State of Emergency Declared in Eastern Washington as Wildfires Intensify

Eric Chaney
Published: August 23,2016
Washington Gov. Jay Inslee has declared a state of emergency for 20 counties in eastern parts of the state due to several wildfires that have burned thousands of acres, forced evacuations and destroyed homes.
After touring several fire scenes, Inslee issued the declaration Tuesday, according to the Associated Press. The emergency declaration will allow state agencies to assist local governments in the response and recovery processes of this disaster. It'll also allow the state Emergency Operations Center to coordinate state firefighting efforts and also to call in members of the National Guard to help, if needed, the AP also said.
About 300 firefighters are battling the largest Washington blaze, named the Spokane Complex fire, which includes the Yale Road and Wellesley fires, KOMO-TV reported.
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A charred truck is seen near the home of Julie and Art Thayer on South Yale Road near Valleyford, Wash., on Monday, Aug 22, 2016. The Thayers had been hiking over the weekend and returned home Sunday night to find their home destroyed.
(Tyler Tjomsland/The Spokesman-Review via AP)

The fast-moving Yale Road fire quickly exploded to 35,000 acres and, within hours, houses were destroyed.
"The fire came across this field … and the wind started blowing up and before you knew it took over the whole house," area resident Rebecca DeLano told KOMO.
Despite firefighters' best efforts, at least 16 homes have been consumed by the fires around Spokane, which are being driven by high winds amid dry conditions.
"August lies in the heart of the driest time of year in eastern Washington, so it's no surprise rain is not in the forecast for the next several days," said weather.com meteorologist Jon Erdman. "Winds won't be strong over the next few days, which will help to limit the fire's spread, but that also means smoke could become dense each morning without the strong winds to mix the pollutants up."
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One of the Washington fires, near Davenport in Lincoln County, had scorched more than nine square miles by Monday morning and destroyed at least six homes, the state Department of Natural Resources told the AP.
The fire jumped the Spokane River and threatened the small community of Wellpinit on the Spokane Indian Reservation. Residents were told to evacuate after the town lost power.
Another fire burning on the northeast side of Spokane had consumed 250 acres by Sunday evening and officials told the AP that some homes were likely destroyed.
A third wildfire, south of Spokane near the town of Spangle, destroyed at least 10 homes and numerous other structures on Sunday, the Washington State Patrol told the AP.
The fire grew to more than six square miles on Monday morning, and some residents of the rural area were ordered to evacuate immediately.
Whether or not those residents will come home to charred ruins remains to be seen.