Cold Springs Fire Archives - Northwest Public Broadcasting

Eastern Washington Residents Praise Facebook Group For Connections During Trying Fire Seasons

By Courtney Flatt October 15, 2020

The Palmer Fire in Okanogan County, southwest of Oroville, seen from the Aeneas Mountain Lookout Tuesday evening, Aug. 18, 2020. Smoke from a fire in nearby British Columbia is also visible.

At around 18,000 members, the Okanogan Highlands Fire Watch group continues to provide what members call valuable and lifesaving information. People post evacuation notices, fire maps and recovery resources throughout fire season. Daniel Pratt started the group in 2015 during another particularly bad fire season for Okanogan County.Read More

Fire-Evacuated Farmworkers From Bridgeport Slept In A Brewster Park As The Pearl Hill Fire Burned

By Enrique Pérez de la Rosa September 18, 2020

File photo. Brewster, in Okanogan County, shown here in 2013, is one of the primary areas of north-central Washington's tree-fruit industry -- for growing, packing and shipping. CREDIT: Jessica Robinson/N3

According to community members in Bridgeport and Brewster, and farmworkers who spoke on the condition of anonymity, orchard supervisors told workers they needed to evacuate with little to no warning. Workers said they were told to grab their documents and quickly board company buses. Then, they were taken to a city park in Brewster, across the Columbia River. Read More

UPDATES: Crews Make Good Progress In Eastern Washington Fires; Hundreds Of Homes Burned

By NWPB News September 16, 2020

The Inchelium Complex, comprised of three smaller fires, is burning in timber and grasslands on the eastern side of the reservation of the Colville Confederated Tribes, shown here on Sept. 12, 2020. CREDIT: InciWeb

Labor Day 2020 lived up to its name if you’re a firefighter. It was a day that set up for numerous fires in central and eastern Washington that have burned tens of thousands of acres, and possibly many more. At least 80 fires started in Washington in what officials call a historic fire event. Read More

Extreme End To The 2020 Northwest Fire Season Reminds Of The 1910 ‘Big Burn’

By Courtney Flatt September 9, 2020

Late afternoon light catches smoke from the Cold Springs Fire near a structure that appeared to be empty long before the fire, Monday, Sept. 7, 2020, near Omak, Washington. CREDIT: Tyler Tjomsland/The Spokesman-Review via AP

Usually, fire season starts to tamp down in September. This year has been anything but normal. In an unprecedented fire event, at least 80 fires started in Washington over Labor Day weekend.Read More