Washington wildfire

Desperate neighbors tried to cut fire lines with hand tools Tuesday to help protect property against a fast-moving wildfire that destroyed at least 70 homes and burned more than 40 square miles on the east slope of the Cascades.

Section:Gallery

Tue., Aug. 14, 2012

Flames surround a house Tuesday, Aug. 14, 2012, on a hillside above Bettas Road near Cle Elum, Wash. Wildland firefighters on-site advised that the house survived the fire. The fast-moving wildfire has burned 60 homes across nearly 40 square miles of central Washington grassland, timber and sagebrush. No injuries have been reported but more than 400 people have been forced to flee.

Elaine Thompson Associated Press
As embers still smolder and the charred hillside is seen behind, people sift through the remains of their home that was destroyed in a wildfire the night before Tuesday, Aug. 14, 2012, on Bettas Road near Cle Elum, Wash. The fast-moving wildfire has burned 60 homes across nearly 40 square miles of central Washington grassland, timber and sagebrush. No injuries have been reported but more than 400 people have been forced to flee.

Elaine Thompson Associated Press
A woman sits on the remains of a home that was destroyed in a wildfire the night before Tuesday, Aug. 14, 2012, on Bettas Road near Cle Elum, Wash. The fast-moving wildfire has burned 60 homes across nearly 40 square miles of central Washington grassland, timber and sagebrush. No injuries have been reported but more than 400 people have been forced to flee.

Elaine Thompson Associated Press
Flames curl behind as a water truck keeps fire away from a house Tuesday, Aug. 14, 2012, on Bettas Road near Cle Elum, Wash. The fast-moving wildfire has burned 60 homes across nearly 40 square miles of central Washington grassland, timber and sagebrush. No injuries have been reported but more than 400 people have been forced to flee.

Elaine Thompson Associated Press
A man tosses dirt on a fire as he tries to save his home Tuesday, Aug. 14, 2012, on Bettas Road near Cle Elum, Wash. The house did not burn. The fast-moving wildfire has burned 60 homes across nearly 40 square miles of central Washington grassland, timber and sagebrush. No injuries have been reported but more than 400 people have been forced to flee.

Elaine Thompson Associated Press
A tree is engulfed in flames as a fire burns the grass ahead Tuesday, Aug. 14, 2012, on Bettas Road near Cle Elum, Wash. The fast-moving wildfire has burned 60 homes across nearly 40 square miles of central Washington grassland, timber and sagebrush. No injuries have been reported but more than 400 people have been forced to flee.

Elaine Thompson Associated Press
Men watch as fire roars across ranch land Tuesday, Aug. 14, 2012, on Bettas Road near Cle Elum, Wash. The fast-moving wildfire has burned 60 homes across nearly 40 square miles of central Washington grassland, timber and sagebrush. No injuries have been reported but more than 400 people have been forced to flee.

Elaine Thompson Associated Press
A homeowner tries to hold back flames from his house with a shovel Tuesday, Aug. 14, 2012, near Cle Elum, Wash. The fast-moving wildfire has burned 60 homes across nearly 40 square miles of central Washington grassland, timber and sagebrush. No injuries have been reported but more than 400 people have been forced to flee.

Elaine Thompson Associated Press
A helicopter drops water taken from the adjacent Yakima River onto a wildfire Tuesday, Aug. 14, 2012, on Highway 10 near Cle Elum, Wash. The fast-moving wildfire has burned 60 homes across nearly 40 square miles of central Washington grassland, timber and sagebrush. No injuries have been reported but more than 400 people have been forced to flee.

Elaine Thompson Associated Press