Western Wildfires Update: Washington Blaze Now Biggest in State's History; International Firefighters, Volunteers to Lend a Hand

Associated Press
Published: August 24,2015

Seventy firefighters from Australia and New Zealand, along with about 200 volunteers in the United States, have been called upon to help fight the largest wildfire in the history of the state of Washington.
The international crews, who arrived at the National Interagency Fire Center in Boise, Idaho, were being outfitted to fill a critical shortage of mid-level fire managers, such as equipment bosses, strike team leaders and supervisors.
Chris Arnol, international liaison for Australia and New Zealand firefighters, said the crews are happy to help and well quipped to handle the rugged terrain in the Pacific Northwest. "They've been requested specifically for this type of terrain and this type of vegetation, and that's what their skill sets are aligned to," he said.
In addition, the Washington Department of Natural Resources issued a call for volunteers, hoping for former firefighters or heavy equipment operators who can bulldoze fire lines. Nearly 4,000 volunteers have answered the call, but only about 200 people with the right experience have been cleared to work.
At more than 250,000 acres, the Okanogan Complex of fires has surpassed last year's Carlton Complex wildfires as the biggest blaze in Washington's recorded history.
(MORE: California's Giant Sequoia at Risk?)

Fire spokesman Rick Isaacson said Monday the Okanogan Complex was measured overnight at just over 400 square miles, slightly more than the Carlton fires, which also burned in Okanogan County.
The latest group of fires grew by more than 26 square miles Sunday and is expected to spread even more in coming days.
Isaacson called the record unfortunate and notes it's only Aug. 24, meaning the fire could burn for several more months. Officials are still trying to determine how many homes and other structures have been burned.
Last week, three firefighters were killed and four injured near Twisp, Washington.

Nearly 7.5 million acres have burned in wildfires this year – an area roughly the size of Massachusetts – according to the National Interagency Fire Center. That's well above the 10-year average of about 5.35 million acres through Aug. 23.

There are currently dozens of large wildfires burning across the West; here's an update on a few of them.

California

At least 400 homes remain threatened as crews increase containment of a wildfire burning through timber near a popular ski resort in Southern California's San Bernardino Mountains.
Water cannons usually used for making snow were pointed at the fire burning near Snow Summit resort in Big Bear Lake, about 100 miles east of downtown Los Angeles.
Firefighters working through the night held the blaze to about 100 acres. It is 50 percent contained Monday evening.
The resort was open for mountain biking and scenic ski-lift rides before closing for the fire that broke out Sunday afternoon.
Evacuation orders were issued for up to 500 homes, many of them cabins and vacation houses, but by were lifted for residents only by 2 p.m. Monday.
All schools within the Bear Valley Unified School District are closed Monday. Several mountain roads are off-limits.

Idaho

In Idaho, firefighters planned to hold and secure fire lines against a group of fires burning in timber a couple miles from the northern Idaho town of Kamiah.
The blazes have destroyed 42 homes and scorched about 72 square miles but nearly 800 firefighters have them 45 percent contained.
In west-central Idaho 22 miles northwest of McCall, managers on a 20-square-mile fire say a weather pattern caused heavy smoke to settle over the fire and kept temperatures low with light winds.
Idaho had 16 large fires Monday, the most in the nation.

Oregon

A sheriff's department in eastern Oregon has ordered more evacuations near because of a wildfire that has already destroyed dozens of homes.

The Grant County Sheriff's Department issued the order Sunday night for an area near John Day. Authorities have yet to say how many homes are affected.

The agency said the evacuation level was increased because southwest winds were pushing the flames into the Norton Fork of the Strawberry Mountain Wilderness, about 280 miles east of Portland.

The wildfire started by lightning Aug. 12 has burned more than 100 square miles, much of it in the Malheur National Forest. Firefighters have contained about 25 percent of it.

The blaze has wrecked about 40 homes and another 50 other buildings, such as barns.

Montana

Firefighters and residents are bracing for a return to more intense fire activity in western Montana where wildfires have scored thousands of acres and threatened some small communities.
A fire weather watch posted Sunday warned that gusty winds and low humidity were expected Monday afternoon in Glacier National Park and the Kootenai and Flathead national forest areas.
On Glacier's southern boundary, a wildfire is about a mile south of the town of Essex where about 100 area residents have been advised to be ready to evacuate.
Fire spokesman Jonathan Moor says crews are working to keep the fire away from the town but it's difficult to predict what the fire will do over the next couple of days.