Natural Area Scorched By Wildfire Dishman Hills Blaze Burns 4 Acres

Smoke billowed above the Dishman Hills Natural Area Monday as a wildfire destroyed four acres of protected habitat but spared a group of homes 1,000 yards below.

Fire officials called the Spokane Valley blaze a warning, and implored the public to be extra careful during the current hot, dry conditions.

Debris from last year’s ice storm, thick underbrush and full-grown pines provided ample fuel for the blaze, which began about 11:30 a.m.

Officials from the state Department of Natural Resources have not yet determined the cause of the blaze, but nearby residents suspect human carelessness.

“We’re quite fortunate today,” said Paul Chase, fire marshal for Spokane Valley Fire District 1. Chase monitored the fire from the corner of 12th and Siesta.

“The wind isn’t blowing too hard (today),” he said. “Typically, the wind blows right this way.”

About 40 firefighters from the DNR and three local fire districts fought rough terrain and temperatures in the 80s as well as the flames Monday afternoon.

An orange DNR plane flew low above the trees, dropping 900-gallon loads of water from Lake Coeur d’Alene onto the fire and spraying concerned homeowners and other onlookers who gathered in the streets to squint at the smoke.

Irene Hluboky, whose back yard abuts the natural area, wetted down the tall grass along her fence and hoped for the best. She tried to keep busy by making Kool-Aid for her grandchildren and the firefighters.

“This is not a good time for her,” her daughter-in-law, Lisa Hluboky, explained quietly. After recently suffering a mild stroke and the death of two family members last week, Hluboky was having to worry about the nearby fire.

“It’s been waiting to happen,” said Hluboky, who has lived next to the natural area for eight years.

She and her neighbors worry about youths who often gather in the park on summer nights, parking their cars nearby and sometimes staying until morning.

Campfires, hunting, motorized vehicles and even bicycles are prohibited within the 518-acre conservation area. But even during the firefighting effort, a pair of young men on mountain bikes rode out from inside the wooded area.

Nearby resident Wes Chenoweth said a group of kids who were smoking started a small fire in the natural area near his home recently. The kids’ father was able to put the fire out with a fire extinguisher.

“They’ve had a lot of fires up here in Dishman,” Chenoweth said.

“It is a nice little refuge,” said Hluboky. “People should start respecting it as such.”

Debris from the ice storm still blocks some trails, and even took out a fender on one brush engine sent up the hill to provide soapy water for the fire. The foamy water forms a blanket over the flame, fire officials said. With the help of water from above, firefighters contained the blaze in about 2-1/2 hours. The DNR plane made four 20-minute round trips to Lake Coeur d’Alene.

Firefighters continued mopping up into the evening.

“It’s scary,” Fire Marshal Chase said. “These homes were at risk.”

Despite the fire danger, Hluboky and many of her neighbors said they wouldn’t think of giving up their close proximity to the pine-covered hills of the natural area.

“We had a moose here last year. There were coyotes in the street,” Hluboky said. “It’s so beautiful. “I wouldn’t give this up for anything.”

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