Firefighters Contain, Extinguish Six New Wildfires On Okanogan-Wenatchee Nat’l Forest

A half-dozen wildfires that were sparked by lightning from a line of thunderstorms last week are now all either out or well in hand.

The largest of the blazes, the Taneum Creek Fire near South Cle Elum Ridge, is currently estimated at 15 acres with 50% containment, as officials with the U.S. Forest Service say crews remain active building and bolstering containment lines around the fire.

Elsewhere on the Cle Elum Ranger District, the Peaches Ridge Fire was officially declared out on Saturday (Aug. 15) after burning less than one acre.

Two other blazes within the Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest, the Crescent Mountain Fire on the Methow Valley Ranger District six miles southwest of Winthrop and the Granite Creek Fire on the Naches Ranger District, have also been declared out after burning one-tenth- and one-half-of-an-acre respectively.

Meanwhile, a pair of fires on the Chelan Ranger District are also winding down, including the Safety Harbor Fire on the north side of Lake Chelan, which burned one-tenth-of-an-acre before being declared out on Friday (Aug. 14). And the Sisi Fire in the Glacier Peak Wilderness eight miles north of Stehekin, which has burned about a half-an-acre and is now in mop up after a crew of six rappelers halted its forward progress.

Another blaze, the Paddy Go Fire, which sparked from unknown causes on Aug. 10, is reportedly holding steady at 15 acres on the Wenatchee River Ranger District. Officials say the fire is located on a steep cliffside and impossible to access from the ground, so helicopters remain active making water drops on the flames.

Another round of thunderstorms occurred in the Central Cascades late Friday and early Saturday, and Forest Service personnel are actively performing reconnaissance to locate any additional new fire starts.