Gray and Oregon Road fires exceed 10K acres, continue burning
JOEL MARTIN | Hagadone News Network | UPDATED 3 years AGO
An aerial view of the Oregon Road fire area north of Spokane. The fire was 4% contained as of Thursday.
COURTESY PHOTO/NATHAN GOODRICH/NORTHEAST WASHINGTON FIRE INFO
Joel Martin has been with the Columbia Basin Herald for more than 25 years in a variety of roles and is the most-tenured employee in the building. Martin is a married father of eight and enjoys spending time with his children and his wife, Christina. He is passionate about the paper’s mission of informing the people of the Columbia Basin because he knows it is important to record the history of the communities the publication serves. | August 24, 2023 6:02 PM
SPOKANE — The Gray fire, which started Aug. 18 about 17 miles west of Spokane, was 58% contained at 10,016 acres Thursday, according to a statement from the state Department of Natural Resources. The blaze prompted the evacuation of the entire city of Medical Lake, as well as the communities of Lakeland Village, and Four Lakes, for several days, but all evacuations had been downgraded to levels 1 and 2 .by Thursday and SR 902 had reopened.
The Oregon Road fire, discovered Aug. 18 about 31 miles north of Spokane, was 4% contained Thursday at 11,036 acres, according to the Northwest Interagency Fire Center. Costs were estimated at about $5.9 million. Both the Gray and the Oregon Road fires were determined to be human-caused.
Air quality across the Columbia Basin ranged between good and moderate Thursday afternoon.
These fires were also burning or were recently extinguished Monday, according to data from the NIFC:
• Crater Creek: The fire, discovered July 22, crossed the Canadian border about 20 miles west of Oroville Aug. 18. It has burned more than 108,726 acres, 4,825 of them in the U.S. (A previous report indicated an area of 8,102 acres on the U.S. side.) It was uncontained Thursday and costs were estimated at $5 million.
• OA Baseline: Discovered Aug. 18 about 7 miles west of Coulee City, this was still at 978 acres Friday Thursday. Containment and cost information was not available.
• Huckleberry Flats: This fire was discovered Aug. 19 about 41 miles east of Everett and was 60% contained at 134 acres Thursday. It was human-caused and costs were estimated at $1 million.
• Tieton Grade: About 12 miles northwest of Yakima. The fire, discovered Aug. 18, burned 20 acres and was human-caused. Containment and cost information was not available.
• Winona: The fire, discovered Aug. 18, had burned 2,525 acres about 35 miles northwest of Pullman and was 90% contained Thursday. Costs were estimated at $300,000.
• Toothaker: 188 acres burned about 8 miles southeast of Kennewick. The fire was discovered Aug. 17. It was 100% contained Thursday and costs were estimated at $350,000.
• Wenas Grade: About 12 miles northwest of Yakima. The fire, discovered Aug. 18, burned 50 acres and was human-caused. Containment and cost information were not available.
• Border: This fire, discovered Aug. 15 on the Canadian border about 6 miles west of the Idaho state line, was up to 70 acres Thursday. Containment information was not available, but costs were estimated at $500,000. The cause was natural.
• Airplane Lake: This blaze had grown to 2,300 acres Thursday and costs are estimated at $500,000. It is reported as uncontained and no cause has been identified. It was discovered July 7.
• Kindy Creek: An 89-acre fire discovered Aug. 18 in the mountains above Lake Chelan about 75 miles northwest of Wenatchee. The blaze was uncontained Thursday and costs were estimated at $90,000.
• Sourdough: Burning in the Ross Lake National Recreation Area in the north Cascades since July 29, was 16% contained Thursday and had reached 6,000 acres. Costs are estimated at $24 million.
• Blue Lake: This blaze about 53 miles west of Omak had grown to 315 acres Thursday and was 15% contained. Costs were estimated at $5 million. It was discovered July 29.
• Dome Peak: This fire, located northeast of the Mt. Baker National Forest, was uncontained as of Thursday and had spread to 802 acres. The fire was reported July 29. Costs were estimated at $100,000.
• Lake Louise: A blaze in Fort Steilacoom Park about 7 miles southwest of Tacoma was discovered Aug. 16 and has burned 24 acres. The cause was undetermined and costs and containment information were unavailable.
• Mounts Road: A 150-acre fire on Joint Base Lewis-McChord was discovered on Aug. 13. Cost and containment information was not available.
• Trinity: This fire west of Kennewick and north of the Yakima River burned 602 acres. The cost to fight the fire is estimated at $150,000 and the fire was 90% contained. The cause was human activity.
• Chocolate Creek: This 15-acre blaze about 58 miles northwest of Wenatchee was uncontained Thursday. Costs were estimated at $90,000.
• Consalus Incident: Around 475 acres burned near the Idaho border due east of the Little Oreille National Wildlife Refuge. The fire has cost about $12 million and is 83% contained. Authorities report that the cause of the fire is natural.
Several other fires are reported throughout the state but have burned less than 10 acres and are not included in this report. The majority are reported as out and many are less than 1 acre.
Joel Martin may be reached by email at [email protected].
ARTICLES BY JOEL MARTIN
Quincy National Night Out scales down
QUINCY — Quincy’s National Night Out was more compact this year, which worked out well, said QPD Sgt. Joe Westby, who’s in charge of event planning for the Quincy Police Department. “National Night Out is a big event, and the fact that we’re able to shrink it up is like a breath of fresh air,” Westby said. “If you're always doing the same thing, it's kind of nice to switch things up and see how it works.” National Night Out took place Thursday on the block of C Street next to the police station, a shift from previous years when it was held at Lauzier Park. The smaller space meant fewer emergency vehicles for children to explore, but it also meant less walking for attendees. Grant County Fire District 5 brought a fire truck, and the Grant County Sheriff’s Office had a patrol boat. Renew, the Grant County behavioral health agency, had a booth and so did Quincy Partnership for Youth. Veterans Operation Creation sang the national anthem, and the Quincy Animal Shelter brought kittens that piled over each other making friends with passersby. As before, the QPD served grilled hot dogs.
Quincy Police retirements leave big shoes to fill
QUINCY — There are some big shoes to fill at the Quincy Police Department. “We’re losing 48 years of experience between them,” Quincy Police Chief Ryan Green said at the retirement party for Capt. Jorge Trujillo and Det. Damon Powell Thursday. Trujillo, who grew up in Sunnyside, has been with QPD for 19 years, he said, coming on as a patrol officer fresh out of the military. From there he served as a field training officer, a detective and finally captain. “I consider him my left-hand man,” Green said. “He runs the operations side of the house … He knows the agency very well, and he knows the community.” Trujillo has some projects around the house to tackle now that he’s retired, he said.
Big fun on a small scale
Wheat Land Communities’ Fair opens Thursday
RITZVILLE — The Wheat Land Communities’ Fair isn’t as big or as flashy as some of the county fairs around central Washington, but the folks who keep it going like it just the way it is. “It’s somewhere you can go and get an old-time traditional feeling, and you’re comfortable letting your kids roam the grounds and experience all that it has to offer,” said Board Member Lori Williams. “It’s more of a feeling than (one) specific thing,” The fair starts Thursday in Ritzville and runs through Sunday. Starting Friday, the 56th Ritzville Rodeo will take place alongside the fair at the rodeo grounds. This year the entertainment budget was expanded, Williams said, to be able to offer more fun that’s covered by the cost of admission. For the kids, there’s face painting, balloon art, Lego crafts, races, contests and games. Children can also ride on a little train towed around the fairgrounds behind a tractor.