[Episcopal News Service] Spokane Bishop Gretchen Rehberg is calling for Episcopalians to “be the hands and feet of Jesus” in response to multiple wildfires spreading throughout eastern Washington. The 2026 wildfire season is the most destructive in the state’s modern history.
“Our hearts and prayers are with everyone who has been displaced or is suffering loss due to the fires in our region,” Rehberg said in an August 3, 2026, reel on the Diocese of Spokane’s Facebook page. “You are not alone.”
The state’s governor issued a statewide emergency on August 1, 2026. As of August 4, at least 700 structures have burned in the state’s second-most populated city, Spokane, displacing at least 65,000 people. The three fires – called the Old Trails, Autumn Lane and Fairview fires and collectively known as the Spokane Complex Fire – are burning on Spokane’s outskirts and are all 0% contained. More than 250,000 acres statewide have burned, surpassing the total acres burned in 2025.
A man has been arrested for allegedly starting the Old Trails fire on purpose. The cause of the Autumn Lane and Fairview fires remains unknown. No deaths have been reported.
Weather behind the wildfires
Strong winds, high heat and a very dry cold front are exacerbating the wildfires. Washington has been experiencing a statewide drought since summer 2023. Climate change is also intensifying the severity of the wildfires, as burning fossil fuels contributes to hotter temperatures and a drier atmosphere. As the climate warms, more water vapor evaporates from plants, which dries them out and increases the risk of fires that can also generate smoke plumes, according to a report from Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut.
The Spokane wildfires are the latest case of an urban firestorm, which occurs when large fires move into a built environment. This causes structures to become the fires’ primary fuel source instead of vegetation, according to the Yale report. Other recent notable urban firestorms include the 2025 Southern California wildfires and the 2023 Maui wildfires in Hawai‘i. Like Spokane, the Southern California and Maui wildfires occurred in densely populated areas.
Wildfires are also burning nationwide, including in Washington’s neighboring states, Oregon and Idaho.
Response to the wildfires
“There are ways we can contribute in the short run – to the Red Cross, to other relief agencies – but ERD will be here in the long run,” Rehberg said.
The Diocese of Spokane is also accepting monetary donations through its disaster relief fund.
Response from western US dioceses
Several dioceses in the western half of the United States have reached out to Rehberg asking how they can help. She noted in the video that she was wearing a Hawaiian shirt that youth and young adult Episcopalians recently gave her after returning from a Province VIII youth event in Honolulu, Hawai‘i. The reason, she said, was to remind Episcopalians of the 2023 Maui and 2025 Southern California wildfires. The Diocese of Spokane sent funds to the dioceses of Hawai‘i and Los Angeles to help with their recovery efforts.
“We care for one another, not just in our own small towns, not just in our own congregations. But we reach out, and we care for and we love one another and we help one another when we are in need,” Rehberg said in the reel. “That’s what we are called to do in this time of need – not just for ourselves, to Episcopalians, but to our town, our cities, our communities that are hurting.”
In an August 3 diocesan email, Hawai‘i Bishop Robert L. Fitzpatrick encouraged Episcopalians to donate to the Diocese of Spokane’s disaster relief fund.
“God’s people and congregations in the Diocese of Hawai‘i are urged to pray for the Diocese of Spokane and for those affected by these devastating fires,” he said.
Be “loving and compassionate”
In addition to disaster relief donations and prayers, Rehberg also called on Episcopalians to be “loving and compassionate” as wildfire suppression continues, and Spokane communities prepare to begin recovery efforts.
“As we deal with the devastation of the fires – as we deal with the fear and the anxiety and relief, and the concern about smoke and the concern about loss – let us be like Jesus,” Rehberg said. “Let us offer one another love. Let us offer one another assistance. Let us offer one another peace. And let us remember that we will get through this, and Christ is with us in this time.”
-Shireen Korkzan is a reporter and assistant editor for Episcopal News Service. She can be reached at skorkzan@episcopalchurch.org.
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