After record Stilly flood, Silvana family is ‘stuck in this limbo area’

Published 1:30 am Friday, December 15, 2023

SILVANA — Dannika Prime and her fiance, Colyn Baldwin, were planning to host Christmas in their home off Pioneer Highway in Silvana.

But thanks to 4 inches of standing water in their house from record flooding, their holiday plans — and their lives — have changed dramatically.

Now, with less than two weeks until Christmas, the family moved themselves, including their 21-month-old toddler, Prime’s 80-year-old grandmother, their dog and their cat into a temporary home in Arlington.

Silvana was built on an island carved out by the Stillaguamish River. It saw some of the worst flooding last week when the river crested at a record-breaking 21.34 feet in Arlington, the highest recorded by the National Weather Service in the area since at least 1949.

On Dec. 5, Prime was about to head to work at the Everett Clinic in Smokey Point as a medical assistant lead. But heavy rain and flooding were in the forecast, so she stayed home with her daughter. She called her partner, who works in Seattle as a pipe fitter, to make sure he’d come home before it was too late. By the time he got there early in the afternoon, Pioneer Highway was closed. Baldwin diverted to Larson Road. It was starting to overflow, too.

In Silvana, firefighters recommended business shut down for the day, said Chief Keith Strotz, of Fire District 19.

“Everybody in Silvana understands the flood,” he said Thursday. “They hunker down.”

At 2:30 p.m., water had risen to the house’s back wall. Baldwin, Prime and her brother moved stuff up in the garage shelves and rafters. At 6 p.m., the garbage cans began to float away.

As the water submerged the front yard and climbed up their front-door stairs, they retreated into the house. They scrambled to pile the couches and furniture into the bedrooms, which are a couple feet higher than the main floor.

“We just piled as much as we could into my bedroom and slept wherever we could find,” Prime said.

‘I need help’

The recent flood more than doubled the family’s monthly housing costs.

On top of their $2,500 mortgage, they’re now paying $3,100 rent for a temporary home. Prime and Baldwin have both flood and homeowner insurance, but neither will cover the unforeseen rent. Flood insurance should cover all repairs — all the insulation, drywalls, floors and the entire kitchen — but it has not paid out yet. Prime isn’t sure how long the repairs will take.

“We’re hoping for three months, but planning for five to six,” she said.

Prime spent two days on the phone looking for help, only to be forwarded from one organization to another.

The insurance company that issued their homeowners insurance said natural disasters were not covered, referring Prime to the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

A FEMA representative reportedly told Prime there were no funds available because Gov. Jay Inslee had not declared a state of emergency. They directed her to the governor’s office.

“I need help,” she told an employee at the governor’s office.

“Well, your county declared an emergency so your county should be receiving funds from the federal government,” an office representative told her.

On Dec. 6, Snohomish County Executive Dave Somers issued an emergency proclamation for the flood, opening up public funds to “take reasonable and prudent measures ensuring the safety of residents and waives some administrative requirements in order to expedite response efforts.”

The county suggested she call the county’s Department of Emergency Management. The duty officer referred her to human services staff, who offered her a night at a hotel or a shelter. Prime declined.

Prime also filled out the county’s Flood Impact Survey for homes and businesses. As of Thursday morning, 30 homes, eight farms and two businesses had completed the survey.

She tried County Council member Nate Nehring, who said he suggested reaching out to LINC NW and to U.S. Rep. Rick Larsen.

Prime also reached out to the Red Cross. “The Red Cross didn’t have very much to say either,” she said. “So we’re stuck in this limbo area.”

On Tuesday, a home insurance representative called.

“We were wanting to check up on you. Has anything happened?” asked the operator.

“Nothing happened because you wouldn’t help me,” she replied.

“OK, bye,” the operator hung up, Prime recalled.

This week, Prime and Baldwin stayed up late packing, clearing out the garage and listing all their damaged items for insurance.

Facing months of renovations, the family saw no other choice but to ask for help. On Thursday, a crowdfunding campaign reached just over $2,000.

“We’re no stranger to floods,” Prime said. “But it’s never been this bad.”

‘I can’t be the only one’

The family is still adjusting to their new Arlington home. Their daughter June is enjoying the new house’s stairs. Their blue heeler Stella paced around the house anxious and their tabby Lilith yowled all through the first night.

“We’ve talked a little about moving back in. Is that something that we really want to do?” she said.

Prime loves her home’s surroundings in Silvana, especially the giant field in the back of the house. She joked that the now-flooded field made her and her neighbors’ houses into lakefront properties.

They replaced the floors just before June’s birth. Now, all the couple’s savings need to go toward recovery. Baldwin said they postponed gifting June a big jungle gym and a Power Wheels car and canceled their plans to host Christmas.

“I can’t be the only one in this situation,” she said.

Tyler Verda, program planner for county human services, said the county provided $30,000 to organizations in areas hit by the flood. Verda said the funding could “replace basic needs, clothing, furnishings, cleanup supplies, and other needs. … It can also provide emergency financial assistance.”

On Wednesday, county staff reached out to 10 households to tell them about the assistance. They referred four to the community groups, including the Volunteers of America and the Stanwood Community Resource Center.

That evening, Prime received a call from Human Services, but was too busy to pick up. She was planning to call back after work Thursday.

“I’m hoping, maybe if we get some money somewhere else, I can give the money back to other people,” she said, “put it back to my friends and family.”

But the uncertainty is hard to bear.

Willow and Jim Payne from the nearby Jim’s Country Cafe told the couple that in 2009 and 2010, floodwater got into their home. Prime is afraid of that happening again.

She said: “In the back of our minds, we’re thinking, ‘Oh, we’re going to repair the home and then next year it’s going to flood again.’”

Correction: An earlier version of this story misstated what organization County Council member Nate Nehring suggested Prime should try.

Aina de Lapparent Alvarez: 425-339-3449; aina.delapparentalvarez@heraldnet.com; Twitter: @Ainadla.