More than a decade has passed, but the sites seen during those first moments remain imprinted in Washington State Patrol (WSP) Sergeant Rocky Oliphant’s mind.
“I felt an overwhelming sense of helplessness,” Sgt. Oliphant recalled. “I walked a little ways out into the slide, but it was very unstable – it was essentially a lake with logs and pieces of house floating on top.”
Ten years ago, Sgt. Oliphant was a trooper working on Interstate 5 near Stanwood when he overheard dispatch advise of a barn roof in the roadway on state Route 530 near Oso. He was the closest unit some 20-miles away.
At first, the call didn’t seem like anything too out of the ordinary – most trooper’s careers are filled with reports of all kinds of things blocking the roadway.
“The updates were getting progressively worse, but nowhere near the scope and size of what it actually was,” Sgt. Oliphant said.
When he arrived, Sgt. Oliphant saw the roadway completely covered by water, mud, and debris.
“A house was sitting in the road in front of me,” Sgt. Oliphant said.
Even at his vantage point, the sheer size of the slide was still unknown in the early stages. Powerlines were down within the slide. The smell of propane hung in the air.
The rural location rendered his radio useless; he opted to call in by cellphone to ask to get more help on the way.
In the meantime, Sgt. Oliphant met with a handful of bystanders and volunteer firefighters at the scene, who said they heard a baby crying.
“We all went quiet and listened, but couldn’t hear anything,” Sgt. Oliphant said.
Sgt. Oliphant tried to walk into the slide, which was extremely unstable. Two men had forged ahead, and as they got closer to the house – could hear the cries once again.
“I started to follow them out,” Sgt. Oliphant said. “At one point I stepped on a log that shifted, and one of my legs went completely under and didn’t touch bottom.”
The focus changed to trying to identify a safe way back for the two men closest to the house in the case they were able to recover the child.
“I grabbed plywood that used to be a roof for one of the houses and pulled it to work on creating a path,” Sgt. Oliphant said. “I grabbed large branches, trusses – 2×4’s – any other debris that would create a path.”
The sergeant looked up from his work and saw one of the men holding a baby, wrapped in a jacket. A momentary miracle; a bright spot in what would become a seemingly unending tragic day.
Additional units began to arrive, including search and rescue, fire, allied law enforcement agencies, and air support. The day would continue with more rescued, and others unfortunately found lifeless. In total, 43 lives were lost and nearly 50 homes destroyed.
This was just one piece and one glimpse of a tragedy that affected countless first responders and members of the community at large. Today we honor the 10-year anniversary of the Oso Slide, remember the lives of those lost, and express our gratitude to all who helped when they were needed most.
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