Skagit airport hangars damaged beyond repair

Published 1:30 am Wednesday, January 16, 2019

By Leah Allen / Skagit Valley Herald

BURLINGTON — Some tenants at Skagit Regional Airport will have to find new homes for their equipment after five hangars damaged in severe weather Jan. 6 were determined to be beyond repair.

Tenants will have until Feb. 28 to remove their equipment from the hangars, according to a Port of Skagit news release. Rent will not be collected in January or February.

The decision was made by the port commissioners after consulting with structural engineers, insurance adjusters and legal counsel, according to the release. Engineers determined the hangars were no longer safe for occupancy due to structural damage.

A state of emergency was declared in order to expedite action.

“It was a difficult decision,” Port Commissioner Kevin Ware said in the release. “We considered the recommendations from the various experts, then decided on the basis of what was in the best interest of public safety. The last thing we want is for someone to get hurt.”

In an effort to make the transition easier, the port will offer affected tenants free aircraft tie-down service for three months starting March 1. Tie-down service involves securing a plane to the ground using straps.

As of Tuesday, about 10 out of 60 units had been vacated, Community Outreach Administrator Linda Tyler said.

“We’re asking tenants to contact the port so we can escort them to their hangar and help them remove their equipment,” she said.

The port has reached out to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and Washington State University Atmospheric Sciences for information on the weather event responsible for the damage.

Some port staff have speculated the storm was a microburst due to its severity and precision. A microburst is a downdraft within a thunderstorm that can exceed speeds of 100 mph — as fast as some tornadoes, according to NOAA.

The port will work to identify opportunities to rebuild the small-aircraft hangars at the airport, the release states. If the port is able to rebuild the hangars, tenants will be placed on a wait list for units based on seniority.