Fire crews increase containment on Palisades Park fire on Sunday

Fire crews were in the mop-up stages for the Palisades Park fire on Sunday afternoon as crews better increased the fire’s containment.

The fire along the Rimrock Drive bluff grew slightly to 43 acres on Sunday, which was due to improved mapping of the fire growth, said Guy Gifford, Department of Natural Resources spokesman, on Sunday.

Fire containment increased from 0% to 25% on Sunday afternoon, he said. That number was expected to increase into Monday morning, he added.

“Everything is going as planned,” he said.

The more than 100 firefighters fighting the blaze on Saturday had been reduced to 50 on Sunday, Gifford said.

Evacuation notices in the area remained at Level 1, or “be alert,” as of Sunday afternoon.

Gifford said the fire no longer poses an immediate danger, but people should still be aware of it.

The Palisades fire broke out late in the afternoon on Friday, and sent a visible plume of smoke northeast across Spokane as fire crews, including 13 aircraft, worked to contain the fire. Level 3 evacuations prompted some residents to flee the area, but the evacuations levels were reduced back to Level 1 on Friday night, where they have remained.

The cause of the fire is under investigation.