Baird Springs fire calming, others burn statewide
JOEL MARTIN | Hagadone News Network | UPDATED 3 years, 1 month AGO
Charred fields from the Baird Springs fire are seen from Stuhlmiller Road NW Wednesday morning. In the background, homes that had been threatened by the fire can be seen, while irrigation equipment spreads water in the foreground.
R. HANS MILLER/COLUMBIA BASIN HERALD
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 12, 2023 5:17 PM
CRESCENT BAR — Evacuation warnings were downgraded Wednesday morning to Level 1 for the Crescent Bar and Trinidad communities just north of Quincy, according to a statement from Southeast Washington Incident Management Team 1, which is in charge of firefighting efforts.
The Baird Springs fire above Crescent Bar was 30% contained at 2,346 acres at the time of the statement’s release.
“Firefighters have been successful in keeping the fire in its current footprint overnight,” the statement said. “The fire had minimal activity with areas of creeping and smoldering in grass and brush, including in interior pockets of fuel.”
Crews concentrated Wednesday on searching out hot spots and completing fire line construction on the south flank of the fire, the statement said. The cause of the blaze is still under investigation.
The NIFC reports that costs are estimated at about $1.5 million to fight the Baird Springs fire.
Previously, first responders had said the evacuations associated with the Baird Springs fire were a precaution to ensure residents remained safe. To date, no injuries or structural damage to homes or other buildings has been reported in association with the fire. However, power was out for some time due to damaged electrical infrastructure in the area.
These wildfires were also burning in Washington as of Wednesday afternoon, according to the National Interagency Fire Center:
• Tunnel 5, about four miles west of White Salmon: 529 acres. Fire discovered July 2. 100% contained.
• Consalus, about 20 miles north of Newport: 331 acres. Fire discovered June 30. 10% contained.
• McEwan, about three miles northeast of Shelton: 250 acres. Fire discovered July 4. 85% contained.
• OIE Highway, about 10 miles northeast of Prosser: 1,300 acres. Fire discovered July 3. 100% contained.
• Hover Park, three miles southeast of Finley: 528 acres. Fire discovered June 13. 100% contained.
• Ruppert Road, about three miles north of Benton City: 155 acres. Fire discovered June 13. 100% contained.
• Oasis, about seven miles west of Touchet: 4,250 acres. Fire discovered June 19. 100% contained.
• Gold Mountain Ridge, about 12 miles northeast of Keller: 28.8 acres. Fire discovered June 29. 100% contained.
• Bozy Creek, about seven miles east of Elma: 5 acres. Fire discovered July 5. Containment information not available.
• Elfendahl, about 16 miles southwest of Bremerton: 1.5 acres. Fire discovered July 9. Containment information not available.
• Anderson Road, about seven miles southeast of Morton: 1 acre. Fire discovered July 10. Containment information not available.
• Farnham, about 13 miles west of Mansfield: 76 acres. Fire discovered July 8. Containment information not available.
• Coyote Creek, about 17 miles northwest of Grand Coulee: 1,555 acres. Prescribed burn.
• Canal Road, about 3 miles north of Naches: 1.5 acres. Fire discovered July 11. Containment information not available.
• Goodwin, between Vancouver and Camas: 14.5 acres. Fire discovered July 11. Containment information not available.
• Creston, about three miles southeast of the town of Creston: 5 acres. Fire discovered July 11. Containment information not available.
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.