'One way out': Spokane fire evacuees fled and faced gridlock

Residents fleeing the August wildfires in neighborhoods with limited road access spent hours stuck in traffic, a danger that has been building for years.

By: Yong-Yu Huang

Outlets: RANGE Media

Published: September 1, 2026

Words: 1,895

Last Updated: 1 week ago

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The fire moved fast.

By the time Kendall Steinhardt and her husband evacuated their six children in three cars, the power transformers had already started blowing up in their Indian Trail neighborhood.

But as smoke billowed up to heights of about 80 or 100 feet, she estimated, the family realized they were surrounded by bumper-to-bumper traffic in a sea of cars as far as the eye could see. Steinhardt recalled her husband “bawling,” afraid for …

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