Today's headlines:
- NWS issues its first red flag warnings of the summer for central and eastern Washington as fires continue to burn across the Columbia Basin.
- Spokane City Council punts on data center moratorium after Avista pauses talks with customer.
- Spokane County looks to incentivize affordable housing through a "menu" of options.
- Nationwide report shows Washington struggling to meet kids’ education needs.
- Federal judge weighs a new exception to Idaho's abortion ban after 5-day trial ends.
- Seattle's first World Cup game between Egypt and Belgium ends in a 1-1 draw.
Plus, the northwest’s logging industry has a long history. But timber companies say they’re having a hard time recruiting workers.
Joni Auden Land takes us to a chainsaw sculpting competition meant to spark interest in an industry that’s central to many local economies across Washington, Oregon and Idaho.
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SPR News Today is a production of Spokane Public Radio.
Reporting today was contributed by Anna King, Eliza Billingham, Lauren Gallup, Owen Henderson, Gustavo Sagrero and Joni Auden Land.
Owen Henderson hosts and produces the show. Eliza Billingham provides digital support.
TRANSCRIPT
[THEME MUSIC]
OWEN HENDERSON: From Spokane Public Radio, it’s SPR News Today.
I’m Owen Henderson. It’s Tuesday, June 16, 2026.
On today’s show, the National Weather Service has issued its first red flag warnings of the summer for much of central and eastern Washington as fire season kicks off in earnest.
Plus, Spokane City Council punts on its emergency data center moratorium.
And the northwest’s logging industry has a long history. But timber companies say they’re having a hard time recruiting workers.
Joni Auden Land takes us to a chainsaw sculpting competition meant to spark interest in an industry that’s central to many local economies across Washington, Oregon and Idaho.
Those stories and more, coming up on SPR News Today.
[FADE OUT THEME]
While officials say crews have contained Whitman County’s Snake River Fire, the Tule, OIE, and the Juniper Dunes Fires are still burning across the Columbia Basin.
And the Twin Sisters Fire is still burning in the Gorge Area.
Air quality in central and eastern Washington is deteriorating.
And there’s a red flag warning today for areas including Spokane, the eastern Columbia Basin, the Colville Reservation, and the Okanogan and Methow Valleys.
Northwest Public Broadcasting’s Anna King has more.
ANNA KING: Winds up to 30 miles an hour are expected, with gusts up to 45. Firefighters are being tested to get progress on multiple large fires in the Columbia Basin that started over the weekend.
[AMBI: Flag flapping]
An American flag whips just outside Benton County Fire District 2 in Benton City. Dennis Bates is the chief. He says this is going to be a very long season.
DENNIS BATES: “The lower Columbia Basin here is known for our wind patterns, higher winds throughout the season. And it gets hotter and drier through the summer.”
AK: He says it’s August fire weather already—and Fourth of July is just weeks away.
In Benton City, I’m Anna King.
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OH: Spokane City Council decided not to vote on a data center moratorium last night.
After a flurry of amendments throughout the Monday workday, council decided to spend a few more weeks researching the proper legal language and verifying what authority city legislators have.
While council members reiterated their support of keeping data centers out of city limits, they also expressed concern over writing bad policy with unintended consequences.
They’ll likely take up a vote in the coming weeks.
On Friday, Avista Utilities announced it had paused any negotiations with the customer who requested energy service for a data center.
Council members also encouraged the public to reach out to statewide policy makers who have the authority to regulate water quality and temperature.
— — —
Spokane County is trying to create a slate of affordable housing incentives.
SPR’s Eliza Billingham reports.
ELIZA BILLINGHAM: Commissioners Amber Waldref and Al French are taking the lead on finding ways to encourage more housing development—especially for people who earn less than Spokane County’s median income.
Waldref is taking inspiration from the city of Spokane’s permit deferral system.
AMBER WALDREF: “Shortening the permit review time, deferring fees all these things can help lower costs to developers up front and over time and make it more cost effective for those who are developing.”
EB: Commissioners also discussed decreasing minimum lot sizes, prioritizing cottage-style developments, and exploring land banking.
They said they want to create a “menu” of options and encourage home ownership as much as possible.
Staff will draft policy proposals in the next few weeks, which should come before the commission in mid-July.
I’m Eliza Billingham, reporting.
— — —
OH: Washington state is falling behind in education.
As Northwest Public Broadcasting’s Lauren Gallup reports, that’s according to the latest data from the Annie E. Casey Foundation.
LAUREN GALLUP: The report shows that Washington state came in 17th in the country for overall child well-being.
SOLEIL BOYD: “ When we look at our state, you might think, ‘Oh, we're not so bad. We're, we're above average on a lot of measures.’ But I just think that lets us know that the problems that we have are not unique to us.”
LG: That’s Soleil Boyd. She is the executive director of the Children’s Alliance. That’s a state advocacy organization for youth.
Boyd says the report shows some concerning declines for Washington kids. That includes in education.
The state has seen more students failing to meet proficiency in reading and math.
She also has concerns about the future of early childhood education here—the state cut over $25 million from its Transition to Kindergarten program this year.
I’m Lauren Gallup, reporting.
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OH: A federal judge is now weighing whether to add another exemption to Idaho’s strict abortion ban.
Yesterday was the last day of the trial in a lawsuit brought by a doctor who treats high-risk pregnancies.
Dr. Stacy Seyb wants the court to allow abortions in pregnancies that threaten someone’s health—not just their life.
Many Idaho doctors have testified to lawmakers that the state’s ban is confusing and doesn’t always allow them to provide necessary care.
State officials say the policy is clear.
The district court judge says he’ll issue his ruling in the coming weeks.
— — —
Seattle will host five more World Cup games after holding its first match ever yesterday, in which Belgium and Egypt tied one to one.
KUOW’s Gustavo Sagrero reports.
[AMBI: Booing]
GUSTAVO SAGRERO: That’s the sound of World Cup fans in Seattle’s Pioneer Square booing FIFA commissioner Giani Infantino while they watched the Egypt vs. Belgium game.
Infantino is no stranger to controversy for World Cup fans. A criminal complaint was recently filed against him amid world cup corruption allegations.
Despite some fans' qualms for management, World Cup watchers are united in their love for watching some of the world's best soccer players in Seattle—like Sawyer Kephart who plays in Seattle’s youth leagues.
SAWYER KEPHART: “The thing that stood out to me the most today was just, like, the amount of excitement throughout the game and how close each team was to scoring multiple times and just the mixed reactions throughout the game.”
GS: The next match will be Friday when the US plays against Australia.
It’s unclear if President Infantino will be back.
I’m Gustavo Sagrero, reporting.
[SHORT MUSIC BED]
OH: The Northwest has long been big on timber, and Oregon produces more lumber than any other state.
But timber companies say they’re having a hard time hiring workers.
Joni Auden Land visited an event in the Cascade foothills that aims to create more interest—a chainsaw carving competition.
JONI AUDEN LAND: Located just behind a car dealership, a cacophony of chainsaws hangs in the air.
[AMBI: Chainsaw]
It may sound like something straight out of a horror movie. But it’s actually the fourth annual Sandy Invitational Chainsaw Competition.
Seventeen artists have gathered from across the Pacific Northwest for three days to carve sculptures using a variety of chainsaws. The details on these pieces are incredible.
AUSTIN ERNESTI: “Some of these things are like six feet tall and six feet wide, these gigantic logs. And so we've got people making Bigfoots, and we have buzzards, and I think there's a frog riding a snail over here somewhere.”
JAL: Austin Ernesti is the executive director of Trajectory, the organization that hosts this event. The non-profit works to spur interest in careers in the forest.
Sandy, like much of Oregon, was built on the logging industry. But Ernesti says many kids today aren’t aware of the opportunities out there.
AE: “Things like, oh, I'm a timber cruiser, like kids don't know what that is, and so if that's not something that they even know exists, how do they find those jobs?”
JAL: It’s no secret the timber industry in Oregon isn’t what it used to be. But while there are fewer jobs, industry leaders say they struggle to fill the positions they do have.
A 2021 U.S. Forest Service study found the long hours and dangerous conditions weed out many potential applicants.
One of those industry leaders is J.R. Hendershott, who works for Peterson Caterpillar. He says they have trouble hiring all kinds of employees, from operators to mechanics.
Part of the issue: He believes timber has a P-R problem, and that many Oregonians don’t understand how the industry works.
J.R. HENDERSHOTT: “They're out there working a job that creates a renewable product, and putting people to work, and yeah, I think we are still fighting that negative publicity nowadays, unfortunately.”
JAL: That’s a battle that’s being waged right here in Sandy. Hundreds of people have gathered to marvel at the artwork, and see the power of these machines firsthand.
One of the grandest pieces at this event belongs to Johnny Kimball of Mount Hood. He’s making a gigantic forest gnome, wearing a backpack and holding multiple tree saplings.
He knows how dangerous this work can be. He has a large scar on his hand from when a small chainsaw sliced it open.
JOHNNY KIMBALL: “And then I lost my finger, because it turns out hemlock is poisonous, so I got a little splinter embedded, and it swelled up, and the infection just never healed, so they had to take it off.”
JAL: But this craft is a perfect fit for him, a combination of physical and artistic work. This event is specifically trying to appeal to young people who don’t want to go to college. Kimball says that was his experience.
JK: “I was never much of a college candidate, you know what I mean. I don't like being at a desk, and so exposing people to things like this is probably the best way to give them choices in life.”
JAL: A few stations over, Brittny Hughes is making a large rose, inspired by Beauty and the Beast.
She started carving during the pandemic, and soon couldn’t stop making sculptures. She specializes in making adorable little donkeys.
BRITTNY HUGHES: “The element of danger is actually pretty fun. It's just a beautiful thing to take a tree and turn it into something that you can love for a long time.”
JAL: She spent a long time working in forests across Oregon and hopes events like this can encourage more people to do the same.
BH: “We need more people working in the woods, it's a very important job, and this is what Oregon is known for, is their timber. People need to know how to do this, because it's kind of a dying breed.”
JAL: All the art pieces will be auctioned off, with the proceeds going to purchase equipment for those entering the field.
I’m Joni Auden Land reporting from Sandy, Oregon.
[SHORT MUSIC BED]
OH: SPR News Today is a production of Spokane Public Radio.
Reporting today was contributed by Anna King, Eliza Billingham, Lauren Gallup, Gustavo Sagrero, Joni Auden Land and me, Owen Henderson.
I’m also your host and producer. Eliza Billingham provides digital support.
Thanks for listening.
It’s SPR.
