Washington wildfires spread to 5,000-plus acres, 600 structures damaged or destroyed
Washington state's governor issued a burn ban until the end of September.
A fast-moving wildfire in Spokane County, Washington, has burned several thousand acres, destroyed numerous homes and prompted hundreds of evacuations, according to local authorities on Sunday.
The Old Trails Fire, which had scorched more than 3,500 acres, is one of three wildfires burning in the Spokane area amid dangerous, windy conditions.
Together, the three fires – including the Fairview Fire and the Autumn Lane Fire – are now being called the Spokane Complex Fire, authorities said on Sunday morning.
Combined, the fires have burned 5,400 acres, officials said. All three fires ignited on Saturday afternoon and have destroyed or damaged an estimated 600 structures, including homes, according to authorities.
State officials said on Saturday night that about 4,000 structures were threatened by the Spokane Complex Fire.
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.
The governor said he would travel on Sunday to Spokane to survey the damage and meet with emergency personnel.
Washington National Guard Maj. Gen. Gent Welsh said the scenes around Spokane could be devastating.
"In Spokane, it's a tragedy what we are seeing over there," he said. "When the sun rises, we are going to be in shock to see the scenes that come out of there "
The National Weather Service (NWS) issued a rare Particularly Dangerous Situation Red Flag Warning on Saturday across parts of eastern Washington and Oregon, including Spokane and Pendleton. This is the highest alert possible by the NWS for fire weather danger.
Critical to extremely critical fire weather conditions are threatening other 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 Washington state and Oregon.
Firefighters in Washington reported the wildfire near Spokane was crowning, meaning it was burning in the tops of trees, making firefighting efforts more challenging.
Ferguson declared a statewide state of emergency on Saturday 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.
Meanwhile, multiple large wildfires continued to burn on Sunday across eastern Oregon and Washington, emitting massive amount of smoke turning skies hazy and impacting air quality in parts of the Northwest.
Wildfires this year have burned more than 1.7 million acres in Oregon, with 30 large wildfires not yet contained 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 is continuing 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 dangerous fire conditions come amid extreme heat that is hitting millions of people in the West this weekend, impacting more than 45 million Americans with heat alerts posted from California to the Dakotas.
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 Sunday with a high temperature of 116 degrees.
ABC News' Jessica Gorman contributed to this report.
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