You're watching ComoTV4 in Seattle. Now, Como News 4.
And today I want to draw the line against anyone who would spread hatred and intolerance in our community.
After years of persistent rumors, tonight Mayor Norm Rice is fighting back.
Good evening everyone. Hot Talk Radio leaves Seattle Mayor Norm Rice holding a political hot potato, but he's trying hard to cool it off.
He's fighting to quell unsubstantiated rumors that could harm him personally and harm his bid for governor.
Tonight Governor Lowry wished Rice a speedy political recovery.
And the Talk Radio host whose program broadcasts the rumors says he's sorry.
Como's Lin Espinosa has the story.
Several years my family and I have been the subject of vicious rumors circulated through the community.
These rumors are ludicrous, they're outrageous, and they are completely untrue.
Chances are if you don't listen to Hot Talk Radio you haven't heard much about these rumors.
Here's the one that Mayor Rice says he just had to answer.
This flyer circulated by former city employee Kurt Hediger claims Rice's wife Constance shot the mayor in the wrist when she caught him having sex with then Deputy Mayor Bob Watt.
Late today Hot Talk host Spank Siegel apologized on the air then spoke to Como.
The role that I played, 20 degree that has caused him pain and suffering and allowing this rumor to air, I certainly want to apologize for that.
Notwithstanding the fact that he could have dealt with it much earlier.
Any accusation at all against Norm Rice or his family personally is absolutely preposterous.
While other candidates for governor are staying quiet, departing Governor Lowry is offering support for Rice.
He says such a personal attack is irresponsible.
I do think that it's very important that we discuss issues and the type of things that this is important in governor's race.
And Mike Siegel told me he thinks he should have taken more responsibility for what airs on his show.
But talk radio is something that is spontaneous and there will be occasions when things are said or done that could have been done differently.
And late tonight Mayor Rice's office called to say that he will answer the apology from Mike Siegel at his birthday party, Mayor Rice's birthday party tomorrow.
Now there are two things about which Mike Siegel and Mayor Rice seem to agree that they didn't think the rumor would mushroom into such a big issue and they hope now it can be put behind both of them.
Well this has certainly spurred a lot of speculation about what this could do to the mayor's run for governor.
What are you hearing about that?
Well I've been on the phone to political analysts all across the state tonight and they all agree it's really too soon to tell.
But the thinking is that if he'll be hurt, he'll be hurt the worst in the more rural, of course conservative areas and especially in the very important Spokane area.
Let's see, Lynn, thanks very much.
Search crews are getting some much needed rest right now before beginning another difficult day in the Florida Everglades.
Their grim inch by inch search produced one bright spot today, the incredibly lucky find of the flight data recorder.
ABC's Juju Chang is in Miami tonight with the latest.
NTSB investigators in Washington hope to retrieve speed, altitude and other information from the value jets flight data recorder.
The recorder was bent in the middle but according to those who have seen a lot of these recorders it was in remarkably good shape.
And I guess that we have reason to be encouraged that there will be good data on there.
The black box was found during the painstaking search in the Everglades near Miami.
Recovery teams wearing hazard suits walked arm in arm filtering the waters over the crash site.
Officer Gonzalez was part of the dive team that was walking their grid lines for victim recovery
and he had taken a step forward and ended up stepping up like he was stepping on a platform.
It was sitting on the bottom in the mud partially submerged under about three to four feet of water.
Jet fuel in the water means teams of divers have to wear thick biohazard suits,
but the brutal Florida heat limits them to 20 minute intervals.
Alligators pose another problem to the recovery operation.
Body bags have also been removed but identifying the victims will be a grim and in some cases impossible task.
There is not much hope that we're going to recover any intact bodies.
And I think anybody who's seen the aerial photographs of that crash scene knows why.
Now the search for human remains will continue in the morning,
but federal authorities are also hoping to find the DC-9's second black box.
The cockpit voice recorder could shed some light and some details on what the pilots were saying in the final moments before the crash.
Reporting live from the Florida Everglades, I'm Juju Chang. Now back to you.
You mentioned the threat of alligators and we saw some pictures of them.
Describe for us what these searchers are up against with those animals.
Well, Kathy, just with the alligators alone, they literally had to have snipers go out on these boats to keep an eye out for them.
Even in this fuel-infested water, it is just loaded.
I mean, the heat is another factor. During the day it gets to be 80 degrees with intense humidity
and the divers have to wear protective suits that are also very hot and they can only last 20 minutes apiece in the water.
Juju, we understand tonight officials say at first inspection it does not appear that the crash was caused by engine damage.
Well, that's right, Dan. What we're hearing from the NTSB is that from their casual look over,
they haven't been able to take the engines out of the water, but from first inspection there has been no catastrophic damage to the engines,
but they are hoping to bring in some floating pontoons, drag the engines out and give it a closer look.
All right, Juju Chang in Miami, thanks for the update tonight.
Well, it's a question you might be asking yourself. Do you dare fly cut-rate airlines?
Do cheap airfares mean shoddy maintenance and less experienced pilots?
You might be surprised to hear what some analysts say on tonight's nightline.
Well, you know, when you don't have a pilot force that you even bother to pay well,
when you've got people up there flying you that have had to pay for their jobs in effect and train themselves,
you've got a problem in human factors immediately.
When you've got a fleet that is maintained not by your own people and not controlled by your own people,
but out there with many different shops that are available, you have a lack of control.
Even if your heart is in the right place, that is a lesser level of safety,
even though it might be safe and legal, than the American public, I think, expects when they get on an airplane.
You'll see much more on the safety of cut-rate airlines on Nightline tonight, right after this newscast.
Fire officials know more tonight about a fatal fire in a North Carolina fraternity house.
It was apparently accidental, started by a cigarette in a basement trash can.
Five students were killed, three others hurt in the Sunday morning blaze.
Open doors in the basement of the building apparently helped fan the very fast-moving fire.
The fraternity house was packed with people at the time of the fire, holding a graduation party.
Tonight, a 10-year-old boy is the prime suspect in the beating death of an 18-month-old baby girl.
That little girl died in this house as the suspect and his 19-year-old brother babysat her.
The baby was rushed to a Denver area hospital where she died.
Police say it appears the baby was beaten with some sort of blunt instrument.
At this point, the 19-year-old is not a suspect.
Autopsy findings have not yet been released.
A three-year-old boy is in Harborview Medical Center tonight after being stabbed in the stomach by a four-year-old playmate.
It happened at a Central Area duplex.
The mother of the four-year-old says she saw the neighbor boy running inside while holding his stomach
and realized that her son had stabbed him.
She says her son simply doesn't understand what he's done.
A dying teenager will get his final wish despite strong protests from animal rights groups.
Here's what's new.
The Make-A-Wish Foundation has decided to let the Minnesota boy hunt bears.
The 17-year-old wants to go to Alaska and hunt the largest bear in the world, the Kodiak bear.
The decision has animal rights activists in an uproar.
They admit it's legal and the bears are not endangered,
but they say the Make-A-Wish Foundation has no business granting that kind of wish.
I would not be outraged as much if the National Rifle Association paid for it or the Safari Club.
That's the business that they're in.
They're in the business of killing and hunting.
As far as I know, the Make-A-Wish Foundation is not in that business.
But Make-A-Wish officials say their policy is to let dying children have whatever wish they want,
and the organization says it will stay true to its mission.
A Puyallup teenager was honored tonight for his heroism.
John, you did an outstanding job.
We all thank you very much.
John Martin was given a plaque for his efforts last week when his school bus driver collapsed
and the bus went out of control.
Martin helped stop the bus, then evacuated the students and got help for the driver.
Several students were hurt, but none of the injuries were serious.
Assault and malicious mischief charges could be filed over a fender bender that turned violent.
Lisa Tau got a smashed windshield, but it didn't happen in the accident.
A woman she rear-ended got out of her car, started swearing, and apparently smashed it with a club.
I think it's ridiculous. Accidents happen.
I've been rear-ended in the past, and people felt terrible who hit me, and they were apologetic.
That's how I was at first, and I was shocked.
Tau admits the accident was her fault, but she says the other woman's car had no visible damage.
That woman has a record that includes previous charges of assault.
However, she was found not guilty. The State Patrol is now investigating the incident.
The police say it's a growing problem, violence on our highways.
The psychologists have even come up with a name for it, road rage.
More drivers are losing control, leading to fights, accidents, and even murder.
I do. I get very mad. I would like to confront these people, if I could.
In fact, John Watling, who calls himself a road warrior, has done more than that.
A few years ago, he stopped a teenager who was tailgating him, and his rage took over.
He was going for the lock, but he never made it. I pulled his door open and took a swing at him.
All you're doing when you're chasing somebody down the road is you're dealing with something else that upset you long before.
It probably didn't have anything to do with this guy at all.
Watling says he knows he's lucky he wasn't charged with assault.
Police do not keep statistics, but several people have been killed in traffic disputes.
You can see more on road rage in a special report that we will have tomorrow on Como News 4 at 5 o'clock.
Their dreams took them close to the top of the world.
Tonight, there are new details about the blizzard that killed two local mountain climbers. The story is next.
And a little later, do you still have a chance to get Sonic's home tickets? Find out coming up.
And I'm Steve Poole. In the Como Weather Center a bit later, I'll have a forecast.
But if you've had the impression it's been a wet year so far, you're right. Look at this.
Normally, we'd have about 16 inches of rainfall, but so far this year, we've got 24 inches.
That's 8 inches above normal. What's next? We'll talk about it. Stay with us.
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If you see breaking news and you have a cellular phone, you have a direct line to Como News 4.
When you see news happening, call the Como News 4 Breaking News Tip Line at Pound 4444.
The call is free from US West Cellular and AT&T Wireless.
I do have, what do we say, a very, very positive mental attitude.
And that's the attitude that I think gets me to the top.
It's been confirmed tonight, the climb to the top has claimed the life of well-known Seattle mountain climber Scott Fisher.
Rescuers report that they have now located Fisher's body.
He was leading an expedition down Mount Everest after the group had reached the summit.
That's when the climbers were caught in a storm packing 100 mile per hour winds.
These pictures of Fisher were taken as he headed to the summit just last month.
Rescuers found him clipped to another climber 2,000 feet below the summit.
He was comatose and barely breathing. They were unable to revive him.
Before the final ascent, he was confident and exuberant, talking of the mountains he had already climbed.
You have Ami DuBlois? I climbed that.
And Baronce! We do have a little, a smattering of a Baronce view over there. I climbed that.
I trust we will be able to look towards his memory for inspiration.
And that's what he would want.
Everyone else from Fisher's expedition made it back safely. Fisher's body will remain on the mountain.
Friends say that's where he would want to be.
In the meantime, several climbers from a New Zealand expedition, including Doug Hanson of Renton, are also missing and presumed dead.
Tonight O.J. Simpson says he's not as unpopular as it might seem.
He told a crowd of reporters and onlookers in Britain that Americans have exaggerated in their mind the negative reaction to him following his acquittal.
Simpson says, at least to his face, people in America and Britain support him.
Gracious, open-minded people. But I find that to be pretty much the case everywhere I go in the U.S.
It's the media that's not quite in sync with what the public is showing me anyway back in the United States.
Simpson's trip is receiving a lot of attention on British television.
This is Simpson's first major publicity swing since a jury found him not guilty of killing his former wife Nicole and her friend Ronald Goldman.
A British newspaper reports that Simpson is considering buying a home near London.
It's the newest frontier, but it does have its dark side.
It can start innocently enough in online chat rooms.
But we found people who end up meeting offline often meet with disastrous results.
You know, sitting there all by yourself, alone. Some guy tells you all this stuff. You fall for it.
The downside of online tomorrow night on Como News 4 at 11 o'clock.
So we get just a tiny little break from all that rain tonight, but not for long.
Steve Poole has details of the forecast for the rest of the work week next.
And a little later, never a dull moment at the ATM. That's the goal of a new project by one local company.
Remember, it's not only how fast you can go, it's also where you can go.
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No one brings you Northwest weather like Steve Poole. Clear, accurate. It's a forecast you can plan on, and it's next.
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We had the floods in the winter. April was rainier than normal. Here we are halfway through May, and it's not looking much better, is it?
After this weekend, I got in and I said, I've got to check on this. And that's where I came up with those figures for you.
I have to admit, even I was surprised. Eight inches above normal. And we're just getting rolling here.
We've got a lot of year left. Mostly cloudy skies. We have 56 degrees with the south wind at 7.
2982 with a barometer that's steady right now. Humidity is at 86%.
The high today was 61 degrees, so we were pretty close to normal. 84, the record.
84. You know where all the hot weather is? It's down in California.
Down there, they've got temperatures soaring into the 100s. But you notice, right about the time you reach the Oregon-California border,
you start to run into the rainfall and it just continues to dominate this region. I'll show you this in low pressure a little further out here.
That's really kind of the driving force of all of this. But for now, we're getting a bit of a break from all the rainfall.
There's some down south. There's some in the mountains. And we might see a few showers continue to kind of work their way through the Puget Sound Basin overnight.
The overnight low temperatures will be mild. This is not a night to bundle up. Upper 40s to near 50 degrees. Those are going to be your lows tonight.
Then tomorrow, we get set for what's next for us. And remember, I was speaking of that low. Here it is out here.
And this has just been a dominant situation for quite some time. Air go our weather, not changing very much.
The high pressure that we'd love to have work its way up in here continues to kind of hang out down in California and parts of Nevada, Arizona.
So that means everything developing out at sea just has a beeline right for our zip code. And there you go.
We're kind of stuck with this for a while. So tomorrow, the story is the same. By the time you begin your morning commute, it looks like the rain will be back again,
even though we're getting a break now. And then things kind of lighten up again in the afternoon.
And we'll continue to see a few showers kind of meandering through western Washington. These are your high temperatures tomorrow.
It'll be a mild one again. Today it felt almost kind of balmy out there. 62 in Seattle, 61 Olympia, 65 in Portland.
So we're about as warm as we normally would be. But on the other hand, that moisture east of the Cascades, they're getting a lot of it too.
Not quite as much as we are. And a few more sun breaks over there. Temperatures for highs will be in the mid 60s to near 70 degrees.
Sounds warm, but even for our friends east of the Cascades, that's not what they would be expecting this time of year. Normally hotter.
So decreasing showers. That's the story for tonight. Then tomorrow morning, still some scattered showers around.
Come up with all these interesting ways of saying you're going to get wet, right?
Anyway, showers decreasing again tomorrow afternoon. 58, 61 for your highs. There's the rest of the week.
And it's kind of a ditto forecast, as I call it. Whatever we had for today, ditto for tomorrow and the day after and the day after.
When do we get a break? I don't know. I had somebody ask me about that this weekend.
You know, I said, Steve, what about the long range forecast? And I said, I look at those things, but I call them the funny papers.
Because they just you never know. But there ain't nothing really that funny about it.
The crying papers. OK, go ahead. All right.
Former Seattle Mariner found himself in the middle of a baseball melee tonight.
Bruce K. will tell you who's in the middle of this mess. Sports is next.
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The way you wear your hat. Same place.
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One of the hottest tickets in town right now is for Sonic's playoff game.
In fact, all the tickets to the upcoming home games of the Western Conference Finals are already sold out.
A lot of folks began lining up at midnight at the Seattle Center box office to wait in the rain.
And it's a good thing they showed up, too, because the tickets all sold out in just 40 minutes.
People like to cheer a winner. You know, they like the excitement, the adrenaline, the hormone rush, maybe testosterone rush or something.
I don't know. All I know is it's fun.
Well, they're doing pretty good, but we should want them to be we should want them to be the champions.
Thank you very much.
By the way, the tickets sold for anywhere from thirty two to one hundred forty five dollars.
Don't know when the games will be or who they're going to play, but the tickets are gone.
And that's a big question tonight. Who will the Sonics play next?
Utah or San Antonio? The Jazz hold the upper hand in that series and they can close it out tomorrow night with a win in San Antonio.
If that happens, the Sonics could be playing again as early as the end of the week, maybe Saturday.
But should the Spurs win, game six will be back in Utah on Thursday with a game seven if needed on Saturday.
If it does go seven, the Sonics won't play again until early next week.
Tonight, Orlando had a chance to sweep Atlanta, Horace Grant giving the Magic an eighty one seventy eight lead with the Hawks refused to let it happen.
Steve Smith takes the rebound away from Shaq for the follow up dunk.
Two of his thirty five points, the one oh four ninety nine win forces a game five Wednesday back in Orlando.
Baseball, the Mariners open an eight game road trip tomorrow night in New York.
It'll be the first meeting between the teams since their historic five game playoff series last fall in Texas tonight.
The first place Rangers hosting Kansas City.
Rusty Greer lines a hard shot at you see off Wells pitcher Kevin Apier, who gets hit in the leg, suffered a bruised kneecap, had to leave the game, but is not expected to miss his next start.
The Rangers go on to win that game by a score of seven to six.
Also tonight, both the Brewers and the Orioles pick up wins.
Well, in the National League, former Mariner Andy Bennis now with St. Louis hits Florida's Gary Sheffield in the arm with a pitch.
After going down for a moment, well, Sheffield is back up and has to be restrained from going after Bennis.
Both benches cleared, though no punches were thrown.
Bennis and Sheffield were both ejected from the game.
The contest, the Marlins win five to the Padres also win tonight along with the Cubs, the Braves, the Giants and the Montreal Expos.
Hey, it's playoff time for the Pac-10 champion Husky women's softball team.
The number one team in the country will host the NCAA regional tournament this weekend at 1.30 on Friday afternoon.
Oklahoma State will play Indiana followed at four o'clock by the Husky Jacksonville State game,
the final game of the double elimination tournament scheduled for Sunday with the winner going to the World Series in Columbus, Georgia.
Former Husky football star Lincoln Kennedy picked up by Atlanta in the 1993 draft, was traded today by the Falcons to the Oakland Raiders for an undisclosed draft choice.
The 6'6", 350 pound tackle joins his college teammates Billy Joe Hobart and Napoleon Kaufman on the Raider roster.
And how about a horse race with a triple dead heat? It happened yesterday at Yakima Meadows.
Here's the wire, all I have on the radio, three heads hit the wire. It's a close one.
Oh yeah, close is right. Look at this, three horses hit the finish line at the same time.
It's a triple dead heat. It's happened just 20 times in the history of American thoroughbred racing.
Finally, our play of the night involves some sleight of hand by Mets pitcher Jason Eisringhausen.
In San Diego, Padre slugger Tony Gwynn bounces his shot back at Eisringhausen who grabs it with his bare hand, fires the first base for the easy out.
Hey, check it out one more time. It has to hurt, but he goes after the ball with his bare hand anyway.
That's a good way to break a finger. It's also just a great way to win our play of the night.
Made it look like a piece of cake.
Absolutely, but I'm going to look down at that hand and maybe a little bit sore.
So you think we'll be bringing on the jazz to town?
I think Utah Jazz is probably going to win this series. They're up 3-1 and they could wrap it up tomorrow.
We shall see.
Just let the spurs get them tired, whatever happens. Wear them out a little bit or something.
Thank you.
Well, a California woman went from no children to four children in one day. 37-year-old Susan Hassen had her quadruplets yesterday on Mother's Day.
Isn't that appropriate? The babies are all girls. They were seven and a half weeks premature, so each of the little ones only weighs an average of two or three pounds,
but we're told they're all doing just fine, including Mom.