A
Community Meeting will be held tonight Thursday, August 14 at 7:00 pm at the
Valley Hi Fire Station. All
members of the public are invited to attend.
Ten
thousand lightning strikes occurred last night in the Northwest states,
accompanied by 1/4 inch to nearly ½ an inch of rain within the incident
area. Fuels remain very
moist; however, fire danger still exists. Lightning may have ignited new fires
which could show up over the next several days. Initial attack crews are available to
respond to any new starts.
Thursday and Friday fire behavior is expected to be more
benign. However, fires are
still expected to creep and smolder under forested areas with heavy
canopy. Large woody fuels
are still dry. By Saturday,
conditions are expected to dry up and those fine fuels will once again burn
easily.
Progress
on the Duncan Fire was made difficult by wet
conditions. Heavy
rains caused a creek channel to change direction, threatening nearby homes.
Firefighters showed considerable flexibility by working with the local Forest
Service Ranger District, moving and placing sandbags to mitigate stream
overflow.
Reductions
in evacuation levels have
occurred: Level 2 Evacuation Notices have
been downgraded to Level 1 and are in effect from Entiat River Rd
from Mile Post 18 to the community of Brief, on Entiat River Rd from Brief to
the end of County Rd, and on Tyee Rd, Genne Rd, and Jennie Ln.
Crews are
continuing to make progress on the north/northeastern portion of the Hansel Creek Fire. At the western edge of
the fire, firefighters made significant progress building fireline toward a
rocky area and conducting mop-up. The
fire remains west of Highway 97. Structure protection is in place and the
portion of the fire closest to Highway 97 remains secured.
Level 2
Evacuation Notices on
Highway 97 have been downgraded
to Level 1 in the stretch of
the highway from Ingalls Creek to Camas Creek Road, and in Valley Hi from
Ingalls Ln. to Cottonwood Ln. Level
3 Evacuation Notices have been downgraded
to Level 2 between Ingalls
Creek Rd, Hanzel Cr. Rd, and Pine Ridge Rd.
Wet
conditions are making travel difficult towards the Shoofly Fire. Very steep terrain has made
direct attack difficult. Firefighters are developing contingencies on Lake
Creek Road and the Heather Creek Drainage that may be used as containment
lines.
The Alpine Fire is
now 100% lined, and 80% contained, and will be unstaffed today.
Mop-up continues
on the northwest corner of Chiwaukum
Creek Fire at McCue Ridge. Rehabilitation of the fire
lines and mop-up activities continue. Spotting along the western/northwestern
edges of the fire has been contained, and hoselines are being removed from the
line. Level 1 Evacuation
Notices have been issued on
Coulier Rd.
Public
Safety: Successive
rain events are expected to occur throughout the day, with the possibility of
3/10 of an inch within a 20 minute period. Wet conditions, mixed with erosion
from the fire have caused Flash
Flood Warnings in effect
through Friday night.
There are
multiple fires in the area with large equipment and increased road
traffic. Fire equipment may
be on the roads at any time during the day as they respond to new starts, and
wet conditions make roads dangerous, so please travel with caution.
All major
roads including Highway 2 and Highway 97 are open. Businesses in surrounding communities
remain open and ready for business!
Evacuations/Closure
Information: Chelan County Emergency Services posts updated evacuations and
closures atfacebook.com/pages/Chelan-
Okanogan-Wenatchee
National Forest: http://www.fs.usda.gov/
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