Containment Expected To Increase On Swauk Creek Fire In Days Ahead

After sparking last Sunday, the Swauk Creek Fire is continuing its steady burn in northwestern Kittitas County.

The blaze is torching brush and timber in the Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest approximately 14 miles northeast of Cle Elum.

Fire information spokesperson Ryan Rodruck with the Washington Department of Natural Resources says crews have been hitting the fire hard from both land and air.

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"Crews were very aggressive with their air attacks yesterday and will be continuing both ground and air attacks throughout the day today."

The fire is currently estimated at 214 acres in size with 3% containment, but Rodruck says the containment figure is expected to increase by the end of the week.

"Those ground crews have done quite a bit of work at getting containment lines dug in and increasing the potential for containment in the coming days."

A Type 2 Incident Management Team from Southeast Washington is currently in charge of firefighting efforts.

Rodruck says the blaze was ignited when flames from a vehicle that caught fire on the side of U.S. Highway 97 (US-97) spread into adjacent grass and brush.

Level 2 evacuation notices remain in place for all residences east of US-97 and north of the fire to Liberty Road, as well as Forest Service Road 3506 to Upper Green Canyon Road, while Level 1 notices are in place for the town of Liberty, along with Forest Service Road 9726 and all of its extensions, including Deer Gulch, Pine Gulch, Robinson Gulch and Harkness Gulch.

Thus far, no structures have been damaged or destroyed and no injuries reported.