Level 3 evacuations in place for Wenatchee fire days after WA’s ‘fire season’ ended
Oct 14, 2024, 9:39 AM | Updated: 9:57 am
Several evacuations are in place for a wildfire burning outside of Wenatchee. The fire is estimated to be 25 acres in size and is reportedly moving slowly.
Level 3 evacuations are currently in place for Wenatchee Heights. Level 3 is a “Go Now” advisory, meaning the area is under serious threat of wildfire damage. This alert affects the areas west of Connery Road and the north end of Jim Smith Road.
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A Level 2 — get ready — evacuation notice was issued for the 3200 block of Squilchuck Road, but has since been downgraded to a Level 1 warning.
“Current conditions present a specific and immediate threat to the life and safety of persons within this area,” a Chelan County Emergency Management Facebook post read. “While fire activity has settled down with the decreasing temperatures, the proximity of the fire to the Wenatchee Heights area means we will be keeping those evacuation levels as is.”
The fire started just after 2:15 p.m. Sunday, according to the Central Washington Interagency Communication Center.
2024’s wildfire season
The evacuations were announced two days after Washington Public Lands Commissioner Hilary Franz held an “end-of-wildfire-season” press conference. Franz revealed an estimated 308,000 acres burned throughout Washington this year, more than the 151,000 in 2023 and 174,000 in 2022, but less than the 674,000 in 2021 and 842,000 in 2020.
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According to Franz, firefighters kept 95% of the more than 1,400 ignitions this year under 10 acres, but approximately 90% of fires in the state were caused by humans, showing Franz and others that education and outreach for fire prevention are still vital.
“People need to be doing their part to be one less spark and reduce the fires in the first place,” Franz said. “Our progress to date is truly a testament to the infrastructure investments we have made year after year and how we are fighting our fires more strategically.”
The cause of the fire is currently under investigation.
This is a developing story, check back for updates
Frank Sumrall is a content editor at MyNorthwest. You can read his stories here and you can email him here.
