Tree service in Ferry County, Washington

Storm records for Ferry County

Heavy snow dominates Ferry County’s record to a degree few places match. Of the 158 reports in NOAA’s Storm Events database since 2016, 107 were heavy snow and 30 were wildfire, while thunderstorm wind (10), high wind (3) and strong wind (3) barely register. That total ranks the county 10th of 39 in Washington, a high place for a county of 7,517 people.

January carries the weight with 43 reports, followed by February and November at 16 each, and 56 percent of the record falls between November and February. April is the only month with nothing logged, and even August through October show 10 to 13 reports apiece.

Yearly counts swing hard: 25 in 2017, 28 in 2018 and 26 in 2020, then single digits in 2021 and 2023. NOAA logged 37 reports in 2023 through 2025 against 46 in 2020 through 2022, an easing rather than a trend. For a homeowner the practical reading is that heavy wet snow, not wind, is what splits conifer tops and drops limbs on roofs and driveways here.

NWS forecast zones covering the county: Okanogan Highlands.

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, 2016 to June 2026 · NWS zone-county correlation files (2019 to 2026 versions). Checked 2026-10-02. NOAA Storm Events 2016-2026; zone-based events assigned to every county the NWS zone covers using the zone-county correlation file in force on the event date (2019-04-02 file used for 2016-2018).

Hazard ratings

Strong wind: Very LowIce storm: Very LowWinter weather: Very LowWildfire: Relatively Moderate

FEMA’s National Risk Index (December 2025) rates Ferry County Very Low for strong wind, ice storm and winter weather, Relatively Moderate for wildfire and Relatively Low overall. The winter rating looks odd beside 107 heavy snow reports, but the index weighs expected losses to people and buildings, and 7,517 residents spread over 2,203 square miles leave little exposed.

Wildfire is the number to act on. The county’s wildfire score is 97.4, and its wildfire risk to homes sits above 87 percent of Washington counties. On a rural lot that makes thinning, limbing conifers up from the ground and clearing dead trees within reach of the house the most useful tree work you can pay for; the defensible space guide covers the distances.

Wildfire risk to homes: higher than 87% of Washington counties (USDA Forest Service, Wildfire Risk to Communities).

What to do about wildfire exposure: defensible space in Washington and Oregon.

Source: FEMA National Risk Index, December 2025 release · USDA Forest Service, Wildfire Risk to Communities (April 2026 download). Checked 2026-10-02.

Burning the debris

No local clean air agency covers Ferry County, so the Washington Department of Ecology’s statewide rules apply. WAC 173-425-040 bans residential and land-clearing burning inside urban growth areas and cities over 10,000; Kettle Falls, at 1,636 people, is far below that size, though the urban growth area test still applies. Elsewhere WAC 173-425-050 governs: no prohibited materials, someone attending the fire, and a 50-foot setback. Given the wildfire score, check for a seasonal burn ban before lighting slash from a removal; the Washington burning guide explains how they work.

Full rules, seasons and alternatives: yard debris burning rules in Washington.

Source: Washington Department of Ecology. Checked 2026-10-02.

Power lines and utilities

The electric utility for Ferry County is not mapped on this site yet, so no outage number or trimming policy appears here. Until it is, the utilities page shows how Washington utilities split line clearance with owners. Treat any limb touching a wire as the utility’s call, not a job for a homeowner or a general tree crew.

Source: utility vegetation-management pages linked above; WAC 296-24-960 (WA L&I). Checked 2026-10-02.

Cities and towns in Ferry County

Kettle Falls is the only city in the table, with 1,636 of the county’s 7,517 residents, and its tree rules have not been researched yet; call city hall before removing a tree near a street or sidewalk inside city limits. Most of the county lives outside any city, where no city permit applies. The county grew 4.66 percent between 2020 and 2025, and the Washington permit guide explains how cities usually draw the line.

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Population Estimates Vintage 2025 and 2020 Census. Checked 2026-10-02. Permit rules from each city’s code; see the city pages.

Labor index

BLS puts the mean wage for tree trimmers and pruners at $32.20 an hour statewide. No estimate exists for Ferry County, so the Washington figure stands in, and it is a wage, not a price: the modeled crew rate below adds equipment and overhead to it.

Census publishes no landscaping-services establishment count for the county, which usually means too few firms to report. Expect crews to travel in, and expect that travel on the bill for remote sites.

Washington statewide: $32.20 per hour mean wage for tree trimmers and pruners (BLS, May 2025); no metro estimate is published, so the statewide figure is shown. This is a labor index, not a price; the modeled crew-hour cost used on this site is $210 (method).

Source: BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025, SOC 37-3013 · U.S. Census Bureau, County Business Patterns 2023, NAICS 561730. Checked 2026-10-02.

Climate and growing conditions

Most of Ferry County is in USDA hardiness zone 6b, with 6a and 7a in parts of the county. If you are unsure where your lot falls, choose replacement trees rated to 6a. With heavy snow making up 107 of the storm reports, favor single-leader conifers such as ponderosa pine and western larch over brittle, fast-growing ornamentals that split under wet snow.

USDA hardiness zones 6a, 6b, 7a (2023 map, by ZIP code).

Source: USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map 2023 (OSU PRISM ZIP data). Checked 2026-10-02.

Nearby counties

• Stevens County357 storm reports since 2016
• Okanogan County581 storm reports since 2016
• Pend Oreille County348 storm reports since 2016
• Lincoln County310 storm reports since 2016
• Douglas County291 storm reports since 2016

What to do next

Before snow season, have any tree with a split top, dead leader or lean toward the house checked with a risk assessment; in summer, put the effort into fire spacing instead. If Kettle Falls is home, ask the city about permits before a removal. Then look the company up in the Washington license lookup before you pay a deposit.

Services: tree removal · trimming · stump grinding · emergency. Check any company: Washington license lookup.

Major storms that reached Ferry County

These regional storms produced NOAA Storm Events reports in Ferry County since 2016. Each storm page lists the dates, report counts and the other counties hit.

• January 2017 ice storm