REI. It's a Seattle icon with a reputation for integrity. But a KOMO 4 Problem Solver investigation has uncovered a defect in that teflon reputation.
KOMO News
The latest breaking news, traffic, and weather from Seattle and Western Washington
(New) Poop-sniffing dogs helping save whales all over the world (Photo Gallery) (Video)
A local dog named Tucker has a very special talent for tracking, and scientists say he's helping save animals -- including whales -- all over the world.
Teachers to students: 'Get into the hallway! We don't want you to die!' (Photo Gallery)
The principal's voice came on over the intercom at Plaza Towers Elementary School: A severe storm was approaching and students were to go to the cafeteria and wait for their parents to pick them up. But before all of the youngsters could get there, the tornado alarm sounded.
(New) Overcrowding forces Kitsap County jail to release inmates (Video)
Overcrowding in the Kitsap County Jail is forcing officials to change the standards about who stays behind bars and who gets released.
News
REI. It's a Seattle icon with a reputation for integrity. But a KOMO 4 Problem Solver investigation has uncovered a defect in that teflon reputation.
A local dog named Tucker has a very special talent for tracking, and scientists say he's helping save animals -- including whales -- all over the world.
The principal's voice came on over the intercom at Plaza Towers Elementary School: A severe storm was approaching and students were to go to the cafeteria and wait for their parents to pick them up. But before all of the youngsters could get there, the tornado alarm sounded.
Overcrowding in the Kitsap County Jail is forcing officials to change the standards about who stays behind bars and who gets released.
Washington became the fifth state this year to sign into law protections of social media passwords at the workplace and job interviews.
Helmeted rescue workers raced Tuesday to complete the search for survivors and the dead in the Oklahoma City suburb where a mammoth tornado destroyed countless homes, cleared lots down to bare red earth and claimed 24 lives, including those of nine children.
Pot-infused bacon? There's a shop for that.
A former Spanaway Lake High School student who survived a horrific knife attack at the hands of another student is now suing the school.
A Kitsap County jury is being asked to decide if training on a popular surgical robot is linked to complications that led to the death of a Bremerton man.
Despite at least 11 assaults and one robbery reported at Cal Anderson Park since mid-April, Capitol Hill residents are not ready to give up on what many see as a community hub.
Entertainment
Photos: More from the Cannes red carpet (Photo Gallery)
Justin Bieber's monkey to become German property (Photo Gallery)
Justin Bieber's pet monkey is set to become the property of Germany.
Harry Potter book with author notes sold for $228K
For fans of the boy wizard, this could be the most coveted copy of all the "Harry Potter" books in the world.
Offbeat
For sale: 'Modern medieval' castle in Skagit County (Photo Gallery) (Video)
It's something right out of a medieval storybook. A castle has been listed for sale just outside of Sedro-Woolley, and it's modern living behind the stone walls.
Record 18-foot python caught in Florida
According to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, the 18-foot-8-inch snake was caught May 11 alongside a road in rural Miami-Dade County.
Slow pokes: Acupuncture helps hypothermic turtles
Two endangered sea turtles that are shells of their former selves after getting stranded on Cape Cod during a cold spell are getting some help easing back into the wild - from an acupuncturist.
Your Photos
(New) F3 Tornado in Kent, WA 12/12/1969
Someone my dad worked with at Boeing snapped this photo of an F3 tornado touching down in Kent on Dec 12, 1969.
Local & Regional
Police hope surveillance video will help lead to arcade gunman (Video)
Fun and games at a popular arcade became anything but for two teenagers in Seattle after a gunman robbed them while they played video games, then hit one victim in the head before running for the door.
The agency is known for helping overseas, but when disaster strikes in the United States, World Vision is on it.
A man wanted on outstanding arrest warrants found out the hard (and painful) way that running from police can be a real thorn in your side. And back. And legs.
The Lincoln County sheriff says a man is dead and a woman has been taken to a hospital after a boating accident on Sprague Lake about 35 miles west of Spokane.
Seattle police have arrested two teenage boys accused of attacking and robbing a woman on Beacon Hill Monday night.
Around the World
Vote clears way for epic Senate showdown on immigration
Far-reaching legislation that grants a chance at citizenship to millions of immigrants living illegally in the United States cleared the Senate Judiciary Committee on a solid bipartisan vote Tuesday night after supporters somberly sidestepped a controversy over the rights of gay spouses.
The U.S. has identified five men who might be responsible for the attack on the diplomatic mission in Benghazi, Libya, last year, and has enough evidence to justify seizing them by military force as suspected terrorists, officials say. But there isn't enough proof to try them in a U.S. civilian court as the Obama administration prefers.
A homeless man whose face was mostly chewed off in a bizarre attack last year appeared Tuesday to be mostly at peace with his disfigurement, strumming a guitar, making jokes and thanking people for their donations to help pay for his care.
Hours after New Yorkers rallied in response to a spate of gay-bashing that's resulted in one death and fueled concern about hate crimes, there were two more reports of possible anti-gay attacks on Manhattan streets, authorities said Tuesday.
The Pentagon is asking Congress for more than $450 million for maintaining and upgrading the Guantanamo Bay prison that President Barack Obama wants to close.
Sports
(New) Trout hits for cycle as Angels rout Mariners, 12-0
Mike Trout hit for the cycle and drove in five runs, Josh Hamilton celebrated his 32nd birthday with a homer and a triple, and Howie Kendrick also went deep in the Los Angeles Angels' 12-0 rout of the Seattle Mariners on Tuesday night.
Sergio Garcia apologized for saying he would "serve fried chicken" while making a joke about having Tiger Woods over for dinner.
What's not to like? Being in the lottery every year.
San Franciso has been chosen by the NFL to host the Super Bowl's 50th anniversary game in 2016, beating out the South Florida area.
The Seattle Seahawks have waived backup quarterback Josh Portis a day after news surfaced of his arrest for driving under the influence earlier this month.
Top Video
Baby makes epic soccer goal
During this weekend's retirement ceremony for Chelsea player Paulo Ferreira at Stamford Bridge stadium, a certain toddler managed to snag the limelight, putting on his own show.
Singer forgets lyrics, makes up words to National Anthem
Timelapse: Massive tornado forms, dissipates in Oklahoma (Video)
MOORE, Okla. - A large tornado bore down near Oklahoma City, part of a series of severe storms expected across portions of the Midwest.
Your Life, Your Style
Avoid tornado disaster charity fraud (Video)
Before you give money to help with tornado disaster relief in Oklahoma, find out what kind of help the charity is providing.
Poll: Teens migrating to Twitter to avoid Facebook 'drama'
Twitter is booming as a social media destination for teenagers who complain about too many adults and too much drama on Facebook, according to a new study published Tuesday about online behavior.
Seattle students report getting pot from dispensaries
Marijuana use among Seattle's high-school students is holding steady, and more than a third of students who use the drug say they got it from a medical marijuana dispensary, according to results from a Seattle Public Schools survey released Tuesday.
Microsoft touts new Xbox One as all-in-1 entertainment (Photo Gallery) (Video)
Microsoft revealed the Xbox One, its next-generation entertainment console, during a presentation Tuesday at its headquarters in Redmond, Wash.
Extras
How tornado victims got 25 minutes of precious warning time (Photo Gallery)
Twenty-five minutes.
That might not seem very long -- about the time it takes to wade through your favorite weekly sitcom if you fast forward past the commercials. But compared to a few decades ago, 25 minutes of time might have saved countless lives during the devastating tornado that struck Moore, Oklahoma on Monday.
Years ago, the residents of Moore would have likely had no idea the tornado was coming until the twister was sighted, giving people barely a few minutes' notice. But thanks to advancements in technology, tornadoes rarely sneak up on anyone anymore.
In fact, forecasters as early as Wednesday began sounding the alarm for a potential severe weather breakout on Sunday and, on Friday, the forecasts became more specific. On Sunday, a Tornado Watch, which indicates conditions are right for tornadic development, was issued at 1:10 p.m. for much of Oklahoma, including the greater Oklahoma City area.
That might not seem very long -- about the time it takes to wade through your favorite weekly sitcom if you fast forward past the commercials. But compared to a few decades ago, 25 minutes of time might have saved countless lives during the devastating tornado that struck Moore, Oklahoma on Monday.
Years ago, the residents of Moore would have likely had no idea the tornado was coming until the twister was sighted, giving people barely a few minutes' notice. But thanks to advancements in technology, tornadoes rarely sneak up on anyone anymore.
In fact, forecasters as early as Wednesday began sounding the alarm for a potential severe weather breakout on Sunday and, on Friday, the forecasts became more specific. On Sunday, a Tornado Watch, which indicates conditions are right for tornadic development, was issued at 1:10 p.m. for much of Oklahoma, including the greater Oklahoma City area.
"What does ''EF-4'' mean?' and other tornado questions answered
With tornadoes in the news lately I figured it'd be a good time to post answers to some frequently asked questions about the powerful storms:
What does "EF-4" mean?
WIth the devastating tornado in Moore, Oklahoma, you'll be hearing a lot of about "EF" ratings -- that's from the Enhanced Fujita Scale that rates tornadoes on a scale of 0 to 5, 5 being the strongest.
The Moore tornado was given a preliminary rating of EF-4 ("Devastating") with estimated tornadic wind speeds of up to 200 mph, although many are thinking that rating could be increased to an EF-5 ("Incredible") once more damage assessment is done.
Sadly, it's not the first time Moore has had to deal with such a catastrophic storm. On May 3, 1999, Moore was struck by an EF-5 tornado which recorded the strongest wind speed ever registered near Earth's surface. this map provided by the National Weather Service in Norman, Oklahoma shows just how close the two tracks were.
What does "EF-4" mean?
WIth the devastating tornado in Moore, Oklahoma, you'll be hearing a lot of about "EF" ratings -- that's from the Enhanced Fujita Scale that rates tornadoes on a scale of 0 to 5, 5 being the strongest.
The Moore tornado was given a preliminary rating of EF-4 ("Devastating") with estimated tornadic wind speeds of up to 200 mph, although many are thinking that rating could be increased to an EF-5 ("Incredible") once more damage assessment is done.
Sadly, it's not the first time Moore has had to deal with such a catastrophic storm. On May 3, 1999, Moore was struck by an EF-5 tornado which recorded the strongest wind speed ever registered near Earth's surface. this map provided by the National Weather Service in Norman, Oklahoma shows just how close the two tracks were.
Entertainment
Singer Sara Gazarek didn't grow up with a lot of exposure to jazz -- after all, Seattle is really known more for grunge (and, recently, hip-hop) than for crooning voices and downtown piano bars. But when she joined the jazz choir in high school, she fell in love with the genre. Now, she's an award-winning performer with a new album, who's using her star power to inspire future generations of musicians -- or at least help students understand a genre that often feels elusive.
Ray Manzarek, a founding member of the 1960s rock group The Doors whose versatile and often haunting keyboards complemented Jim Morrison's gloomy baritone and helped set the mood for some of rock's most enduring songs, has died. He was 74.
Antonio Banderas will play the charismatic miner known as "Super Mario," who in 2010 became the public face of 33 Chilean miners trapped deep underground for 69 days.
Technology
"There were a few tears and lots of hugs, and a lot of excitement," said his mother, Barbara Ackerman. "This is something that he built — it's his baby — and it's emotional."
Fresh on the heels of its $1.1 billion acquisition of Tumblr, Yahoo says it is rebooting its languishing photo-sharing site Flickr with plans to make it "awesome" again.
Eminem's song publisher is suing Facebook and an ad agency, saying they copied music from one of the rapper's songs.
The U.S. military has shut down wireless internet service at the Guantanamo Bay Naval Base in Cuba because of online hacking threats.
A company that monitors global Internet traffic says another branch of the Venezuela-to-Cuba undersea fiber-optic cable has come online, connecting the island to nearby Jamaica.
Business
The Senate dragged massively profitable Apple Inc. into the debate over the U.S. tax code Tuesday, grilling CEO Tim Cook over allegations that its Irish subsidiaries help the company avoid billions in U.S. taxes.
Americans got better about paying their credit card debt on time in the first three months of the year, a period when many borrowers use income tax returns to tackle their holiday season debt.
The Small Business Administration says it has lined up pledges from more than 120 banks to increase lending to veterans.
General Motors says it will invest $44.5 million at a Lansing, Mich., factory, creating 200 new jobs.
Officials say leading senators trying to resolve a key issue on immigration legislation have agreed to a compromise covering expansion of a high-tech visa program.
Offbeat
Two suspects arrested for breaking into a car in Central California accidentally called 911 on a cellphone, which led police to them.
A manager of Chicago's Navy Pier rode the tourist spot's Ferris wheel for more than two days, bringing the world record for the longest ride to the birthplace of the amusement park favorite.
A historic Milwaukee bowling alley and bar almost went without the appropriate support after a city inspector decided dozens of bras hanging from its ceiling were a fire hazard.
Texas Parks and Wildlife Department officials say 18-year-old Braxton Bielski bagged the record gator last week at Choke Canyon State Park, about 90 miles south of San Antonio.