Three homes lost in Columbia Basin fire, charred ground still smoldering

When driving down Columbia Basin Highway after a 220-acre wildfire, some homes appear to still be standing among the charred, still-smoldering ground. Others were lost.

Three homes and five other structures were destroyed during the fire Friday, according to Washington Department of Natural Resources spokesman Ryan Rodruck.

The fire is still being lined by dozers, but it’s showing minimal fire behavior, he said. Forward progress on the fire was stopped late Friday night.

The blaze began around 1:30 p.m., according to a DNR press release. Immediate evacuations were ordered along the Columbia Basin Highway, just south of the Tyler exit. Those evacuations still remained in place as of Saturday afternoon.

The frames of charred vehicles sit where they were abandoned Friday, minutes from state Highway 904. Tree stumps were still on fire Saturday, and pockets of smoke were visible from the road.

Behind the homes, a blanket of red lay across the trees and grass where aircraft dropped fire retardant.

Devrah Birchard, who lives off of Columbia Basin Highway, told The Spokesman-Review in an interview that she has lived near Tyler for 40 years and has “never seen a fire this close.”

According to Rodruck, the process now is to continue lining the fire and mark trees that could become safety hazards. The bottom of trees that have burned become weaker and can fall on firefighters who come into the area to spray it down with water.

Crews were out marking trees with orange tape on Saturday that need to be removed. As of 12 p.m., they had marked four.

Rodruck said about 130 fire personnel were expected to work the Columbia Basin fire and the Upper Cemetery fire in Spokane, which started mere hours afterward.