SPOKANE, Wash. — Fire survivors in the Spokane area are moving forward with rebuilding efforts now that the EPA has cleared hazardous materials from nearly 800 properties damaged in recent fires.
The agency has placed 789 signs on burned-out properties indicating that hazardous materials have been removed. Each sign includes a QR code that directs homeowners to information about the next steps in the rebuilding process.
The process requires homeowners to file a notice of intent with the Spokane Clean Air Agency after having their property tested for asbestos. As of now, the agency has received 132 notices of intent.
Of those tested properties, only three have tested positive for asbestos. All three homes were built in the 1970s and will need to go through a specific cleanup process.
“With about 900 properties affected, we would expect there to be many more analyzed over the next year,” said Lisa Woodard, with the Spokane Regional Clean Air Agency.
Properties that test negative for asbestos can proceed to the demolition and rebuilding permit process with the City of Spokane. The city has already issued 44 demolition permits and is reviewing another 29 permits this week. One rebuilding permit has been issued so far.
Despite the progress, many fire survivors are waiting on their asbestos test results and are eager to move forward with cleanup and rebuilding efforts.
For homeowners like Cindy White, who lost her home on Old Fort Drive in the Old Trails Fire after living there for more than 30 years, the pace of progress feels slow. Nearly eight weeks after the fire, the visible progress on her property remains minimal.
“It’s been seven, almost eight weeks since the fire, and here we are. It looks not that much different than it did the day after the fire,” White said.
While White acknowledges that the EPA has done thorough work removing hazardous materials, she is eager to move forward with the rest of the cleanup process. The biggest challenge, she says, is managing expectations about timelines.
“Everything takes time. If you want to talk about frustration, that’s probably the biggest one. Just learning to be patient and that is frustrating at a time like this,” White said.
White worries that delays in applying for permits now could mean even longer wait times for those applications to be approved once she is ready to submit them. The multiple steps and agencies involved in the rebuilding process have created a bottleneck for many fire survivors who are anxious to move forward.
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