Latest news with #BabbRoadFire
Yahoo
3 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
Tragedy won't define Malden community
May 30—MALDEN — What may be a short time rebuilding after tragedy struck almost five years ago has seemed like forever to the people of Malden. This was expressed by Bob Law, lifelong Malden resident and town of Malden councilor, who's eyes watered when he put into words how much the new Malden Community Building meant. "It's quite the achievement," he said. "We've been dealing with everything, the small things people don't even realize. It makes you appreciate the things you've got." The small town located in northern Whitman County celebrated an enormous milestone in its ongoing revitalization efforts. People and officials from across the region came Thursday to get a sneak peek of the facility, which replaces original buildings lost during the Babb Road Fire in 2020. Malden Mayor Dan Harwood said the accomplishment has been years in the making. Town of Malden Clerk Chandelle Frick said it's the result of neighbors and family working tirelessly to bring pride back to their town. "Disaster happens," Harwood said. "We want to remember and honor the past, but we're moving forward." Much of Malden was destroyed by a fire storm that engulfed the town on Labor Day in 2020. Its post office, city hall, library, fire station, old gas station and 67 homes were lost to the blaze. Law said the town hasn't felt the same since. What used to be a population of 250 before the fire now sits at 155 residents because people couldn't afford to rebuild. Malden's turning point was in February 2024 when it opened the municipality building, which houses the fire station, town hall and post office. The facility was the first community gathering space in Malden in nearly four years. Its newly unveiled community building is an equally monumental moment.
Yahoo
16-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Spokane County grants easement allowing Avista to remove overhead powerlines to lower wildfire risk
May 15—Mica Peak is about to shed the power lines hanging off its back, which should be welcome news to the homeowners near the recreation area. The Spokane County Commission voted 5-0 to grant a 10-foot-wide easement to Avista Utilities Tuesday that will allow the power company to bury their existing 1.5 mile powerline network that runs through public land on the mountain's northern face. Avista will cover the cost of the transition, according to the company's web page detailing the work. Burying the lines will lessen the risk of wildfires and power outages in the densely wooded area, and will require less maintenance, Avista spokesman David Vowels said. A number of wildfires have been linked to power equipment nationwide in recent years, including the 2020 Babb Road Fire, which sparked when a tree branch fell on an Avista powerline during a windstorm. The work on Mica Peak is part of the company's broader "strategic undergrounding" project. Avista also will transition overhead lines to underground ones in the Moran Prairie neighborhood on the South Hill and in the unincorporated community of Dartford by the end of the summer, according to the project website. In 2017, Spokane County acquired the roughly 900 acre property the power lines currently hang above for $2.3 million, a purchase that connected the Mica Peak Conservation Area to Liberty Lake Regional Park for a combined 5,300 acres of public lands. The agreement approved Tuesday replaces a 60-foot-wide one granted to the utility in 1997 by the land's former owner, Inland Empire Paper Co. It will result in a return of 50 feet of public property along the line's path from the Federal Aviation Administration radar station at the mountain's peak, north to around East Henry Road. Inland Empire is owned by the Cowles Co., which also owns The Spokesman-Review. Work on the underground lines will begin in mid-July, and customers in the area will be notified of any outages as a result of the work, Vowels said. Avista has agreed to rehabilitate the former easement parameters back into natural habitat. Over the next three years, Avista will "provide erosion and sediment control, reseed with native seed mixes, control noxious weeds and monitor the disturbed areas," according to a copy of the revegetation plan included in county records.
