Firefighters make headway as mop-up continues

Barring wind-fanned hotspots, the region’s three big wildfires should remain mostly contained through the weekend as hundreds of firefighters on Saturday continued mop-up across more than 46,600 scorched acres in two counties.

Fire officials said the weekend’s 90-plus degree heat and 25 mph wind gusts predicted for Sunday evening will be watched carefully by crews on the Spartan Fire in Chelan County and the Sutherland Canyon and Straight Hollow fires in Douglas County.

By Monday, fire management and containment efforts in both counties should be back in mostly local hands, said fire spokesman Nick Mickel.

Chelan County Fire District 1 and the state Department of Natural Resources assumed management of the Spartan Fire on Saturday. By Monday, management of the Sutherland Canyon and Straight Hollow fires will likely be turned over to Douglas County Fire District 2, Grant County Fire District 3 and local crews of the Bureau of Land Management, said Mickel.

“Work has been going on very well and it’s been very quiet on the radio,” Mickel said Friday afternoon, adding “So we’ve been really happy with the progress so far today.”

That progress has allowed fire officials to start demobilizing some resources and personnel, said Mickel, although some fire teams will likely remain stationed in the area – just in case.

“Still looking at a (weekend) cold front . which could bring some winds,” Mickel said. Overall, “things are winding down slowly, but we’re not losing sight of the need to finish the job up there.”