A drier-than-usual June has helped give wildfire season a fast start in Washington, according to regional fire officials.
In the Columbia River Gorge alone, the U.S. Forest Service has tallied 13 wildfires so far, said Loretta Duke, assistant fire management officer for the forest service. The first of those was reported May 26 — less than a month ago.
“Our numbers are up this time of year,” Duke said.
Most of the fires were relatively small, contained within a few days. One of those, the Dog Falls fire, burned slightly more than 5 acres and temporarily closed two popular trails about 50 miles east of Vancouver earlier this month.
But there’s potential for more, with the season about a month ahead of normal on the east side of the Gorge, Duke said. In other words, fire conditions there look like they typically would in late July.
The west side, however, looks closer to average, Duke said.
The month of June plays a big role in setting the tone for any fire season, said Albert Kassel, a resource protection manager for the state Department of Natural Resources. Rainfall early in the season can help stave off extreme conditions in July and August, which typically bring very little precipitation to the Northwest.
So far this month, DNR has already responded to a couple of fires in Western Washington that were large for this time of year, Kassel said.
“Right now, we’re looking for the rain,” Kassel said. “If the rain comes, we’ll be better off.”
Kassel emphasized the need for people to take precautions to prevent fires, particularly with the Fourth of July approaching. About 85 percent of wildfires are human-caused, he said. Debris burning is one of the main culprits, he added.
DNR, with a jurisdiction of about 13 million acres, strives to keep all wildfires under 10 acres, Kassel said. That’s important for an agency with a limited capacity to battle them, he said.
“If we aren’t cautious as people … we have the potential for a fire season that could push our resources to their max,” Kassel said. He added: “The larger the fire, the more costly it is for us as citizens.”
In the Gorge, the forest service has two engines and a crew of about 10 people to fight fires, plus many local cooperating agencies and volunteers, Duke said. How they’re used depends on what time of year it is, and where the greatest need is, she said.
The Gorge encompasses two very different climates from the forested west side to the grassy east side. “It’s two very different types of fire,” Duke said.
A round of strong showers boosted rainfall totals in Southwest Washington last week. The region may get additional showers this week, according to the National Weather Service.
