Rain helps crews contain Gold Bar, Oso wildfires
May 16, 2016, 5:15 AM
A fire on U.S. forest service land near Gold Bar is burning and fire officials have issued a Level 2 evacuation notice to parts of the area. (KIRO 7)
(KIRO 7)
Rain and cooler weather is helping firefighters in Western Washington fight two wildfires in rough terrain. But fire officials say it will take a lot more than a gentle rain to put out the two fires burning in Snohomish County.
A spokesman with an inter-agency fire team, Randy Shepard, says the fire burning on U.S. Forest Service land near Gold Bar in Proctor Creek has burned about 352 acres, KIRO 7 reports.
Shepard says the fire is now 90 percent contained.
Heavy fuel and steep terrain mean this fire will take a while to put out, Shepard says, but there has been no significant growth in the blaze this weekend.
A level one evacuation notice is still in effect, which means people may be asked to leave their homes but are not immediately threatened.
Another fire burning near Oso, the Hot Shot Fire, is now 50 percent contained. New mapping has shrunk the size of that blaze to about 67 acres.
The causes of both fires are still under investigation.
No homes have been lost and no injuries have been reported, as of Sunday night.
