Cemetery cleanup

POST FALLS — The city of Post Falls is preparing to winterize Evergreen Cemetery and is asking relatives of the loved ones buried there to remove all seasonal decorations by Nov. 23.

Following Veterans Day, cemetery staff begins preparing the cemetery for the winter months. Seasonal decorations and temporary displays which constitute a problem during winter weather will be removed and discarded in accordance with the city’s cemetery regulations.

Please remember glass, ceramics and other breakables are not permitted in the cemetery at any time.

Cemetery regulations can be found on the city’s website, www.postfallsidaho.org, and are also posted outside the cemetery office front door on the right-hand side. Lot owners who need clarification about decorations that constitute a problem or with specific questions should contact the Parks and Recreation Department.

Normal operating hours at Evergreen Cemetery Office are Monday through Friday from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m., but the cemetery itself will remain open 24 hours a day and seven days a week for those needing to remove decorations. For more information, call 777-4478.

COEUR d’ALENE — Two dirt bike riders were injured in a head-on collision Sunday afternoon while trail riding on Canfield Mountain.

According to the Kootenai County Sheriff’s Office, deputies responded to a call on Sunday around 3 p.m. The caller reported two motorcycles had hit each other head-on while traveling down one of the motorcycle trails near the Nettleton Gulch trailhead.

Members from the KCSO and Kootenai County Fire and Rescue responded to the location via utility task vehicles, or UTVs.

Deputies identified the riders as Erik Lewerenz, 42, of Coeur d’Alene and Nicholas Boston, 23, of Spokane.

Both subjects were transported from the woods by medical personnel to a UTV where they were transferred to an awaiting ambulance. The two injured riders were then taken to Kootenai Health for treatment of injuries that were not life-threatening.

The accident is still under investigation but it appears that alcohol was not a factor.

The Kootenai County Sheriff’s Office is joining in a national effort to reach all Thanksgiving travelers with one important message: “Buckle up.”

According to Sheriff Ben Wolfinger, deputies will be conducting extra patrols to ensure the public’s safety.

Wolfinger shared some statistics about seat belt use in the Gem State.

Idaho’s observed safety restraint use rate declined slightly from 81.6 percent in 2013 to 80.2 percent in 2014. While the observed seat belt use rate was 80 percent, only 44 percent of the motor vehicle occupants killed in crashes were wearing seat belts. If everyone had been wearing seat belts, 34 of the 67 unbelted motor vehicle occupants may have been saved.

Historically, Thanksgiving is the busiest travel time of the year, putting more people on the road, and unfortunately increasing the likelihood of crashes. Each year in our country, tens of thousands of passenger vehicle occupants die in motor vehicle crashes. In 2013, more than 300 people were killed in crashes on Thanksgiving weekend alone.

The U.S. Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration estimates proper seat belt use reduces the risk of fatal injury to front seat passengers by 45 percent, and the risk of moderate to serious injury by 50 percent. In 2013, approximately 12,584 people survived crashes because they were buckled up. If everyone had worn their seat belts that year, an additional 2,800 lives could have been saved.

“So this Thanksgiving, and every day of the year, make sure your seat belt is buckled before you start any road trip, whether it’s 1 mile or 1,000,” stated the sheriff’s announcement of the initiative.