Northwest timber industry hit hard by heavy fall rains

A giant port crane moves tree-sized timber at one of two mills owned by Vaagen Brothers Lumber Inc. in Pend Oreille County, Washington. (Photo by Emily Schwing/Northwest News Network)
The rainiest fall on record in parts of eastern Oregon and Washington was good for keeping late-season wildfires at bay, but torrential rains wreaked havoc on some timber harvesters in the Northwest.
Still, employees at Vaagen Brothers Lumber in Colville, Washington, got lucky.
“We didn’t miss a da