Living in an Eastern WA Wildfire Season
What it takes to rebuild in Seattle’s Central District
Dr. Robert L Jeffrey is the pastor of New Hope Missionary Baptist Church in Seattle’s Central District. The church has over 70 years of history.
In 1994, the church was destroyed by a fire. As the congregation was rebuilding the structure, a second fire by arson set them back. The permitting process for the structure took over two years, and the church was faced with few options to pay for recovering from the two devastating events.
What’s more, the neighborhood faced effects of the opioid/crack epidemic, overpolicing of its streets and schools and a real estate market and tax structure that displaced many residents, among many other issues. Amidst these challenges, Dr. Jeffrey led an effort to build housing and advocated for displaced community members to own homes in the neighborhood. The congregation was forced to resort to expensive and difficult methods to rebuild the church and build housing. He sat down with KBCS’s Yuko Kodama to describe the process.
Nature: Douglas Fir Trees and Forest Fires
This story first broadcast in January of 2018
In this KBCS nature series segment, Ed Dominguez, Seward Park Audubon Center Lead Naturalist, talks to KBCS’s Yuko Kodama about the benefits of allowing fires burn away the undergrowth. They also discuss how the Douglas Fir tree’s thick bark helps protect it from forest fires and why the intensity of forest fires has increased since modern fire suppression techniques have developed in the past few hundred years.
Basing Summer Plans on Wildfires
Summer wildfires are the new face of catastrophic climate change in Washington and much of the West. As summer 2019 unfolds, those who can, are making plans to become seasonal climate refugees to escape the smoke and unhealthy air. Find out what options there are who can’t leave town.
Producers: Martha Baskin and Daniel Guenther
Photo: Charles Luce
