FIRE REPORT: Annual burn ban ends Sept. 30 as fires continue across state
JOEL MARTIN | Hagadone News Network | UPDATED 3 years AGO
An excavator works at the Cowlitz Complex Monday. The complex of 30 fires has been burning since Aug. 25 and is 39% contained.
COURTESY PHOTO/U.S. FOREST SERVICE
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. | September 25, 2023 5:07 PM
MOSES LAKE — The burn ban in Grant and Adams counties ends Saturday, according to Grant County Fire District 3’s website. Once the ban is lifted, the normal regulations will apply to residential and agricultural burning, the website said. For residential burning in unincorporated Grant County, one pile of natural vegetation 4 feet by 4 feet by 3 feet may be burned at least 50 feet from structures and 500 feet from forest slash, provided the person doing the burning stays in attendance the whole time with a way to extinguish the fire, the smoke doesn’t affect the neighbors and the fire is out before dark. Adams County allows unincorporated residents to burn a single pile of vegetation no more than 10 feet in diameter and 10 feet in height, with the stipulation that the person burning be present with fire extinguishers or hoses connected to a water supply. Burning is prohibited by state law within any city limits, and the use of burn barrels is always illegal.
Nine prescribed fires were burning 2,465 acres in Okanogan, Ferry, Stevens and Pend Oreille counties Monday, according to the National Interagency Fire Center. A prescribed burn is a controlled application of fire by a team of fire experts under specified weather conditions to restore health to ecosystems that depend on fire, according to the U.S. Forest Service.
Fire danger remains high over most of central and eastern Washington, according to the DNR. Air quality was good to moderate for the Columbia Basin on Monday, with air quality indices ranging from 50 in Ephrata and Ritzville to 89 in Othello. An AQI of 50 or less is considered good and between 51 and 100 is moderate. Moderate air quality means that the air is generally safe but people who are unusually sensitive to air pollution could be at some risk.
These fires were burning Monday in Washington, according to data from the National Interagency Fire Center:
Airplane Lake: This blaze about 53 miles northwest of Wenatchee remained at 6,677 acres Monday and costs are estimated at $500,000. It is still reported as uncontained and no cause has been identified. It was discovered July 7.
Blue Lake: This blaze, discovered July 29 about 53 miles west of Omak was still 80% contained Monday at 1,074 acres. Costs were estimated at $5.75 million.
Chocolate Creek: This blaze about 58 miles northwest of Wenatchee was still uncontained Monday, and held steady at 38 acres. Costs were estimated at $90,000.
Cowlitz Complex: This 30-fire complex in the Cascades between Mount Rainier and the Columbia River was 39% contained at 731 acres Monday. A half-inch of rain that fell on the area Sunday decreased fire activity.
Delabarre: This fire in Olympic National Park held steady at 3,658 acres Monday and was still uncontained. Estimated costs were $5 million. The fire was discovered Sept. 1.
Diamond Mountain: This fire about 25 miles south of Port Angeles was discovered Sept. 1 and remained at 30 acres Monday. The cause was determined to be natural. It was uncontained and costs were estimated at $10,000.
Dome Peak: This fire, located in the Mt. Baker National Forest, was still uncontained as of Monday and had burned 1,477 acres. The fire was reported July 29. Costs were estimated at $100,000.
Eagle Bluff: This fire, southwest of Oroville near the Canadian border, has burned 16,428 acres. The fire has cost about $9.9 million and was fully contained Monday. The cause is unknown.
Eagle Point: Discovered Aug. 29 about 12 miles south of Port Angeles, this fire was still uncontained at 128 acres Monday. Costs were estimated at $100,000.
Evans Road: This fire discovered Sept. 22 had burned 11 acres Monday about 26 miles northeast of Longview. Cost and containment information was not available.
Gray: Discovered Aug. 18 about 17 miles west of Spokane, it was still 99% contained at 10,085 acres Monday. The fire was determined to be caused by human activity and costs were estimated at $10.4 million.
Kindy Creek: Discovered Aug. 18 in the Cascades above Lake Chelan about 75 miles northwest of Wenatchee, this blaze remained at 210 acres Monday. It was uncontained and costs were estimated at $90,000.
Low Divide: This fire in the Olympic National Forest was discovered Sept. 1 and remained at 312 acres Monday. It was uncontained and costs were estimated at $125,000. The cause was determined to be natural.
Martin Lake: This fire in the Olympic National Forest was discovered Sept. 1 and was still at 108 acres Monday. It was uncontained and costs were estimated at $50,000.
Sourdough: Burning in the Ross Lake National Recreation Area in the north Cascades since July 29, it was 25% contained Monday at 7,377 acres. Costs are estimated at $24 million.
Several other fires are reported throughout the state but have burned less than 10 acres and are not included in this report.
Joel Martin may be reached by email at [email protected].
ARTICLES BY JOEL MARTIN
Endless battle
Noxious Weed Control Board works to keep invasive plants under control
MOSES LAKE — Some of the nastiest plants in Grant County were the topic of a class led by Jay Johnson, a consultant with the Grant County Noxious Weed Control Board, Tuesday. The Noxious Weed Control Board, as its name would suggest, is tasked with keeping weeds under control in Grant County. That’s not a small job; the board’s website lists 129 species of noxious weeds that are found around Grant County. A noxious weed is defined as an invasive, non-native plant that threatens agricultural crops, local ecosystems or fish and wildlife habitat, according to the Noxious Weed Control Board. Washington state law requires that these weeds be identified and their spread kept to a minimum, if not completely eradicated. “We’re one of those agencies a lot of people don’t really understand,” Johnson said. “We’re a county office and … our funding is tax-based assessment. When you get your tax bill and you look down at all the expenses that you pay for, there we are.”
BASIN EVENTS: Oct. 16-24
COLUMBIA BASIN — Whether you feel like shopping, crafting, learning or seeing a show, there’s something happening for you this week in the Basin. Oct. 16 ‘My Family (Mi Familia)’ screening Spanning three generations, “My Family (Mi Familia)” is a heartfelt drama that follows the Sánchez family as they build their lives in East Los Angeles. Through love, hardship, triumph, and sacrifice, the film explores the immigrant experience, the strength of family bonds, and the traditions that connect one generation to the next. Lowrider show and taco truck before the screening. Sponsored by Columbia Basin Allied Arts, EDUBS C/S and the Moses Lake Creative District. $12 per person. Doors open at 6 p.m., film begins at 7 p.m. at the Moses Lake Civic Center Auditorium, 401 S. Balsam St. Tickets and info: www.cba-arts.org.
Moses Lake author encourages women to look beyond church culture norms
MOSES LAKE — A Moses Lake author’s book, “A Christian Woman Striving to Live Her Faith in a Man-Controlled World,” takes aim at the role to which many churches relegate the female half of their congregations. “It’s to encourage women in the faith,” Linda Curran said. “A lot of churches say, ‘Teach Sunday school, do this, do that, but don’t (evangelize.)’" In her book, Curran recounts a time when she moved to a new community and joined a church there. She was surprised to learn that, as a new female member, she had been automatically assigned church cleaning duties. When she questioned it, she wrote, she was met with condescension and her objections were brushed aside. In other churches, she said, women who were capable of teaching were relegated to “women’s ministry.”