![]() Due to the predominantly cool and wet conditions, wildfire activity was limited. ^ "National Significant Wildland Fire Potential Outlook" (PDF).One death was determined to be from the Gray Fire while another was caused by the nearby Oregon Road Fire. It prompted the evacuation of Medical Lake and parts of Cheney and shut down portions of Interstate 90 and State Route 902. The Gray Fire was ignited on August 18 near Medical Lake in Spokane County and grew to over 9,500 acres (3,800 ha) within a day. Smoke from this fire and other fires in inland Washington and British Columbia was pushed towards Western Washington and rapid convective mixing caused unhealthy air quality in Seattle on August 20–21. The highway was closed again due to the fire's growth as well as the formation of the Blue Lake Fire. Trailheads, trails, and camping in North Cascades National Park remained closed after the road reopened on August 9. The North Cascades Highway was closed for several days due to the Sourdough Fire. The fire approached to kilometers of Osoyoos, British Columbia on July 31, and the entire town of Osoyoos was on evacuation alert. The fire crossed into Canada on July 30–31 and Level 3 evacuations (leave now) were downgraded to level 1 and 2 evacuations. The Eagle Bluff Fire near Oroville in Okanogan County reached 10,000 acres by July 30, with 15 aircraft were fighting it. As of July 5, 2023, it had caused evacuations of hundreds of homes, had burned over 250 acres (100 ha), and was uncontained. ![]() The McEwan Fire started near Mason Lake, in Western Washington 30 miles (50 km) southwest of Seattle on July 2. It burned 529 acres (214 ha) and was 80% contained by July 10. The Tunnel Five Fire started near Underwood in Skamania County on July 2. State firefighting resources including tanker aircraft were mobilized to fight it. ![]() ![]() The Oasis Fire near Touchet grew to over 1,500 acres (610 ha) by June 19, bringing evacuation orders by Walla Walla County emergency managers. Ī wildfire under 100 acres (40 ha) near Lake Sutherland outside Olympic National Park was visible on June 18 from Victoria, British Columbia on the other side of the Strait of Juan de Fuca. Three fires in grass and sagebrush in Benton County burned 7,000 acres by June 16. The 10,000 acre Hat Rock Fire in Oregon crossed into Walla Walla County on June 13, where it burned more than 1,000 acres before being contained. It had burned almost 645 acres by June 8. The Old Naches Highway fire incident was reported on June 7. The 10th Street fire at East Wenatchee resulted in level 1 evacuations on May 27 and burned 250 acres (100 ha) of grass and sagebrush. Īs of August 22, 2023, the Washington State Department of Natural Resources dashboard reported that 1,515 fires have burned a total of 146,220 acres (59,170 hectares) in Washington during the year to date. The Northwest Coordination Center upgraded the region's preparedness level (referring to the availability of firefighting resources) from PL 1 to PL 2 on July 3, PL 3 on July 23, PL 4 on August 12, and PL5-the highest level-on August 19. The Washington State Department of Natural Resources planned to ignite controlled burns on over 2,100 acres (8 km 2) to prevent larger fires from developing during the season. Some experts anticipate a later peak, possibly into November, for the Pacific Northwest due to El Niño effects. The 2023 Washington wildfire season officially began in March 2023 in the US state of Washington.Ĭonditions going into the season were low-risk for fire, with higher than average precipitation over the prior winter and spring.
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