CLE ELUM, Wash. (AP) — Calmer winds are giving Washington state firefighters hope of containing a wildfire that has left dozens of families homeless.
Swirling winds have been fanning the fire that's destroyed about 70 homes and hundreds of outbuildings. With better weather and 800 firefighters on the job, the incident commander is predicting "a good day."
The fire broke out Monday at a bridge construction near Cle Elum (klee EL'-uhm), about 75 miles east of Seattle. About 900 people have been evacuated from at least 400 homes. The fire is about 10 percent contained.
Crews are also battling wildfires in several other states in hot, dry and windy conditions.
One fire burning across 100 square miles in central Idaho is getting closer to the small towns of Featherville and Pine, and fire managers are discussing evacuation plans. Campers have already been told to leave.
In Wyoming, firefighters used a helicopter yesterday to rescue five people whose only escape route was threatened by a wildfire in the Shoshone National Forest.
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095-a-12-(Lyle Carlile, Fire Director, Bureau of Indian Affairs, in AP interview)-"being very busy"-Bureau of Indian Affairs Fire Director Lyle Carlile says wildfires are blazing across the West. (15 Aug 2012)
<<CUT *095 (08/15/12)>> 00:12 "being very busy"
060-a-07-(Rex Reed, fire incident commander, Washington State Department of Natural Resources, at briefing)-"and Kittitas County"-Washington State Department of Natural Resources Fire Incident Commander Rex Reed says the danger is extreme. COURTESY: KOMO TV ((mandatory on-air credit)) (15 Aug 2012)
<<CUT *060 (08/15/12)>> 00:07 "and Kittitas County"
061-a-10-(Rex Reed, fire incident commander, Washington State Department of Natural Resources, at briefing)-"very low humidity"-Washington State Department of Natural Resources Fire Incident Commander Rex Reed says the wind is expected to die down somewhat, but that may not be enough to bring the fire under control. COURTESY: KOMO TV ((mandatory on-air credit)) (15 Aug 2012)
<<CUT *061 (08/15/12)>> 00:10 "very low humidity"
APPHOTO WYHO101: This photo provided by the U.S. Bureau of Indian Affairs shows the Alpine Lake Fire burning Monday, Aug. 13, 2012, in the Shoshone Forest on the Wind River Indian Reservation in central Wyoming. The fire forced the helicopter evacuation of five people from a backcountry outfitter camp on Tuesday. They were safely extracted. Firefighters have not been able to suppress the fire so far because it is located in extremely rugged country. (AP Photo/U.S. Bureau of Indian Affairs) (13 Aug 2012)
<<APPHOTO WYHO101 (08/13/12)>>
APPHOTO WAET123: Cows stand in a pasture as a wildfire burns down a hillside behind Tuesday, Aug. 14, 2012, near Cle Elum, Wash. The fast-moving wildfire has burned 60 homes across nearly 40 square miles of central Washington grassland, timber and sagebrush. No injuries have been reported but more than 400 people have been forced to flee. (AP Photo/Elaine Thompson) (14 Aug 2012)
<<APPHOTO WAET123 (08/14/12)>>
APPHOTO WASEA108: A camping trailer smolders at the Sunlight Waters housing development as the Taylor Bridge wildfire advances on the community on Tuesday, Aug. 14, 2012 near Cle Elum, Wash. Homes in the community burned as the fire advanced. (AP Photo/seattlepi.com, Joshua Trujillo) (15 Aug 2012)
<<APPHOTO WASEA108 (08/15/12)>>
