As smoke returns, Vashon prepares for wildfire season

Published 1:30 am Tuesday, August 11, 2026

As wildfires burned across Washington, smoke settled over Vashon last week, casting an orange haze across the sky and prompting islanders to shut their windows, reach for masks and closely monitor air quality alerts.

With the air quality index sometimes reaching unhealthy levels, island organizations mobilized to keep people safe and prepare for what could shape up to be an intense wildfire season.

Throughout the week, islanders trickled into organizations like the Vashon Library, Vashon Island Fire & Rescue, the Vashon Senior Center and others to stock up on free masks donated by VashonBePrepared.

While everyone is susceptible to particulate matter and chemicals in wildfire smoke, children, seniors and those with preexisting health conditions are most vulnerable to becoming ill — even in mildly smoky conditions.

Among those particularly vulnerable to wildfire smoke is islander Catherine Briggs, whose lungs were damaged by a bout of pneumonia years ago. She said she stayed indoors throughout the week, only going outside with an N95 mask on.

“When there’s smoke in the air … I definitely notice it,” Briggs said. “When I breathe in … you just feel something in the center of your chest, and certainly some coughing.”

At Vashon Center for the Arts, a cooling zone and smoke-free area was established. Although east-blowing winds helped to improve air quality throughout the weekend, some are bracing for the possibility of smoke returning later in the season.

“We all know how this goes; just because we head into the fall doesn’t necessarily mean it’s gonna stop,” Vashon Center for the Arts Executive Director Allison Reid said.

Approximately 425,000 acres have already burned this year, according to the Washington State Department of Natural Resources. That’s more acres burned than during the entire wildfire season last year.

As images of plumes of smoke billowing from mountains and neighborhoods reduced to ashes emerge from areas like Spokane County, concern is growing about what August’s conditions could signal about this wildfire season — and the coming years.

“We are seeing more concern in the community as we get into the August and September time frames,” Vashon Island Fire & Rescue Deputy Chief Ben Davidson said. “It’s more on the top of people’s minds, and I think rightly so.”

While Vashon’s geographic location offers a cool, moist marine layer that protects against severe and early wildfires, Davidson said, it is still susceptible to hot and dry summer conditions.

In response to consecutive weeks of high temperatures, King County Fire Marshal Eric Urban issued a Stage 2 burn ban for unincorporated King County. The ban prohibits all outdoor fires and took effect on Friday.

As the climate continues to warm as a result of climate change, island geologist Steve Bergman said conditions are shifting to become more prone to wildfire.

“The fact is we’ve got increased drought frequency, and when you have increased droughts, things are drier,” Bergman said. “You’re a lot higher risk for starting wildfires just naturally.”

“One thing I don’t remember growing up in the area was smoky Augusts, and that’s become kind of the norm,” Davidson said.

As Washington faces hotter, drier conditions and increasingly severe wildfire seasons, Davidson said Vashon Island Fire & Rescue has taken steps to improve both its equipment and deployment models.

“We’ve made some real strides there,” Davidson said. “I’d say that the wildfire team we have now is better equipped than we have been historically to respond to those events.”

Collaborating with the King County Department of Natural Resources and Parks, the King Conservation District and the Vashon Park District, Davidson said the agencies are working to reduce risk to the island’s natural areas and surrounding homes.

Wildfire risk is particularly prominent on the island’s south end, which has more exposure to the sun and dries up faster than other areas, Davidson said.

On a recent visit to the Maury Island Marine Park and Gold Beach Drive area, Davidson said the agencies decided that clearing paths and creating access points should be prioritized to improve wildfire mitigation efforts.

“The areas on the island are often pretty rugged and difficult for people to move through,” Davidson said. “So working with the parks to create access points … so that if that area were to be on fire or burn, we could use those access points to get to the seat of the fire.”

But making natural areas more resilient is just one part of the picture, islander and forestry expert Seth Zuckerman said, and islanders should work to make their homes durable against approaching flames in the event of a wildfire.

Vashon Island Fire & Rescue offers free wildfire mitigation assessments to homes, helping homeowners understand what aspects of their property could be susceptible to catching fire and how to reduce risks.

The most important place to pay attention to is the five feet surrounding a home, Zuckerman said. Reducing things like dry grass, leaves and shrubbery can limit the tinder that can make a fire burn structures to the ground.

“Climate change is the underlying cause in not all, but a lot of these fires,” Vashon Nature Center Science Director Bianca Perla said. “And so I think working to curb climate change and also to adapt to the changes that we’re already seeing is really important.”

To sign up for Vashon Island Fire & Rescue’s free mitigation assessments, visit vifr.org. Wildfire risk assessments are also available through the King Conservation District, and information can be found at kingcd.org.