Top Stories: Teacher strikes, wildfire smoke, food cart pod problems

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Here are the top stories on columbian.com this week:

Camas teachers strike for second day

The Camas Education Association is striking for a second day Tuesday after Monday’s bargaining session again failed to yield a deal on a new contract with the Camas School District.

Schools in the Camas School District were closed for the first day of classes Monday as members of the Camas Education Association went on strike amid stalled contract negotiations.

• Union representing 460 certificated staff picketed outside several schools early Monday morning
• More strike coverage: Evergreen teachers the second to strike this year in Clark County; Camas still on picket lines
• One of the teachers on strike in Vancouver is Rep. Monica Stonier

Wildfire smoke pushes Clark County air quality into unhealthy range despite welcome rain

Smelly, stuffy signs from a wildfire in Oregon’s Mount Hood National Forest crept into Clark County early Thursday.

Wind pushed smoke westward from the Camp Creek Fire, about 25 miles east of Portland, into the metro area. A cold front washed over the region, coating the landscape with a cool, wet cover and providing relief, said Shawn Weagle, forecaster for the National Weather Service in Portland. However, with tapered wind patterns, a slight smoky scent remained.

• Current air information is available at www.swcleanair.gov/burning/airquality.asp.

3 food carts depart Living Hope Church location over traffic fee dispute

A food cart pod at Living Hope Church has lost three of its five carts due to a $45,000 traffic impact study fee that the church intended to pass onto the owners.

Only El Jefe and Backyard BBQ are still in business with the departure of Maya Fruits and Juice Bar, Krisey’s Kitchen and Winston’s British Fish N Chips earlier this month.

• 1 finds new home, 2nd looking, 3rd shuts down

Pedestrian, dog struck, killed by Amtrak train on Ghost Railroad Bridge near Ridgefield

A person and a dog were struck and killed by a train Tuesday near the Clark-Cowlitz county line as the person reportedly tried to save the dog, which was on the tracks.

Cowlitz County sheriff’s deputies responded at 1:12 p.m. to the bridge that crosses the Lewis River, known as the Ghost Railroad Bridge.

• Cowlitz County coroner will confirm the person’s identity

Driver in fatal shooting of Clark County sheriff’s Sgt. Jeremy Brown gets 27 years

A judge on Thursday sentenced the getaway driver in the July 2021 fatal shooting of Clark County sheriff’s Sgt. Jeremy Brown to more than 27 years in prison.

In handing down his sentence, Clark County Superior Court Judge David Gregerson said the shooting was “one of the saddest incidents I can recall in nearly 11 years on the bench.”

• Abran Raya Leon was convicted of 2nd-degree murder, other charges