Malden Archives - Northwest Public Broadcasting

Inslee talks clean energy jobs, Malden rebuild and battling climate change

By Mary Ellen Pitney May 25, 2023

Washington Governor Jay Inslee speaking outdoors with the Mayor of Malden, Ted Maxwell.

Washington Governor Jay Inslee visited Washington State University's Pullman campus on Thursday. He spoke with Northwest Public Broadcasting's Mary Ellen Pitney on climate-related issues including building more electric car charging stations, helping towns become fire resistant and recovery efforts in Malden, three years after that Labor Day fire.Read More

Malden Rises From The Ashes

By Lauren Paterson September 8, 2022

A bird's eye view shows newly constructed houses upon a brown and muddy street.

Since the wildfire disaster, 24 homes have been rebuilt in Malden. The mayor says the goal is to have the new fire station built by August 2023. (Photo by Geoff […]Read More

Malden, Pine City Families Sue Avista Utilities Over 2020 Wildfire

By Rebecca White March 30, 2022

Charred ruins in grey ash sit on wet ground surrounded by trees.

Charred remains of a house in Malden, WA / Photo by Geoff Roth Listen Rebecca White reports on a lawsuit filed by families from Malden and Pine City, where a […]Read More

Malden Recovery Slow But Steady. Residents Get Six New Homes

By Lauren Paterson March 8, 2022

Newly constructed houses sit atop a hill of brown mud surrounded by rolling hills and trees.

The Western Anabaptist Missionaries have built six houses since January for homeless Malden residents. Listen Read An aerial view of new homes being built in fire-damaged Malden / Video by […]Read More

Federal Aid Arrived For Devastated Washington Town. It May Not Be Enough For This Fire Season

By NPR News May 19, 2021

The cleanup of toxic debris has been slowed in Malden Wash. after former President Trump held up aid as part of a political dispute with the state's Democratic governor. Kirk Siegler/NPR

Last year, former President Trump refused to approve a routine disaster declaration for Malden because he was feuding with Washington Gov. Jay Inslee, a Democrat. So that federal aid didn't start arriving until after President Biden took office and he finally signed the order.Read More

President Biden Approves Federal Aid For Eastern Washington Fires Following Months Of Requests

By NWPB News February 4, 2021

Hollie Jordan surveys her father's service station that was destroyed by a wildfire on Tuesday, Sept. 8, 2020, in Malden, Wash. "This was filled with work and life and memories and it's all gone," Jordan said. CREDIT: Jed Conklin/AP

The Federal Emergency Management Agency has approved disaster relief requests for nine eastern Washington counties and two Native tribes impacted by summer wildfires. That includes aid for the Whitman County towns of Malden and Pine City, which burned during a Labor Day wildfire that was fanned by high winds.Read More

Lawmakers Ask President Biden To Act On Washington Wildfire Relief After Trump Refused

By Doug Nadvornick January 22, 2021

Washington’s U.S. senators say they’ve asked President Joe Biden to approve a major disaster declaration for eastern Washington towns that were burned by wildfires last fall. Those include the Whitman County town of Malden, which lost about 80% of its homes.Read More

Washington Lands Commissioner Works To Engage Lawmakers On Fire Funding Ahead Of Session

By Doug Nadvornick December 28, 2020

Washington Lands Commissioner Hilary Franz, walking here with former Malden Mayor Chris Ferrell, is working with legislators to find more money for wildfire suppression and prevention. CREDIT: Doug Nadvornick/SPR

COVID-related aid and police reform will be two of the major issues before the Washington legislature when it convenes next month. But newly-reelected Lands Commissioner Hilary Franz hopes legislators will also consider dedicating more funding for wildfire and forest health projects.Read More

Whitman County Fire-Ravaged Farming Town Of Malden In Limbo As It Awaits Aid To Rebuild

By NPR News November 25, 2020

Burned cars from a wildfire that destroyed most of the eastern Washington town of Malden on Labor Day. Kirk Siegler/NPR

After some politicking and tweeting — these are blue states, after all — California and Oregon's major disaster declarations were mostly quickly approved. But it's now been 71 days since Washington Gov. Jay Inslee petitioned the president, and there's been no response, not even a denial.Read More

Rural Students Hurt By Lack Of Internet Access

By Murrow News - Sydney Brown November 3, 2020

Chloe Price was looking forward to her senior year of high school. Now she spends her days going through what’s left of her family home. Read More

Looking Forward And Backward: A La Niña Winter And Dry Conditions That Fueled Northwest Fires

By Courtney Flatt November 2, 2020

Drought conditions in the U.S. West, particularly parts of the Northwest, could be eased by an expected 2020-21 La La Niña winter. CREDIT: U.S. Drought Monitor

The Northwest could see a cooler and wetter winter this season, according to climate outlook models. Forecasters say it’s likely that a recently developed La Niña weather pattern in the Pacific Ocean will continue. That should lead to above average precipitation in Washington, Oregon and Idaho.Read More

After Fire, Malden Students Try To Focus On School

By Murrow News - Madysen McLain October 9, 2020

On Chloe Place’s first day of school this year, homework came second to thinking about where her family would spend the night.Read More

‘Everything’s Gone’: Residents In Malden Sift Through The Ashes One Month After Devastating Fire

By NPR News October 9, 2020

James Jacobs lost his home to the fire that destroyed much of Malden and Pine City on Labor Day 2020. And like many others, didn't have insurance. CREDIT: Kirk Siegler/NPR

Malden is a tiny farming town amidst eastern Washington's "oceans of wheat fields" in Whitman County. Or it was. The 2020 wildfire season is a grim reminder that disasters unfairly hit the poor and the elderly. Thousands of people on the West Coast still lack even temporary housing.Read More

‘I Regret That.’ Governor Sorry For Apple Gift Mistake; Agent Tracks Down Maggot-Laden Fruit

By NWPB News September 17, 2020

Signs along highways throughout Washington mark where apple maggot quarantine areas begin. It is illegal to transport home-grown tree fruit into these areas, largely from western Washington into the state's apple-growing eastern counties. CREDIT: Washington Dept. of Agriculture

In Washington, bringing a home-grown apple from west to east is a misdemeanor. There are road signs and posters. The penalty can cost 90 days in jail. But the Washington Department of Agriculture has never enforced the law. Sources at the department say it’s more about education.Read More

UPDATES: Crews Make Good Progress In Eastern Washington Fires; Hundreds Of Homes Burned

By NWPB News September 16, 2020

The Inchelium Complex, comprised of three smaller fires, is burning in timber and grasslands on the eastern side of the reservation of the Colville Confederated Tribes, shown here on Sept. 12, 2020. CREDIT: InciWeb

Labor Day 2020 lived up to its name if you’re a firefighter. It was a day that set up for numerous fires in central and eastern Washington that have burned tens of thousands of acres, and possibly many more. At least 80 fires started in Washington in what officials call a historic fire event. Read More

At Least 14 People Killed In Washington-Oregon-California Fires

By NPR News September 10, 2020

Vehicles were destroyed by a wildfire in Malden, Wash., on Monday, Sept. 7, 2020. Large parts of the West Coast are under warnings for elevated fire weather threats Thursday, but there may be relief if fire-driving winds decrease as expected. CREDIT: Jed Conklin/AP

At least seven people have died in wildfires that are raging in Washington, Oregon and California, adding to the horrible toll from record-setting fires in 2020. "This could be the greatest loss of human lives and property due to wildfires in our state's history," Oregon Gov. Kate Brown said.Read More

‘There Was No Stopping It’: The Fast, Life-Saving Effort To Evacuate Malden As It Burned

By Doug Nadvornick September 10, 2020

Most of the buildings in Malden are now rubble after a fast-moving fire swept through on Labor Day, Sept. 7, 2020. CREDIT: Doug Nadvornick/SPR

On Wednesday, Washington Lands Commissioner Hilary Franz was walking through the streets of Malden with the town’s mayor, Chris Ferrell. Whitman County Sheriff Brett Myers was following a short distance behind and remembering what happened Monday afternoon.Read More

Extreme End To The 2020 Northwest Fire Season Reminds Of The 1910 ‘Big Burn’

By Courtney Flatt September 9, 2020

Late afternoon light catches smoke from the Cold Springs Fire near a structure that appeared to be empty long before the fire, Monday, Sept. 7, 2020, near Omak, Washington. CREDIT: Tyler Tjomsland/The Spokesman-Review via AP

Usually, fire season starts to tamp down in September. This year has been anything but normal. In an unprecedented fire event, at least 80 fires started in Washington over Labor Day weekend.Read More