Firefighters Partially Contain Chelan Fire

Sun., Aug. 9, 1998

From Staff

Firefighters made progress Saturday against a forest fire near Lake Chelan that burned 5,500 acres, threatened homes and forced temporary campground closures.

The North 25 fire was 15 percent contained, said Rick Acosta, a U.S. Forest Service spokesman.

About 755 firefighters continued building fire lines, burning areas that could attract the blaze and mopping up from the burnout operations.

All campgrounds and areas of Wenatchee National Forest and Chelan State Park were open Saturday, Acosta said.

He said state Department of Ecology air quality tests indicated that the air was safe, although some smoke remained.

There was no estimate as to when the fire - which scorched the south shore of Lake Chelan, 30 miles northwest of the town of Chelan - would be fully contained or controlled, Acosta said. He said steep, inaccessible ground, dry timber and unpredictable weather contributed to the uncertainty.

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