By Ann McCreary
Local government and business leaders appealed to U.S. Senator Maria Cantwell on Sunday (Aug. 3) for immediate and long-term help in the wake of devastating fires that have left hundreds homeless and threaten to cripple the economies of the Methow Valley and nearby communities.
The immediate need for reliable communication capabilities and emergency power generation should be priorities for assisting the damaged communities, Cantwell said, “because that helps people on the ground help themselves.”
She also stressed the need for quick action from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) for individual assistance to people suffering from the fires, storms, and resulting impacts.
“I want to make sure that FEMA gets on the ground right away,” Cantwell said after meeting with representatives from Twisp, Winthrop, Pateros, Brewster and Chelan at Twisp Town Hall. Also attending was state Sen. Linda Evans-Parlette (R-Wenatchee), who represents those communities in Olympia.
Cantwell said she would work to speed the FEMA process. Evans-Parlette said Washington Gov. Jay Inslee would receive two calls this week — one from her and one from Cantwell — urging him to quickly request a federal disaster declaration.
Cantwell heard stories of the aftermath of the Carlton Complex firestorm and last week’s Rising Eagle Road Fire that destroyed property and left much of the Methow Valley without power, phone and Internet services for prolonged periods. Many valley residents living in the most fire-damaged areas are still without power.
“I can’t imagine the challenges and hardships your communities have had,” Cantwell said. “We need to make sure the larger communities know that these communities need help.”
Big losses
Brian Charlton, manager of Sun Mountain Lodge, said the resort has lost “in excess of $10 million so far” as a result of long power outages and evacuations that have forced it to close on at least two occasions this summer.
Sun Mountain was evacuated during Cantwell’s visit, because of potential risk from nearby fires, and the fact that the resort has only one road in and out.
He said the resort has lost revenues through cancellations and refunds to guests. “We lost about $40,000 in food products when the power went out,” Charlton said.
“The difficult thing for us is our employees,” who have been out of work while the lodge is closed. “We’re down from 200 employees to about 10 or 12,” Charlton said.
“If we [Sun Mountain] fail, it’s such a huge impact on the Methow Valley.”
“The impact to our town has been horrendous,” said Winthrop Mayor Sue Langdalen. The fires “stopped all the tourists, which has a trickle-down effect.”
Community and business leaders said they fear that reports of the loss and devastation caused by the continuing fires and the resulting impact on tourism will mean long-lasting damage to their communities.
“Releasing some state money for tourism promotion is essential,” said Michael Steele of the Chelan Chamber of Commerce.
Counteracting bad news
“It’s very expensive to counteract a week of west side media that says everything is burning over here,” said Julie Muyllaert, president of the Winthrop Chamber of Commerce.
Muyllaert noted that many valley businesses were struggling to bounce back after taking an economic hit from a winter with almost no snow during the major holidays and fewer than normal visitors.
“Businesses went into spring lean,” Muyllaert said. “We have a seasonal economy, heavily dependent on July, August, September to mid-October. That’s when we fill up our bank accounts.”
Muyllaert said businesses of the Winthrop Chamber of Commerce are reporting that gross receipts are down 25-50 percent.
“The next level of disaster,” Muyllaert said, is high unemployment, lack of affordable housing for people in financial distress, and a “potential exodus of employees.”
Chris Thomson of Thomson’s Meats said the economic damage to a small business owner like him might be insurmountable.
Unable to obtain a generator in time to save his inventory during the power outage, Thomson said he had to dispose of about $10,000 worth of meat.
“We just don’t have what it takes to recover. We need help. I don’t know any other way of saying it,” Thomson said.
In a letter to Cantwell, Ing-Moody outlined the primary needs she sees for her community, including:
• A back-up generator system for the Twisp substation to provide reliable power during disasters.
• A grant for additional law enforcement personnel to aid in the recovery process and to provide adequate coverage if other law enforcement personnel are not available or unable to reach the valley.
• Funding to strengthen the public infrastructure, such as water systems, and to support local businesses through economic revitalization.
• State and federal investments in tourism promotion for fire-affected areas.
Ing-Moody said Twisp has received 10 radio phones to help the town maintain communications during a disaster as a result of a recent request made to the governor’s office.
She said she has made a request for $150,000 from the state Department of Commerce for tourism promotion. She said the town of Oso received that amount following the mudslide that devastated that community earlier this year.
