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On Monday, Sept. 1, the U.S. Forest Service (USFS) released an update on the rash of fires started after a “significant” lightning storm set pockets of the Gifford Pinchot National Forest ablaze last week.
So far, 24 fires have been located, according to the USFS.
“An additional four fires have been located since the update on Aug. 30,” the release stated. “This brings the total to 24 fires on the Gifford Pinchot National Forest from the lightning system that came through last week. The firefighters’ actions have kept all the fires small with the total acres for all 24 fires combined at just over 9 acres.”
Of the fires, four have been contained, 10 have been declared controlled and seven have been declared out.
“The remaining three uncontained fires have firefighters working on them,” the update stated.
“Two additional ‘sleeper’ smokes have been reported (Monday) and firefighters are searching them out. One helicopter is supporting firefighters by backhauling equipment from remote locations.”
The USFS noted that the smoke affecting surrounding communities over the last few days was coming from “large fires elsewhere in the region.”
The organization also provided a map showing the locations, sizes and statuses of the fires.
On Aug. 28, the USFS reported that 15 fires had been discovered in the forest and were being responded to. At the same time, firefighters continued to locate six additional smokes.
The organization provided another update on Aug. 30, reporting that 20 fires had been located.
“‘Hold over’ fires, also called ‘sleepers’, are common after lightning storms,” the Aug. 30 update stated. “This refers to fires that didn’t produce enough smoke to be detected in the first couple days. A few of these sleepers were detected today and firefighters are searching them out.”
The Gifford Pinchot National Forest consists of 1.32 million acres in Washington state, with a territory that extends from Mount Rainier National Park to the Columbia River.
