FIRE REPORT: Pioneer Fire still growing in North Cascades
JOEL MARTIN | Hagadone News Network | UPDATED 2 years, 3 months AGO
The Shoofly Fire in the Cascades northwest of Wenatchee was up to 102 acres Tuesday.
USFS PHOTO
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 10, 2024 1:50 AM
MOSES LAKE — The Pioneer Fire burning along the eastern shore of Lake Chelan continued to grow Tuesday, reaching 10,677 acres, according to the National Interagency Fire Center. Containment remained at 14%. Eleven crews, 13 helicopters, five engines, 14 water tenders and 13 heavy equipment units were devoted to fighting the blaze, which has been burning since June 8.
The Shoofly Fire was discovered Monday in the Cascades about 45 miles northwest of Wenatchee, according to the NIFC. By Tuesday it had grown to 120 acres and crews from both Chelan and Snohomish counties were fighting it.
These other fires were also burning in Washington on Tuesday, according to the NIFC:
• The 1980 Slide Ranch Fire, discovered June 22 about 20 miles southwest of Yakima, was 99% contained Tuesday at 3,166 acres. The fire was human-caused, and costs were estimated at $4 million.
• The Balsam Root Fire on the northwest outskirts of Wenatchee was fully contained Tuesday at 305 acres. Suppression costs were estimated at $446,859.
• The Daisy Fire, discovered July 4 on Lake Roosevelt about 47 miles northeast of Grand Coulee, was at 10.3 acres Tuesday. The reported cause was human activity. Containment and cost information was not available.
• The Diamondback Ridge Fire, near Zillah in the Yakima Valley, had burned 300 acres since its discovery May 17. Cost and containment information was not available Tuesday.
• The Gold Creek Fire, discovered June 22 in the Methow Valley about 31 miles southwest of Omak, was fully contained at 278 acres Tuesday. Costs were estimated at $1.7 million. The cause of the blaze was undetermined.
• The Middle Mountain Fire about 34 miles northeast of Grand Coulee was discovered July 4 and was 50% contained at 14 acres Monday. Costs were estimated at $3 million. The cause was reported to be natural.
• The Morgan Lake Fire in the Columbia National Wildlife Refuge was discovered July 3 and was at 120 acres Tuesday. Cost and containment information was not available.
• The Mutual Aid 20151 Fire, discovered June 27 just a few miles southwest of Clarkston, remained at 50 acres Tuesday. Cost and containment information was not yet available and the cause was undetermined.
• The 840-acre Road 11 Fire burning about 12 miles southwest of Mansfield was fully contained Tuesday. Costs were estimated at $209,000.
• The Sand Flat Fire about 2 miles northeast of Omak was discovered July 4 and remained at 120 acres Tuesday. The cause was undetermined.
Other fires reported throughout the state have burned less than 10 acres and are not included in this report. The majority are less than 1 acre.
Air quality was moderate over most of eastern Washington Tuesday, according to the website AirNow, which is operated by a consortium of government agencies. The Air Quality Index, or AQI, was deemed unhealthy for sensitive groups in the area around Lake Chelan.
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.”