Wildfire housing & relief resources
Every link verified · 2026-08-06 · updated while the emergency lasts
If you are in immediate danger, call 911. For everything else, start with 211 (call, or text 898211) — a live person who knows what's open today. This page is a free directory we're maintaining for our neighbors; we are a real-estate team, not a government agency, and nothing here requires signing up for anything. Details change fast — call ahead before driving.
If you need help right now
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Free statewide helpline connecting displaced families to housing, food, financial help, and mental-health support — including this fire's temporary-housing programs.
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Spokane Community Resources hub
The official resource hub for this event, updated daily by the City, Spokane County, Spokane Public Schools, Innovia Foundation, and the Red Cross — open shelters, food, clothing, medicine, financial and legal help, with interpreters available.
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American Red Cross — find an open shelter
Live map of currently open shelters. Everything is free and no ID is required — walk in for a meal, a shower, phone charging, or an overnight stay.
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Check your evacuation zone (official SREC map)
Type in an address to see its current evacuation level — the authoritative Spokane County map, updated by fire incident command and 911 dispatch.
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ALERT Spokane — emergency notifications
Register your phone or email for official evacuation alerts for any Spokane County address (links to neighboring counties' systems, including Kootenai).
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Nonprofit real-time wildfire map with evacuation orders, shelters, and verified incident updates — on the web or the iOS/Android app.
Shelters open now
Verified Aug 6 — shelter locations consolidate and move as the fire changes. Check the Red Cross locator or call 211 before driving, especially from a distance.
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Spokane Convention Center — main Red Cross shelter changes daily — call ahead
Overnight stays, hot meals, showers, and phone charging; no ID asked, and household pets stay with their families.
334 W Spokane Falls Blvd, Spokane
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Spokane County Fair & Expo Center — RVs, livestock & pets changes daily — call ahead
Evacuated RVs and trailers plus livestock and pet sheltering (bring carriers for dogs and cats); Spokane HEART runs the animal side and keeps a public lost-and-found list.
404 N Havana St, Spokane — enter via the Red Gate off Broadway Ave (509) 477-2533 (SCRAPS line for urgent animal medical needs)
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Jenkins Jr/Sr High School — Chewelah (Autumn Lane Fire) changes daily — call ahead
Red Cross evacuation shelter for Autumn Lane Fire evacuees — services and pet policy not published, so call the Red Cross ahead.
702 E Lincoln Ave, Chewelah
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Northwood Middle School (Fairview Fire) changes daily — call ahead
Evacuation shelter for families displaced by the Fairview Fire.
12908 N Pittsburg St, Spokane
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Daytime respite — free YMCA showers & kids' day camp changes daily — call ahead
Free showers for evacuees at the North, South, Valley, and Central YMCA locations (weekdays 8am–5pm, bring ID) and a free emergency drop-in day camp for kids 4+ at Shadle Park High School.
Temporary housing
These are the paths that are actually open right now — most are free, and none of them involve us or any fee.
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Free temporary stays via 211 + Airbnb.org changes daily — call ahead
Free temporary emergency housing for households displaced by these fires — Spokane, Stevens, Chelan, Okanogan, Yakima, and Ferry counties plus the Spokane, Colville, and Yakima tribal communities. Call 211 to be matched with a specialist.
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Spokane Housing Authority — Community Housing Board
A free board of donated and reduced-cost rooms, homes, and RV spots offered by locals, plus affordable-rental search tools and relief-fund contacts. Updated through the event.
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Discounted evacuee hotel rates changes daily — call ahead
The Visit Spokane / Spokane Hotel Motel Association list of hotels offering reduced evacuee and first-responder rates — availability changes daily, so contact properties directly.
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Your insurance may pay for housing right now (Loss of Use)
Most homeowner and renter policies include Loss of Use / Additional Living Expenses coverage — it pays for hotels, food, and transportation while you're displaced, including during an evacuation order. The state's free consumer line can help if your insurer balks.
1-800-562-6900 (WA Insurance Commissioner consumer line, M–F 8:30–4:30)
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Beyond shelters: Red Cross caseworkers help with short-term lodging, essentials, and recovery planning — free, no documentation required.
Money, food & essentials
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State emergency cash & food help (DSHS)
Disaster Cash Assistance (activated by the governor's emergency declaration), shelter/utility help up to $750 (AREN), Diversion Cash Assistance up to $2,000, and replacement of EBT food lost in the fire — food loss must be reported within 10 days.
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Disaster Assistance Center — Shadle Park High School changes daily — call ahead
In-person help with state assistance programs, scheduled through Aug 9 — dates and locations change, so check the page before going.
4327 N Ash St, Spokane
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Second Harvest Inland Northwest
Free food, no questions asked, through 250+ partner food banks and mobile markets across Eastern Washington and North Idaho — with an active wildfire response and a pantry locator.
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The Salvation Army Spokane Citadel
Hope Market food pantry plus transitional housing services.
222 E Indiana Ave, Spokane (509) 325-6810
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Catholic Charities Eastern Washington
Emergency response team providing essential items, emergency housing assistance, counseling, and longer-term recovery support for families impacted by the fires.
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FEMA — DisasterAssistance.gov changes daily — call ahead
Where households will apply for FEMA grants (temporary housing, rental help, repairs) IF individual assistance is approved. As of Aug 6 it is not yet open for these fires — the Aug 4 federal emergency declaration funds the response itself, and the state's major-disaster request is pending. Check back or call.
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Washington Governor's wildfire resources hub
The state's one-stop directory for fire survivors: food and cash assistance, tax relief, license replacement, insurance help, rental search, and unemployment benefits — maintained as the event evolves.
Insurance, documents & your property
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Wildfire insurance claims — free state help
What fire and smoke damage is covered, how to start a claim, and a state consumer advocacy line that can intervene with your insurer.
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Emergency insurance protections (through Sept 30, 2026) changes daily — call ahead
A state emergency order (Aug 3 – Sept 30, 2026) requires insurers in fire-affected zip codes to give a 45-day premium grace period, waive late fees, and not cancel policies for nonpayment during the emergency.
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Replace a lost or destroyed driver license / ID
Replace online, by phone, or at any licensing office — update your mailing address first, since replacements can't be forwarded.
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HUD disaster resources (FHA homeowners & renters)
FHA foreclosure moratorium and forbearance options after a declaration, plus free HUD-approved housing counseling for any displaced homeowner or renter (1-800-569-4287).
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Property-tax relief for destroyed structures
Spokane County has announced property-tax relief for fire victims — the county news feed carries the current instructions for filing a destroyed-property claim with the Assessor.
Official fire updates
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InciWeb — Spokane Area Fires incident page
The federal incident page for the Old Trails, Autumn Lane, and Fairview fires — current acreage, containment, and crew status.
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Spokane County Emergency Management
The county's emergency hub — evacuation map, alert sign-up, evacuation-level definitions, and current assistance announcements.
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City of Spokane — wildfire information
The city's hub for evacuee resources, city-services questions, cleanup, and rebuilding.
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Air quality — Spokane Regional Clean Air Agency
Live local air-quality readings and wildfire-smoke guidance from the local air authority.
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Air quality — AirNow fire & smoke map
The EPA / Forest Service live map of monitors and smoke plumes across the Spokane / Coeur d'Alene area.
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Road closures — WSDOT real-time travel map
Live state-highway closures and alerts, including fire closures.
Know your rights
Displaced families are targets for price gouging and scams in the weeks after a fire. The short version: shelter is an essential, and exploiting a disaster to inflate its price can violate Washington's Consumer Protection Act.
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Report price gouging — WA Attorney General
Sharp rent, hotel, or supply price hikes aimed at fire victims can be pursued by the Attorney General as unfair practices under the Consumer Protection Act. Use the general consumer complaint form and attach screenshots of the price.
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Rent-increase limits in an existing tenancy
Within an existing tenancy, Washington caps rent increases (9.683% for 2026, with 90 days' written notice, and no increase in the first 12 months). The cap does not set the starting rent on a brand-new lease — for that, gouging enforcement above is the protection.
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If your rental is damaged or uninhabitable
When a unit is tagged unsafe or uninhabitable, rent stops (and is refunded pro-rata), and the tenant has the right to end the tenancy immediately.
Watch out for:
- Unsolicited cash offers on fire-damaged property, especially lowball offers pressed with urgency. You never have to decide anything about your land or home while you're displaced.
- Rental listings that demand a deposit before you can see the unit, or 'application fees' collected over payment apps.
- Door-to-door contractors and 'public adjusters' asking for payment up front — verify every license with the WA Department of Labor & Industries before signing anything.
How our team can help — free, always
We're a local real-estate team, which means we spend every day inside the rental and housing market that displaced families now have to navigate. While this emergency lasts, our commitment to anyone affected — client or not:
- Free help finding a rental or temporary housing. No fee, no commission, no obligation — ever. We'll search, make calls, and connect you with landlords we know.
- Fair pricing, enforced on our side of the market. Any rental we assist with is at or below its pre-fire market rate, and if we see gouging we'll report it.
- We will never solicit owners of fire-damaged property. If you want advice about your land, your home, or an unsolicited offer someone else made you, come to us — we won't come to you.
- Free help documenting your property for insurance. Comparable-market data and valuation documentation for total-loss claims, at no charge.
Call us at (509) 999-1796, or leave a note below — a person replies, not an automation. We serve everyone equally and follow fair-housing law in every placement we assist with.