New updates have emerged regarding the Easy Fire.

On the night of July 17, the fire started gathering steam in the Methow Valley, less than 20 miles west of Mazama. It has since grown to 410 acres.

The Easy Fire was reputedly triggered by lightning.

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107 personnel are actively tending to the fire, but the number of personnel fluctuates constantly.

"I always remind folks that it's a snapshot in time," says fire spokeswoman Lauren DuRocher. "We have crews and personnel coming and going from incident."

"SR20 reopened [on Friday] to through traffic," DuRocher says. "A pilot cart is escorting vehicles during daytime hours and people can expect to have 30-minute delays; firefighters are continuing to remove trees and rocks and debris from the roadway."

"There's just ongoing fire activity on that roadway. We do want to remind folks not to stop or pull over while they're traveling on the highway between [mileposts 148-157]."

Closures may happen again - and they may be relatively spontaneous. The public shouldn't expect a lot of advance notice, DuRocher says.

What follows was originally posted on the Easy Fire webpage.

SATURDAY'S ACTIVITIES: Pending favorable weather conditions, crews may conduct strategic firing operations on the southeast side of Easy Fire using aircraft. Air ignitions will use Plastic Sphere Dispensers (PSD) to conduct burning operations. Firing tactics utilizing aviation can reduce risk to firefighters on the ground working in steep terrain and can cover more ground than a human can on foot. Strategic firing operations create a more controllable slow-moving fire by reducing ground fuels, or vegetation. Crews will also continue working to bolster indirect firelines and check sprinkler systems on both the north and south side of the Easy Fire.

The Easy Fire has a Temporary Flight Restriction in place for all aircrafts not involved in wildfire suppression operations. Do not fly a personal drone over or near the Easy Fire. Any incursions create a safety hazard to fire aircraft and require air operations to stop.

WEATHER: Temperatures [on Saturday] will cool slightly with highs in the low to mid 80s. Sky weather is mostly clear in the morning with partly cloudy conditions in the afternoon and a 10% chance of afternoon thunderstorms. Winds will increase slightly with a northwest direction around 10-14 mph.

CLOSURES: The Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest has closures in place for trails within the fire area: https://bit.ly/EasyFireClosures. This closure includes a portion of the Pacific Crest Trail. Campfires are prohibited. There is a Temporary Flight Restriction (TFR) in place over the fire: https://tfr.faa.gov/save_pages/detail_4_6779.html. Unauthorized drone activity is prohibited under the TFR.

EVACUATIONS:  There are no evacuations in place for the Easy Fire. Anyone recreating in the area should be vigilant about being aware of surroundings and stay out of closed areas.

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