Trapped in Flames as Fire Roared Closer | Spokane News

Spokane News Today | 2 Min | The Daily News Now! · Aug 27, 2026 · 1m

An 80-year-old Spokane resident, Barbara Weber, recounted her terrifying ordeal during the August Complex Fires, trapped in traffic as flames closed in on her car and her anxious dog beside her. The evacuation of a densely packed butte neighborhood exposed critical flaws in emergency planning, with thousands jammed on roads, heightening danger. Though grateful her home survived and firefighters responded heroically, Weber now fears future fires are inevitable—and that her community was built without proper escape routes. As she prepares to leave for a month to deal with smoke damage, she’s…