STANWOOD, Wash. — Her iconic farmhouse has stood in a Snohomish County valley since 1909. Now, Megan Dascher-Watkins worries whether her house will remain standing much longer.
Dascher-Watkins and her family live just across from a landslide that gouged a deep crevice on Stanwood's Pioneer Way in the hillside a few weeks ago. She and neighbors have warned Snohomish County about this slide.
"I go to bed at night wondering if I have to worry about my house being demolished by mud and trees," she said. "My fear, now, is that's just a precursor of what's to come."
Dascher-Watkins said the first time she contacted the county was in May 2015 when she noticed a neighbor cutting down trees atop the bluff and a small landslide followed.
Snohomish County sent out a crew and a county official responded to Dascher-Watkins.
"At this time, I do not feel that Pioneer Highway or 254th ST NW is at risk," the official wrote.
However, she still worries about what's been happening on that hillside for the past 5-and-a-half years.
"I felt like it was kind of brushed under the rug. So I'd like to see some studies and have some clear communication with Snohomish County, and have some clear idea of what we're looking at here," Dascher-Watkins said. "I need to know what's going on and is this anything I need to be concerned about. I mean, I don't want to say it's another Oso, but after that, it freaks you out."
In March 2014, a large hillside collapsed about 25 miles away in the Snohomish County town of Oso, killing 43 people. It remains the deadliest landslide in American history.
Snohomish County's Deputy Director of Public Works Doug McCormick said he is aware of the slide and a geo-technician has examined the site. McCormick said his crews are monitoring the area at least three times per week.
"Right now, though, it doesn't look like it would turn into a large scale slide," McCormick said.
Dascher-Watkins hopes he's right. For now, she is left waiting and wondering what the hillside will do and how worried she should be with several more months remaining of another wet Northwest winter.
"It would be devastating to have to leave because it's unsafe to live here," she said. "But if that's what it takes to keep my family safe, that's what we'll do."