Evacuations ordered on Colville Reservation due to wildfire that's making Spokane air unhealthy
Temperatures soared in Spokane on Wednesday to 98 degrees, the highest recorded temperature this summer, as wildfire smoke settled across the region.
The Williams Flats Fire burning on the Colville Indian Reservation northwest of Spokane grew to 21,190 acres Wednesday night. Evacuation orders were issued for 25 houses.
Preparing for the fire to possibly jump Lake Roosevelt, officials placed another 125 structures on a Level 1 evacuation notice Wednesday morning, said Mike Tedesco, executive director for the Spokane Tribe. Those buildings, east of the fire, stand between the banks of the Columbia River and State Route 25, which runs north to Fruitland and south to Davenport.
The fire burned eastward toward Lake Roosevelt Tuesday night and now burns about 1.5 miles away from the lake’s shore, said Marc Hollen, spokesman for Northwest Interagency Incident Management Team 8.
Read more: http://www.spokesman.com/stories/2019/aug/07/evacuations-ordered-on-colville-reservation-due-to/
(Spokane Spokesman-Review)