A wildfire that started in timberland southwest of Pe Ell on Friday has burned just under 38 acres as of Monday morning, according to the Western Washington Type 3 Incident Management Team.
Dubbed the “Donkey Fire,” the fire is 7 to 8 miles southwest of Pe Ell in steep terrain. It began just after 2 p.m. on Friday.
The Western Washington Type 3 Incident Management Team, led by Incident Commander Josh Riepe, had 116 people stationed at Pe Ell School, which is acting as a base of operations, as of Monday morning, according to Incident Management Team member Tim McKern.
“First off, we want to thank the citizens for their cooperation and their understanding. They have been absolutely amazing in helping us … We certainly thank the school for letting us utilize their facility,” McKern said Monday.
State Department of Natural Resources (DNR) helicopters and contracted planes have been dumping water on the blaze intermittently.
On Sunday, crews were focused on fire line construction, using existing roads as control lines.
A large portion of the fire had been lined as of Monday morning, at which time fire crews planned to continue mop up work about 50 feet into the fire’s perimeter. Crews are expected to continue mop up work for at least the next three or four days, likely through the weekend, McKern said.
“You'll still see some helicopters in the area and those helicopters will be assisting firefighters as needed to continue to get all the hot spots in there,” McKern said.
The incident management team expects to turn leadership of the fire response over to a smaller local team by Thursday or so, McKern said.
There are currently no structures under threat and no evacuation orders are in place. However, the public is asked to stay out of the area.
“Firefighters and heavy equipment are working on and around the area roadways,” the Western Washington Type 3 Incident Management Team stated in an update Sunday. “You can help keep firefighters and the public safe by driving carefully and avoiding these areas.”
The cause of the fire has not been announced.
“Our number one priority is safety for the firefighters and the public, and we continue to monitor that,” McKern said.
Evacuations, if called for, will be announced at the following phases:
• Level 1 — Be alert: Be alert and stay aware of the danger that exists in your area; evacuations are voluntary.
• Level 2 — Be ready: Significant danger to your area; leave voluntarily or be ready at a moment’s notice.
• Level 3 — Leave immediately: Danger to your area is current or imminent; leave immediately.
High pressure remained situated over the region Sunday, bringing warm and dry conditions to the burn site, according to the incident management team. Temperatures were cooler Monday morning, and firefighters were benefiting from overcast skies.
There are currently no road or trail closures.
In addition to the scooper planes and helicopters responding to the fire, there are five engines and tenders and five hand crews with a total of 116 people responding to the blaze.
McKern and the rest of the incident management team remind Washington residents to continue staying safe and alert to fire dangers in their areas, as Washington has yet to property enter the fire season.
“If you’re following, there’s lots of fire on the landscape,” McKern said. “ My crew is telling everybody to stay safe, stay alert. Keep (in mind) this is just one fire and we’re only into July. We haven’t gotten into August and September, when we get back into the fire season.”
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