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WHITEFISH CARNIVAL

INTER LAKE

© 2008 The Daily Inter Lake

Jan. 24 — After all the brave talk at the wool grower’s convention at Helena last week, much of it a bitter attack on the gov-ernment’s policy regulating grazing privileg-es on the public domain, and especially in the national forests, the resolutions adopted

were not of the radical character expected. There was considerable surprise at their moderation.

— The Inter Lake, 1908

FRONT & CENTER

100 YEARS

AGO

Younger Manning no longer in Peyton’s shadow Page B1

February 3, 2008 SERVING THE FLATHEAD SINCE 1889 ••• www.dailyinterlake.com $1.50

Live wild, live free*

Karen Nichols file photos/Daily Inter Lake

THIS AERIAL VIEW in fall 2007 shows the Eagle’s Crest subdivision being developed in the mountains south of Lake-side. As development spreads into more remote areas of the county, fire-prevention measures become much more important because of the high cost of structure protection during fire season.

By MICHAEL RICHESONThe Daily Inter Lake

For many people, the picture of Mon-tana is a home tucked away in the woods, an illusion of frontier living. But as devel-opment spreads into what’s known as the “wildland urban interface,” the burden on county resources — and county tax-payers — skyrockets.

“This is a huge issue,” said Mark Peck, director of Flathead County’s Office of Emergency Services. “It’s probably one of

But ‘frontier living’ is increasing cost of fire protection for Flathead County

*

Illustration by Headwaters Economics Inc.

See WILD on Page A3

OF THE 11 Western states, Montana has the third-largest area of undeveloped, forested private land bordering fire-prone public lands.

By MICHAEL RICHESONThe Daily Inter Lake

As more developments push into the forest, Flat-head County faces the dif-ficult task of responding to and mitigating the threat of wildfire.

The county’s total bill

for fighting fires in 2007 will come to about $300,000, which means government officials are looking at ways to solve one of Flathead’s biggest problems: Develop-ment in the wildland urban interface.

The interface is defined as a fire priority area where structures and other human

developments meet and intermingle with undevel-oped wild land and vegeta-tive fuels.

“It’s arguably the most critical planning issue from our standpoint,” Mark Peck, director Flathead County’s Office of Emergency Ser-vices, said. “If roads aren’t adequate and homes aren’t

prepared, it ties our hands from doing anything, but the citizen expectation remains the same. It’s the biggest challenge we face in the valley right now because it’s not slowing down. In some areas, a 50-acre fire could take out 30 homes.”

County addresses fire threat through planning

See COUNTY on Page A2

AP photos

POLICE INVESTIGATE the scene of a shooting Sat-urday at the Lane Bryant store in the Brookside shop-ping center in Tinley Park, Ill. At least five women were shot to death by a gunman who fled the scene.

Police search for man who fled clothing storeBy MICHAEL TARMTHe Associated Press

TINLEY PARK, Ill. (AP) — A gunman fatally shot five women in a robbery at a store in a suburban Chicago strip mall and fled Saturday, prompting police to sweep through neighboring shops as terrified customers watched.

The victims were killed at a Lane Bryant clothing store at the Brookside Marketplace, police Sgt. T.J. Grady said. Officers found the victims at the back of the store after get-ting a 911 call at about 10:45 a.m., Grady said.

Grady said robbery was believed to be the motive. Police searched for the gun-

man using dogs and a helicopter equipped with infrared sensors but concluded he left the stores off Interstate 80 southwest of downtown Chicago.

Five killed in shooting at Chicago mall

By SUSANNE M. SCHAFERThe Associated Press

COLUMBIA, S.C. — Keep an eye on the salsa during the Super Bowl today: A researcher inspired by a famous “Seinfeld” episode has concluded that double dipping is just plain gross.

“That’s like putting your whole mouth right in the dip!” George Costanza was admon-ished on the show after he dipped a chip twice at a wake. That’s not too far off, said Clemson

Holy guacamole: Don’t double dip

AP photo illustration

A PROFESSOR posed this question last year to his undergraduate stu-dents: Was there any transfer of microbes from mouth to chip and back to the dip?

POLICE SGT. T.J. G r a d y s p e a k s about the shooting at the Brookside shopping center.

See SHOOTING on Page A3

See DON’T on Page A3

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INT February 3, 2008

See who else took the plunge Page A6