Spokane wildfire evacuees return home, but it's 'still a hazmat situation'

Melissa and Christopher Matthews in front of the remains of their home in Spokane on August 14, 2026. The Spokane Complex fires torched more than 900 structures. Margaret Albaugh for NPR hide caption

SPOKANE, Wash. — Just weeks after wildfires destroyed hundreds of homes in some of the worst blazes in Washington state history, most evacuees have been allowed to return to the burn zones in and around Spokane.

But there are mounting questions about whether it's safe yet.

"It is a very challenging thing," says Sarah Nuss, the city's director of emergency management. "While folks are allowed to go back into those areas there is still a hazmat situation going on. The burned houses and damaged places are going to have things like lithium ion batteries, hazardous chemicals."

Before any rebuilding can begin, wildfire recovery starts with the dirty work of removing all the toxic debris left behind, which can also include lead paint siding, exploded propane tanks and other potentially dangerous hazards that litter the burn zone. The federal Environmental Protection Agency is just arriving here to begin that typical first phase of toxic debris removal. The entire debris removal process can take months, if not years.

Nuss says a lot of the city's work right now is educating people about the potential risks.

"We have no legal ability to keep people out," she says. "What we are trying to do right now is really understand and document all the risks across what kind of household people are going back into."

The Old Trails Fire was one of three wildfires that ignited here in an extreme heat and wind event in early August. Suspected to have been started by an arsonist, it leveled whole neighborhoods when the flames jumped the Spokane River. For Melissa and Chris Matthews, the devastation is jarring as they survey their destroyed property.