NAPLES — A fast-moving fire broke out Sunday, scorching roughly 30 acres and causing millions of dollars in damage to two family-run logging businesses, according to one of the families affected.

The Clover Fire was 100% contained by 8 p.m. Monday, ahead of a storm that brought strong winds overnight, said Lizz Bloxsom, an incident command trainee with the Idaho Department of Lands. 

Rodney Weeks, IDL fire investigation program manager, said an official cause will be determined by early next week. IDL is currently working alongside the Idaho State Fire Marshall's Office to determine what started the fire, conducting interviews and reviewing findings from the scene.

"There's a guilty party. They've already admitted it. But a lot of the rumors out there are not true," Weeks said. "It's not what people are expecting."

Most of the damage occurred on the neighboring properties of the Sandelin family and the Tweet family. The Sandelins run the small logging business, UTR Land Management, and the Tweets run a family-owned business, SGA Cabin & Timber. 

A member of the Sandelin family, who requested to remain unnamed, said damage to the lumberyard will cost millions of dollars— including a razed sawmill and barn, over 300 truckloads of lumber reduced to ash and melted industrial machinery.

  

Additionally, several livestock were killed, she said. 

“At 1:50, my son came up the hill and saw the fire crossing over the fence line, hitting the ends of the log decks,” she said. 

Scorched ground and trees around one of the three Sandelin homes show the fire came within feet of the house before it was extinguished. But intense heat melted parts of the exterior, including the plastic front door, several windows, and sections of the roof. 

Several nearby homes were evacuated, affecting multiple families and at least 10 children, according to the Sandelins. Utility systems in the area are down, and a septic tank near one of the homes reportedly exploded. 

A Post Falls family staying at the nearby Blue Lake RV Resort said they fled the area after spotting the fire early Sunday afternoon, leaving behind a trailer filled with valuables. The RV park ultimately did not sustain any damage, so the Babcock family returned Monday to collect what was left behind. 

“The flames were just right above this hill,” said John Babcock, who alerted the resort manager after seeing smoke while walking his dog around 2 p.m. Sunday. “At first, I wasn’t too concerned — I couldn’t tell how close it was. But then we saw open flames right behind some campers on this side of the hill.” 

The resort’s front office remains temporarily closed. 

To quench the flames, firefighters used water from Blue Lake, the closest available source of water. 

About 80 IDL personnel responded to the scene. One firefighter said local agencies were the first to respond, such as the South Boundary Fire Protection District. Then came the Bonners Ferry Fire Department, before IDL arrived. Additionally, first responders from Bonner County, Montana and the American Red Cross, among others, responded to the scene, according to the Boundary County Emergency Management office. 

"A massive initial air response yesterday made significant progress in stopping the advance of the fire and protecting threatened structures. The air assets employed included two helicopters (Type-1, Type-3), three Type-4 fixed wing scooper airplanes, and six Large Aerial Tanker airplanes," BCEM stated in a press release.