Vehicle crash ignites wildfire south of Soap Lake
Flames and smoke fill the air near State Highway 17 and State Highway 282 Tuesday. Several local fire departments are working on getting the blaze under control with air support also being called in.
BONNIE GRACE-STRANSELL/COLUMBIA BASIN HERALD
SOAP LAKE — Charges are pending against a Soap Lake man whose rollover crash sparked a brush fire about five miles south of Soap Lake early Tuesday morning, according to a press release from the Washington State Patrol.
Anatoli Shtyba, 40, was driving north on SR 17 at about 9:40 a.m. when he lost control of his vehicle, the WSP memo said. He ran off the northbound shoulder and rolled his vehicle, the release said. The car came to rest on its wheels.
“The vehicle caught fire and ignited the wildfire,” said Kyle Foreman, public information officer for the Grant County Sheriff’s Office, in a media release.
Shtyba was injured and was transported to Samaritan Hospital in Moses Lake.
The fire was contained by about 4 p.m., Foreman said. The fire was estimated at about 1,300 acres.
Crews were expected to stay on the scene into the night, he said.
"“Firefighters are strengthening containment lines and extinguishing hot spots,” Foreman said. "Homes in the area are being watched by firefighters. The area is rural with few homes at risk.”
With dry conditions and high wind warnings, Grant County District 13 issued a county-wide request for assistance, said Grant County Fire Marshal Nathan Poplowski in a media release.
The GCFD 13 release said firefighting efforts were complicated by difficult terrain and strong winds.
“We appreciate all the resources that have been sent from across the county to assist,” GCFD 13 officers wrote in a statement. “Air support is also assisting.”
The air effort required heavy tankers, Poplowski said, but by 3:45 p.m. air support had switched to helicopters and smaller air assets.
The National Weather Service released a statement early morning Tuesday warning of high winds of up to 45 miles per hour. As a result, the GCSO and the Fire Marshall’s office released statements that Tuesday is a red flag warning day.
Foreman also reminded residents the county is currently in a burn ban, which began June 1.
“Many of the wildfires this year have been associated with careless burning by the public, and the public is being fined for such reckless burning behavior,” Foreman wrote in the GCSO post.