Brush Fire Burns Nine Acres Outside of Chelan

Crews responded to a 3-alarm brush fire around 4:00 pm Thursday that began near the 1200 block of Little Butte Ranch Road west of Chelan.

Firefighters arrived to find a 1-2 acre fire burning in grass and light brush being driven uphill by the wind.

Chelan Fire and Rescue Chief Mark Donnell said the cause of the blaze was a property owner trying to do the right thing by burning brush and vegetation to clear a defensible space.

"Unfortunately … we got an afternoon wind and he didn't realize just how quickly that fire can carry up and just how dry the grass was. We always caution our property owners that, even under the best of conditions, try to keep to it four feet by four feet and make sure you have the water and tools to extinguish it," stated Donnell.

The fire was eventually contained just before 6:00 pm and crews were in mop-up by about 7:00 pm. A total of 25 personnel responded to the incident and there were no injuries. Approximately 9 acres were burned.

Crews from Chelan County Fire Districts 1, 5, 6, 7 and 8, Douglas County Fire Districts 2 and 4, the Department of Natural Resources, U.S. Forest Service, and the Bureau of Land Management all responded to the blaze.