Wildfires spark evacuations in Washington amid dangerous conditions across the Pacific Northwest
A fast-moving wildfire outside Spokane, Washington, burned more than 2,000 acres and sparked evacuations on Saturday, according to local authorities.
The Old Trails Fire, which had scorched more than 2,300 acres, was one of three fires burning in the Spokane area on Saturday amid dangerous, windy conditions.
It's unknown how many homes have been destroyed, but state officials said about 4,000 structures are threatened by the blaze.
At a news conference on Saturday evening, Washington Gov. Bob Ferguson said he's seen videos on social media of homes burning, calling it an "extremely difficult situation for Washingtonians" and stressing the rapidly shifting conditions.
"Things are extremely dynamic especially in Spokane," Ferguson said.
Washington National Guard Maj. Gen. Gent Welsh said the scenes around Spokane could be devastating.
"In Spokane -- its a tragedy what we are seeing over there," he said, adding "When sun rises, we are going to be in shock to see the scenes that come out of there "
Earlier, the National Weather Service issued a rare Particularly Dangerous Situation Red Flag Warning from 2 p.m. to 8 p.m. PT on Saturday across parts of eastern Washington and Oregon, including Spokane and Pendleton. This is the highest alert possible by the National Weather Service for fire weather danger.
Critical to extremely critical fire weather conditions are threatening parts of the Northwest this weekend bringing the threat of dangerous, rapidly spreading wildfires.
Fire weather alerts were posted across a large portion of the region, from Oregon to Montana.
The most dangerous fire conditions Saturday were mostly due to persistent strong winds and very dry conditions impacting parts of parts of Washington state and Oregon.
Firefighters in Washington reported the wildfire near Spokane fire was crowning, meaning it was burning in the tops of trees making firefighters' efforts more difficult.
Earlier Saturday, Ferguson declared a statewide state of emergency due to drought conditions and issued a burn ban until the end of September.
"The ban does not prohibit liquid-fueled or gas-fueled stoves or grills over non-flammable surfaces and at least five feet from flammable vegetation; agricultural or silvicultural burning with appropriate fire permits; or campfires on private property or at state, county and municipal parks and campgrounds that are contained in structures such as fire rings or fire pits," the governor's office said in a statement.
Multiple large wildfires continued to burn across eastern Oregon and Washington, and the massive amount of smoke coming from these wildfires is also bringing hazy skies and impacting air quality in parts of the Northwest.
So far this season, wildfires have burned more than 1.7 million acres in Oregon with 30 uncontained large wildfires currently burning across the state this weekend. In 2024, a record 1.93 million acres burned across the state.
More than two thirds of the West continue to experience drought conditions of varying intensity. In Oregon, more than half of the state is facing severe drought (level 2 of 4) conditions, with roughly 20% of the state currently experiencing an extreme drought (level 3 of 4).
Extreme heat across West
The fire conditions coms amid extreme heat that is hitting millions in the West this weekend, impacting more than 50 million Americans with heat alerts posted from California to Montana.
Extreme Heat Warnings are in place for Los Angeles, Las Vegas, Phoenix and also farther north for cities like Salt Lake City and Billings, Montana.
In Phoenix, daily record highs will be challenged on Saturday and Sunday with a high temperature of 116 degrees on both days.
