Level 3 Evacuations Expanded As Little Giant Fire Grows To 7,500+ Acres Near Lake Wenatchee

As a wildfire located 30 miles northwest of Leavenworth dramatically increases in size, evacuations have been expanded to include a number of rural home's that are currently in its path.

The Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest Type 3 Incident Management Team in charge of the Little Giant Fire says the blaze has now grown from just under 1,100 acres to an officially-estimated size of 7,558 acres over the past 36 hours.

In addition, officials say the fire's containment level has officially decreased from a reported 4% two days ago to 0% as of Friday.

The fire was sparked by a lightning strike on July 15 and is burning in a remote portion of the Chiwawa River Drainage within the Glacier Peak Wilderness, just to the west of 19-Mile Campground in dead and down timber inside an old burn scar.

A Level 3 Evacuation Notice that was issued for the Trinity area has now been expanded to include homes on Chikamin Ridge Road (Forest Service Road 6210), while a Level 2 notice is in effect from Atkinson Flats (Forest Service Road 6200) to Grouse Creek Group Campground, and a Level 1 Fire Advisory is in place from Grouse Creek Group Campground to Alder Creek (Forest Service Road 6208).

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Fire managers say the Little Giant's significant growth since Wednesday has been fueled by increasing winds and escalating temperatures over the fire zone.

A majority of the recent spread has been seen on the fire's eastern and southeastern flanks from Rock Creek Drainage to Basalt Ridge towards Finner Creek and at Y Creek.

The blaze is torching timber on steep rocky slopes which are inaccessible to firefighters on the ground with aerial suppression efforts having proven challenging due to the winds and poor visibility.

Officials say the blaze could easily grow in similar extremes to end the week before cooler temperatures arrive over the weekend, but with continued gusty winds.

Thus far, there are no reports of any structures being damaged or destroyed and no injuries have been reported.