FIRE REPORT: Local districts give updates on fire season

SOAP LAKE — Grant County Fire District 7 is doing well on resources for July, even with 98 fires breaking out according to GCFD 7 Fire Chief Chris Baker. Baker said he is concerned about fireworks and uncontrolled burns though. 

He said people are still setting off fireworks, resulting in small fires that the fire district can put out quickly because of their resources and staffing. However, he said it is just a matter of time before the fireworks result in a devastating fire. Baker said that he also hopes that people will stop burning fires with yard debris. Instead, he said people should take the debris to dump sites where it can be disposed of properly. 

“I would challenge our politicians to try to develop programs where people can dispose of yard waste without having to burn it,” Baker said. “We live in a poverty-stricken county so oftentimes people resort to the least expensive way of doing things, which means burning their yard debris instead of taking it to a site. I think some development of some programs within our county and state would definitely help with the fires.” 

Baker said that Fire District 7 may be challenged in August because it will be hot and dry and the entire West Coast has multiple large fires burning, resulting in lower resource availability. He asked citizens to be mindful and to do their part to prevent human-caused fires. 

“This month, as of right now, we're at 98 incidents for the month of July, which is a record for us and with a primarily volunteer department,” Baker said. “That's a lot of commitment from the local volunteers, so my hat's off to them and my hat's off to all the volunteers in Grant County because without them, we wouldn't have the fire service.” 

Grant County Fire District 8, which generally serves the area around Mattawa, is also doing well on fire resources because they have not had any large fires in the district according to the district's business manager Barb Davis. 

Davis said they have been able to keep most fires in their service area below 50 acres this fire season; however, district officials are keeping their eyes on large fires in the region they might have to respond to. 

“Well, there are definitely bigger fires more locally this year than last year,” Davis said. “The state dodged a pretty big bullet last year, but I guess not this year.” 

Davis asks residents to be mindful of their actions with anything that could cause a fire including loose chains on vehicles, which have sparked up multiple roadside fires this year. She also asks that people clear brush and debris that is closer than 30 feet away from buildings. 

GCFD 8 also collaborated with the homeowner's association in Desert Aire and the Department of Natural Resources to make recommendations on how to make residents' homes more fire-safe.  

“We’ve been ramping up with that program since June, when we finished getting all the funding,” Davis said. “I know we have done a lot, and we are just trying to do more public education on how to stay safe out there.”  

Updates from the other Grant County fire districts to come in future fire reports.   

These fires were burning in Washington on Tuesday, according to the National Interagency Fire Center:  

• The Big Horn Fire started at 1:07 p.m. July 22 near the town of Bickleton in Klickitat County. The fire remains at 50,000 acres as of Tuesday according to InciWeb. The fire went from 52% contained on Monday to 92% contained by Tuesday the website said. Evacuation orders for nearby residents have been issued.  

• The Black Canyon Fire was reported at 7:21 p.m. July 22. The fire remains at about 9,200 acres with 89% containment by Tuesday according to InciWeb. There are multiple evacuation notices in effect. The estimated containment date is Aug. 1.   

• The Bridge Creek Fire ignited on July 19 and is 11 miles north of Keller. As of Tuesday, the fire remains at about 3,950 acres according to DNR. The fire is now 43% contained according to InciWeb. There are multiple evacuation orders in effect, as well as multiple road restrictions.   

• The Canoe Ridge Fire, discovered on Tuesday, started as a 100-acre brush fire at 11:27 a.m. according to NIFC. The fire is currently at 200 acres with no containment according to NIFC.   

• The Cougar Creek Fire, discovered July 15 in the Blue Mountains, about 50 miles east of Walla Walla, had expanded to about 17,600 acres by Tuesday according to InciWeb. It remains at 29% containment. An evacuation order is in effect in the area and some roads have travel restrictions near the Washington-Oregon border.  

• The Dan Fire, also listed as the Lower Granite Fire started Monday at 12:14 p.m. in Garfield and Whitman Counties according to NIFC. The fire is currently 4,000 acres with no containment according to NIFC. There are multiple evacuation orders in effect.   

• The Easy Fire, discovered July 17 about 58 miles northwest of Omak, remains uncontained and remained at about 530 acres by Tuesday according to InciWeb. On Sunday, State Route 20 North Cascades Highway was closed between Granite Creek and Easy Pass trailhead in both directions due to the wildfire. Several parts of the Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest are closed. According to officials, the estimated containment date is Sept. 1 due to rough ground and heavy vegetation.   

• The Gooseneck Fire started Wednesday at 2:37 p.m. in Asotin County according to the National Interagency Fire Center. The fire remains at about 1,600 acres by Monday. The fire is fully contained as of Tuesday.  

• The Horsethief Lake Fire started Saturday and is at 259 acres with full containment as of Tuesday. The fire is in Klickitat County and the evacuation orders have been lifted.  

• The Lower Granite Fire started Monday at 12:15 pm in Garfield County. The fire is at 2,000 acres and has no containment as of Tuesday according to InciWeb. There are multiple evacuation orders in effect.   

• The Miners Complex Fires consist of nine wildfires caused by lightning strikes on July 17 and 18 according to the Miners Complex Facebook. The fire remains at 500 acres with no containment as of Tuesday according to InciWeb. The Miners Complex includes Miners Fire, Vista Ridge Fire, Dolly Creek Fire, Sulphur Three Fire, Sulphur Four Fire, Sulphur Thirty-Four Fire, Upper Sulphur Thirty-Two Fire, Lower Sulphur Thirty-Two Fire and Plummer Fire. The Miners Complex is burning approximately 21 miles east of Darrington in the Upper Suiattle Valley.  

• The Mullen Hill or 195 Fire started 1 mile south of Spokane according to the Washington State DNR Wildfire Twitter account. The fire was 10 acres and has been contained according to an updated post.  

• The Pioneer Fire remains at 15% containment and has remained at about 33,300 acres by Tuesday. Discovered on July 8, initially reported on private land 31 miles northwest of Chelan, it quickly spread to the U.S. Forest Service land, including wilderness areas. Multiple evacuation orders are in effect due to the fire. The estimated containment date is Aug. 31.  

• The Retreat Fire, also listed as the Rimrock Fire, started July 23 at 3:45 p.m. and rapidly grew from about 24,700 acres Monday to about 30,000 acres by Tuesday with 11% containment according to InciWeb. It is burning in heavy timber and grass-fueled areas about 14 miles southwest of Naches. There are level two and level three evacuations in effect.   

• The South Columbia Basin Fire started Friday at 1:39 p.m. located in Spokane County near the towns of Cheney and Tyler. The fire is currently 250 acres and 40% contained as of Tuesday according to InciWeb. There are level two evacuations in effect. The cause of the fire is under investigation.   

• The Shoofly Fire in the Cascades, about 45 miles northwest of Wenatchee, remains 60% contained Tuesday and has burned 104 acres. The fire has been active since July 8.   

• The Swawilla Fire, ignited by lightning July 17, is located 11 miles east of Grand Coulee and grew from about 46,300 acres Monday to about 47,200 acres by Tuesday. The fire is now 45% contained according to the Washington Department of Natural Resources. The post office is currently closed because of the wildfire according to a press release from USPS. The Keller Ferry will open temporarily to help evacuate the town of Keller. Roads have been closed near the fire and more may be closed as the fire grows. Keller is now at a level three evacuation starting on Thursday. The estimated containment date is Aug. 15.  

• The Umtanum Canyon Fire started Saturday at 3:46 p.m. in Kittitas and Yakima Counties. The fire is 326 acres and fully contained as of Tuesday according to NIFC. All evacuation orders have been lifted.  

Other fires reported throughout the state have burned less than 10 acres and are not included in this report. The majority are less than 1 acre.  

Grant County’s wildfire danger continues to be very high. The Grant County Sheriff’s office has asked area residents to be careful with anything that could cause a wildfire.  

Air quality was good Tuesday for the Columbia Basin, according to the website AirNow, which is operated by a consortium of government agencies.