Several wildfires burning across eastern Washington grew explosively overnight, leaving crews stretched thin as flames raced through tinder dry country. Officials pointed to bone dry fuels and gusty winds as the driving force behind the rapid growth, and a red flag warning across the region signaled that conditions were ripe for fires to keep spreading fast. Fire managers urged people in the affected areas to keep a go bag ready in case the flames moved closer.
The most dramatic growth came from the Lions Ferry Fire in Franklin County, which exploded to more than 25,000 acres. The blaze remains uncontained, and fire officials said the combination of dry fuels and strong overnight winds caused it to balloon in size in a matter of hours. What had been a far smaller fire earlier in the week has now become one of the largest active burns in the region.
Southeast of the Lions Ferry Fire, a separate blaze known as the Neff Jones Fire was burning next to the Snake River near Burr Canyon. That fire had already grown to more than 7,100 acres with no containment, adding another front for firefighters working across the sprawling, rugged terrain of southeastern Washington.
Farther north, the Kaiser Canyon Fire near Nespelem and the Grand Coulee Dam has almost doubled in size over the last several days, sending heavy smoke drifting toward Omak. As that fire pushed outward, State Route 155 was closed between Convalescent Boulevard South and Rebecca Lake Road, cutting off a stretch of highway near the flames.
The weather offered firefighters little relief. A red flag warning was in place with relative humidity dropping into the 10 to 20 percent range and wind gusts of 25 to 35 miles per hour across areas including Chelan and the Grand Coulee Dam. Hot, dry and gusty conditions made for an especially challenging afternoon on the fire lines, with little natural help on the way.
The smoke from the fires prompted air quality concerns across parts of central and eastern Washington, where an air quality alert was issued because of the recent burns. Forecasters said high level smoke would continue to push toward the northeast, though western Washington was expected to stay relatively clear, with no major smoke problems anticipated on that side of the state.
Looking ahead, forecasters said a bit more moisture could move in on Sunday, offering a short break before temperatures climb again on Monday. Central and eastern Washington are expected to push back into triple digit heat early next week, keeping fire danger elevated. With the largest fires still uncontained, officials continued to urge residents to stay alert and be ready to leave quickly if conditions worsened.