Time to develop evacuation solution now, not later

The Valley View fire was the latest wake-up call for area residents who survived the fast-moving fire. I propose that the Park community and the Ponderosa community in the Spokane Valley work together to create a joint safety corridor that allows residents an alternate exit during emergency situations.

During the height of the fire almost a dozen vehicles passed through my property from the Park community. Evidently the only legal exit was blocked by the fire. I’m glad they had the knowledge and ability to use my road to escape. There may have been additional losses otherwise.

The road they used had a variety of hazards, some seen and others unseen. The road was overgrown with vegetation and had deep ruts and water bars. There is no signage that allows you to know that you are traveling in the correct direction or where to turn. Warning signs or guardrails are not present. Locked gates blocked the road needed to exit. For those driving down that rutty road on the firestorm day, it was a leap of faith.

As it turned out, everything worked out well for the escapees, and I am most happy for all of us and especially for them, but it could have just as easily gone wrong. Was the car caravan prepared to cut through three chained gates and two locks? Were members of the caravan prepared to put out new grass fires ignited by their hot engines passing over the tall dry grass? Did they know all the right turns? At that time they were downwind of a racing fire with no firefighters present to help.

Established long ago, the fire access road they were on ends at the bottom of the Dishman Hills where it enters the Ponderosa Estates development. Had the escapees continued down that road, instead of the one through my property, they would have found the one-lane road had been arbitrarily blocked by someone recently. It would have been extremely difficult and dangerous for a caravan of cars to turn around at that point and drive up the hill again through the fire. The fire completely burned through the area that the fire access road crosses.

There were other areas that they passed where the fire burned through. If any had been stopped, the vehicles behind would not have been able to pass on the one-lane dirt road. The exodus would have stalled, and the community members would have been left stranded in the forest.

As it was, the caravan made the right turns at the right times. The gatekeeper was there to open the locks on the gates and the Park community residents were able to drive out to safety. Because everything worked out so well, with no one injured, it is easy to forget the gravity of the situation at the time. As one of the affected landowners, I know how serious it was and how it could easily have been a different ending. I don’t want that situation to happen again. I don’t want to depend on luck for a happy ending.

This fire provides a compelling reason for the Park community to develop a future escape plan. The Ponderosa community had its own fire in 1991 and, since that horrendous fire, wants and needs an alternate escape plan for their neighborhood. They have two exits, and both exits must pass over a railroad. The community wants and needs an additional emergency exit.

Park and Ponderosa community members should work together to promote road maintenance and signage to assure that one community may safely pass through the other during emergencies. Let’s not wait for a loss of lives before we decide to do something. I hope that the two communities act on a simple solution to a dangerous problem.