Lower Sugarloaf Fire Still At 0% Containment As Crews Work To Protect Structures

As the Lower Sugarloaf Fire enters its fourth full day of activity, crews are still scrambling to establish any preliminary containment on the rapidly-growing inferno.

The fire, which is centered approximately 17 miles west of Entiat on the Wenatchee River Ranger District in the Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest, was sparked by a dry lightning storm that moved over the region late Sunday, and has rapidly expanded to a current official acreage of 6,223 with 0% containment.

Fire managers say the blaze has displayed extreme behavior under very hot and dry conditions over the past 72 hours as it continues its torching of thick timber and brush, as well as dead and down trees within the footprint of both the 1994 Tyee Fire and the 2018 Cougar Fire.

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A Red Flag Warning has been in effect over the fire zone since the start of the week and is scheduled to continue until 9 p.m. on Thursday.

Officials with the Southern Area Type-3 GRAY Team, who assumed command of the fire this morning, say they plan to focus on structure protection in the Dry Creek area today, where dozer lines are also scheduled to be established which will stretch to the Chumstick vicinity.

Crews are also planning to strengthen extant fire lines on Mosquito Ridge along the southern flank of the blaze, and aerial suppression measures will be utilized if smoky conditions should clear enough to allow for them to be safely executed.

Smoke from the fire is widely visible throughout the region and has inundated many communities near to the blaze in the Wenatchee, Upper Wenatchee, and Entiat Valleys, prompting the issuance of an Air Quality Alert for much of North Central Washington.

The raging conflagration has also led to widespread evacuation notices for numerous roads and communities from the vicinity of Plain and Cashmere to Ardenvoir.

The National Weather Service says conditions should begin improving by this weekend, when firefighters could finally start gaining at least some ground on the blaze, which will be transferred to the command of Northwest Complex Incident Management Team 3 on Friday.