|
|
UPDATE: Huge Brush Fire Subsides In Central Washington
Evacuation order canceled
The Associated Press
July 23, 2008, 12:53 PM PDT
QUINCY, WA —
An evacuation order for up to 300 people
was lifted Wednesday as more firefighters were put to work on a
wind-driven wildfire fueled by sagebrush in central Washington,
officials said.
A survey Wednesday morning showed the blaze had covered more
than 2.3 square miles - not the nearly 8 miles officials had feared
on Tuesday - and was about 20 percent contained, said Lt. Bob
Schwiesow of Douglas County Fire District 2.
The fire had been pushed by 25 mph wind, with higher gusts, as
it spread through parts of Grant and Douglas counties near the
small town of Trinidad, about 20 miles southeast of Wenatchee.
State firefighters were mobilized late Tuesday to help more than
100 firefighters from those counties and neighboring Chelan County,
and officials hoped the fire would be contained by the end of the
day.
"It's starting to look pretty good now," Schwiesow said.
The fire destroyed two barns and an old homestead that "hadn't
had anybody in it for probably 20 years," Schwiesow said. No
injuries were reported.
Copyright © 2008, The Associated Press
|
|
|
|
|
E-mail story
Print