Today's headlines:
- Spokane’s wildfires kicked off a wave of generosity. The Innovia Foundation tells us how much people have donated to a wildfire-focused fund.
- If you don’t have money to give, you can always donate goods. We’ll tell you one of the places where wildfire survivors can shop.
- The city of Airway Heights has two requests for its reclaimed water, including one from a potential data center.
- Audrey Nelson reports on how federal wildfire officials dispatch crews to big wildfires like ours.
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Local and national donors have contributed more than $5 million to two funds set aside for wildfire survivors in and around Spokane. The Innovia Foundation, a community foundation serving Eastern Washington and Northern Idaho, announced the milestone Wednesday night.
Innovia CEO Shelly O’Quinn says that 3,800 individual donors have contributed since fires broke out August first.
The money will be channeled through nonprofit partners and case managers across three recovery phases: immediate relief, stabilization, and long term rebuilding.
"Right now is the immediate response. And that is making sure that families are safe, they’re housed, they’re fed, they’re clothed," she said.
The stabilization phase will focus on things like rental assistance, furniture and back to school supplies for families whose homes have been damaged or destroyed.
During the long-term rebuilding phase, Innovia will partner with the nonprofit Spokane Long-Term Recovery Group to distribute funds.
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Spokane’s Wildfire Disaster Assistance Center closed Wednesday after a week of offering services to those displaced by the Spokane Complex fires. But there are still options available for those in need of donations and those who want to donate.
Spokane County Emergency Management (SEM) has been running the Wildfire Relief Donation Site since Monday. Anyone affected by the fires can shop for free on the second floor of the old Emporium at Northtown Mall.
The distribution center is open from 1 to 8 p.m. daily. Richy Brower says it has shelf-stable food, cleaning supplies, hygiene products, and other supplies donated by Walmart.
"Paper goods. Paper towels, toilet paper. We went from none to well-stocked," he said.
People can drop off donations at the same location between 8 and 11 a.m. daily. Check the SEM’s Facebook page for a list of what they still need.
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Washington's state school Superintendent Chris Reykdal is praising the way public schools are showing up for communities overwhelmed by fire damage in central and eastern Washington.
"They're the emergency hub right now. Their food distribution right now. Spokane set up an IT system just like overnight on their own to help the entire process. So our our schools are just doing what they do, which is absolutely being the hubs of their communities. But there's financial impact," he said.
Reykdal told the State’s Board of Education this week that as districts are taking inventory of their buildings and facilities, schools are playing a vital role. He says many schools have been damaged by heavy smoke, and one lost its water system.
Those damages might be eligible for FEMA support.
Reykdal says he’ll also be seeking help from Olympia. He says damage cost estimates are still being calculated.
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A company interested in building a data center near Airway Heights has approached the city about buying reclaimed water for cooling at its facility.
City Manager Albert Tripp says the firm is one of two that has asked the West Plains town about using its treated water. The other is a sand and gravel company that proposes to use the water for cleaning purposes at a site just north of town.
Tripp says a city council committee is considering whether to hire a private engineering company to review the proposals.
“It certainly would evaluate city needs for the same water. And ultimately, it would help inform the conversation as to whether or not the city should consider selling that reclaimed water to either of the two entities,” he said.
Tripp says an engineering study would likely take a year and cost about $165,000. He says the data center company has agreed to pay that.
If the council committee approves hiring a consultant, it would forward a recommendation to the full council. Tripp says that’s likely to occur later this month.
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Big changes are coming to the Hanford Advisory Board. That group of environmental watchdogs, state governments, municipalities and tribal sovereign nations — all with keen interest in Hanford cleanup – will be significantly whittled down. Anna King from Northwest Public Broadcasting has the details.
This week, the U.S. Department of Energy made an announcement at the Hanford Advisory Board’s regular meeting. The board is made up of around 70 people – including alternates. It would shrink to about 20 federally-selected people. Instead of groups or Tribal nations speaking on the board, each person will represent just themselves.
The board has been around for 32 years.
Tom Sicilia is with the Oregon Department of Energy. He’s part of the board – but speaking just for himself.
Tom Sicilia: “What we’re losing is the collaboration and coalition building to amplify the message that the Columbia River needs to be protected.”
The changes will go into effect on October 1.
In Richland, I’m Anna King.
Hanford is the site in southeast Washington where the nation produced plutonium during World War II and the Cold War. It is the nation’s largest cleanup site.
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A California team has overseen the response to the Spokane-area wildfires. More than 100 people make up the team.
SPR’s Audrey Nelson looked into how these complex incident management groups are dispatched, and how California Team 7 ended up in Spokane.
20260814_incidentteams_FEATURE AUD(2:59) SOQ
IN: On Friday, July 31, incident commander Tom Clemo [CLEM-oh] and his team had just arrived in Baker City, Oregon. Clemo’s group is known as California Complex Incident Management Team 7. They were getting ready to take over command of a wildfire from another team.
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SPR News Today is a production of Spokane Public Radio.
Reporting today was contributed by Audrey Nelson, Lisa Leinberger, Gary Davis, Anna King and Doug Nadvornick, today’s host and producer.
Thanks for listening. This is SPR News.
Web support is provided by Anna Gyure Havlek.
