SR 530 “Oso” Mudslide Memorial

Oso, Washington

On the morning of March 22, 2014 on a normal day in Snohomish County the unthinkable happened. At 10:37am, the deadliest mudslide in US history occurred along SR 530 "Oso" in Snohomish County, WA. The massive mud flow covered an area of about 1 square mile, included in the devastation was 49 homes and the tragic death of 43 people. Although the slide devastated the valley, rescue and recovery efforts began almost immediately when community members chose to ignore warnings to not go into the slide. They waded into the mud minutes after and pulled out 11 survivors that first day. Over 900 responders worked alongside volunteers, families, and neighbors. The search went on for months, only ending in July 2014 when the last of the 43 victims was pulled from the debris.

This event shook the surrounding community to its core and 10 years later at the site of the mudslide, Snohomish County Parks opened the SR 530 (Oso) Mudslide Memorial. Tangram Design is incredibly honored to have been asked by Snohomish County to be a part of this project, in helping the community tell their story of tragedy, hope, and resilience. We are proud to have been a part of something that can help the community heal and also tell the story so the people most affected won't be forgotten. We understood early on that the role of a designer can be a truly special one when working on such a sensitive project as this. It was an honor to have been given such trust with the responsibility of telling this tragic story about the strength and emotional connection we as humans can have for each other.

To make sure we treat this project correctly from concept to fabrication and installation, Tangram put together a team that we felt would be able to meet the expectations of the community, families, and first responders who were so directly affected by this tragic event.