Latest Washington Headlines

All the headlines from our Washington Topic Page, ordered by recency.

Washington City Mulling Suits Against Opioid Makers in Homelessness Fight

May 12 2017 // The city of Tacoma, Wash. is considering suing the manufacturers of opioids such as OxyContin in its fight against homelessness. Mayor Marilyn Strickland said at this week’s City Council meeting that the city is...

Washington Tunnel Collapse Renews Safety Concerns over Nuclear Site

May 12 2017 // Thousands of workers at the Hanford Nuclear Reservation were told to stay home as efforts began to plug a hole that developed in the partial collapse of a tunnel containing dangerous radioactive waste from the building of...

Seismic Network Confirms Small Quake Hit Washington Peninsula

May 5 2017 // A small earthquake struck the Kitsap Peninsula a few miles east northeast of Bremerton, Wash.. Its epicenter was about 12 miles (19 kilometers) deep. The Pacific Northwest Seismic Network says the magnitude 3.3 earthquake...

Feds to Use Fires to Lower Washington Wildfire Risks

May 1 2017 // To reduce the risks of wildfires, federal officials this spring are planning to conduct controlled burns on more than 9,000 acres of land in Washington state forests. The Seattle Times reported the fires planned in the...

Washington Nightclub Claims Racial Prejudice in $22.5M Suit

May 1 2017 // The city of Vancouver, Wash., and others successfully conspired to close a nightclub because of racial prejudice, the club’s owners say in a $22.5 million suit.The owners of Q Nightclub and Lounge say efforts by the...

Inspectors Find Continuing Safety Issues at Washington Mental Hospital

Apr 25 2017 // Inspectors who visited Washington state’s largest psychiatric hospital found that safety problems that thrust the facility into the national spotlight after the escape of two dangerous patients a year ago persist,...

Feds Will Use Fires to Lower Washington Wildfire Risks

Apr 24 2017 // To reduce the risks of wildfires, federal officials this spring are planning to conduct controlled burns on more than 9,000 acres of land in Washington state forests. The Seattle Times reported the fires planned in the...

Minor Temblor Reported off Bay in Washington

Apr 24 2017 // A small earthquake struck near Port Townsend in Admiralty Bay.The Pacific Northwest Seismic Network says the earthquake happened shortly after 10 p.m. Wednesday between Port Townsend and Oak Harbor, Whidbey Island. The...

Washington Nightclub Claims Racial Prejudice in $22.5M Suit

Apr 18 2017 // The city of Vancouver and others successfully conspired to close a nightclub because of racial prejudice, the owners of the club say in a $22.5 million lawsuit.The owners of Q Nightclub and Lounge say efforts by the city...

Washington Commissioner Fines Insurance Professionals over Violations

Apr 17 2017 // Washington Insurance Commissioner Mike Kreidler recently took disciplinary action and issued fines totaling $3,650 against insurance companies, agents and a continuing education provider who violated state insurance...

Oregon, Washington Testing Early Quake Warning System

Apr 13 2017 // An early warning system for earthquakes has been expanded to Oregon and Washington, joining California in testing a prototype that could give people seconds or up to a minute of warning before strong shaking begins.The...

Washington Commissioner Supporting Strict Distracted Driving Bills

Mar 22 2017 // Washington Insurance Commissioner Mike Kreidler is advocating for two distracted driving bills that the state Legislature is considering.House Bill 1371, sponsored by Rep. Jessyn Farrell, and Senate Bill 5289, sponsored by...

Uber Vehicle Striking Washington Gas Pump Resulted in Fiery Explosion

Mar 16 2017 // A gas pump burst into flames after being struck by a vehicle in service for Uber in Seattle, Wash. The result was a fiery explosion that was caught on surveillance video. KOMO reported the crash involved an Uber driver...

Plunging Temperatures in Northeast Lead to Icy Conditions Following Storm

Mar 16 2017 // Concerns about falling temperatures and icy conditions on roads and sidewalks across the Northeast followed a late-season storm that plastered the region with sleet and snow.Tuesday’s powerful nor’easter...

Demolition on Washington’s Hanford Plutonium Plant Resumes

Mar 14 2017 // Demolition of a major plutonium plant at the Hanford Nuclear Reservation in Washington state has resumed after radioactive contamination was detected in a rubble pile.The work restarted this week at the Plutonium...

U.S. Blizzard Grounds Flights, Raises Power as Trump Tweets

Mar 14 2017 // A late-winter storm is about to bury the eastern U.S. in snow.Airlines have canceled thousands of flights, wholesale power prices surged and natural gas futures rallied as the storm prepared to spin up the Atlantic Coast,...

Fraud Investigations in Washington Lead to 2 Guilty, 2 Charged

Mar 9 2017 // Two people were found guilty of felonies and two others were charged in connection with insurance fraud investigations in Washington by Insurance Commissioner Mike Kreidler’s criminal investigations unit.Alhagie...

Texas Ex-Postal Employee Sentenced for Workers’ Comp Fraud Scheme

Mar 7 2017 // McArthur Baker, 69, a former U.S. Postal Service employee, has been sentenced to 21 months in federal prison for his role in a scheme to defraud the Department of Labor’s (DOL) Office of Workers’ Compensation...

Washington Man Wins $1.85M Judgment over Racial Abuse on Fishing Vessel

Mar 3 2017 // Attorneys for a Hispanic man who worked on an Alaska fishing boat say he has won a $1.85 million settlement against his former employer, Seattle-based Alaska Longline, after he was subjected to relentless racial...

Washington Attorney General Will Fight if Necessary to Keep State’s Legal Pot

Feb 28 2017 // Washington Attorney General Bob Ferguson says the state is ready to fight if necessary to keep its legal marijuana. Ferguson made the comments after White House spokesman Sean Spicer suggested during a press briefing that...