Residents of north-central Washington scarred by devastating wildfires earlier this summer are trying to get their lives back on track once again after mudslides left several homes and highways damaged Thursday night.
MUDSLIDE VICTIM TO KIRO: "We've always felt safe here, and nothing big has ever hit this place. And then, pow."
o-ka-nah-gan Okanogan County officials told when-at-chi The Wenatchee World an estimated 10 homes were either destroyed or heavily damaged by this week's flash flooding and subsequent mudslides.
And at least one section of state highway remained closed Saturday morning after slides blocked several major roads with water, mud and debris. (Video via KFFX)
Janie Lewis and her husband Bob were inside their home along Highway 153 about to sit down for dinner when a massive mudslide hit. (Video via KING)
JANIE LEWIS TO THE SEATTLE TIMES: "Bob said, 'Did you hear the noise?' I said, 'What noise?' The door burst open, the river was running through the house, knocked him down."
REPORTER: "And that's your house back there?"
JANIE: "That's the house."
Janie and several residents interviewed by reporters say they're happy to be alive and thankful for the volunteers who arrived Friday to help clean. But others are wondering when Mother Nature will let up.
A business owner in Carlton told The Seattle Times, "It's like another nail in the coffin. It's pretty bad down here right now."
According to The Wenatchee World, some residents whose homes survived the largest wildfire in state history just a few weeks ago had damage from the mudslides and flooding.
CBS reports those fires — known as the Carlton Complex fires — scorched more than 200 square miles and took hundreds of firefighters to get it under control.
But the area may get a long-deserved reprieve soon. According to the National Weather Service, a few showers came through Friday, but they were nothing like Thursday's storms.
Officials say authorities are still trying to identify everyone affected by the flooding and mudslides. The Red Cross is also reportedly on standby if any shelter is needed.
This video contains images from Getty Images.
