Kaiser Canyon Fire Near Nespelem Doubles In Size To 53K+ Acres, Still Raging Completely Uncontained

A large and destructive wildfire which has been burning on the Colville Indian Reservation for the past four days continues to rage completely uncontained.

The Kaiser Canyon Fire reportedly sparked early Thursday (July 16) and has quickly spread in hot and dry conditions to cover approximately 53,321 acres as of early Sunday (July 19).

Over a thousand people have been evacuated due to Level 2 and 3 evacuation notices near the towns of Belvedere and Nespelem, along with many homes in rural areas within the surrounding vicinity.

Over 800 structures are currently being threatened by the blaze, which has destroyed at least a dozen buildings thus far, including five primary residences.

The fire has also forced the closure of several primary roads in the area, including a 24-mile stretch of State Route 155 from seven miles south of Nespelem to the summit of Disautel Pass (mileposts 37 to 61), as well as all of Cache Creek Road and portions of Buffalo Lake and Columbia River Roads.

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The conflagration has more than doubled in size over the past 36 hours, fueled by gusty winds under a Red Flag Warning, along with continued hot and dry conditions.

Fire managers say the flames are rapidly spreading to the northwest and are also inching ever-closer to the east towards the Keller area.

The flames are burning in dry grasses and sagebrush along steep hills, largely within an old burn scar which also features many downed trees and stumps.

Smoke impacts from the fire have been felt as far away as the Idaho Panhandle and have been particularly heavy in towns to the east such as Keller and Inchelium, as well as portions of both Stevens and Pend Oreille Counties.

A Rocky Mountain Complex Incident Management Team has been called in to take command of the firefight and will reportedly assume those duties sometime on Monday.

Although the blaze has proven destructive to both the landscape and numerous properties, no injuries or deaths have been connected to it thus far.