Looking Back: Whitefish boy saves two from cold lake
Whitefish Pilot | UPDATED 2 hours, 48 minutes AGO
In 1976, the Whitefish volunteer Fire Department was proud its new C 800 three-ton truck quipped iwth a 225 Caterpillar diesel engine. The new truck would hold 850 gallons of water and pump 1,000 gallons per minute. Water guns were mounted on the top of the vehicle.
A look back at past Pilot articles by Julie Engler
50 Years Ago
June 17, 1976
Nobody wanted to ensure School District 44's buildings and properties. That was the gist of the report received by the school board. The board had advertised for bids on an insurance package, as it routinely does when its current policies have run their course. The bids were to be open Monday, but none were submitted. Insurance agent Bud Scotten, who handled the school district’s former insurance, said he had been unable to interest any company in bidding on the package. He blamed high risk situations in Montana schools in general. The Whitefish District, however, had no claims on its policies while paying out some $35,000 in premiums.
40 Years Ago
June 18, 1986
The intersection between Central Avenue and Sixth Street would be closed to traffic and a park-like area would be developed in its place along the Whitefish River. By a 4-2 decision, the Whitefish City Council decided to proceed with the plan to make Central and the portion of Sixth Street on the west side of Spokane Avenue dead end streets. Council members heard arguments for about an hour on both sides of the issue from nearby residents. The intersection of the two streets had been closed for about five weeks while a sewer line along the Whitefish River was replaced. The corner linking the two streets had to be completely torn out to improve drainage above the new line.
30 Years Ago
June 13, 1996
Whitefish School District 44 took a giant step toward the creation of the Applied Technology Learning Center. “I really think the most important thing you'll vote on this year is the Applied Technology Learning Center,” said Kathy Kramer, a parent and former school board member. Kramer, along with other audience members, wholeheartedly encouraged trustees to support the ATLC. Trustees unanimously approved a pair of measures which, for now, formally commit Whitefish Schools to the venture during their monthly meeting. An interlocal agreement was approved as well as a bond issue to go before voters.
20 Years Ago
June 15, 2006
Quick thinking by a Whitefish boy may have saved the lives of two thank you girls on Whitefish Lake. Ten-year-old Koler Kanistanaux pulled his sister Mariah Kanistanaux and her friend Jesse Gest, both 12, to safety with his kayak after the girl's canoe capsized roughly 300 yards offshore. Police dispatchers received a call at 3:57 p.m. from a neighbor on West Lakeshore Drive who heard the two girls screaming from their overturned canoe. Both girls had life jackets on, but they were floating in dangerously cold water.
10 Years Ago
June 15, 2016
A bicycle taxi business will would operate in Whitefish this summer, picking up and dropping off customers who want a ride in the city. Whitefish City Council approved a request by Annika Gordon to operate a pedicab. Gordon's pedicab can fit two passengers and is equipped with a bell, signals and brake lights. “We hope that people will take advantage of the option,” she said. “And will see it as an ecofriendly and fun method of transportation.” Gordon plans to collect fees for the rides based on what customers feel is reasonable. She plans to operate the pedicab from noon until she runs out of passengers.