Surrounded by flames almost immediately when the Burdoin Fire ignited on July 18, Jeri Rutherford and Ray Backen’s home off Courtney Road, built with fire-resistant materials and cleared of adjacent vegetation, still stands.
Surrounded by flames almost immediately when the Burdoin Fire ignited on July 18, Jeri Rutherford and Ray Backen’s home off Courtney Road, built with fire-resistant materials and cleared of adjacent vegetation, still stands.
BINGEN — Jeri Rutherford and Ray Backen live off Courtney Road east of Bingen, overlooking the Coyote Wall. Their actions in the years and weeks leading up to Friday, July 18, and what they witnessed that day, offer a valuable lesson on living during an era of increasingly severe, catastrophic wildfire.
“Some of it might just be luck. It’s a horrible thing to count on, though, when flames are licking the sides of your house,” said Rutherford.
The two moved into their newly constructed home about one year ago, but Rutherford spent hours and hours prior thinking about design and meticulously selecting building materials: cement board siding, door and window frames crafted with steel-reinforced fiberglass and aluminum, fire-proof screens and a 10-foot gravel perimeter surrounding their property.
On that day, Rutherford described how she saw smoke in the distance and called 911 at 2:30 p.m., right when the Burdoin Fire was first reported. Flames approached within three minutes, and Rutherford immediately began throwing outdoor furniture inside. After a futile attempt to fend them off with a garden hose, Rutherford ran back up to the house, using her shirt to shield her face, and knew they needed to leave along with their two guests.
“I went down the road and a branch fell on my car and bounced off it, and I had to drive over another falling branch that was on fire,” said Rutherford, explaining how fast she was going and noting a plastic cup between the seats. “When we got to the bottom of the hill — it was hot in that car — that plastic cup had curled.”
Rutherford and company took the first vehicle, and Backen was supposed to be right behind them, but he hopped on their John Deere tractor in a last-ditch effort to scour nearby vegetation.
“It was about you being safe and me being superhero and protecting what we had,” said Backen. “In retrospect, I couldn’t do anything.”
And they didn’t need to do anything — the home is still standing — while nothing but the foundation is left on several of their neighbors’ properties.
Two weeks before the Burdoin Fire ignited, Rutherford had Charlie Landsman, a community fire resilience coordinator with Washington’s Department of Natural Resources (DNR), inspect their home for no cost. He pointed out the deck furniture and a few bird nests that posed a risk, but otherwise, their home is nearly impervious to wildfire, representative of a crucial idea: property destruction isn’t a wildfire problem, it’s a home ignition problem.
A sunflower blooms on the couple’s rooftop garden, despite charred ground and trees mere feet away.
Nathan Wilson photo
Wildfires, of course, are getting worse. According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, wildfires have steadily burned more land since the 1980’s and the fire season is getting longer. Depending on the region, vegetation type and historic fire behavior, wildfires are also more prone to cause severe ecosystem damage, particularly in the Southwest, based on research from Oregon State University.
Leading fire scientist Jack Cohen found, however, that property destruction during extreme wildfire conditions is directly tied to the home ignition zone: the characteristics of a home and flammability of its immediate surroundings within 100 feet. Essentially, it’s possible to prevent the loss of a community without controlling the wildfire itself.
But incorporating fire-resistant materials into homes comes with several barriers, one being regulatory. Both Rutherford and several residents impacted by the earlier Rowena Fire expressed that the Columbia River Gorge Commission, which sets building and other land use guidelines within the National Scenic Area, prevented them from installing metal roofs.
“I appreciate their mission. I think sometimes they put style ahead of function,” said Rutherford. “Metal roofs are a perfect example.”
The Gorge Commission was not immediately available to comment by press deadline.
Additionally, fire-resistant materials tend to be more expensive, which Rutherford acknowledged. She believes folks should replace what they can, when they can and emphasized there are still many low-cost strategies available, particularly when it comes to defensible space, like cleaning out gutters and relocating wood away from dwellings. In fact, DNR offers monetary assistance for eligible owners of forestland in Washington who wish to reduce overcrowding, trim back ladder fuels and remove other flammable vegetation.
Ultimately, the end result is bittersweet for Rutherford and Backen. While their home survived, the Burdoin Fire took at least 14 homes along Courtney Road and others nestled on the dry slopes toward Lyle, according to an initial assessment. She knows those people need support throughout the recovery process.
“My heart goes out to them ... Nothing I can say is adequate, and the loss is incredible,” said Rutherford. “And I have to thank these firefighters ... I thank them and their families, because their families also paid that price of dad not being there.”
The Gorge Commission does not explicitly prohibit metal roofs, but does have related policies on reflective building materials. For an in-depth explanation of the regulations, click here.
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