West Seattle, Washington
06 Friday
(Photo courtesy West Seattle Bowl)
Advancing to Phase 2 in the state’s “Healthy Washington: Roadmap to Recovery” plan means some businesses can reopen for limited capacity after two months of total closure. Among them, West Seattle Bowl. They’re planning to reopen the 39th SW/SW Oregon bowling center next Thursday (February 4th), 3 pm-9 pm, with the same hours on Friday (February 5th), then noon-8 pm on Saturday, February 6th, but they’ll be closed on Super Bowl Sunday, After that, says WS Bowl’s Jeff Swanson, “We will resume similar hours to what we were doing in September-November.” (Here’s our story from September.) The WS Bowl website should be updated soon with new info.
Thanks to Curtis for the photo from 8th Avenue South/South Chicago [map] in South Park, Per police-radio communication, a crane took out that pole, and it is affecting people beyond the immediate area – roads are closed for several blocks around, and the resulting power outage includes the light at West Marginal and South Holden, by a much-used ramp just south of the 1st Avenue South Bridge. No word of any injuries.
(Log House Museum, file photo)
The home of West Seattle’s history is offering a new virtual experience – here’s the announcement:
The Southwest Seattle Historical Society is pleased to announce its first digital tour experience “Who Writes My History Books? Why Your Voice Matters In Living History.” Join us for an online tour to experience the enrichment that an in-person field trip experience affords, even while we can’t be together. This tour is open for student groups Grades 6 – 12, and any interested adult groups. Sign ups are required at least two weeks before your desired tour date. “Who Writes My History Books?” is a free experience. Tours will be available from 11 AM – 3 PM on Thursdays and Fridays on a first-come first-served basis. Tours will be capped at 25 for school groups and 12 for adult groups.
“Who Writes My History Books?” breaks down the historical process, and empowers students to document their thoughts and experiences as active witnesses of history. By the end of the tour, participants should:
-Understand why individual accounts of history matter (including yours!)
-Be familiar with the basic steps of the historical process
-Have practice asking questions to better understand historical documents
-Be exposed to the idea that history is constantly being rewritten. Our understanding of history can seem static, but how we interpret history changes all the time!
To register, please visit www.loghousemuseum.org, call 206-350-0999, or email museum@loghousemuseum.org. Tours run for approximately one hour. Tour availability is based on docent availability and is subject to change.
6:16 AM: Welcome to Friday, January 29th, the 312th morning without the West Seattle Bridge.
ROAD (ETC.) WORK
Delridge project – The SW Thistle closure continues between Delridge and 20th. Here’s what else is happening this week.
California and Myrtle – The sewer-repair project continues – if driving/riding on California, be careful going over the bumps on the northbound side. Also, as we saw on Wednesday, you might occasionally have to detour around the site entirely.\
Fauntleroy Way work next week – Next Thursday (February 4th), about two weeks of utility work starts on Fauntleroy between Alaska and Edmunds, as previewed here.
CHECK TRAFFIC BEFORE YOU GO
Low Bridge: Third week for automated enforcement cameras, while restrictions are in effect 5 am-9 pm daily. (No stats yet.) Here’s a bridge view:
West Marginal Way at Highland Park Way:
Highland Park Way/Holden:
The 5-way intersection (Spokane/West Marginal/Delridge/Chelan):
The main detour route across the Duwamish River, the 1st Avenue South Bridge (map):
The other major bridge across the river – the South Park Bridge (map). Here’s the nearest camera:
Going through South Park? Don’t speed. (Same goes for all the other detour-route neighborhoods, both the arterials and neighborhood streets!)
To check for bridges’ marine-traffic openings, see the @SDOTBridges Twitter feed.
You can view all local traffic cams here; locally relevant cameras are also shown on this WSB page.
TRANSIT
Water Taxi – On its regular schedule but through next week, it’s the lower-capacity Spirit of Kingston
Metro – On regular weekday schedule. If you’re not subscribed to alerts, watch @kcmetrobus on Twitter for updates
Trouble on the roads/paths/water? Let us know – text (but not if you’re driving!) 206-293-6302.
11:24 PM: The Guardian One helicopter is helping Seattle Police search for a missing child. There’s no official bulletin out about him but what we heard on police radio was that he’s 9 years old, Black, about 4’5″, in a pink shirt. No other info about description or circumstances, so far.
11:49 PM: No word of the child’s whereabouts yet, nor have police issued a bulletin asking for the public’s help. Listening back to police-radio discussion from before the helicopter dispatch caught our attention, they are looking into the possibility he’s with a family member other than the one who reported him missing.
12:04 AM: Police have just now tweeted the child’s photo and name.
12:23 AM: Per scanner, the aforementioned family member has told police she has the child and he’s safe.
12:47 AM: Police have confirmed in person that he’s OK.
The phase-change news tops tonight’s roundup:
PHASE CHANGE: Gov. Inslee says our county and six others can advance to Phase 2, as of Monday. That means changes primarily for restaurants, fitness facilities, and indoor entertainment/recreation. Also, among other tweaks to the reopening policy, the state will review metrics every two weeks from here on out rather than weekly.
NEWEST KING COUNTY NUMBERS: From the Public Health daily-summary dashboard, here are today’s cumulative totals:
*75,682 people have tested positive, 393 more than yesterday’s total
*1,242 people have died, 1 more than yesterday’s total
*4,763 people have been hospitalized, unchanged from yesterday’s total
*822,810 people have been tested, 513 more than yesterday’s total
One week ago, the four totals we track were 70,547/1,165/4,495/782,951.
STATEWIDE NUMBERS: Find them, county by county, on the state Department of Health page.
WORLDWIDE NUMBERS: 101.4 million cases worldwide, 25.7 million of them in the U.S. See the nation-by-nation breakout here.
WHERE TO GET VACCINATED – WHEN SUPPLIES ARE IN: Some QFC pharmacies will be sites – we checked the list today and the West Seattle Junction store is scheduled to be one of those sites. They join the Safeway pharmacies (Admiral and Roxbury) as places to watch. But those locations don’t have vaccine right now. And none are on the state’s location list, yet.
NEED FOOD? 2-5 pm tomorrow at Food Lifeline (815 S. 96th) HQ, emergency food boxes are available.
GOT PHOTOS/TIPS? 206-293-6302, text or voice, or westseattleblog@gmail.com – thank you!
Six years have passed since King County voters approved the first “Best Starts for Kids” levy, you’ll be asked in August if you support renewing it. King County Executive Dow Constantine‘s announcement says it has served more than 500,000 children in the past six years (here’s a report), “providing comprehensive supports from prenatal development all the way to young adulthood.” The programs proposed to be funded through the levy include:
• Home-based services for new parents – provides support for new families throughout the first years. In these programs, an average of 97 percent of new parents started breastfeeding, helping their babies off to a healthy start. This exceeded the goal of “Healthy People 2020,” a federal initiative with a goal of 82 percent of new parents breastfeeding.
• Programs that promote healthy development for youth – provides support for children and young people to develop leaderships skill, connect with their community, and succeed in school. The levy served 40,000 children and young people with programs before, during, and after school, and throughout the summer.
• Youth and Family Homelessness Prevention Initiative – flexible funds and intensive case management helped 9,200 young people and families. Ninety percent of enrollees did not enter the homeless system, and 92 percent remained housed at least one year after exiting the program.
Child care would also be addressed, “new funding for 3,000 children under 5 who currently have no access to child care.” So what will it cost? The first-year rate is 19 cents per $1,000 valuation, $114 a year for a “median-priced King County home,” with annual increases capped at three percent, raising about $811 million over the six years. The announcement says this is five cents more per $1,000 than the original Best Starts for Kids levy. You can read more about this in the full announcement. Next step for the proposal is a County Council decision on whether to send it to the ballot.
Around this time yesterday, we were reporting on a ground and air search in Highland Park for what was eventually described as a domestic-violence assault suspect – later revealed to have gotten out of jail two days after an arrest for attacking the same victim. The suspect, 25-year-old Ulises Chaires-Batalla, was charged today with four felonies. He was first booked into jail early Monday for attacking the victim in their Highland Park apartment. Court documents say his bail was set at $50,000 and he got out of jail Wednesday morning. Hours later, he was charged with assault and harassment for Monday’s attack. But by then, he had returned to the apartment, prosecutors say, pushing his way in, knocking over a baby swing holding their 3-month-old daughter, choking the victim in view of their 3-year-old and 5-year-old sons, then pulling her into a bedroom and raping her while threatening her with a box-cutter. Prosecutors wrote, “Perhaps the only thing that saved the victim was that she happened to be on the phone with a friend” when Chaires-Batalla showed up. Aware of the previous attack, the friend called 911.
During Wednesday’s attack, the court documents say, the little boys yelled at their father to “stop killing Mommy.” He fled when he heard the sirens of the police cars responding to the 911 call from the victim’s friend. In Monday’s attack, he also had choked her, and threatened to shoot her, according to those charging papers – again, in view/earshot of at least one of their young children. She waited for him to fall asleep before fleeing to a friend’s apartment in the same building and calling police. Their response included SWAT team members because she told them he had a gun; they were able to enter the apartment and arrest him. Chaires-Batalla’s bail is now set at half a million dollars.
If you are a victim of domestic violence – here are hotlines with people you can talk to now. If and when you are being attacked, you can text 911 instead of calling, if that’s safer.
2:36 PM: Just announced by Gov. Inslee as he starts another media briefing: The Puget Sound region in the “Healthy Washington” plan – including King County – will move to Phase 2 starting Monday. He’s changed the rules somewhat, enabling areas to advance by meeting 3 of 4 criteria instead of 4.
He also says the pace of vaccinating people is picking up, but the current bottleneck remains how many doses they can get from the federal government.
2:43 PM: The briefing has moved quickly to Q&A. The first question is about people who’ve had their first dose of vaccine and are having trouble getting an appointment for their second one. State officials who answered say it’s dependent on your provider, and the governor says he’s hoping that trouble will ease with the feds sending more vaccine.
2:59 PM: One of the changes is that they’ll be monitoring metrics and potentially announcing phase-change eligibility every 2 weeks, instead of weekly. But overall, he says a major drop in case numbers is one big reason that several counties including ours can move ahead. … Here are details on the governor’s announcement. … This is a two-phase plan, so, the governor was asked, when will we find out about what’s in Phases 3 and beyond? No word on that yet, Inslee replied. … The briefing ended at 3:11 pm.
3:29 PM: In case you’re wondering “so what’s allowed in Phase 2?” see page 5 of this. Biggest changes are for indoor dining, fitness, bowling alleys, movie theaters – all will be allowed indoor operations at 25 percent capacity.
Three West Seattle Junction biznotes, from the WSB inbox:
CITY MOUSE STUDIO: An update from the children’s-apparel store at 4218 SW Alaska:
City Mouse Studio in the West Seattle Junction is now back open with winter clearance! Prices are as marked and up to 60% off select items! If you would like to shop online at www.citymousestudio.com– we ship for free! We are also offering in-store pickups and front-door dropoff if you live in West Seattle.
Our current hours are:
Monday – Friday 10 am-4 pm
Saturday: Closed (will open back up in mid Feb)
Sunday: 10 am-3 pmWe are also HIRING! We are looking for a wonderful full-time employee to join our team. Tuesday – Saturday availability. Email resume and cover letter to: CityMouseStudio@gmail.com
PHOENECIA: The bistro at 4717 42nd SW is offering a Valentine’s Day Weekend dinner for two, $140, pick up February 12th, 13th, or 14th to reheat at home. See the full menu here. Pre-orders only – you can text 206-250-5482 to order.
PUERTO VALLARTA: The restaurant at 4727 California SW just announced that it’s opened some indoor dining per the state’s new “open-air” guidelines.
Got business news? Email westseattleblog@gmail.com – thank you!
(Low-bridge camera installation, December 2020 – SDOT photo)
Since the shutdown of the high-rise West Seattle Bridge on March 23, 2020, the city has restricted access to the low bridge (formally the Spokane Street Swing Bridge), saying that without restrictions, the low bridge would be jammed. At first, intermittent police presence was used to enforce the restrictions; now, cameras are up, photographing license plates for $75 citations to be sent to unauthorized drivers. Those cameras were activated two and a half weeks ago; SDOT says it has no stats yet on how many citations have been sent, but if you’re interested in the overall justification for restrictions, here’s a new document:
That 24-page document (also viewable here) is a “checklist” supporting a Determination of Non-Significance – a declaration that restricting access to the low bridge does not require a full environmental-impact study. It was linked from today’s city-circulated Land Use Information Bulletin. If you disagree and think the access restrictions should get a full environmental-impact study, you have until February 18th to appeal the determination – this notice explains how.
P.S. The low bridge will be a topic when SDOT reps appear at tonight’s West Seattle Transportation Coalition meeting; our morning preview has the agenda and viewing/participation info.
Highlights for the last Thursday of January:
DAY BETWEEN SEMESTERS: No classes for Seattle Public Schools.
SCHOOL TOUR: 11 am, Pathfinder K-8 has an online Middle School Tour. Click here to join, or call in 206-800-4125 (Phone Conference ID: 186 850 64)
SOUND TRANSIT BOARD: Monthly meeting at 1:30 pm, with topics including the consultant who will review the recent estimates of dramatically higher costs for West Seattle/Ballard light-rail. The agenda includes viewing information.
COMMUNICATING WITH PEOPLE LIVING WITH DEMENTIA: Class presented by Aegis Living-West Seattle, 3 pm. Our calendar listing explains how to register.
WEST SEATTLE TRANSPORTATION COALITION: SDOT and Sound Transit are tonight’s guests – here’s the draft agenda and guest list. 6:30 pm online, all welcome – here’s the videoconferencing link, or call 253-215-8782 (Meeting ID: 837 8280 7737).
6:12 AM: Welcome to Thursday, January 28th, the 311th morning without the West Seattle Bridge.
TRANSIT
Water Taxi – On its regular schedule but through next week, the lower-capacity Spirit of Kingston
Metro – On regular weekday schedule. If you’re not subscribed to alerts, watch @kcmetrobus on Twitter for updates
ROAD (ETC.) WORK
Delridge project – The SW Thistle closure continues between Delridge and 20th. Here’s what else is happening this week.
California and Myrtle – The sewer-repair project continues – if driving/riding on California, be careful going over the bumps on the northbound side. Also, as we saw on Wednesday, you might occasionally have to detour around the site entirely.
CHECK TRAFFIC BEFORE YOU GO
Low Bridge: Third week for automated enforcement cameras, while restrictions are in effect 5 am-9 pm daily. (No stats yet.) Here’s a bridge view:
West Marginal Way at Highland Park Way:
Highland Park Way/Holden:
The 5-way intersection (Spokane/West Marginal/Delridge/Chelan):
The main detour route across the Duwamish River, the 1st Avenue South Bridge (map):
The other major bridge across the river – the South Park Bridge (map). Here’s the nearest camera:
Going through South Park? Don’t speed. (Same goes for all the other detour-route neighborhoods, both the arterials and neighborhood streets!)
To check for bridges’ marine-traffic openings, see the @SDOTBridges Twitter feed.
You can view all local traffic cams here; locally relevant cameras are also shown on this WSB page.
Trouble on the roads/paths/water? Let us know – text (but not if you’re driving!) 206-293-6302.
Tonight’s pandemic toplines:
NEWEST KING COUNTY NUMBERS: From the Seattle-King County Public Health daily-summary dashboard, the cumulative totals:
*75,289 people have tested positive, 388 more than yesterday’s total
*1,241 people have died, 1 more than yesterday’s total
*4,763 people have been hospitalized, 27 more than yesterday’s total
*822,897 people have been tested, 4,865 more than yesterday’s total
One week ago, the four totals we track were 72,924/1,198/4,643/801,482.
STATEWIDE NUMBERS: Find them, county by county, on the state Department of Health page,.
WORLDWIDE NUMBERS: See them, nation by nation, here.
VACCINATED: More than 200,000 doses have been administered in King County. Still no West Seattle locations on the state list.
GOT INFO? Email us at westseattleblog@gmail.com or phone us, text or voice, at 206-293-6302 – thank you!
Seattle Police and King County Sheriff‘s deputies are investigating two crashes on SW Roxbury believed to have been caused by the same hit-and-run driver. He is reported to have hit a pole in the 900 block of Roxbury, then a vehicle near 14th/Roxbury, and then walked or ran away. A search is under way.
This week, we’ve been announcing upcoming school tours/open houses – all online events – as we hear about them. Tonight, we have more:
PATHFINDER K-8: Three events are coming up –
Middle School Tour – Thursday, January 28 11:00 am-12:30 pm:
Click here to join
Or call in (audio only) 206-800-4125 (Phone Conference ID: 186 850 64)
K-5 Tour – Wednesday, Feb. 3rd 5:30-7:00 pm:
Click here to join
Or call in (audio only) – 206-800-4125 (Phone Conference ID: 988 639 515)
Middle School Tour – Thursday, Feb. 4 – 5:30-7:00 pm
Click here to join
Or call in (audio only) 206-800-4125 (Phone Conference ID: 906 152 910)
OUR LADY OF GUADALUPE CATHOLIC SCHOOL (WSB sponsor): This Sunday, January 31, 1 pm online open house – info (and how to connect) here.
HOLY ROSARY CATHOLIC SCHOOL: Also on Sunday, January 31st, online open house from 12 pm-1:30 pm – register and get more details here.
(added) ALKI ELEMENTARY: “Alki Elementary will be hosting two Open House/Kindergarten Tours virtually in February for all families interested in attending Alki Elementary in the Fall of 2021.” 3 pm Monday, February 1st, and 6:30 pm Tuesday, February 9th. Attendance info is here.
WESTSIDE SCHOOL (WSB sponsor): “Limited availability in some grades (PS-8th grade) and still accepting applications for the 2021.2022 school year. Via our virtual tour, you’ll learn about our unique program and get a peek at our spaces. In addition to your virtual tour, you’ll get an opportunity to speak with our Director of Admission, Ted Holmes.” Email him – tedh@westsideschool.org – or call 206-932-2511 to sign up for a tour. Coming up:
Preschool and Pre-Kindergarten – Thursday, February 4, 10:00 – 11:00 am
Kindergarten – Wednesday, February 3, 1:30 – 2:30 pm
LAFAYETTE ELEMENTARY: Two open houses are coming up:
Thursday, February 4 @ 5:30 pm
Click here to join
Or call in (audio only) 206-800-4125 (Phone Conference ID: 405 850 553)
Thursday, February 11th @ 5:30 pm
Click here to join
Or call in (audio only) 206-800-4125 (Phone Conference ID: 423 932 196#)
CHIEF SEALTH INTERNATIONAL HIGH SCHOOL: February 11th open house for prospective new students and their families; time/info will be on this page when set.
EARLIER: Arbor Heights Elementary tour info is here; Denny IMS, Boren STEM K-8, Roxhill and Highland Park Elementaries, Hope Lutheran School and Seattle Lutheran HS info is here.
Any more to add? westseattleblog@gmail.com – thank you!
Earlier this month, we reported on wildlife advocates’ advice to temporarily remove your bird feeder to save birds’ lives, because current crowding can spread potentially deadly salmonellosis among them. On Tuesday, Seattle Audubon hosted a state expert ta talk about the problem; the video is above. If you’re concerned about the birds, it’s worth watching. Thanks to Kersti Muul of Salish Wildlife Watch, also a longtime bird steward, for letting us know!
Two notes about scams today. First, an alert for restaurants:
RESTAURANT SCAM: Arthur’s in Admiral says that person hit their restaurant and at least one other nearby to defraud them out of free food. Proprietor Rebecca explains:
This person called Sunday identifying an order from Saturday that (he said) had a hair in one of the entrees. We found the order and made sure he was directly referencing something that was ordered. Check and check. He requested that we rectify the situation by remaking two of the entrees, which struck weird with me because he asserted that only one was compromised. I tried to steer him to accept a gift card that would more than compensate the original issue, but he then demanded we put together two entrees for pickup. No understanding or compromise was possible — I wanted to appease the customer and said his food would be ready in 10. I have screenshots of our camera footage — he would not step beyond the entryway and when I asked him to converse with me about the mistake he refused to talk and only would wait for food (comped and nonpayment).
They contacted the person who had placed the order on Saturday and they claimed no knowledge of the person who demanded the make-good. If you have any information, the police report # is 21-022481.
PREVENTION ADVICE: Coincidentally, the Southwest Precinct‘s monthly crime-prevention newsletter, sent today, focuses on scams and other types of fraud, particularly the type seen at tax time, which is fast approaching:
If you can’t read it in the format above, here it is in PDF.
If you need to get tested for COVID-19, a one-day community clinic is coming to Madison Middle School next Tuesday (February 2nd). Here’s the announcement:
Neighborcare Health and Seattle Public Schools Present: Community Covid-19 Testing
Covid-19 testing is available for all students, staff, family, and community members in this outdoor event. Everyone is eligible to receive a test regardless of insurance or immigration status. Testing is also FREE for everyone. We will bill your insurance if you have it, but will not charge a fee if you do not have insurance or your insurance does not cover testing. On-site interpretation services available through phone.
Date: Tuesday, February 2nd, 2021 from 12:00-4:00 pm
Location: Madison Middle School: 3429 45th Avenue SWFor questions, please contact: Neighborcare Community Access Team at 206-333-2524
Here are flyers – in English, y en Español.
3:03 PM: Thanks for the tips. The Guardian One helicopter is assisting police in a search for a suspect. We’re still trying to get details but police confirm it’s related to an assault. It happened near 6th and Kenyon. A victim is being taken to the hospital. More details as we get them.
3:16 PM: As noted in comments, K-9 is helping search too. They’re also extending the search east to West Marginal Way in case the attacker fled through the greenbelt.
3:31 PM: A little more info from police – who describe this as a “domestic-violence assault.” We don’t have a description but are going back through archived audio to see if one was put out over the air earlier.
4:13 PM: They’re still searching. Here’s the description from archived audio: Hispanic man, 20s, 6′, medium build, “full tattoo sleeve” on one arm, blue crew-neck shirt, tan shorts.
4:25 PM: Just in case you’re wondering – Guardian One is leaving, but the suspect remains at large.
7:20 PM: We’re covering the HPAC meeting, where Southwest Precinct Lt. Chris Johnson just said they know who the suspect is, and “there’s a whole lot of people looking for him.” The suspect, he said, had been arrested for a crime against the same victim, got out of jail, and attacked the same victim again.
9:13 AM: We learned this morning from Southwwst Precinct commander Capt. Kevin Grossman that the suspect is now in custody. (We are following up further on the case and the reported previous arrest.)
2:40 PM WEDNESDAY: That’s the former West Seattle Christian Church preschool building, more recently an arts center and clothing bank, on the southwest corner of 42nd SW and SW Genesee, and if you want to take one last look at it, your time is running out. Multiple sources tell WSB it’s set for demolition starting tomorrow (a no-parking zone has been in effect around the building since yesterday). It’s been a year and a half since we first reported on the redevelopment plan for this site, which was upzoned to a 55-foot maximum by HALA Mandatory Housing Affordability.
It’s expected to include 72 “small efficiency dwelling units” – microapartments – and 5 live-work units, with 36 offstreet-parking places.
10:53 AM THURSDAY: We went by to check, and indeed, demolition is under way:
By Tracy Record
West Seattle Blog editor
Seattle Public Schools – like most public entities – is facing a big budget shortfall.
Potentially, $48 million.
Cuts and changes won’t be finalized until summer, but one proposed cut would have a big effect on 15 schools, including two in West Seattle: A proposal to cut yellow-bus service for most “option schools,” including Pathfinder K-8 on Pigeon Point and Louisa Boren STEM K-8 in Delridge. Parents at both schools are organizing opposition.
First, here’s the slide shown at a School Board budget work session last week (see the full agenda packet here):
Here’s what’s on the list for the rest of today/tonight (are we missing anything? let us know!):
CITY COUNCIL COMMITTEE: The Select Committee on Homelessness Strategies and Investments meets at 2 pm. The agenda includes a proposed expansion of the city’s tiny-house encampment system. West Seattle already hosts one, Camp Second Chance.
SEATTLE SCHOOL BOARD: Online meeting, 3:30 pm; here’s the agenda.
DENNY INTERNATIONAL MS OPEN HOUSE: 5:30 pm, prospective families are welcome at this online event. You’ll find the links, and more information, on this Denny webpage.
MADISON MS PTSA: The next Madison Middle School PTSA General Membership meeting is tonight at 6:30 pm. Participation information is on the PTSA website.
TALK TRAFFIC @ HPAC: 7 pm online, HPAC – the community council for Highland Park, Riverview, and South Delridge – talks bridge-traffic mitigation with SDOT, focused on the Home Zone strategy. All welcome; attendance info is on the HPAC website.
‘FOREST BATHING’: Find out about its potential health benefits in a 7 pm online event presented by Aegis Living. RSVP info is in our calendar listing.
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