The Gray Fire: WFSE members hold the line

MEDICAL LAKE, WA (August 19, 2024) — Wildfires in Washington State wreck havoc on local communities. But even in the midst of disaster, there are always helpers. One year after the Gray Fire, the Washington Federation of State Employees (WFSE/AFSCME Council 28) is celebrating the courage and heroism of members who protected both the patients under their care and each other as a deadly wildfire ripped through Medical Lake.

These heroic folks have mostly gone unnoticed. But with the release of a new video, WFSE is bringing attention to the dedication and selflessness of their members.

On August 18, 2023, the Gray Fire broke loose after a faulty power line set fire to grasslands, pine trees, and homes in the area, burning over 10,000 acres in hours. The aggressive fire threatened to overrun Medical Lake’s two supported care facilities. The facilities, home to over 200 residents and staffed by over 500 union members, were in the direct path of blazes moving “faster than a freight train,” according to one worker.

Watch WFSE members share their memories of surviving the Gray Fire. 

Within hours of the first smoke sighting, Lakeland Village workers mobilized to save the lives of residents with physical and mental disabilities. The workers put their own lives on the line, pushing residents in wheelchairs uphill through smoke while the forest around them burst into flames.

“It got right up on us and we started running people up the hill,” said Pam Davis, Local 573 President and Adult Training Specialist II at Lakeland Village. “Bus drivers were driving through falling, flaming trees. One of the bus drivers had to kick over a tree that had fallen on the road and was still burning.”

WFSE members worked around the clock to care for residents, keeping patients safe and comfortable during the disorienting hours and days following the evacuation. Despite losing homes, and fears for their own loved ones’ safety, the workers prioritized the wellbeing of their patients; there wasn’t a single fatality at either facility.

“People were getting calls telling them their house burned down,” said Pam Davis. “But they were staying, working 16, 18, 20 hour days.”

The union points out that this life-saving effort was only possible because there were enough staff on-hand to put courage into action. Chronic understaffing across the public sector affects day-to-day operations — and it leaves patients vulnerable in a disaster. Without enough staff to quickly and safely evacuate patients, the outcome of the Gray Fire could have been catastrophic for patients.

WFSE is currently fighting to improve staffing across the state right now, bargaining for contracts to ensure that Washington can employ and retain a passionate workforce. Despite the urgent need to address staffing, the union is prepared for a long battle to secure pay that keeps pace with inflation, equitable healthcare access, better workplace safety standards — essentials for retaining and recruiting dedicated workers.

As they continue to fight for a fair contract, WFSE is holding actions across Washington State to build solidarity with the communities that these public workers serve. Learn more about the workers’ contract fight — and RSVP to join an August 20 action — on the WFSE website.

You can learn more about the Gray Fire here.