OKANOGAN COUNTY, Wash. -- The fires are out, but emotions are still burning hot in Okanogan County over the state's firefighting efforts during the Carlton Complex fire.
"Everything is gone. We have nothing. Our future was taken away because somebody was out there not making the correct decisions," said Dagmar DeVere, whose home burned to the ground.
In a public meeting called by Okanogan County commissioners, about 60 residents listened or voiced concerns about how the Washington Department of Natural Resources (DNR) responded to what eventually became a 250,000-acre wildfire.
"DNR crews stopped. We begged them to go up and put our house out. They said no they could not, they would not do it," said Warrant Smethers, DeVere's husband.
On Friday, an attorney filed tort claims against DNR on behalf of 65 landowners whose property was damaged by fire.
The county commissioners called the Wednesday night meeting to hear additional comments from the community.
DNR said that its firefighters fought courageously and that the Carlton Complex fire was the most difficult they'd ever faced.
"The conditions we saw on this fire were far and above what I've ever seen before," said DNR manager Loren Torgerson.
Torgerson said there may have been instances where firefighters were not able to respond to landowners pleas for help without permission from their superiors. He says the fire crews are required to follow the orders of their command, even when that conflicts with what a property owner might want to see.
Pateros firefighter Carlene Anders told commissioners she saw heroic efforts to save homes during the firefight, but it didn't always come from DNR crews.
"I can tell you it was very difficult to see some of those DNR rigs from out of the area not doing the same effort," Anders said.
