Fire devastation hits home

ROYAL CITY - Lynn Lindsey grew up in the Methow Valley, camping, fishing, hunting and snowmobiling in the great outdoors.

He returned for six days recently as Lt. Lynn Lindsey of the Grant County Fire District No. 10 station in Royal City. He went to fight the Carlton Complex wild fire and was saddened to see his old stomping grounds charred by mother nature.

"It is hard for me to see the amount of destruction," he said. "I have been fighting fires for over 40 years and would not have ever thought that Valley could have burned the way it did."

"Most of the home owners I talked with were more or less like deer in the headlights," Lindsey added. "Everything happened so fast, I don't think it had time to sink in yet. Most did not say much, others were very grateful for our help and would bring us water to drink from time to time. People were evacuated to schools and churches around the area, at communities like Chelan and Omak."

Lindsey heard one man died of a heart attack while fighting a fire around his home. But no one was burned in the fire. Still, the destruction was enough to hurt people deeply.

"I feel real bad for those who lost their homes," Lindsey said. "We tried to save all that we could, but it was just impossible to save them all."

In one sad instance, Lindsey and his crew had returned to the town of Brewster to get fuel and more water for their trucks. They had been out all night on the lines in the mountains above the town.

The fire alarm in town went off. The city's fire chief drove up and asked if the strike team could help because he didn't have any trucks that could respond.

It was a structure fire. The house had not burned during the original run of the fire but ignited later when a gust of wind blew embers under the deck.

The strike team responded but wasn't able to save the house. However, it did put out several spot fires around other houses nearby.

The Carlton Complex fire has been a huge battle for firefighters. It has required an army. Other Royal City firefighters to pitch in have been Sam Hart, Andrew Stocker and Ivan Arroyo

One tent camp at Liberty Bell High School has housed 1,000 men and women.

"All ethnic groups were there," Lindsey said. "I talked with people from all over the country - Alabama, Tennesee, Florida - men, women, you name it. Ages ranged from 18 to over 60."

Lindsey noted there were large portable showers for all to use and portable wash stations and port-a-potties. The fire was manned 24 hours.

"Most of the time we were able to get 7-8 hours of sleep," Lindsey said. "We would start our shifts at 6 a.m. and would normally be back at base camp by 7 p.m. Then we would get dinner and a shower and go to bed."

Most of the time, the meals were "very good," Lindsey said. The firefighters were treated to steak, meatloaf, bacon and eggs and just about anything you could imagine. They had good sack lunches, too, and all the water and Gatorade they could drink.

The kitchens were supplied through the Dept. of Natural Resources. They were manned by inmates and the National Gaurd. Ice was always available to keep things cold.

The firefighters were treated as well as possible. Yet, it's the destruction of fire that they'll likely never forget.

"I encourage anyone to take a drive up the Methow Valley," Lindsey said. "It will be a real eye opener. The Carlton Complex Fire will not be totally out till the snow flies."