CHICAGO (ELCA) -- Holden Village, Chelan, Wash., and the Chelan County Sheriff's Office announced that as a precautionary measure the Village will be evacuated because of a nearby wildfire, known as the "Deep Harbor Fire." The Lutheran retreat center will remain closed at least until Aug. 22, according to a Holden Village news release.
The Deep Harbor fire, which started last month, is burning 12 miles away from the isolated, year-round retreat center surrounded by the Glacier Peak Wilderness. Despite the decision to evacuate the Village, its staff and guests are not in imminent danger, the news release said.
On Aug. 14, the sheriff's office issued a "Level Two" evacuation advisement. Normally such an order does not require evacuation, but it is a notice to prepare for the possibility that fire may reach the area, the release said. Because of Holden's remote location, staff and law enforcement authorities decided to evacuate the Village now.
The evacuation was ordered because of concern the fire could threaten the Village's "only access to the outside world," an 11-mile gravel road that links Holden with Lucerne on Lake Chelan, the release said.
"For some time we have been well-prepared to evacuate at Level Two to allow for safe and coordinated evacuation from the Village," said Dianne Shiner, Holden Village co-director. "We are most grateful for the outstanding inter-agency team of firefighters, Forest Service and Sheriff's personnel, and the Red Cross, who have worked so hard to protect and ensure the safety of our beloved community."
About 270 people were in the Village this past weekend. Guests and some staff were taken by bus Aug. 15 to Lucerne, picked up by regularly scheduled commercial boat service and taken down the lake to Field's Point and Chelan. Most remaining staff are being evacuated Aug. 16. Only 13 core staff members will remain, said Kristofer Gilje, operations manager, in a report by the Seattle Times newspaper.
A Forest Service structure protection crew arrived Aug. 15 to begin setting sprinklers and taking other steps to protect the historic retreat center, a former mining company town built largely in the 1930s.
The Red Cross is establishing an emergency shelter in Chelan to provide housing and food for evacuated staff and guests. Refunds will be provided to guests with reservations who now are unable to come to the Village, as well as to those whose stays have been cut short, the release said.
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Information about Holden Village and the impact of the Deep Harbor Fire is at http://www.holdenvillage.org on the Web.
For information contact:
John Brooks, Director (773) 380-2958 or news@elca.org
http://www.elca.org/news
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About the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America:
The ELCA is one of the largest Christian denominations in the United States, with 2.8 million members in more than 8,500 worshiping communities across the 50 states and in the Caribbean region. Known as the church of "God's work. Our hands.," the ELCA emphasizes the saving grace of God through faith in Jesus Christ, unity among Christians and service in the world. The ELCA's roots are in the writings of the German church reformer Martin Luther.
For information contact:
Candice Hill Buchbinder
Public Relations Manager
Candice.HillBuchbinder@ELCA.org
