Fire Started At Army Center Has Burned 58,000 Acres Blaze Sparked By Shooting Practice Spread Near Hanford, But No Facilities In Danger

Sat., Aug. 17, 1996

Associated Press

A wildfire sparked by shooting practice at the U.S. Army’s Yakima Firing Center has burned 58,000 acres in Central Washington’s Yakima and Benton counties, officials said Friday.

Crews completed fire breaks around the blaze Friday and it could be brought under control by today, Benton County Emergency Management spokeswoman Judy Hebert said.

The fire started Wednesday on the U.S. Army firing range and spread southeast to portions of the Hanford nuclear reservation, Hebert said.

No homes were threatened, no injuries were reported and no Hanford facilities were jeopardized, said a spokesman for the U.S. Energy Department, which operates Hanford.

“Right now things are looking pretty fair,” DOE spokesman Mike Fergus said.

The fire blackened about 10,000 acres on the nuclear reservation, some in the uninhabited Arid Lands Ecology Reserve.

About 100 firefighters and support personnel were aided by two helicopters and two planes dumping water on the fire, which was burning in sagebrush and dry grass hills, officials said.

The fire briefly closed Highways 24 and 240 on the nuclear reservation, but they were reopened Friday afternoon.

Firing-center spokesman Ken Cooper said the fire was no longer burning on the range, but hundreds of soldiers were mopping up hot spots.

It was the second fire in a week started by live-fire exercises on the Army’s weapons training center. Sparks from exploding ammunition touched off a 1,500-acre brush fire Sunday, but that fire was quickly extinguished

Meanwhile, a wildfire that burned 3,000 acres and destroyed eight homes northwest of Spokane was declared controlled early Friday and 150 firefighters were sent home.

About 250 firefighters and support personnel were to remain on hand Saturday to mop up smoldering areas, said spokesman Lloyd Handlos of the state Department of Natural Resources.

Most of the remaining crews were being sent home over the weekend, he said.

Fire-related costs were estimated at $1.5 million - $650,000 in property damage and another $905,000 for firefighting, Handlos said.

Local journalism is essential.

Give directly to The Spokesman-Review's Northwest Passages community forums series -- which helps to offset the costs of several reporter and editor positions at the newspaper -- by using the easy options below. Gifts processed in this system are tax deductible.

Meet Our Journalists

Jesse Tinsley

Meet Jesse Tinsley. As a certified drone pilot, this veteran Spokesman-Review photographer often can be seen capturing beautiful aerial photographs of our region. Sometimes though, the job requires getting down with the dogs.
Jim Meehan

Jim Meehan is no stranger to Zag Nation. As the lead writer covering the Gonzaga men’s basketball team, he tells the stories behind the game and gets fans a bit closer to their favorite players.
Molly Quinn

There is no artist in Spokane like Molly Quinn. Her whimsical style is instantly recognizable to readers of The Spokesman-Review. She has painted gorgeous illustrations that instantly elevate the journalism accompanying it. She brings to life the stories that defy photography. She makes our pages better.
Rob Curley

Spokesman-Review editor Rob Curley loves to talk with people and learn about their lives, whether it's a best-selling author or a stranger he meets downtown on his walk to lunch. It's that inquisitive nature combined with a playful sense of storytelling that helps make our newspaper different than most.