August 17, 2022 by Methow Valley News

The Mazama Hydrant Project is complete: we finally have a high-volume dedicated water source for firefighting, accessible to Okanogan County Fire District 6 and, through them, to any agency involved in fire protection.

I’d like to take this opportunity to express huge gratitude to the hundreds of residents of the Methow Valley who contributed their dollars to make this happen. We collected over $120,000 in the spring and were, moreover, able to leverage that support with Okanogan County to obtain up to $75,000 additional dollars from federal ARPA funds to significantly enhance the project. You people, proverbially, rock!

I also want to thank all the folks who helped out along the way: yes, contractors did the fancy stuff like electrical and pump installation, but volunteers did the bulk of the “grunting.” A lot of them were District 6 firefighters, of course, but quite a few “civilians” stopped by to help out in one way and another: digging ditches, lending tools and heavy equipment, you name it. The list would be too long for this forum, but you all know who you are.

And, of course, thanks is due to the county commissioners, the District 6 commissioners, and Fire District 6 chiefs and captains, both for all their assistance and for tolerating my primary contribution to the effort: I was a complete pain in the neck, which, as it happens, I’m professionally trained at.

It was a lot of work, and seems like a lot of money, for a resource we hope we never have to use in an emergency. But if it saves one house, it’s a bargain.

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