Burning Tree Falls Across Break Line, Causing Containment Over Sinlahekin Fire To Shrink, Now At 37%

After seeing no changes for three consecutive days to start the week, containment on the Sinlahekin Fire in Okanogan County is now in retreat.

After holding steady at an official estimate of 42% containment through Wednesday, the blaze is now listed as 37% contained as of Thursday morning - marking an 11.9% reduction in overall containment.

Public information officer Isabelle Hoygaard with California Incident Management Team 4 tells KPQ News the downgrade was primarily caused by two incidents within the fire zone on Wednesday, including a burning tree that fell across a break line and caused the flames to spread an additional 1,500 acres, and a spot fire that also blackened several hundred acres.

Hoygaard says both incidents occurred along the fire's western edge and helped to add over 3,000 acres to the blaze's total size, which is currently estimated at 152,921 acres.

Despite the setbacks, Hoygaard says firefighters are making steady progress in their efforts to shore up containment lines and attack the flames directly whenever possible.

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Crews are reportedly taking advantage of moderating fire behavior thanks to calmer winds and elevating humidities, following a round of thunderstorms which brought welcome precipitation to some areas of the fire zone overnight into Thursday morning.

Although the blaze is currently most active in sparsely populated areas along its western edges, hundreds of residents remain on evacuation notices.

The fire is also still threatening hundreds of structures, and officials estimate that at least 30 may have been destroyed by the blaze, but Hoygaard says survey crews are still working to determine the exact number which have been lost.

Hoygaard adds that smoke impacts from the blaze have mitigated considerably over the past few days, which has greatly improved air qualities in several nearby communities, including Ellisforde, Loomis, Nighthawk, Oroville, and Tonasket.

The Sinlahekin Fire is believed to have been caused by a lightning strike on July 26, and has caused no reported injuries or fatalities to date.