Gish Road Fire: Smoldering and smoking could continue for weeks

By Sharyn L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

CHEHALIS –  The Onalaska wildfire that broke out on Sunday and spread rapidly to more than 100 acres is smoldering, something that could continue for quite some time, according to officials.

Still approximately 100 firefighters with the state Department of Natural Resources are working at the scene, Public Information Officer Connie Birkland said last night.

The blaze burned what authorities initially described as a young plantation of Douglas fir and alder on private property south of the 300 block of GIsh Road, roughly five miles east of Interstate 5.

An early evacuation advisory was issued for residents in the vicinity on Sunday afternoon, but rescinded that evening. Aerial drops of retardant from jet planes were used to protect homes along the northern perimeter and also to slow the flames from spreading to the east.

“At this point, there are no structures we’re worried about,” Birkland said.

As of last night, the fire was considered 20 percent contained, meaning a sufficiently wide and extinguished strip of ground that circles the fire is only 20 percent finished.  They’ve got engines with hoses laid around the perimeter.

Crews are continuing the hard work of what they call mop up, according to Birkland.

“There’s a lot of hot, underground roots and stumps still burning,” she said, “You’re not seeing a lot of flames, you see smoke.”

No injuries have been reported or any structures burned. The cause remains under investigation.

Chief Gregg Peterson, of Newaukum Valley Fire and Rescue in Napavine, who along with Lewis County Fire District 8 Chief Duran McDaniel of Salkum assisted the local fire departments’ response on Sunday said his “first-in” person pointed out yesterday morning to the investigator the spot where the fire originated .

But there weren’t other obvious clues to share about what may have started the fire, according to Peterson.

“Our people didn’t see anyone or make contact with anyone, as far as I know,” he said of the initial response.

DNR has not yet said who owns the parcels involved.

Birkland said she may have miscommunicated somewhat about the nature of the properties involved. The land holds not so much tree farms as what they call regeneration – young growth of new trees – following previous logging, she said.

Peterson said acreage-wise, it was as big of a fire as he’s ever seen in Lewis County. Chief Mike Kytta, a nearly 40-year veteran of firefighting from Centralia, said the same, according to Peterson.

McDaniel, who started firefighting as a 16-year-old said the largest he knew of was in the summer of 1983 when a fire off Winston Creek Road at Longbell Road burned 247 acres. He recalled a good-sized fire on Dodge Road out of Morton in the 1990s, but said he didn’t know its size.

The Gish Road Fire has been measured at 103 acres.

“In the last 30 years, (this) was the biggest one we’ve had, as far as I know, that was anywhere near homes,” McDaniel said.

Watching a low-flying jet drop fire retardant across the area was a rare sight, and a first for McDaniel.

“When I went to fire school, they said you’ll never see this in Western Washington,” he said.

It was just about exactly a year ago that a roughly 60-acre forest fire burned beyond Teague Road, west of Centralia. Chuck Turley, assistant manager of the Pacific Cascade Region of the state Department of Natural Resources said DNR used a plane to drop fire retardant there.

How long until the Gish Road fire is out, or how long crews will be working on it isn’t something Birkland  could easily answer.

“Even though it’s confined inside the fire perimeter right now, it can go on for weeks,” she said.
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For background, read “Tree farm property burning in Onalaska” from Monday August 10, 2015, here ^[2]

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