Grass fire quickly grows to at least 80 acres west of Fairchild Air Force Base

A grass fire swept through dozens of acres west of Fairchild Air Force Base on Wednesday.

The fire started just after 3 p.m. and grew to 80-90 acres near West Thorpe Road and Stroup Road, according to fire personnel.

Forward progress of the fire stopped as of 5:30 p.m.

No structures were threatened, Spokane County Fire District 3 spokesperson Terri Bunce said.

District 3 had two engines, two attack trucks, one pumper tender and two command vehicles at the scene. The Washington Department of Natural Resources, assisting in battling the fire, had three engines, one hand crew and a dozer there. Spokane County District 10 also assisted.

Bunce said crews had a problem driving their trucks because the fields were too soft, meaning firefighters had to hike to dig their lines to stop forward progress of the fire.

The cause of the fire wasn’t immediately clear.

Spokane broke its record for the hottest March day Wednesday at 75 degrees.