Heat, High Winds Turn Up Fire Danger Reduced Firefighting Budget Critical Part Of Risk Factor

July rains have much of Washington state bathing in green, leaving fire danger for this time of year uncharacteristically low.

But state fire officials are bracing for the worst: Temperatures are soaring, the wind is whipping and legislators have whacked away at the firefighting budget.

At a time when more people are flocking to live in the woods, the Washington Department of Natural Resources is struggling to defend them from fire, officials said Thursday.

Nine permanent fire manager jobs will be eliminated by month’s end. An agency that had 284 full-time firefighters in 1980 will be down to 212 - a 25 percent drop.

Seasonal firefighters will hold steady at 350, but that’s down from 425 just a few years ago.

The 1995-97 biennial budget will be finalized later this month.

“The real concern we have is when you start to reduce the resources we have available, you run the risk of small fires becoming larger fires,” said Randy Acker, DNR division manager for resource protection.

The state agency protects 12 million acres of land with a budget expected to drop from $22.3 million in the last biennium to $21 million.

While tightwad legislators are appealing to voters, their cuts aren’t always practical, firefighting officials say.

DNR’s goal is to keep small fires small, so initial fire attacks are crucial. That takes firefighters.

“When we can’t do that,” Acker said, “that’s when we start to run up costs.”

Heavy spring and summer rains that are a blessing now will turn into a bane within a few days. Blistering weather quickly is draining moisture from vegetation. The tall lush grasses are becoming crispy brown fire fuel.

District 3 firefighters doused a one-acre grass fire near Medical Lake on Thursday.

“We’re starting to get a call a day at least. It’s been small,” Chief Bruce Holloway said. “But the danger is there.”

“If the weather stays like it is for the next couple of weeks, the danger will increase,” said Dan Blystone, the District 8 fire marshal.

But this week’s dry, hot weather and gusty winds may not continue.

The forecast for the rest of July calls for temperatures dropping, with highs in the 80s. An above average amount of precipitation is expected for the end of July, said Milt Maas, a National Weather Service weather specialist.

The possibility of dry lightning strikes adds to the danger.

Last July 24, 1,678 strikes were recorded across the state in one day, touching off the worst wildfires since 1929.

Monday is the first anniversary of the Tyee Creek blaze that scorched 140,000 acres in the Wenatchee National Forest near Entiat and Chelan.

In 1988, the Dinkelman fire in the same area burned 80,000 acres.

, DataTimes ILLUSTRATION: Color Photo

The following fields overflowed: CREDIT = J. Todd Foster Staff writer Staff writer Gita Sitaramiah contributed to this report.