Quincy Lakes Fire spurs evacuations
JOEL MARTIN | Hagadone News Network | UPDATED 2 hours, 20 minutes AGO
The Quincy Lakes Fire, shown here at about 11:30 p.m. Saturday, has grown to between 200 and 800 acres Sunday morning. Level 3 (Go Now) evacuations were still in effect as of 9 a.m. Sunday.
COURTESY PHOTO/UNIVERSITY OF OREGON
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, 2026 9:13 AM
QUINCY — A fire that broke out in the Ancient Lakes area south of Quincy Saturday night prompted a Level 3, or Go Now, evacuation order. Nobody was hurt, and no structures were threatened, according to Grant County Fire District 5 firefighter Daniel Garland, who spoke from the scene.
“We evacuated all the campers,” Garland said. “Probably five to seven people, no cars or trucks, not a crazy amount.”
The blaze, dubbed the Quincy Lakes Fire, was officially at 200 acres Sunday morning, according to the National Interagency Fire Center, but Garland, who was at the south end of the fire, estimated it at closer to 800. It was discovered at about 9:30 p.m., according to the NIFC.
Sunday morning there was a tactical tender from GCFD 3 on the scene, Garland said. The Bureau of Land Management had four engines and three handlines there, he said. As of 9 a.m. the Level 3 evacuation order was still in place.
“We’re in the process of updating that right now,” Garland said.
The cause of the blaze was unknown Sunday, Garland said.
“Our fire marshal is working on that,” he said. “A campfire, fireworks, somebody threw a cigarette butt? Who knows?”
This is a developing story and more information will be added as it becomes available.
ARTICLES BY JOEL MARTIN
Quincy Lakes Fire spurs evacuations
QUINCY — A fire that broke out in the Ancient Lakes area south of Quincy Saturday night prompted a Level 3, or Go Now, evacuation order. Nobody was hurt, and no structures were threatened, according to Grant County Fire District 5 firefighter Daniel Garland, who spoke from the scene. “We evacuated all the campers,” Garland said. “Probably five to seven people, no cars or trucks, not a crazy amount.” The blaze, dubbed the Quincy Lakes Fire, was officially at 200 acres Sunday morning, according to the National Interagency Fire Center, but Garland, who was at the south end of the fire, estimated it at closer to 800. It was discovered at about 9:30 p.m., according to the NIFC.
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