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SATURDAY, 03.21.2015
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OSO MUDSLIDE
Comfort in numbers About 350 people gather at prayer service to remember victims
Most fight private battle An abundance of help is available, but those who live in the Stillaguamish Valley have a history of selfreliance and struggle silently. By Chris Winters Herald Writer
By Kari Bray Herald Writer
DARRINGTON — People shook hands and shared embraces before bowing their heads in prayer and raising their voices in song to mark a year since the weekend of the deadly Oso mudslide. About 350 people came together Friday evening for a
Gathering in Hope at the Darrington Community Center. They remembered family, friends and neighbors who died in the slide, and they honored the courage and dedication of those who rallied to help search in the mud, provide for the families and reconnect communities in the Stillaguamish Valley. Tiers of white candles flickered in front of a stage where
pastors from at least 11 different Stillaguamish Valley churches led prayers, shared words of encouragement and read passages from the Bible. There were 43 candles, one for every life lost in the Oso mudslide. Above them, a banner read “Together: Arlington. Oso. Darrington.” Pastor Dan Eide with Sisco Heights Community Church
spoke of comfort, truth and strength. He prayed for divine strength “in the common, mundane things as we pull our lives back together and find a new normal.” The vigil was hosted by the Darrington and Arlington ministerial associations, uniting churches from both See COMFORT, Page A6
Construction rules virtually unchanged But by mid-year, the County Council is likely to adopt stricter regulations for building in locations that might be prone to landslides. By Noah Haglund Herald Writer
EVERETT — Snohomish County’s rules for building near potential landslide dangers remain more or less unchanged from when the deadly Oso
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mudslide hit a year ago. The County Council is likely to enact stricter regulations by mid-year, beyond the temporary construction ban already in place for the immediate Oso slide area. Recommendations include expanding the areas near steep slopes where the county would require geotechnical engineering reports before issuing building permits. A summary of the engineer’s report would need to be recorded on the title of the property. The property
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owner also would have to sign a waiver, holding the county harmless should anything go wrong, before a building permit would be issued. “When you build within a landslide area, there’s going to be more analysis required,” county permitting manager Tom Rowe said. The new landslide hazard rules are part of the regular update to the county’s critical areas regulations, a requirement of the state’s Growth Management Act. The update includes
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other sensitive areas, such as wetlands and aquifer recharge zones. The existing critical areas rules took effect in October 2007. Changes that planning commissioners recommended last month would broaden the county’s definition for landslide hazard areas, and where geologic analysis would be required. That wouldn’t necessary halt construction near steep slopes. The new rules would expand the area around certain steep See RULES, Page A2
The Buzz Casino-goers gamble on judge’s ruling in unshuffled deck case. Page A2
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GENNA MARTIN / THE HERALD
Jerry Gemmer (right) sings Amazing Grace with about 350 other attendees of the Gathering in Hope prayer service held Friday night at the Darrington Community Center in remembrance of those affected by the Oso slide.
OSO — On March 13, LoAnna Langton sorted through the photographs she’d recovered from the home she lost one year ago. The house she and her family lived in was flooded by the North Fork Stillaguamish River after it was blocked by a mudslide on March 22, 2014. “Today was the first day that I’d decided I was ready to go through those pictures,” she said. Many of the photos they salvaged were so damaged they were unrecognizable. “They’re just blurs that used to be childhood memories,” she said. The slide wiped out the Steelhead Haven neighborhood, killing 43 people and destroying dozens of homes. The mud flow stopped short of the Langtons’ rental house. LoAnna escaped with their four children. Her husband, Kris Langton, who was at work, rushed back and ended up wading through the mud to get to them, helping rescue survivors along the way. He later was recognized as an American Red Cross Real Hero for his actions that day, which saved the lives of three people caught in the slide. A year after the slide, the Langtons still struggle. But like many of those whose lives were forever changed by the slide, the Langtons have done so privately, reluctant to ask for help. Assistance is still available for those who lost homes or family members one year ago, as well as for emergency workers who pulled the wounded and the dead out of the mud, for children who lost classmates, and anyone else still dealing with trauma from the biggest natural disaster in Snohomish County’s recorded history. The biggest challenge faced by the case managers, social workers and nonprofits is often making that initial contact with someone
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