Everett Daily Herald, August 22, 2015

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Tragedy shows firefighters’ youth, passion By Matt Volz And Brian Skoloff Associated Press

TWISP — One was a college student for whom fighting fires was a summer job. Another had graduated and wanted to make firefighting his career. The third was already a professional firefighter who had gone back to school to earn his master’s degree. Tom Zbyszewski, Richard Wheeler and Andrew Zajac — the three men who died Wednesday when flames consumed their crashed vehicle outside of Twisp — were typical of the wildland firefighters who

From left: Richard Wheeler (with wife Celeste), Andrew Zajac and Tom Zbyszewski

start out as fresh-faced college kids making as little as $12 an hour then find themselves hooked on the work. Four others were injured in the canyon, one critically. But

their firefighting brothers and sisters had little time to mourn as raging fires forced entire communities to flee their homes 60 miles away. The complex of fires grew

more than 100 square miles in a single day, creating a situation too chaotic to even track how many homes had burned. See TRAGEDY, Page A4

Local crews on fire line Snohomish County firefighters join battle in Eastern Washington

GENNA MARTIN / THE HERALD

Travis Hots, a Snohomish County fire chief, briefs his crew before heading out to fight the First Creek fire outside of Chelan on Friday.

more photos in a gallery >> Find with this story at www.

By Dan Catchpole Herald Writer

CHELAN — Dark smoke roiled off the hills on Lake Chelan’s south shore Friday as four Snohomish County firefighters dug up wild grass, cut back tree limbs and cleared brush around upscale homes with sweeping views of blue water and rugged ridges. Finished with one line, the

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crew hiked up the hillside’s loose, rocky soil. They climbed over a wood post fence and past a couple of stout evergreens, reaching a dirt road above. “We can anchor here and come down by the fence,” one said. After a brief, matter-of-fact

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conversation, they started digging a foot-wide firebreak with Pulaskis and shovels. The line is wide enough to stop a ground fire spreading when the wind isn’t blowing. Fire authorities managing the Chelan Complex fires expect the flames to reach the homes, most of which appeared to have been well prepared by owners. Firefighters hope they can save all or at least most of them.

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“A lot of what we do is preparing for the worst case scenario,” said Chief Travis Hots, of Snohomish County Fire District 21 and 22. He is heading up the county’s firefighter task force sent to battle blazes consuming vast tracts of Central Washington. The hot, dry and windy conditions here mean a fire can quickly See LOCAL, Page A4

The Buzz The Ashley Madison hack reveals government workers’ use of work computers? Bet they feel betrayed. Page A2

Bed bugs doing time It’s the second infestation at the Snohomish County Jail’s Work Release Center, and some inmates report being bitten dozens of times. By Eric Stevick Herald Writer

EVERETT — The bed bugs are back. The tiny wingless insects that feed on warm-blooded animals have returned to the Snohomish County Jail’s Work Release Center. They feast when inmates sleep. Some have reported being bitten dozens of times. The jail had an infestation a year ago, one that started in the summer of 2013. During that stretch, one inmate needed medical treatment after being bitten on the eyelid. Another who was serving time on a drunken driving conviction filed a grievance reporting he had more than 100 bites. The jail staff is trying to address the problem, Snohomish County Sheriff ’s Office spokeswoman Shari Ireton said. It is working with a pest control company to try to solve the most recent biting bout. The contractor recently used a chemical treatment. Jail staff also are looking at where the bugs may be lying dormant to see if there are other possible solutions, Ireton said. “The bedbugs are persistent, but so are we,” she said. In the past, the county has spent several thousand dollars trying to eliminate the bug problem, but the rice grain-sized pests are resilient parasites that can go months without a meal. They have a knack for hiding in mattress seams, box springs, bed frames and dressers. When they feed, they inject an anesthetic and a blood-clotting agent so their targets don’t at first realize they’ve been bitten. The mark can take a few days to appear. It often can take multiple treatments to get rid of them. Bed bugs aren’t known to spread disease, but can cause insomnia, anxiety and allergic reactions. Scratching the bites can cause secondary skin infections. At the height of the previous infestation, trustees reported seeing bugs crawling on books and in their bedding. They wore extra clothes at night to limit the areas where they might get bitten. Eric Stevick: 425-339-3446; stevick@heraldnet.com.

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