SPOKANE, Wash. — Students in the Nine Mile Falls School District returned to class today, taking a step toward normalcy after a turbulent summer of wildfires that threatened the region.
About three weeks before the school year began, the Spokane fires forced evacuations throughout the Nine Mile Falls area. The district said about 20 students’ homes were destroyed or severely damaged, and some teachers also lost their homes. Every school in the district was placed under a Level 3 evacuation.
“It was pretty intense because almost our entire district was evacuated,” said Jeff Baerwald, district superintendent…