Man charged with arson as Washington wildfires devastate Spokane area

Amna Nawaz:

Last night, authorities arrested a 37-year-old man suspected of starting one of those fires, the Old Trails fire, considered to be the most destructive. Police caught the suspect after a tip from a member in the community. The suspect, who went to prison in 2010 for killing his father, has denied setting the fire.

Now, residents like Kami Fehlig who are now seeing the total loss of their homes, shared how quickly they had to get out.

Kami Fehlig, Fire Victim:

About 30 minutes before it jumped the river, my husband and I were seeing how bad it was, and we told the kids, "We don't want to scare you, but we think you should start preparing, to grab some things."

And I grabbed my wedding album, I grabbed the kids' baby books, and within a few minutes, the power went out. And it was, go now. Go now.

Amna Nawaz:

For more on this, we're joined now by Dave Upthegrove. He's the commissioner of public lands for the state of Washington.

Commissioner, welcome to the "News Hour." Thanks for joining us.

Dave Upthegrove, Washington State Commissioner of Public Lands: Thank you.

Amna Nawaz:

So before we get into more details about the fires, is there anything else you can tell us about this arson arrest? It's been reported the suspect here, a man named Aaron Farinacci, was contacted by law enforcement about two fires last year, was never charged in relation to either.

But had officials always suspected that this Old Trails fire was intentionally set?

Dave Upthegrove:

The cause of the fire is still under investigation.

The Spokane County Sheriff's Office is leading that investigation, so I will let them speak to the facts of the case. But what I can say is this. If someone intentionally started a fire that endangers homes, lives, and firefighters, then that is an incredible betrayal of this community, and they absolutely need to be held accountable under the law.

But whether this fire proves to have been started intentionally or not, the story that I hope people remember are the thousands of community members who have responded with compassion and courage. One individual doesn't define this community. The way the community responded has.

Amna Nawaz:

What can you tell us about the current status of the fires in and around Spokane? Has there been any containment so far?

Dave Upthegrove:

I have spent the last few days on the ground in Spokane meeting with firefighters on the front line and with impacted families.

And our instant command team is making meaningful progress, but there is a lot of work to do. It's still a very dangerous situation. It's also worth noting this is one of 16 major fires burning in Washington state right now. We have about 250,000 acres currently on fire. We have 5,000 people responding to these wildfires from more than a dozen states, from Florida to Alaska to the nation of Australia.

It really is a heroic effort, not just around the city of Spokane, but throughout the state.

Amna Nawaz:

Can you put that number in context for us? The 16 fires burning right now, the scale of the damage you have seen so far, how does that compare to years past?

Dave Upthegrove:

This is one of the worst fire seasons in decades. We have burned well over half-a-million acres of the state so far this year. And this could go on to become a historic fire season in the Pacific Northwest.

We have some extraordinary weather conditions. We have the confluence of fires in other parts of the country really putting strain on the resources. But, at the end of the day, behind each of these fires, there are young firefighters running into the woods who are exhausted, working long hours. There are community members coming and pulling together.

And we believe we can get through this. I still have hope.

Amna Nawaz:

Tell us more about some of the people who've been impacted. We're showing now for your reference some aerial photos that show the very dramatic contrast between the before images of some of these neighborhoods and after the fires hit.

As we take a look at those, just tell us about the numbers of buildings destroyed, the number of people who've lost their homes. What are you hearing?

Dave Upthegrove:

It's heartbreaking.

We have at least 700 homes have been destroyed, perhaps more. About 67,000 people had to be evacuated from their homes. We have about 500 people at the Spokane Convention Center in shelters there. And it is an extraordinary effort for people to pull together.

It's worth noting Spokane is Washington's second largest city after Seattle. So having a wildfire reach a large city like this and have this kind of impact is really unprecedented in our state.

Amna Nawaz:

And also remarkably, Commissioner, I want to note there have so far been no reports of deaths or serious injuries. How have you managed that?

Dave Upthegrove:

You know, I'd like to credit our first responders and the local emergency personnel. The local sheriff departments and fire departments evacuated those areas efficiently and effectively and deserve a lot of credit to get 67,000 people out of their homes without major injuries.

It's early still. There's always the risk as these fires get up fully under control and folks get into their homes. This event is not over and there could still be injuries or loss of life. But we feel very proud of the first responders who've worked so effectively to keep people safe.

Amna Nawaz:

Meanwhile, we know earlier today the president authorized federal disaster relief for the Spokane area. What does that mean and how could it help?

Dave Upthegrove:

This is just the first round. This will allow the state of Washington to access certain federal resources, whether it's search-and-rescue teams, whether it's generators needed to help keep water supply moving. It's that immediate short-term assistance.

There will be a lot of work to do to rebuild this community moving forward in the long run. But we're still fighting these fires right now, working on getting them out, and then there's a long road ahead for this community to rebuild.

Amna Nawaz:

So look ahead for me if you can in the minute or so we have left. It's supposed to get hotter in the region, but the winds do seem to be dying down. What does that mean for officials' abilities to fight the fires and also the potential of more fires spreading?

Dave Upthegrove:

The most important weather indicators, as you noted, number one is wind, and number two is the humidity, the moisture levels.

And we have seen improvements in both of those, but there is a risk that both of those will pick up as we get later into the week. We're in our fourth consecutive year of emergency drought in Washington state. We have El Nino in effect. We're seeing some very challenging weather.

Weather systems and patterns that in the long term are not going away any time soon.

Amna Nawaz:

We're thinking about you and everyone in the community and certainly everyone on the front lines fighting these fires.

That is Dave Upthegrove, commissioner of public lands for Washington state.

Thank you.

Dave Upthegrove:

Thank you.

Amna Nawaz:

Meanwhile, in other fire news in the country, California officials said today that the origin of the 2025 fire that killed 19 people and destroyed most of Altadena was tied to out-of-service equipment owned by a utility.

After an 18-month investigation, officials released a report that said sparks from a transmission tower owned by Southern California Edison ignited the blaze. That turned into the Eaton Fire, which burned far and wide during extremely windy conditions.