Ephrata-area home burns, wildfires continue statewide
JOEL MARTIN | Hagadone News Network | UPDATED 3 years, 2 months AGO
A residence and several other buildings were lost in a wildfire Wednesday near Ephrata. The fire may have been caused by gasoline stored in a pump house, according to Grant county Fire District 13.
COURTESY PHOTO/GCFD 13
Joel Martin has been with the Columbia Basin Herald for more than 25 years in a variety of roles and is the most-tenured employee in the building. Martin is a married father of eight and enjoys spending time with his children and his wife, Christina. He is passionate about the paper’s mission of informing the people of the Columbia Basin because he knows it is important to record the history of the communities the publication serves. | July 27, 2023 4:35 PM
EPHRATA — A fire destroyed a home in the 12000 block of Road A.5 east of Ephrata Wednesday evening.
Personnel from Grant County Fire District 13 arrived at the scene to find multiple outbuildings, a residence and the vegetation around them ablaze, according to a statement from GCFD 5. Firefighters were able to save several outbuildings and an RV, but a residence, an unoccupied single-wide mobile home, multiple outbuildings and about five acres were burned. The cause of the fire was believed to be gasoline stored in a pump house.
“We are asking for all citizens in the district to assess your property, clear brush, unkept vegetation, and any other combustibles away from residences, buildings, vehicles and property,” GCFD 13 wrote in the statement. “Ensure fire trucks have clear access to your residence and help us increase our ability to save as much property as possible when a fire strikes.”
With fires threatening homes across the state and nation, the Washington State Fire Marshal’s Office issued tips on how those with disabilities should prepare their homes in the event of a house fire or nearby wildfire. These tips include:
• Make sure smoke alarms are installed on every level of the home, especially near sleeping areas.
• Interconnect smoke alarms so that if one sounds, all of them alert residents of the home.
• Those with hearing impairments should consider alarms with vibrating pads, flashing lights or strobe lights that begin when the alarm sounds.
• Two exits should be identified from each room.
• When possible, sleep on the ground floor of the home to ensure ease of escape, if necessary.
These wildfires were also burning in Washington Thursday, according to the National Interagency Fire Center:
• Raindance, about 11 miles southeast of Kennewick: 30 acres. Fire discovered July 27. Containment and cost information not available.
• Euclid, about seven miles west of Spokane: 1 acre. Fire discovered July 27. Containment and cost information not available.
• Wawawai, about five miles west of Pullman: 526 acres. 50% contained. Fire discovered July 24. Costs estimated at $235,772.
• Newell Road, about 17 miles east of Goldendale: 61,833 acres. Fire discovered July 21. 50% contained. Costs estimated at $9,900,000.
• Ione Road, about 10 miles north of Pasco: 114 acres. Fire discovered July 24. Containment and cost information not available.
• Consalus, about 20 miles north of Newport: 475 acres. Fire discovered June 30. 50% contained. Costs estimated at $10,000,000.
• John Day Dam, about 9 miles southeast of Goldendale: 60 acres. Fire discovered July 8. Containment and cost information not available.
• Airplane Lake, about 50 miles northwest of Chelan: 6 acres. Fire discovered July 7. 0% contained. Costs estimated at $50,000.
• Badger, about five miles northeast of Wenatchee. 473 acres. Fire discovered July 20. 100% contained. Costs estimated at $820,000.
ARTICLES BY JOEL MARTIN
Endless battle
Noxious Weed Control Board works to keep invasive plants under control
MOSES LAKE — Some of the nastiest plants in Grant County were the topic of a class led by Jay Johnson, a consultant with the Grant County Noxious Weed Control Board, Tuesday. The Noxious Weed Control Board, as its name would suggest, is tasked with keeping weeds under control in Grant County. That’s not a small job; the board’s website lists 129 species of noxious weeds that are found around Grant County. A noxious weed is defined as an invasive, non-native plant that threatens agricultural crops, local ecosystems or fish and wildlife habitat, according to the Noxious Weed Control Board. Washington state law requires that these weeds be identified and their spread kept to a minimum, if not completely eradicated. “We’re one of those agencies a lot of people don’t really understand,” Johnson said. “We’re a county office and … our funding is tax-based assessment. When you get your tax bill and you look down at all the expenses that you pay for, there we are.”
BASIN EVENTS: Oct. 16-24
COLUMBIA BASIN — Whether you feel like shopping, crafting, learning or seeing a show, there’s something happening for you this week in the Basin. Oct. 16 ‘My Family (Mi Familia)’ screening Spanning three generations, “My Family (Mi Familia)” is a heartfelt drama that follows the Sánchez family as they build their lives in East Los Angeles. Through love, hardship, triumph, and sacrifice, the film explores the immigrant experience, the strength of family bonds, and the traditions that connect one generation to the next. Lowrider show and taco truck before the screening. Sponsored by Columbia Basin Allied Arts, EDUBS C/S and the Moses Lake Creative District. $12 per person. Doors open at 6 p.m., film begins at 7 p.m. at the Moses Lake Civic Center Auditorium, 401 S. Balsam St. Tickets and info: www.cba-arts.org.
Moses Lake author encourages women to look beyond church culture norms
MOSES LAKE — A Moses Lake author’s book, “A Christian Woman Striving to Live Her Faith in a Man-Controlled World,” takes aim at the role to which many churches relegate the female half of their congregations. “It’s to encourage women in the faith,” Linda Curran said. “A lot of churches say, ‘Teach Sunday school, do this, do that, but don’t (evangelize.)’" In her book, Curran recounts a time when she moved to a new community and joined a church there. She was surprised to learn that, as a new female member, she had been automatically assigned church cleaning duties. When she questioned it, she wrote, she was met with condescension and her objections were brushed aside. In other churches, she said, women who were capable of teaching were relegated to “women’s ministry.”