Wes Atwood, Branden Campbell, Shayla Adkins and Joshua Scott work to put out a hot spot May 18, 2016, at the Hot Shot fire outside of Oso. Drier and hotter summers are likely to bring more wildfires to Western Washington, county and state officials warn. (Kevin Clark / The Herald)

Wes Atwood, Branden Campbell, Shayla Adkins and Joshua Scott work to put out a hot spot May 18, 2016, at the Hot Shot fire outside of Oso. Drier and hotter summers are likely to bring more wildfires to Western Washington, county and state officials warn. (Kevin Clark / The Herald)

Wildfires risk expected to increase on Washington’s westside

County officials say agencies and residents should plan for fires as they do for earthquakes.

TULALIP — For decades, the majority of wildfires burned in the eastern part of the state, which in recent years often blew smokey air west where it lingered for days.

As summers become hotter and dryer, county and state officials warn smog won’t be the only issue people living on the wetter side of the Cascade Range will have to manage. The risk of fires is increasing in the western part of the state.

“These big fires aren’t abnormal for the west side. It’s just we don’t see them near as often, but at some point we will. And we’re are going to need to be prepared for that,” said Chuck Turley, wildfire division manager for the state Department of Natural Resources.

He was addressing a crowd that had assembled at the Tulalip Resort Casino last week for the Managing Western Washington Wildfire Risk in a Changing Climate workshop. The gathering was hosted by the Puget Sound Climate Preparedness Collaborative, the University of Washington Climate Impacts Group, the Northwest Climate Adaptation Science Center and the Tulalip Tribes.

“People on the westside don’t think the westside will burn,” Turley said. “It’s going to at some point is a message we need to do a lot better about.”

Crystal Raymond, an adaptation specialist with the University of Washington Climate Impacts Group, told the gathering Western Washington has seen a 10-fold increase in the acreage burned since the late 1970s. And in coming years, days with high fire risk are predicted to increase.

She said humans are contributing to this change.

Research shows wildfire risk is high for people living in the “wildland-urban interface” — where human development intermingles with undeveloped land.

Today, more than 15 percent of Snohomish County residents live in this zone, according to Jason Biermann, Snohomish County’s emergency management director. Another $10 billion in infrastructure is located in this region.

With wildfires becoming more of an emerging threat, Biermann wants to start planning for fires in the ways agencies and residents get ready for earthquakes, such as creating evacuation plans.

“Here in this county, we are very good with floods … and we’ve had our experience with tragic landslides,” Biermann said. “But those things don’t move at the speed of wildfires.”

Along with more and larger wildfires, fire behavior is also changing, which DNR’s Turley attributed to people building homes in places they didn’t use to live.

“The fires are now burning through areas that we used to be able to use as management tools,” he said.

He warns that resources have become stretched as demand has grown on both sides of the state.

Biermann said there are actions residents themselves can take to make their properties more fire resistant, such as removing surrounding vegetation to clear a defensible space around homes.

The county’s Firewise program, available online, offers more tips and steps for homeowners, he said.

“This is something that is real and something we need to talk about. And something we need folks to be prepared for,” Biermann said.

Lizz Giordano: 425-374-4165; egiordano@heraldnet.com; Twitter: @lizzgior.

Talk to us

More in Local News

Dominic Wilson looks at his mother while she addresses the court during his sentencing at the Snohomish County Courthouse on Wednesday, March 15, 2023 in Everett, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Grief remains after sentencing of Marysville teen’s killers

Dominic Wilson must serve 17½ years in prison, while his accomplice Morzae Roberts was given a sentence of four years.

The Washington State University Everett campus on Wednesday, July 25, 2018 in Everett, Wa. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
WSU ends search to buy land for future branch campus in Everett

The university had $10M to spend. It tried for four years but couldn’t close deals with Everett’s housing authority or the city.

Former Opus Bank/Cascade Bank building in downtown Everett on Thursday, March 16, 2023 in Everett, Washington. It is proposed as the new home of Economic Alliance Snohomish County. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Economic Alliance asks Everett for $300K to move downtown

The countywide chamber of commerce and economic development organization also would reform the Everett chamber.

Logo for news use featuring the municipality of Mountlake Terrace in Snohomish County, Washington. 220118
Mountlake Terrace leaders weighing federal ARPA fund options

Bathrooms, body cameras, generators, radios, roadwork, roof replacement, sidewalks, trails and more loom for the $4.5 million.

Vehicles on Soper Hill Road wait in line to make unprotected left turns onto Highway 9 northbound and southbound during the evening commute Wednesday, March 15, 2023, in Lake Stevens, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
Lake Stevens development prompts Highway 9 signal change soon

Turning left from Soper Hill Road can be a long wait now. Flashing yellow turn signals could help with more traffic.

NO CAPTION NECESSARY: Logo for the Cornfield Report by Jerry Cornfield. 20200112
Building ballparks, rewriting ferry rules, recognizing Chinese-Americans

It’s Day 71. Here’s what’s happening in the 2023 session of the Washington Legislature

Logo for news use featuring Whidbey Island in Island County, Washington. 220118
Head-on crash on south Whidbey Island hospitalizes 3 people

Alcohol or drugs were involved, per the Washington State Patrol. Two victims are Lake Forest Park teens.

Marysville
Marysville man dies after motorcycle crash on Ingraham Boulevard

The man, 58, was heading east when he lost control in the single-vehicle crash, according to police.

Builders work on the Four Corners Apartments on Beverly Lane near Evergreen and 79th Place SE on Wednesday, March 1, 2023 in Everett, Washington. DevCo, the real estate company building the affordable housing, is receiving a $1 million grant from the city of Everett. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
As Washington rents go up, up, up, the air gets thin for tenants

Hal Zack’s rent has tripled, and he’s scared he’ll be homeless soon. How did we get here? And what is the state doing now?

Most Read