Fallen trees pose wildfire threat along Snohomish County highways – KOMO News

Felled trees and vegetation left on the edges of highways are sparking wildfire concerns among many neighbors in Snohomish County, especially as temperatures begin to climb. (KOMO News)

Wildfire concerns are resurfacing in Snohomish County and this time it has to do with trees and brush that were cut down and left along highway shoulders.

The coming days could set new records for high temperatures this early in the year. Neighbors said they want these potential fuels cleaned up and cleared away before they potentially catch fire.

The cut trees poke into the air along the shoulders of US Highway 2 and can also be seen on the edges of State Route 9. As the heat returns to Western Washington, they look like sitting fire hazards to many neighbors and they want the Washington State Department of Transportation to take action (WSDOT).

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People are just concerned and looking to them to be proactive, said Bubba Deach, who own a restaurant in Sultan called Bubbas Roadhouse Bar & Grill.

Deach hosted a town hall following the Bolt Creek Fire that broke out late last summer and says he received assurances from U.S. Sen. Maria Cantwell and other officials that steps would be taken to better safeguard the area against future disasters.

Lawmakers had said they put money aside for these entities to make change," Deach said, and be proactive rather than reactive."

KOMO News reached out to WSDOT, which directed the tree removal. A spokesperson said the trees that were chopped were hazardous or diseased and needed to be removed but the contractor who handled the work took out more than intended.

All those felled trees are in the process of being cleared, the spokesperson said, and the healthy ones will be chipped and used for landscaping.

I know there's a lot of concern that all the entities, including WSDOT, are doing the best they can to be preventative, Deach said.

A bigger concern for many firefighting agencies is that people remove the tall grasses and brush around their homes to create a buffer zone in a case a wildfire does approach.

However, residents said having downed trees drying out along busy highways - where a random spark or tossed cigarette can set them alight - also need to go.

Let's get that stuff out of there now or deal with it so it's not fuel for the next fire, Deach said.

WSDOT said it should take a few more weeks to clear the cut-down trees and brush from the highway shoulders. New trees will also be planted to make up for the ones the contractor took out by mistake.

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Fallen trees pose wildfire threat along Snohomish County highways - KOMO News