Earthquake drill

VashonBePrepared urges islanders to observe International Shakeout Day at 10:16 a.m. Thursday, Oct. 16 — a time when more than 1.5 million Washingtonians have signed up to practice earthquake drills.

The drill, as outlined at shakeout.org, is intended to help participants build muscle memory by practicing what you’ll do the next time the ground shakes: drop, cover, and hold on.

The rules are easy: Drop where you are, onto hands and knees, so you’ll be less likely to fall or get hit by falling debris. Cover your head and neck with one arm and hand. Crawl under a nearby sturdy table or desk, or next to an interior wall. Hold on until the shaking stops. And be prepared to move if your table moves or, if there’s no table, cover your head and neck with both arms and hands.

Find tips for those with limited mobility at shakeout.org/dropcoverholdon.

Dockton Marina closure extended

Work by King County Parks at Maury Island’s Dockton Park marina is taking longer than expected.

A project that began on Aug. 1 — replacing the breakwater; upgrading the boat ramp dock and replacing the floating dock at the park’s moorage — marks Phase 2 of the county’s multi-year project to improve the marina.

Since August 1, this work has closed the marina’s dock area, including the boat ramp and floating dock. Originally, the closure was projected to last until Sept. 30. Now, the county says it expects construction to be wrapped up by Oct. 31, barring any other unforeseen construction issues.

This extended timeline is due to delivery delays and the need to protect nesting purple martins, according to Parks spokesperson Eleanor Lee. “Crews will need additional time for finishing work and cleanup,” she said.

The playground and picnic area of the park remains open and accessible throughout the duration of the project, but parking may also be reduced due to construction activities, according to King County’s website description of the project at tinyurl.com/mrcmt4js.

The website has now been updated to reflect the project’s extended timeline, Lee said.

According to the website, the county recognizes that its original timing for the closure overlapped prime boating season, but the project was limited by federal and state environmental permits, which restricted in-water work to a narrow window between August 1 and September 30 to protect local endangered species.

The continuing work, Lee said in an email on Tuesday, does not involve in-water activities.

Phase 1 of the project — which began in 2019 and finished in May 2022 — replaced various piles and finger piers internally on the dock. Other improvements included a new swim dock, fire suppression system, sewage pump out station, hardware replacements, nonskid coating and fixed pier cross bracing replacement under the park’s bathroom.

The county, said Lee, is planning to host a community event next spring, coinciding with the opening of the 2026 boating season, to celebrate the completion of its work in Dockton Park.

Island Center Forest deer hunt

The annual limited deer-hunting season at King County Parks’ Island Center Forest now underway through Oct. 31, with trails in the Natural Area of the forest open for public use but the rest of the park closed to all other users except for hunters.

Maps of deer hunt area are available at tinyurl.com/4zpxywzy (Spanish) and tinyurl.com/3hnxbpkv (English).

The Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) oversees the deer hunt at Island Center Forest to better control the growing deer population on Vashon-Maury Island, where deer have no natural predators. The hunting season during the second half of October coincides with WDFW’s designated modern firearm hunting season, when all firearms can be used, except rifles.

Formerly owned and managed by Washington Department of Natural Resources, Island Center Forest is the only public land on Vashon Island where deer hunting has been allowed. The state transferred ownership of the forest to King County in 2004, and an agreement to continue a limited annual deer-hunting season was a part of the ownership transfer.

The hunt is open to everyone with a big game deer license and tag for deer with the modern weaponry option. One deer (antlerless or buck) is allowed. The WDFW issues a special permit through a limited lottery for a second (antlerless only) deer with the modern weaponry tag.

Shellfishing closures

Recreational shellfishing remains closed on some beaches of Vashon-Maury Island due to unsafe levels of paralytic shellfish poison — a neurotoxin that can sicken or even kill those who eat contaminated shellfish.

A regularly updated interactive map, at fortress.wa.gov/doh/biotoxin/biotoxin.html, shows which beaches are closed and which are open, or call the DOH biotoxin hotline at 800-562-5632.

The closures refer only to recreational shellfishing; commercial shellfish sites are monitored separately.