Fire report for July 3, 2023
JOEL MARTIN | Hagadone News Network | UPDATED 3 years, 2 months AGO
A mobile home that burned Thursday night sent embers into the wind, threatening several other homes northwest of Ephrata.
COURTESY PHOTO/GCFD 13
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. | July 3, 2023 1:30 AM
EPHRATA — A fire northwest of Ephrata required three fire departments to put out Thursday night, according to a statement from Grant County Fire District 13.
GCFD 7 responded to a call for a structure fire at Johnson Road and Road 17.5 Northwest, according to the statement. When they arrived, firefighters found a mobile home about 50% involved, and threatening a shop and several vehicles, the statement said. Firefighters from the Ephrata Fire Department and Grant County Fire District 7 pitched in, but access was difficult and the wind was pushing embers down into the canyon, which had the potential to ignite and threaten many more homes, according to the statement.
State fire assistance has been mobilized in support of local firefighters working to contain the Moran Creek Fire located about 12 miles northwest of Chewelah in Stevens County, near the town of Arden, according to a statement from the state fire marshal’s office.
The Moran Creek Fire started on Thursday afternoon, according to the statement. As of Friday afternoon, the fire was estimated at 61 acres and growing. It is burning in timber, brush and grass and is threatening homes, agriculture, and infrastructure. Level 2 and 3 evacuations are in effect at this time, according to the statement. The fire cause is currently under investigation.
The Roza Creek wildfire, located above the Yakima River Canyon between Yakima and Ellensburg, had burned about 717 acres as of Friday afternoon, according to a statement from the Southeast Washington Interagency Incident Management Team. The fire was 75% contained and no structures were threatened as of 6 p.m. Friday. Five crews were reported on the scene with six fire engines, four dozers and one helicopter supporting a total of 150 personnel in battling the fire.
These wildfires were also burning in Washington as of Thursday afternoon, according to the National Interagency Fire Center and the NOAA Office of Satellite and Product Operations:
• Oasis, about seven miles west of Touchet: 4,250 acres. Fire discovered June 19.
• South Satus, about 14 miles southeast of Toppenish: 997 acres. Fire discovered June 13.
• Hansen Road, about one mile south of Benton City: 6,289 acres. Fire discovered June 13.
• Hover Park, three miles southeast of Finley: 528 acres. Fire discovered June 13.
• Methow, south end of Wenatchee: 150 acres. Fire discovered June 27.
• Charles, about 17 miles northwest of Spokane: 12.3 acres. Fire discovered June 29.
• Beehive, about 15 miles northeast of Omak: 27 acres. Fire discovered June 28.
• Gold Mountain Ridge, about 12 miles northeast of Keller: 8 acres. Fire discovered June 29.
• 48th Avenue, about 5 miles southeast of Yelm: 12 acres. Fire discovered June 29.
• California Road, 12 miles northwest of Shelton: 1.9 acres. Fire discovered June 29.
• Dungeness Refuge, Sequim: 1.2 acres. Fire discovered June 26.
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.