Officers search home believed to be origin of fire outside Wenatchee

WENATCHEE — State and local officials investigating the origin of the Red Apple fire outside Wenatchee have executed a search warrant at a home where they believe the blaze began, according to the Chelan County Sheriff’s Office.

The Sheriff’s Office said the investigation is ongoing. No further details about the execution of the search warrant were immediately available.

The fast-growing fire had grown to an estimated 9,000 acres as of Wednesday, threatening homes, orchards and a power substation, according to Chelan County and state fire officials. Northwest winds had begun to push the fire east Wednesday evening, the state Department of National Resources said.

State resources mobilized Tuesday after the fire began shortly after 7 p.m. near the 3300 block of Red Apple Road between Monitor and Cashmere, the Sheriff’s Office said in a statement.

An estimated 1,065 homes in the Sunnyslope area of Wenatchee have reached Level 3 evacuation status, which alerts residents to leave immediately. Hundreds of more homes and structures spanning from the Red Apple Road area to the Sunnyslope area in Central Washington were under an evacuation level ranging from 1 to 3 on Wednesday, according to Annie Schmidt, a spokesperson for the Chelan County Fire District in Leavenworth.

A state of emergency was declared in Chelan County, in addition to a statewide emergency declared by Gov. Jay Inslee earlier this month in response to the “growing risk” of wildfires in the region.