No Video This Week Due to Spokane Wildfires

Hi, everyone. As you know, I shoot a video every week on a wide variety of garden topics. But because of the dreadful Spokane wildfires, that’s not an option for this week. It is way too smoky outside so I’m trying to be smart.

I’m sure that no matter where you live, you’ve been hearing about the fires in our city. It’s all over the news, mainly due to the scope of the fires.

Last week, we started getting multiple notifications from our power company indicating a big windstorm was on the way. They indicated they might have to shut down the power grid as a preventive measure. That’s not the kind of news you like to get, right? So here’s what transpired:

Spokane Wildfires Timeline

At 1 p.m. Saturday (Aug. 1), our power went out. The winds were really kicking up, with lots of 45 mile-per-hour. And, of course, we’ve had an exceptionally dry summer and received minimal precipitation during the winter and spring months. So everything is very dry here. Not a good combination.

Before we knew it, multiple wildfires began, and these were in addition to other regional fires already under way.

The first thing Bill and I noticed was billowing smoke to the north of us. (that’s what the upper left photo is of) Just to clarify, the smoke wasn’t across the street, but farther north. The skies became really smoky, with the Air Quality Health Index (AQHI) reaching 500 at one point. That is BAD.

All we could do is hunker down and hope firefighters could get ahead of the flames. Unfortunately, things just got worse and worse. We got so many alarms throughout the day, which was scary.

One of the early fires was located in Riverside State Park which is west of the city. We love to go on hikes there so we’re feeling pretty sad about that. Later, the fires headed up the hill to the northeast, which is where most of the homes burned down. And the fires kept spreading and spreading.

There are more fires all around the Spokane region. The news photos and videos are so heartbreaking to look at.

Our power finally came back on at about midnight Saturday night. That was good news as far as “convenience” is concerned, right? But it was nothing compared with what so many families are now dealing with. News agencies are reporting that between 700 and 1,000 homes have been lost. That is so devastating.

I took the photo at the very top of this post today. It’s hard to see the smoke but it’s ever-present. (it’s currently in the “unhealthy” category. I haven’t taken any other photos of the fires because we’re staying home, out of the way. But you’ve probably seen plenty of photos and video on your news programs.

Why no video this week?

I had fully intended to shoot a video early this week. I had chosen a great topic and everything. But the air quality is very hazardous so I’m being smart about staying indoors. Our garden is doing “sort of” OK but has definitely been struggling this season. I’ve heard other regional gardeners say the same thing. I’m attributing it to the combination of lack of precipitation and high temperatures. Those two things are throwing off the plants’ normal development.

If all goes well, I should be able to shoot the video next week. Fingers crossed.

Now, before I forget… Many of you have reached out to me in the past few days to check on how we’re doing. I’ve responded to everyone but wanted to thank you from the bottom of my heart for your concern. You are all very special to me.