These are becoming pretty common with this extra dry year:
http://www.heraldnet.com/article/20150714/NEWS01/150719489
The last one was suspected to be an arson:
http://www.kirotv.com/news/news/brush-fires-back-traffic-i-5/nmpmB/
One near Eugene/Springfield caused by someone tossing a cigarette butt out of their car while driving I-5 a couple weeks ago.
I forget exactly when, but approximately two weeks ago, I was caught in the miles-long jam when they had to close SR 18 just east of Auburn due to a brush fire.
Freakishly dry (and hot the week I'm talking about) summer we're having.
Unrelated to I-5, I've had two friends in danger of losing their homes. One near Emerald Ridge High School south of Puyallup, and another near the Bonney Lake suburb of Sky Island (just today).
At least the temperatures have gone down a little bit (thanks, wildfire smoke!), but it's climbing back up to the 80s this weekend.
Quote from: Bickendan on July 15, 2015, 11:12:33 AM
One near Eugene/Springfield caused by someone tossing a cigarette butt out of their car while driving I-5 a couple weeks ago.
So irresponsible...
Quote from: Zeffy on July 16, 2015, 08:16:29 PM
Quote from: Bickendan on July 15, 2015, 11:12:33 AM
One near Eugene/Springfield caused by someone tossing a cigarette butt out of their car while driving I-5 a couple weeks ago.
So irresponsible...
It can be quite costly:
http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/man-responsible-for-b-c-wildfire-says-he-s-sorry-1.542859 (older article)
QuoteThe man blamed for one of the most destructive wildfires in Canadian history says he feels intense guilt for the damage it did.
QuoteBarre was fined $3,000 on Nov. 29 for carelessly discarding a cigarette that started the McLure-Barriere forest fire in southwestern British Columbia in August 2003.
Changed the thread title since it's spreading all across the state.
Brush fire closes I-90 between Vantage and George, triggers evacuation orders (http://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/transportation/brush-fire-closes-i-90-near-vantage/)QuoteA brush fire near George, Grant County, has closed Interstate 90 in both directions. It threatens about 50 homes.
About 100 firefighters and a helicopter have responded to the fire, which has grown to more than 700 acres, said Washington State Patrol Trooper Darren Wright.
"The wind is blowing really bad out here," Wright said. "I'm guessing it's going to take a little bit to get under control unless something changes."
A level 3 evacuation order in effect for some areas near George was lowered to level 1 mid-day, according to a Washington State Patrol tweet. Level 1 generally means residents should be watchful.
"What happened on Sunday is being repeated. I-90 is closed again from the east end of the bridge at the (State Route) 26 interchange up to George," said Jeff Adamson, a spokesman for the Washington Department of Transportation.
An hour ago on US 2 near SR 9 in Snohomish:
(https://www.aaroads.com/forum/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi.imgur.com%2FKTsWCsA.jpg&hash=22d2ef447ef6a989d868d047c718968fcd785e67)
It's cleared up now:
(https://www.aaroads.com/forum/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi.imgur.com%2F1Er426Q.jpg&hash=8eb63129e54f7b55aec25d2e229c5ec8db7b64a0)
Near Northgate this morning on I-5 southbound:
(https://i.imgur.com/ceBuxR2.jpg)
This fire near me a couple days ago (WA-512 at Canyon Road) was started by a hand-rolled cigarette, thrown into the brush next to the EB off-ramp. The fire spread quickly into the public storage units because of the lack of a boundary between the trees running next to the freeway and the building itself.
(https://www.aaroads.com/forum/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi.imgur.com%2F1Q8voW5l.jpg&hash=678fcf21968c87e2f168e362b11f0bb0c870bcf2)
Every county in WA is at "very high" or "high" risk of fire danger.
(https://www.aaroads.com/forum/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi.imgur.com%2FKqQxqa9.png&hash=431ca336b5290842fb3fe61dcddd22b511ccf730)
SR 14 was shut down because of a fire in Roosevelt this week:
Luckily the Columbia River was nearby and had plenty of water to help fight it back:
Last night a VMS on I-84 in Meridian stated I-84 was closed past Ontario because of a fire. Sure enough, here it is. http://www.kptv.com/story/29721495/wildfire-closes-part-of-i-84-near-pendleton
Also, what?
QuoteThe wildfire is 7 miles east of Pendleton close to mile point 345 near Huntington.
Good job KPTV
EDIT: I found a better article: http://www.ktvz.com/news/e-oregon-wildfire-explodes-i84-shut-town-threatened/34565480
Here's a photo:
(https://www.aaroads.com/forum/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.ktvz.com%2Fimage%2Fview%2F-%2F34566676%2FmedRes%2F1%2F-%2Fmaxh%2F360%2Fmaxw%2F640%2F-%2F11sy2ie%2F-%2FLime-Hill-Fire-I-84-ODOT-jpg.jpg&hash=c12be0c66775eae9e925f4da7548d4b3999ce15e)
I think it's open again now.
One cig can destroy everything. People just do not care!
Drove from Portland to St. George yesterday and it was smoky — painfully so at times — pretty much straight through. I figured there were fires somewhere in the Great Basin or West Desert, but it appears it was pretty much all smoke from the Northwest.
From the WSDOT Blog (http://wsdotblog.blogspot.com/2015/08/wildfire-closures.html):
QuoteLast updated: August 20, 1:50 p.m.
Keeping you up to date with the latest wildfire closures:
US 97 is closed from milepost 299, to milepost 303, at Riverside. There is a detour available again.
SR 20 is closed from Thornton Creek Rd (MP 118) west of Newhalem to the junction of SR 20 and SR 153 (MP 204) east of Twisp.
We've now placed these fire closures on a zoomable map to help you in planning a trip around the closures.
US 12 was closed yesterday but is now open.
Wildfires also threatening SR 21, SR 25 and US 395. No closures there yet but we'll let you know if that changes.
In other fire-related news, a wildfire near Twisp, WA has claimed the lives of 3 firefighters. 4 others were also injured. This brings the total death toll this season to 13. (Source (http://www.komonews.com/news/local/Wildfire-forces-evacuation-of-Twisp-322342801.html))
WSDOT has a new map of emergency road closures related to the wildfires: http://wsdot.maps.arcgis.com/apps/Viewer/index.html?appid=9b2cc9dd0d69428093cd8765cd17d5a8
(https://www.aaroads.com/forum/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi.imgur.com%2FwUscyL4.jpg&hash=5452d92a9c28676c2282b5932c030bc6859949bb)
I've changed the thread title to make this into a wildfire thread.
On that note, have some pictures of SR 20 (N. Cascades Highway) near Newhalem, WA, shared by someone on Reddit.
(https://www.aaroads.com/forum/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi.imgur.com%2Fgl9sMaj.jpg&hash=446213c10e91c2170999aaba33d2a7b075099e61)
Full gallery here: http://imgur.com/a/r3vB1
Quote from: Bruce on August 22, 2015, 12:46:55 AM
I've changed the thread title to make this into a wildfire thread.
On that note, have some pictures of SR 20 (N. Cascades Highway) near Newhalem, WA, shared by someone on Reddit.
(https://www.aaroads.com/forum/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi.imgur.com%2Fgl9sMaj.jpg&hash=446213c10e91c2170999aaba33d2a7b075099e61)
Full gallery here: http://imgur.com/a/r3vB1
Note: outdated
I found this handy PDF showing how dry and wet it is in all 50 states.
http://www.corelogic.com/research/wildfire-risk-report/2013-wildfire-hazard-risk-report.pdf
Scroll down to page 16.
Quote from: noelbotevera on August 22, 2015, 01:05:53 AM
Note: outdated
I found this handy PDF showing how dry and wet it is in all 50 states.
http://www.corelogic.com/research/wildfire-risk-report/2013-wildfire-hazard-risk-report.pdf
Scroll down to page 16.
Still, it gives a pretty good idea of how shitty things were two or three years ago. And if the last few year's weather is any indication, things haven't improved (out west, anyhow).
Additional wildfire risks:
California: http://www.fire.ca.gov/fire_prevention/fire_prevention_wildland_zones_maps.php
Oregon: http://www.oregon.gov/odf/pages/fire/fire.aspx#Fire_Stats,_Info_&_Updates_ (try any link there)
Washington: https://fortress.wa.gov/dnr/firedanger/Default.aspx
Idaho: http://www.idahoforests.org/fire_links.htm
Nevada: http://www.blm.gov/nv/st/en/prog/fire/fire_restrictions.html <--- This link here only has four places as links. You can only call the number for Ely.
Arizona: http://wildlandfire.az.gov/wildfire_news.asp
New Mexico: http://nmfireinfo.com/
Colorado: http://www.coloradowildfirerisk.com/
Wyoming: http://www.predictiveservices.nifc.gov/outlooks/monthly_seasonal_outlook.pdf
Montana: http://mt.gov/fire.mcpx
This is a compilation of links for any wildfire/brush fire risks west of the Mississippi.
edit: fixed links (hopefully)
Some of the wildfire smoke drifted west over to Seattle and Portland today, causing a decrease in air quality (with Portland's being worse than Beijing (http://cliffmass.blogspot.com/2015/08/air-quality-is-worse-in-portland-oregon.html)).
Here's a satellite view of it:
(https://www.aaroads.com/forum/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi.imgur.com%2FLmBcTBJ.jpg&hash=bccd62c5100fbaf6498e636ebb7c774e5e912594)
The haze and smoke managed to create some great sunrise/sunset photos, featuring a really red sun. I'll upload mine (taken from Marysville and Everett, respectively) later.
(https://igcdn-photos-c-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-xaf1/t51.2885-15/11821329_1616257651962818_375346275_n.jpg)
Here's a picture I took in Wallingford, Seattle, WA, picking up my sushi after the gym.
Morning sun, from Marysville:
(https://www.aaroads.com/forum/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi.imgur.com%2FfCRrV7m.jpg&hash=9dc93cb60fcf0e967ad19e2b7d7a73de93214de7)
Sunset, from Everett:
(https://www.aaroads.com/forum/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi.imgur.com%2Fmy6c3MJ.jpg&hash=c39f0305290f16f5265aaaab3e1655fbfb869ce2)
Satellite view of smoke over Western Washington yesterday:
(https://www.aaroads.com/forum/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi.imgur.com%2FOJfklqS.jpg&hash=0dbdde7bb66535600e63d30f8eb5f2834f98f74c)
Interactive version over at the NASA Worldview (https://earthdata.nasa.gov/labs/worldview/?p=geographic&l=MODIS_Aqua_CorrectedReflectance_TrueColor(hidden),MODIS_Terra_CorrectedReflectance_TrueColor,MODIS_Fires_Aqua,MODIS_Fires_Terra,MODIS_Fires_All,Reference_Labels,Reference_Features(hidden),Coastlines&t=2015-08-22&v=-128.40941069151336,42.30783403541656,-111.53441069151334,50.70138872291656).
Cliff Mass' comparison of Beijing to Portland seems to be about as true for the rest of the northwest today. Honestly, today seemed worse...felt a lot like urban, industrial China.
The Okanogan Complex fire has grown to 256,657 acres (401 square miles), surpassing last year's Carlton Complex fire (http://www.historylink.org/index.cfm?DisplayPage=output.cfm&file_id=10989) (I recommend reading this article, it's a very good and thorough look into it) to become the largest wildfire in Washington state history. (Source (http://www.nbcnews.com/storyline/western-wildfires/forest-service-identifies-three-firefighters-killed-washington-blaze-n413436))
I went to Paradise, Mt. Rainier over the weekend. Friday was pretty good, but Saturday started getting smokier and smokier. By Sunday morning it was like standing downwind of a campfire, everywhere. I should have gone to Cape Flattery.