Independently owned since 1905
Independently owned since 1905
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A group of firefighters from the Plains-Paradise Rural Fire District are in California helping fight wildfires. Chief James Russell along with Zach Vanderwall, Levi Reed and Callahan Larson left Saturday and arrived in California on Monday. Two engine strike teams traveled together. The Plains-Paradise crew is on Montana Strike Team 1, Russell said. "We send resources out of the district to help support the regional and national firefighting effort," Russell stated. "We want to return the help...
The Sanders County Fair Commission held their first meeting of the new year last Wednesday and selected a company to conduct the annual demolition derby, but subsequently the owner backed out, potentially leaving this year's fair without a demo derby. Tim Denson, owner of FOS Promotions and a former Thompson Falls resident, posted on Facebook last Thursday after the Wednesday meeting that he decided not to participate in the county fair's demolition derby. "As much as we have loved putting on...
A Thompson Falls High School class experiment has been recognized by a national organization. Doree Thilmony's Planting Science class has been studying photosynthesis and cellular respiration. The class recently completed experiments which they designed. Thilmony said the module is put on by an organization made up of botanists from the Missouri Botanical Society and educational trainers and curriculum from the BSCS Science Learning Center. The Thompson Falls "Plant Busters" team of Olivia...
A 67-year-old Thompson Falls woman was killed following a two-vehicle collision on Highway 200 near Perma. The incident occurred just after 4 p.m. last Wednesday, January 8. A Kenworth truck was traveling eastbound on Highway 200 and making a left-hand turn onto Highway 382 toward Camas Prairie when a Ford Focus traveling west on Highway 200 struck the truck head on, according to a report from the Montana Highway Patrol (MHP). MHP reported that the woman, a passenger in the Ford Focus, was taken to Clark Fork Valley Hospital, while the...
Ambulance: Plains, 7; Hot Springs, 4; Heron, 2; Noxon, 2; Dixon, 2; T. Falls, 1; Camas Prairie, 1; Missoula, 1. Monday, January 6 Welfare check, Trout Creek. Motor vehicle crash, T. Falls. Civil standby, Trout Creek. Property damage/criminal mischief, Noxon. Business contact, Plains. Theft, Trout Creek. Motor vehicle crash, Plains. Parking problem, Hot Springs. Warrant service, T. Falls. Business contact, Hot Springs. Motor vehicle crash, T. Falls. Business contact, Hot Springs. Tuesday, January 7 Intimidation/harassment, Hot Springs. Business...
Montana Highway Patrol Robert Andrade, 31, driving under the influence of alcohol/drugs, 1st offense, 1 day jail, $675; operating without liability insurance in effect, 1st offense, $275; unlawful possession of open alcoholic beverage container in motor vehicle on highway, $75; careless driving, $75. Jessica Blake, 48, day speeding, $20. Clayton Mathers, 64, seatbelt violation, $20. Kathryn Osiggins, 75, seatbelt violation, $20. Brandon Haley, 29, speeding in a restricted zone, $85. Elliott Parker, 31, speeding in a restricted zone, $95....
Appearing for an initial appearance before Judge Molly Owen on Tuesday, Joseph Edward Hudson entered not guilty pleas to two felony counts of criminal possession of dangerous drugs and criminal possession of dangerous drugs with intent to distribute, as well as a misdemeanor count of driving while suspended or revoked, 4th or subsequent offense. A jury trial was set for June 9. On October 12, 2024, Deputy Craig McCarthy initiated a traffic stop and the driver, identified as Hudson, whose driver’s license was suspended. Recrods showed Hudson h...
The Forest Service invites the public to provide feedback on the Eddy Creek Road Access Project on the Plains/Thompson Falls Ranger District. The project proposes to issue a special use permit to a private landowner of a 196-acre inholding to maintain and have unlimited motorized access to their property via Forest Road 7579-1. This project is located approximately 11 miles northwest of Plains, MT, in the Eddy Creek drainage. The private inholding previously belonged to State Mining Company, who was granted a permit to build, use, and maintain...
With the completion of the new multi-purpose building at Thompson Falls High School came a welcome change at the school. The school's weight room moved below the gymnasium into the old shop area. The larger space accommodates additional equipment, and Principal Jodi Morgan said eventually the space will include changing rooms and a bathroom for visiting officials. The new weight room is just over 2,000 square feet, about double the size of the old weight room, Morgan stated. Along with some new...
The first Plains Town Council meeting of the new year last Monday was completed within 30 minutes, but its members added two people to the Planning Board and gave an update on various items to the four people in attendance. John Dossett, who was added to the council last October, volunteered to be the council's representative on the Plains Planning Board, along with Plains resident Vicki Evans. Both were unanimously approved. It was a full council with Councilmen John Sheridan and Chad Cantrell...
Members of the Plains Planning Board met at City Hall Friday in preparation for the public hearing scheduled for Jan. 23 concerning the Lewellyn Street subdivision proposal. During the 40-minute Planning Board meeting, the members discussed what information they have for the subdivision proposal and listened to the three people in the audience - Councilman John Sheridan, Kathy Abarr and Charles Bickenhheuser. Planning Board members present included Corey Booth, the board president, Curt...
A former Thompson Falls woman who was convicted of deliberate homicide has been granted a new trial. Nearly four years after appealing to the Montana Supreme Court, Danielle Wood’s 2021 conviction for deliberate homicide has been reversed, with the case being remanded back to the Sanders County District Court for a new jury trial. The original jury trial, held before former District Judge Deborah “Kim” Christopher, spanned two weeks during January 2021, ending in a guilty verdict for Wood in the May 2018 deliberate homicide of Matthew LaFri...
A Thompson Falls man with two prior federal felony convictions and other state felonies was sentenced last week to five years and 10 months in prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release, for admitting to firearms crimes after law enforcement found numerous guns at his residence, U.S. Attorney Jesse Laslovich said. The defendant, James Vernon Day, Jr., 56, pleaded guilty in September 2024 to prohibited person in possession of a firearm and to possession of an unregistered firearm. U.S. District Judge Donald W. Molloy presided....
Ambulance: Plains, 15; T. Falls, 7; Hot Springs, 7; Dixon, 1; Lonepine, 1. Monday, December 30 Assault, Hot Springs. Civil attempts. Civil attempts. Welfare check, Plains. Business contact, Hot Springs. Business contact, Hot Springs. Civil attempts. USFS campground check, Superior. Theft, Hot Springs. Security check. Disturbance, Hot Springs. Disturbance, Trout Creek. Disturbance, Trout Creek. Suspicious activity, T. Falls. Tuesday, December 31 Disturbance, Hot Springs. Body found/coroner, Trout Creek. Road hazard/debris on road, T. Falls....
Montana Highway Patrol Gary Bartell, 71, failure to yield to vehicle on through highway, $85. Koummaly Thongdy, 51, speeding in a restricted zone, $95. Henry Amend, 20, speeding in a restricted zone, $85. Sanders County Sheriff’s Office Abby Ingram, 50, night speeding, $20. Sydnee Bievins, 21, day speeding, $20. Emily Park, 42, speeding in a restricted zone, $55. Motor Carrier Services Bonifacio Parerlta-Torres, 32, operating commercial motor vehicle without CDL, 1st offense, $235....
Residents from across the county got together last Saturday to discuss the Noxon bridge. The meeting was attended by about 25 people, including county commissioners Dan Rowan and Tony Cox, as well as Steve Howke from Rep. Ryan Zinke's office. The commissioners talked to residents, who came from Trout Creek, Thompson Falls, Noxon and Heron for the update, about efforts to start planning for the bridge replacement. "We're going to see what else we can do as a contingency plan to keep using the...
In recognition of National Radon Action Month, the Montana Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) is offering Montana residents a free radon test kit during the month of January to assess radon levels in their homes. Radon is a colorless, odorless and tasteless gas that can enter homes through miniscule cracks in the foundation or around utility pipes and can build up in homes over time. Radon forms from the breakdown or decay of uranium in soil, rock and water. Long-term exposure to elevated radon levels can increase the risk of lung...
The county is taking the next step toward replacing the Noxon bridge. Last week, Sanders County Commissioners voted to enter into a contract with Morrison Maierle to investigate further options for the bridge, seek funding and start planning for the project. At a meeting last Monday, the engineering firm discussed the scope of the contract with commissioners. Branton Sorbel with Morrison Maierle said the company was brought on board in the spring of 2024 to look at deck replacement. While they w...
A District Court judge has resigned before even taking office. Last week, attorney Kenneth Britton "Britt" Cotter of Polson submitted his letter of resignation to Chief Justice Michael McGrath of the Montana Supreme Court, citing criminal charges Cotter is facing. According to a press release from the Montana Attorney General's office, an investigation by the Division of Criminal Investigation (DCI) revealed Cotter, 48, tried to purchase cocaine on more than one occasion between March 2022 to May 2023. DCI was originally called in to...
In Camas Prairie, there's a small farm where one woman is living in paradise. Laurie and Adam Cowhig moved to Camas Prairie in 2020, and they call their farm Paradise Found Farm. Laurie has definitely found her paradise in northwest Montana. Cowhig breeds Boston Terriers. She has six of them at the moment, and one – Keaton – is headed to the Super Bowl of dog shows, the Westminster Dog Show, in February. Cowhig is a preservation breeder. "We breed for health and to improve the breed, sti...
A new automotive repair business in Thompson Falls opened in November with a passion for fixing vehicles and helping veterans. Josh and Miranda Helgert operate American Classics Garage at 360 Mount Silcox Drive in Thompson Falls. The business is open Monday through Friday 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., and Saturdays by appointment. Josh said that his love of vehicles and fixing them started when he was 8 years old. "My first vehicle was a 1949 Willys Jeep pickup," he said. "I bought it when I was 8 and put...
Ambulance: Plains, 11; T. Falls, 8; Hot Springs, 4; Paradise, 1; Dixon, 1; Lonepine, 1; St. Regis, 1. Monday, December 23 Motor vehicle crash, Hot Springs. Theft, Paradise. Welfare check, Plains. General animal call/complaint, Paradise. Business contact, Hot Springs. Business contact, Hot Springs. Business contact, Hot Springs. Business contact, Hot Springs. Disturbance, Dixon. Welfare check, Trout Creek. Welfare check, Plains. Theft, Camas Prairie. Civil attempts. Civil attempts, T. Falls. Business contact. Mental health issue, T. Falls....
Montana Highway Patrol Tayler Hayes, 27, speeding in a restricted zone, $85. Levi McNealey, 28, operating without liability insurance, 1st offense, $285; night speeding, $70. Sean Humble, 38, speeding in a restricted zone, $85. Corey Grotte, 55, speeding in a restricted zone, $85. Sanders County Sheriff’s Office Marsha Rogers, 40, operating with expired registration, $45. Candice Stewart, 56, speeding in a restricted zone, $65. Dustin McCollum, 42, night speeding, $70. John Hannan, 56, criminal possession of drug paraphernalia, $...
Sanders County Commissioner Dan Rowan (right) shakes hands with Alisa Garcia after delivering the oath of office to swear Garcia in as the new county Treasurer / Clerk & Recorder / Superintendent of Schools....
A 42-year-old Thompson Falls woman died in a one-vehicle accident early Saturday morning west of Thompson Falls. According to Montana Highway Patrol, the woman was driving a Jeep Wrangler eastbound on Highway 200 toward Thompson Falls near mile marker 46 when the vehicle drifted over the center line, left the roadway and impacted a tree around 2 a.m. The driver died on impact, according to Montana Highway Patrol. Alcohol is suspected as a factor in the crash....
