PUBLIC LANDS -- Starting at midnight, Lake Roosevelt officials will close a long stretch of land along the reservoir's shores impacted by the Hart Road Fire, which started on Aug. 21.

The fire burned 585 acres of federal land along the Spokane River within Lake Roosevelt National Recreation Area before jumping the river and burning thousands of acres farther north, including the Spokane Indian Reservation. 

The Lake Roosevelt access closure within the fire footprint is for safety reasons, park officials say.  "This closure includes all vehicle, horse, and foot traffic, as well as all shoreline access encompassing all federal land burned in the Hart Road Fire from the park boundary to the waterline," they said in a media release.  An exception exists for landowners with easements to their property.

Off-roading vehicle use is not allowed anywhere at Lake Roosevelt National Recreation Area.