In brief: Crime-prevention workshop planned
Fraud, identity theft and Internet crimes are headline subjects of a two-day neighborhood crime-prevention workshop scheduled for March in Spokane Valley.
Open to the public, the conference aims to give neighbors an educated edge for dealing with crimes in their homes and communities. Thirteen courses presented March 6 and 7 will train people to deal with illegal drugs and sex crimes as well as the new crimes of a changing world, such as Internet scams and security breaches.
Registration for the conference at CenterPlace is under way. Admission is $12 for a day or $20 for both sessions. The conference begins at 8 a.m. each morning and ends at 4:15 p.m. Breakfast and lunch will be provided.
For more information, contact Neighborhood Watch, 477-3055, or any neighborhood office of the Sheriff’s Community Oriented Policing Effort. Registration forms can be downloaded at www.spokanesheriff.org/community/neighborhood/default.aspx, and click on the Neighborhood Watch Crime Prevention Conference link at the right.
Concert
Orchestra, jazz band to perform Tuesday
The Central Valley Orchestra and Jazz Band concert will be from 7 to 9 p.m. Tuesday at the high school, 821 S. Sullivan Road.
Admission is free.
Public safety
Tips for going out on frozen lake
Tuesday afternoon Spokane County emergency crews received their first call this year that someone had fallen through the ice at an area lake.
It turned out to be a lawn chair sitting near some skaters on Liberty Lake, but marine patrol Deputy Tom Walker offered a few safety tips on the scene for those who choose to head out onto frozen waters.
“There’s no guarantee when it comes to ice,” he said.
On Christmas in 2005, a dog at Liberty Lake drowned after jumping off a dock and crashing through ice only a few yards from where people were skating, he said.
Several inches of clear ice will hold a person, but thick ice on one part of the lake doesn’t guarantee thickness of ice elsewhere. Snow or ice that isn’t clear also can make thickness difficult to gauge.
“If someone’s going to go out onto the ice, they should bring an ice auger,” Walker said.
When clearing an area for an ice rink, Walker suggests testing the thickness at each corner.
Various government agencies suggest ice should become about 4 inches thick before people can safely walk on it, provided the ice is clear and water is not moving underneath it.
If someone falls through, a specially trained emergency worker in a dry suit will crawl in the water, secure a rope around the victim and help pull out the person.