Wildfires begin blazing in wake of record-breaking heat across Washington

by Nick Bowman

Wildfires have already begun to take hold across Washington in the wake of record heat both east and west of the Cascades.

Western Washington enters dangerous wildfire territory

That has responders currently battling a 31-square-mile fire in Adams County, after getting sparked in the town of Lind on Sunday morning. The fast-moving brush fire has been threatening homes and vital infrastructure.

Evacuation orders for the area have varied from area to area, ranging from Level 1 warnings that residents should be “aware of danger,” to Level 3, which means that there is “immediate danger,” and that residents should leave their homes right away.

A separate wildfire in Kittitas County ripped through one home and “several outbuildings” on Sunday before responders were able to contain it and get it under control. Two firefighters suffered non-life-threatening injuries in the blaze, while dozens of residents were temporarily evacuated by Kittitas County Sheriff’s deputies. Those residents have since been able to return to their homes.

Despite not seeing wildfires on the scale of more rural areas, Seattle hasn’t made it through the last few days completely unscathed either, responding to six brush and bark fires on Sunday alone.

State officials are warning Washingtonians to exercise caution, especially while the state’s heat wave persists, and to avoid lighting fireworks or littering with smoking materials.