Washington State Mudslide Victim Gets $360,000 Mortgage Gift

By Zusha Elinson 

A man who lost his wife, his home, and nearly his own life in last year's massive landslide in Washington state got a bit of good news last week: an anonymous donor paid off his mortgage--about $360,000 by his estimate.

Tim Ward, whose pelvis was crushed in the slide on Mar. 22, 2014, had been negotiating with J.P. Morgan Chase & Co over his outstanding mortgage debt on the property, where he is now prohibited from living or rebuilding.

The donor, a private banking client at J.P. Morgan Chase & Co., read about Mr. Ward in a Wall Street Journal article last month and decided to help, said Darcy Donahoe-Wilmot, a spokeswoman for the bank. The donor did not want to be identified or interviewed, she said.

Mr. Ward said he was thankful to the anonymous person "for their empathy and for helping us get past a big roadblock in the healing process."

The landslide near Oso, Wash., killed 43 and destroyed more than 40 homes last March. Many of the property owners are awaiting possible buyouts from the Federal Emergency Management Agency. In the meantime, some, like Mr. Ward, have been negotiating with banks over their mortgages.

For now, under a county moratorium, no one is allowed to build on or inhabit the site of the 2014 slide.

Charities have raised millions to help those affected by the slide and some have offered mortgage assistance. A local lender, Coastal Community Bank, forgave loans to those affected by the landslide. But others have struggled to resolve their debt burdens following the disaster.

Mr. Ward, a 59-year-old military veteran who worked at Boeing, moved to the Oso area eight years with his wife Brandy. He was one of the few rescued from the slide--and he had to relearn how to walk after doctors repaired his pelvis.

He now lives in nearby Arlington with his dog Blue, a German shorthaired pointer that also survived the slide but lost one his legs.

Mr. Ward's former property is unrecognizable now. The gouged-out slope that collapsed looms above giant piles of dirt and debris on a barren valley floor. The area may eventually be turned into a memorial, but no plans have been finalized.

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