It’s been almost two years since a wildfire severely damaged an important irrigation canal in Central Washington. Now, a federal agency is deciding whether the canal might need emergency help.
The Yakima-Tieton Canal has been around for more than 100 years. The 12-mile canal helps irrigate thousands of acres of farmland in the upper Yakima Valley.
“ If this canal system fails, it will absolutely devastate the Yakima Valley,” said Travis Okelberry, the district manager with the Yakima-Tieton Irrigation District, in an earlier interview.
In 2024, the Retreat Fire sent logs and boulders crashing through the canal. Heat blistered the outside. Irrigation district managers say the canal is an emergency waiting to happen, and fixing it is expensive.
“Every day, we have eyes on the canal,” Okelberry said. “It’s in bad shape right now.”
Recently, President Donald Trump signed a law, which included a conference report that would require the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation to decide if the state of the canal should be considered an emergency.
“Reclamation’s technical specialists are conducting inspections of the canal to better understand whether it continues to qualify for Emergency Extraordinary Maintenance funding, which supports emergency work,” Michael Coffey, a spokesperson from the Bureau of Reclamation, wrote in an email.
Lawmakers representing Washington state have sent a letter to Andrea Travnicek, assistant secretary of the Interior for water and science, requesting an emergency status designation for the canal.
Reps. Dan Newhouse and Kim Schrier, as well as Sens. Patty Murray and Maria Cantwell, wrote that the designation would “minimize the risk of imminent harm to public health and safety and economic viability.”
“The urgency of this situation is dire and requires immediate attention and intervention,” according to the letter.
Following the Retreat Fire, the bureau had given $4 million in Emergency Extraordinary Maintenance funding for the canal’s most critical fixes.
