In one terrifying hour, wind destroys family’s forest

COEUR d’ALENE - A North Idaho couple are still in disbelief after their heavily treed property was laid bare by a violent micro wind event on April 18.

Bill and Marie Bell said the weather was beautiful that day. They worked in the sunshine, cleaning debris from the Jan. 13 windstorm which had already hit their 30-acre property on Hooker Hill Road north of Hayden Lake. They had finished dinner inside their home at around 7 p.m. when they heard the wind.

“It very quickly grew stronger until it became a wild roar with the sound of trees snapping off and crashing to the ground,” Bill said.

The weather forecast had predicted gusts to 50 mph that evening. The couple have seen higher winds in the 45 years they’ve lived on their land. But nothing like this.

“It was absolutely terrifying,” Marie said. “As sailors, we’ve experienced strong winds before, but this had me screaming and shaking. As it grew dark, we hugged each other as we continued to hear the crashing and booming without seeing what was happening. It sounded like a war zone all around us.”

The devastation lasted about an hour. By morning’s light, the couple looked out from their home and were stunned by the extent of the damage.

At least 80 percent of their fir, tamarack and pine trees were damaged or downed. The garage and multiple outbuildings were smashed, along with their vegetable garden and fruit trees.

The roads and trails were buried. They tried to inspect the place, but didn’t get far because of all the obstacles in their way.

“One of the loggers who has come out told us, judging by the size and health of the larger trees, he wouldn’t be surprised if the wind had reached 90 mph,” Bill said. “The wind was so concentrated that almost every tree was brought down in exactly the same direction. It appears the wind funneled through a gap created by Hollister Mountain and the hills to our northeast. It seemed to be very localized, with our neighboring properties experiencing only a few trees down.”

Local weather stations recorded winds in the low 20-mph range at the time, with occasional gusts into the 40s, but nothing like the unrelenting winds the Bells experienced.

“The wind funneling through that gap would be the most likely cause,” said Press meteorologist Randy Mann. “North Idaho’s terrain, where there are many hills and valleys, has many of these microclimates where we see strong winds in some spots but much calmer conditions a short distance away.”

So far the couple have been able to clear their driveway with the help of friends and family. Many people have come to help and also to marvel at the damage.

The Bells are communicating with their homeowner's and car insurance agents, as well as logging companies to clear the trees.

When they purchased the property in 1976, they were a young married couple who had just returned from serving in the Peace Corps in Central America. They lived in a teepee on the property with no utilities or running water while Bill built their home from the ground up.

They are now retired, Marie as a nurse and Bill as an architect and city planner. They have become very attached to this forest, where they go for hikes with the grandkids and find morel mushrooms.

They have long appreciated the peaceful setting Mother Nature provides here, but now they have tasted her brute force, too.

“We feel relief and thankfulness for the sparing of our lives and home, but also shock, grief and sadness,” Marie said. “At times we feel motivated to be taking care of all of it, then become paralyzed with feelings of helplessness.

"As people who love the outdoors, we have always been humbled by the power of the elements. But it’s impossible to believe our beloved forest was reduced to a log-strewn mess in the space of an hour.”