his accountant and got all his paperwork together before making the trip to Boise to claim his prize. Wood plans to fix the fuel pump on his truck and then make solid decisions on investing his winnings for the future.
For selling the winning ticket, Arnie’s Payless Gas receives a commission from the Idaho Lottery for $25,000.

12/05/2024

Just look up!

Tonight will offer another opportunity to witness the aurora borealis dancing overhead. Last night's light show near Peewee Trail just north of Priest River was a breathtaking spectacle.

08/05/2024

The Beacon & Beacon Bonus - May 7, 2024

It's the first Tuesday of the month, which means twice as much local news with two free issues. Thanks for reading and have a great week!

01/05/2024

Albeni Falls Dam officials modifying spillway operations

Lake Pend Oreille refill likely delayed

SEATTLE – To ensure continued safe operations at Albeni Falls Dam in Oldtown, Idaho, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ officials are modifying spillway operations after metal defects were discovered on a single gate undergoing routine inspection and rehabilitation.
“Public safety is our top priority,” said Amanda Smith, Albeni Falls Dam operating project manager. “Though only one gate showed signs of defect during inspection, we are taking a conservative approach and are modifying operations until we have fully assessed the integrity of all gates.”
Since the dam’s spillway gates were fabricated at the same time, with the same steel type, when the dam was constructed in 1955, USACE is inspecting the remaining 10 gates to determine if similar defects exist. Modified spillway operations will continue until further investigation and analysis is completed.
“We need to understand the risk we are facing,” Smith continued. “We do not want to find ourselves in a place where a gate is compromised, which would impact our ability to manage lake levels and could increase flows downstream by approximately 15,000 cubic feet per second.”
Lake Pend Oreille will be held near current elevations for approximately the next week as refill options are evaluated. Refill will likely be delayed to later than normal due to spill gate movement restrictions and the need to maximize benefits from available storage.
“We understand the importance of Lake Pend Oreille to the community and lake users,” Smith added. “But we must take these steps today to ensure we are operating in a safe and reliable manner.”
To subscribe to the flow update distribution list, please email [email protected] and request to be added.

30/04/2024

The Beacon - April 30, 2024

We hope you're as happy it's Tuesday as we are, even if it's just for the tacos. Thanks for reading and have a great week!

26/04/2024

May Day Sales! Include your sale on the guide in the April 30 issue by contacting Terri before it's too late.

24/04/2024

The Beacon - April 23, 2024

Catch up on all your local news, sports, and community events in this week's issue. Thanks for reading and have a great week!

23/04/2024

The Beacon - April 16, 2024

Get caught up on news in last week's paper before a fresh issue hits stands tomorrow. Thanks for reading and have a great week!

10/04/2024

The Beacon & Beacon Bonus - April 9, 2024

Missed the eclipse? We've got you covered with a big assist from photographer extraordinaire Mark Vogt. Thanks for reading and have a great week!