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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Area wildfires break out amid hot, dry conditions

Staff and wire reports
At least two wildfires have engulfed thousands of acres of private and government-owned lands in Central Washington as conditions worsen for those battling the blazes. Grant County officials have doused the front of a fire that has scorched 800 acres near Quincy, Wash., said Don Fortier, chief of Grant County Fire District 3. Some flanks of the fire are still active, Fortier said, and high winds are a concern. No evacuations have been ordered though a few structures are still threatened, Fortier said. A wildfire in Chelan County near Entiat, Wash., has swallowed 5,000 acres, officials said Wednesday morning, and evacuations have been ordered for those living in areas around Mills Canyon. The fire broke out just after noon Tuesday, according to a news release from the U.S. Forest Service. The blaze, which is located roughly four miles west of Entiat, north of Wenatchee, has burned land owned privately and federal forestland, according the Forest Service. Local, state and federal fire agencies are working to douse the fire. Temperatures are expected to break 90 degrees Wednesday in the areas affected by the fires, according to the National Weather Service. A red flag warning has been issued for the area, indicating dry and breezy conditions could lead to rapid fire spread. Gusts could reach 35 miles per hour in some areas.