Garred Road Fire Near Coulee City Ups To 27% Containment, SR-17 Fully Re-Opens

Crews battling the Garred Road Fire near Coulee City have finally put a dent in its advancing flames.

Officials say the blaze is now listed at 27% containment with an estimated size of 3,369 acres.

The fire sparked late Sunday afternoon near the Grant/Douglas County line and briefly closed portions of both U.S. Highway 2 and State Route 17 (SR-17).

After torching about 500 acres, crews thought they had the fire under control by later that same evening, however, the blaze rekindled in hot and breezy conditions late Monday morning and grew rapidly in similar weather throughout the day.

A Level 3 evacuation notice was issued Monday for recreationists at the Sun Lakes Campground, but that has since been downgraded to a Level 1 Fire Advisory as of late Tuesday.

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A three-mile stretch of SR-17 was closed for much of Monday due to downed power lines caused by the fire, but the highway was fully re-opened again on Tuesday.

The blaze is still threatening a variety of outbuildings, as well as several homes as it burns through dry grass and sagebrush.

State mobilization was ordered late Monday afternoon for the fire, which is now under the command of a Southeast Washington Type 3 Incident Management Team comprised of 192 total personnel.

Fire crews continue the use of aerial resources to make water and retardant drops on the flames, as firefighters on the ground work to establish and bolster containment lines.

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

The cause of the blaze has yet to be determined.