Smokers pose wildfire threat at Dash Point State Park

I am concerned about a wildfire threat to my (and many) homes surrounding Dash Point State Park.

It is located in both South King and North Pierce counties. I believe we are in a drought condition, but the park does not list it as such.

I have contacted the park official here, the Federal Way mayor, and the fire department about my concerns, especially about the danger of fire on the miles of walking trails within the park. I have witnessed people coming from a housing area bordering the park and lighting cigarettes on the trail. I have also found cigarette butts at the benches that are found along the trails.

I believe smoking on the trails should be permanently banned within the park because fire trucks could not reach those places because of the lack of a road, fire hydrant, etc.

As of now, no one can even ask someone else not to smoke on the trails, and there are no signs prohibiting it. When contacting the fire department, they could not give me a satisfactory answer as to how they would even fight a fire there without being able to use a road or fire hydrant.

There are many homes in the multiple housing areas surrounding the park (and my home is within one block of the park property), plus the Green Gables Elementary School. I feel this is a very real threat to my home continuously, but even more so during this drought condition time. Please change the rules of at least Dash Point State Park (and perhaps parks statewide) to “No smoking on the park trails at any time.”

David L. Runyan

Federal Way