SPOKANE, Wash. – Not all residents are thrilled as multiple agencies and non-profits joined the Spokane Fire Department (SFD) Tuesday to remove hazardous shrubs throughout Sans Souci West, a gated community for those 55 and older.
Through funding from the Department of Natural Resources and Veterans Community Response, roughly 20 people were out removing shrubs.
The project is the brain-child of Nick Jeffries, the wildland resource planner for SFD.
“If there was a fire across the river, or close by, it could throw embers onto this homesite and basically light the stuff on fire and light the structure on fire,” Jeffries said.
Jeffries told NonStop Local that DNR and SFD work to identify risky areas, like this gated community. He said it’s essential to remove flammable vegetation ahead of wildfire season.
“I know it’s not going to look pretty. I mean, it’s not. I drove down the hill and just thought ‘Oh my gosh. It’s so bare’,” Bea Shine, a resident and “Mayor” of the Sans Souci West community, said.
Shine has lived at Sans Souci West for 21 years.
She told NonStop Local that while she, and other neighbors, are not eager to see their beloved plants and shrubs be removed, she does understand why this move is important for the safety of Sans Souch West.
The community only has one road, with only one way out.
“There’s 214 homes down here. So, that’s a lot of people trying to get out if such a fire came,” Shine said.
Wednesday, Crews used chainsaws to remove arborvitaes and junipers.
Plants, that DNR says, are considered significant fire risks because of the high levels of volatile oils in their foliage.
“We call them ‘little green gas cans’ that people plant in their yards and around their homes. So, really important that land owners aren’t planting those in their landscapes,” Steve Harris, with the Department of Natural Resources, said.
Some residents voiced concerns to NonStop Local about the aesthetics of the community now that their shrubbery is gone.
“It is going to be aesthetically way different. I mean, we’re gonna look like a bare place down here. So, yeah. There’s been a lot of concern. But, I think if you look at… looking beautiful… or saving you’re life… We have to weigh it out,” Shine said.
In an effort to improve aesthetics, crews will be replanting with greenery that’s less flammable.
