On July 8, I awoke from an afternoon nap at my home in the Eastmont neighborhood to the smell of heavy smoke wafting through an open window. Soon the sound of sirens could be heard growing louder. Within minutes we became aware that a brush fire had broken out along the pipeline trail less than two blocks from our house, just south of Everett and north of Silver Lake. It was already burning close to an acre of dry brush, and growing.
A strong northeasterly wind added to the emergency, blowing the fire menacingly toward the crowded cluster of homes in Eastmont, ultimately coming within 150 feet of the nearest home, and raining ash and hot embers down from the sky over a large area. Many of us watched just a few weeks ago on TV as wildfires burned out of control in Wenatchee, giving us a bird’s-eye view of just how quickly homes and buildings can burn to the ground under these historically dry conditions. Having a similar fire spring up mere yards from my own home gave me a sickening feeling I’d never had before, and one I’d like to never have again.
When District 7 Assistant Fire Chief Eric Andrews was asked by one TV news crew about what was at stake in this fire, his response was, “Everything you see here,” while gesturing to the neighborhood in the background. Anyone familiar with dry-weather fire danger knows that sometimes this type of fire becomes so fierce, so quickly, that evacuation and containment efforts are the only options. Unable to relax with so much at stake, my wife and I began soaking down anything and everything within range of our garden hoses, saying silent prayers while the emergency response continued to grow, and a first responder command center took shape at the end of Eastview. Many of our neighbors began to do the same, breaking out their hoses and sprinklers en masse. At that point we had to seriously consider the possibility that we might lose everything.
Aspects of this brush fire made for an exceptionally challenging situation for firefighters, and a scary one for those living nearby. The proximity of high-tension power lines running along the pipeline precluded aerial water or fire retardant drops. The way the nearest road access was situated in relation to the fire made it so neither water tanks, nor fire trucks, could get quite close enough for trained personnel to bring the full force of traditional firefighting methods to bear against the blaze. The dramatically steep incline of the ravine complicated things further. Only through a well-coordinated and highly cooperative response by agencies from all across Snohomish County were creative logistical solutions developed to help contain the fire.
Even so, it took some timely luck, with several changes to the direction of blowing winds, to make that possible. Had the brush fire managed to engulf even one of the many tall Douglas firs in that greenbelt, there’s a strong chance the whole neighborhood would have burned in spite of all efforts to contain the blaze.
Ultimately, the “wild-land” firefighting units were the ones best able to do the tough job of containing this aggressive brushfire before it got out of hand, at great personal risk, and using skills and techniques for which they are specifically trained. Assistant Fire Chief Eric Andrews of District 7 described the conditions that gave rise to the Eastmont fire as “our new normal,” which is a sobering thought for Puget Sound lifers like us, who are not used to a summer wildfire danger level more akin to that found each summer east of the Cascades.
We are eternally grateful for the amazing emergency response that saved Eastmont from burning. Specifically, those agencies from neighboring districts, like District 7, who lent specialized wild-land firefighting units to the cause, have our undying gratitude.
I hope folks will keep this frightening close call in mind the next time a bond vote or levy comes up in support of funding for our local fire districts. We need to get out in front of this dismaying “new normal” as best we can with significant investment in the units and techniques proven to work against these types of fires, or we will exacerbate, rather than limit, the devastating consequences of these fires.
Shane M. Beatty is a resident of Everett.
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