Around the Area Feb. 6

BINGEN

Hillside gives way; rock mining suspended

The Washington Department of Natural Resources has ordered SDS Lumber Co. to immediately suspend surface mining at its basalt mine in Bingen. DNR geologists dispatched to the site earlier this week found a slide was actively moving, with soil and boulders rolling down a steep hillside and posing an immediate danger to the public.

The slide began Monday, with rocks, dirt and trees falling most of the day as the hillside gave way. A transitional housing facility was closed to ensure the safety of residents. About a dozen people were evacuated.

Company officials told the White Salmon Enterprise later in the week that they had inspected the hillside and determined it was safe for residents to move back into the housing units. One observer told the newspaper that the slide "must have been two or three football fields wide."

SDS has used the site for decades as a gravel pit. The basalt is used to make aggregate for road building.

VANCOUVER

Big jump in Homeless Connect attendance

The second annual Project Homeless Connect saw a huge increase in the number of people who showed up for services of all sorts.

The single-day resource fair for homeless people, held on Jan. 30 at the Red Lion Hotel at the Quay, saw a 70 percent rise from 200 visitors in 2008 to 344 last month. There were 15 children.

Representatives of 45 service providers and 75 volunteers pitched in to provide everything from medical care and massage to job counseling and housing placement. A hot meal also was served.

Approximately 90 people received haircuts; 30 got eye exams, with 22 receiving free glasses or getting a voucher for free service at LensCrafters; 23 received medical care and 10 had dental exams. The Washington Department of Licensing served 80 people.

To learn more about homelessness and how you can help, visit www.icfth.com.