SPOKANE — As people begin clearing and rebuilding their homes after recent wildfires, they face multiple steps in the recovery process, starting with hazardous materials removal and asbestos testing.
Beginning tomorrow, the Environmental Protection Agency and Federal Emergency Management Agency will clear hazardous materials from fire-damaged properties across Spokane neighborhoods. The cleanup effort operates under an emergency order from the Spokane Regional Health District, granting crews the authority to access and clean properties.
Scott Nerger, who lost his home in the Old Trails Fire, said the service will be helpful for him.
“Thank you, because that’s just another question, because I have two propane tanks,” Nerger said. “I thought they might have exploded. They didn’t. Well, I know they’re now damaged. I don’t know if they’re stable. I don’t want to move them. So knowing that there’s somebody out there that knows what to do and has the equipment to do it is fantastic.”
Crews will move property to property, identifying and safely removing dangerous materials left behind by the fires. Once materials are bagged, they will be transported elsewhere for safe disposal. The EPA and FEMA are hoping to complete this work within the next 60 days or sooner, targeting 30 to 40 properties per day.
The cleanup teams will focus on materials including toxic ash, burned building materials, batteries, fuels and propane cylinders. They do not have a set schedule for when they will check each house, but they will start with properties damaged by the Old Trails Fire.
In the meantime, the EPA recommends people be careful if they choose to dig through the rubble themselves.
“There’s a reason why we’re here, and those hazardous materials increase the risk to people if they are to return to their property,” said Brooks Stanfield, incident commander for the EPA.
On top of hazardous materials removal, people must also have their properties checked for asbestos before removing anything else.
Michael Johnson, owner of Eagle Asbestos Testing, said he’s gotten an influx of calls for his services since the fires. He said the business is booked a week out and that it can take months to get test results back.
“It’s terrible,” Johnson said. “I mean, they just lost their home. They want to get back to normal as soon as they can.”
If residents don’t want their property cleaned by the EPA, they can opt out with the county. However, there is a chance the property may have already been cleaned by then, and homeowners will have to arrange their own cleanup.
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