Stehekin residents ignore evacuation orders as fire pushes toward town

Nearly all of the residents of Stehekin are ignoring evacuation orders as the Pioneer Fire burning along the northeast end of Lake Chelan pushes toward the lakeside town of roughly 100 people, firefighters say.

PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) — Nearly all of the residents of Stehekin are ignoring evacuation orders as the Pioneer Fire burning along the northeast end of Lake Chelan pushes toward the lakeside town of roughly 100 people, firefighters say.

Chelan County Emergency Management issued a level 3, “go now,” evacuation order for Stehekin on July 27 as the fire burned roughly a mile from town. Because Stehekin has no access roads, ferries were provided for evacuees over the weekend. However, 96 of the town’s residents refused to leave and remain in the area, Sgt. Jason Reinfeld with Chelan County Sheriff’s Office told KOIN 6 News.

“There are currently 96 people staying in Stehekin but more may evacuate as time goes on,” Reinfeld said. “There is always concern when people do not evacuate on a level 3.  The fire, however, is several miles away from some of the residents who live further up the valley. Our primary concern is our ability to get them out of there as the fire progresses.”

Stan Hinatsu, the public information officer for the firefighting unit battling the Pioneer Fire, told KOIN 6 News that all youth camp counselors and National Park Service employees working in the area were evacuated. Although an overwhelming majority of Stehekin residents are currently staying put, many of them have access to private boats.

“Many of the residents have their own transportation,” Hinatsu said. “We do have some contingency plans in place, say if Stehekin landing is compromised, there is another access point near the Stehekin River that’s accessible by car from land, so that's another location and there are evacuation boats on standby for that.” 

While there's no official estimate, Hinatsu said that the fire could reach the Stehekin in a few days. As of July 29, the fire is 33,276 acres in size and 15% contained.

“It could get to Stehekin by this weekend, but that’s really hard to predict and depends on how much moisture we get today,” Hinatsu said. “We’re prepared for that eventuality.”

If needed, the American Red Cross plans to open an evacuation shelter at the Chelan Community Gym at 317 Johnson St. Officials plan to provide buses that would take evacuees from the marina to the shelter.