On the day two homes were destroyed by flames in an upscale Vancouver neighborhood last month, the sound of dry trees burning reverberated down the block.
“It was the scariest thing I have ever heard,” said Terri Kaufman, who lives down the street from both homes in the Old Evergreen Highway neighborhood.
The fire, believed to be caused by someone using a propane torch to remove weeds, caused an estimated $750,000 damage to the two homes.
Kaufman watched as her neighbors lost their homes, and she worried about her nearby house; she had moved in only weeks earlier.
“Watching that puppy almost jump, well, it was scary as hell,” Kaufman said.
On a recent afternoon, the two homes damaged by the July 15 fire were boarded up.
For many, life had settled back into normal routines. But the street remains busy with those who have apparent interest in seeing burned homes.
“It’s like Interstate 5 out here,” said Amy Biggs, who has lived in the neighborhood for two decades.
“It would be a perfect time for a lemonade stand if I were still 10,” said her daughter, Beth Biggs, now 19 years old.
And there’s still the concern this could happen again.
Kaufman started watering her house and roof on particularly hot days.
“Someone said that wouldn’t do any good, so I guess it was a lesson in futility,” Kaufman said.
A designer by trade but an activist by heart, Kaufman decided to invite an urban forester and fire official to discuss fire prevention with the neighbors.
Kaufman said she only recently learned there is a ban on local burning; there is a countywide burn ban in effect, and burning vegetation in the city is not allowed.
Other tips fire officials have shared this hot, dry summer include: covering exterior vents with metal mesh to stop sparks from entering the home, removing dead vegetation and debris from around the house and keeping a clearing of about 30 feet around your home.
“We just trimmed and took down a bunch of cedar trees that were old and dry,” Kaufman said.
Keeping grass watered can actually help, according to fire officials. And if it’s brown, it’s best to keep short.
Helping each other
Firefighters were about 1.5 miles away fighting a brush fire that had damaged another home when they received the 911 call about the Old Evergreen Highway neighborhood fires.
Many of the neighbors who have lived in the neighborhood have done so for decades.
When the fires started, they sprung into action.
A neighbor down the street saw smoke and headed toward the burning home, urging the resident inside to evacuate.
Sparks threatened to devour another home as well; neighbors grabbed a hose and doused the yard.
“There was a lot of people helping; when they saw their house was safe they went to help others,” said Beth Biggs, whose grandmother lives down the street in the house where sparks hit the yard.
