Crews make quick work of Shields Fire in Spokane County

Crews are mopping up a fire that touched off near Beacon Hill in Spokane County late Thursday afternoon.

The wildfire, dubbed the Shields Fire by Washington Department of Natural Resources, was reportedly two acres in size just before 6 p.m. Fire officials dispatched a helicopter, two engines and two hand crews.

The National Weather Service in Spokane tweeted a time-lapse image of the fire from Felts Field, saying the winds expected to be relatively light through the evening, which would help crews gain an upper hand on the fire.

By 7 p.m. DNR reported crews were able to get a line around the fire’s perimeter, which they held to two acres, and were mopping up.

Eric Keller of DNR said crews were working on a hillside in 100 degree temperatures. “We’re just trying to keep everybody hydrated,” he said.

The cause of the fire is still under investigation, but neighbors said people frequently hike the hill above their homes and leave cigarettes behind. Neighbor Bob Prow, who was outside watching firefighters work, said he saw flames at first but the fire appeared to be very slow moving.

“They were pretty much on the spot here,” he said of fire crews from DNR, Spokane County Fire District 9, the Spokane Fire Department and the Spokane Valley Fire Department.

Prow said he wasn’t worried about the fire because his house has a large green space around it. “There’s no trees around the house,” he said. “There’s nothing to burn.”