Wildfire burns 900 acres south of Ephrata
EPHRATA — A wildland fire flared up Wednesday south of Ephrata, destroying one mobile home, damaging another and forcing authorities to stop traffic briefly on Highway 28, the Ephrata Fire Department reported.
Firefighters from six different fire agencies battled the 900-acre blaze, which began around 4:45 p.m. No injuries from the fire were reported.
"This year we have seen some of the largest wildfires this area has ever experienced," said Ephrata Fire Battalion Chief Kyle Foreman.
He said the blaze was the second large fire the area has experienced in as many weeks.
A 5,000-acre fire June 28, east of Ephrata and Highway 17, blackened sage brush and dry grass, burned one mobile home and threatened the Rocky Ford Fish Hatchery and several homes. That fire was caused by an unattended and illegal burn barrel.
The cause of Wednesday's blaze remains undetermined, Foreman said. The fire, though, is under investigation by the Grant County fire marshal.
Firefighters were first called to Road D N.W. and Road 9 N.W. As crews arrived, the fire quickly spread in a northeast direction. It eventually burned to the edge of Highway 28 near Road E N.W. and stopped, sending heavy smoke across the highway and stopping traffic.
One vacant single-wide mobile home was destroyed and several outbuildings were burned along with the 900 acres of sage brush and dry grass, Foreman said.
A home at Road 9 N.W. and Road D N.W. sustained exterior heat damage, but no structural damage, he said.
Forty-five firefighters from four Grant County fire districts and the Cities of Ephrata and Soap Lake battled the difficult blaze until about 8:30 p.m.
"Although firefighters are well trained, there is an extreme risk to all firefighters when battling any wildfire," Foreman said.
The Ephrata Fire Department, he said, urges residents to exercise extreme caution throughout the fire season.
"We strongly recommend property owners avoid any outdoor burning, and remind citizens that burn barrels are illegal," he said.