Wildland fire erupts near Ephrata
Cameron Probert/Columbia Basin Herald<br> Smoke rises as a fire burns near Ephrata Tuesday.
EPHRATA — Multiple firefighting agencies spent Tuesday working to contain a wildland fire in Norton Canyon, a mile and a half from Ephrata.
The fire reached 120 acres and was 70 percent contained by 7 p.m., Grant County Emergency Management spokesperson Kyle Foreman stated.
“The fire is burning in difficult terrain and shrub steppe, creating challenges for firefighters on foot and in vehicles,” he stated. “All available fire resources from within Grant County have been requested and are currently being deployed. Two water-dropping helicopters from the Washington Department of Natural Resources are now operating on the scene.”
Two homes outside of Ephrata were threatened by the fire in the afternoon but firefighters were able to protect them, Foreman stated.
“No homes are threatened in the residential neighborhoods of Ephrata,” he stated. “Agricultural crops on the west edge of the fire are protected … No evacuations have been requested.”
No injuries were reported.
Several fire agencies were seen working to put out the fire including the Ephrata Fire Department, Grant County Fire District 13, Grant County Fire District 3, Grant County Fire District 5, Douglas County Fire District 2 and the U.S. Bureau of Land Management.
Smoke from the fire could be seen from Winchester and Soap Lake.
Ephrata police were assisting the effort by blocking all entry points to the fire for safety reasons and to keep the roadways open for emergency personnel travel, police reported at the scene.