County, fire officials credit coordinated response and cameras after Spokane‑area complex fires

Undersheriff Lundgren described countywide evacuations during the Spokane complex incidents and the role of collaboration among agencies, the National Guard and incident management teams. "We had personnel at all of all the fires doing evacuations," Lundgren said, noting deputies also manned checkpoints and coordinated with the National Guard to clear evacuation zones.

Fire Chief Tony Roerbach and Undersheriff Lundgren both credited regional incident-management support for enabling prioritized resources to protect critical values locally. Roerbach said national incident management teams were fully committed and that the Spokane complex became "the number 1 fire in the nation," which helped free resources to meet local needs.

Lundgren also outlined how the county's real‑time camera network and motion alerts have supported investigations and patrol responses: "They're part of our network of cameras across the county... investigators were able to go back and identify [subjects]." Council members said the cameras have helped solve local incidents and improve situational awareness for field deputies.

Officials cautioned that heavy regional deployments and extended duty cycles have left crews fatigued and that fire season remains a risk; they urged residents to maintain defensible space and to follow county outreach as recovery and after‑action work continue.