Tony Overman/The Olympian
Homeowner Skip Hansen (left) and technician Scott Hull of Puget Sound Energy walk past the buckled road at the Tumwater Mobile Estates in Tumwater on Thursday. Statewide damage estimates from Wednesday's earthquake have reached $2 billion.

Assessing damage

Bush declares disaster status; Downtown Olympia damage is extensive

JOHN DODGE, THE OLYMPIAN

OLYMPIA -- South Sound was among the areas declared a disaster zone by President Bush on Thursday in the aftermath of the violent Ash Wednesday earthquake that crippled downtown Olympia.

A big chunk of the roughly $2 billion in damage done to Western Washington by the magnitude 6.8 quake is right here in the capital city and on the Capitol Campus, 11 miles southwest of ground zero.

While much of the city center escaped unscathed, entire city blocks were cordoned off Thursday as workers cleared rubble and Federal Emergency Manage- ment Agency Director Joe Allbaugh toured the scene with members of Congress, vowing quick aid from the other Washington.

The damage downtown is compounded by the roughed-up Fourth Avenue bridge, which might be ruined, and the Deschutes Parkway, which is torn apart and no longer available as a backup route to Olympia's west side. They are both closed indefinitely.

"We'll have to learn new tricks and new routes," said Thera Black, a transportation planner with Thurston County Regional Planning. "I just hope people keep supporting local businesses."

Elsewhere in South Sound, life began a sobering return to normal as most folks came to grips with the strongest earthquake to rock the region in 52 years.

-Highway crews worked around the clock to reopen U.S. Highway 101, filling a gaping sinkhole near Mud Bay that shut down northbound lanes to Shelton.

The route reopened at 5 p.m., much to the relief of some 3,500 Mason and Thurston County daily commuters and other motorists.

-Inspectors cleared all but three schools in South Sound for students to return today. North Thurston, Olympia and Tumwater school districts were closed Thursday.

Schools not yet ready to open their doors include Capital High School, Avanti Alternative High School and Lincoln Elementary School.

-Engineers poured through the 20 buildings on the Capitol Campus on Thursday, documenting earthquake damage and releasing some of the idled 10,000 state employees to return to work today.

The state Legislature remained suspended as lawmakers awaited word on whether they could return to the Cherberg and O'Brien office buildings. Party leaders hoped to be back in session by early next week.

Despite all the damage and chaos, many of those reflecting on what could have happened said South Sound -- and Western Washington -- caught a lucky break.

The depth of the earthquake, some 33 miles beneath the Earth's surface, softened the blow.

And the typical winter rains, which can turn Puget Sound soils mushy with water, have not occurred this year. That helped reduce the amount of ground shaking and subsequent damage, state Department of Natural Resources geologist Tim Walsh explained.

No one in downtown Seattle or Olympia was buried under falling bricks or building facades. One hour later, and the streets of both cities would have been crowded with noontime traffic.

All told, state emergency officials tallied one fatality and 272 injuries linked to the Wednesday earthquake. In 1949, a similar earthquake also centered beneath the Nisqually Delta killed eight people.

Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., who toured downtown Olympia on Thursday, said the region's damage toll could reach $2 billion.

But general relief turns to specific fears about how quickly downtown Olympia will bounce back.

"These buildings have already been through a couple of earthquakes," noted Anne deMarcken, a downtown businesswoman. "There's only so much they can take."

Olympia Mayor Stan Biles praised the way South Sound individuals, businesses and government workers have responded to the natural disaster.

"We're coping together quite well," he said.

John Dodge covers the environment for The Olympian. He can be reached at 754-5444.

The Olympian Copyright 2000

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