Letters for Sunday, Aug. 23

In a letter published for Sunday, Aug. 23, Jim and Beth Brasch of Spokane thanked firefighters who protected their neighborhood during the Spokane Complex fires that began Aug. 1. They describe being away on family vacation that day and feeling the “sorrow” of what seemed like the loss of their block until the next morning brought evidence their home had been saved. A California incident commander later explained how close the homes came to total loss and asked what they needed. The letter says defenders prevented hundreds of homes from burning. David Barker of Spokane also calls for code changes requiring metal roofing or tile and metal or stucco eaves to reduce structure loss.