GRANT COUNTY, Wash. — At least seven homes have been lost, and Level 3 ‘GO NOW’ evacuations are continuing Friday morning after the Railroad Fire started up in Grant County late Wednesday night.
The Grant County Sheriff’s Office has been updating residents in the area since yesterday and throughout the night. In an update posted early Thursday morning, deputies say three homes were lost, but confirmed that there were no reported injuries or loss of life. Later that same morning, the fire marshal confirmed that seven homes had been lost, with at least one family displaced. On Friday morning, that number remained the same, with still no reported casualties.
According to the Southeast Washington Interagency Incident Management Team on Friday morning, the fire was estimated to have burned around 1,200 acres.
At 1 a.m. Thursday, just hours after the fire began, the sheriff’s office told residents, “This is a large, wind-driven, fast-moving dangerous fire. If you are a spectator recording video, you are in danger and blocking firefighters. Leave the area now!”
Fire details
Officials say the wildfire first started at approximately 11 p.m. on Wednesday, July 22.
According to an update at 4:30 a.m. Thursday from the sheriff’s office, there were approximately 280 affected households in the fire area.
“It is burning in grass and sage, and is threatening homes, crops, and Grant County Public Utilities District. Level 1 and Level 3 evacuations are in effect at this time. The fire cause is currently under investigation,” wrote fire officials.
Evacuations and travel
Official notifications (last updated 8 a.m. Friday)
- Level 3 Evacuations: Evacuate all of the town of Beverly, all of the town of Schwana, and those along Lower Crab Creek Road about 7 miles from SR 243
- Evacuation shelter at Wahluke High School in Mattawa
- Travel impacts: SR 243 was closed at around midnight due to fire activity, but has reopened as of 7 a.m.
Public Utilities
Almost 300 customers in Beverly, Schwana and Wanapum Village were without power Wednesday night and into Thursday after the wildfire brought down power lines in the area.
Grant PUD crews were able to get the power back on at around 7:30 p.m. Thursday.
“Some customers whose homes or structures were damaged by the fire remain without service. If you don’t have any damage from the fire to your property and are still experiencing an outage, please call 800-216-5226,” wrote Grant PUD. “We have neighbors who are hurting right now, and we want you to know we stand behind you. Thank you to the first responders and our crews who stayed with this through the night.”
Grant PUD added that the following areas were closed for public access: the Overlook, Turbine Park, the Wanapum Visitor’s Center, the Lower Boat Launch, Burkett Lake Recreation Area and Crab Creek Park.
Resources
State fire assistance was authorized at 2 a.m. on Thursday, mobilizing state resources to support local firefighters.
These resources began to arrive to relieve local firefighters at around 8 a.m. Thursday, according to the sheriff’s office.
“Firefighting aircraft will be arriving soon and will be using the Columbia River as a water source. Watercraft on the river are asked to give aircraft priority on the river so they can work safely,” wrote the sheriff’s office. “The fire area is a No Drone Zone. If drones are in the air, firefighting aircraft can’t fly and put out the fire. Keep your drones on the ground. ”
Find the most up-to-date information on the Grant County Sheriff’s Office Facebook page and the Southeast Washington Interagency Incident Management Team Facebook page.
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