Soda Fire (SW Idaho) Grows to 265,000 Acres; Forest Service Spending $100 Million/Week On Fires
Winds helped stoke wildfires sweeping across the northern Rocky mountains, the Pacific northwest and elsewhere on Saturday, posing new problems for firefighters trying to contain flames that have been fed by drought. One blaze, the Soda Fire near Nampa in south-west Idaho, had burned 265,000 acres to become the largest such blaze in the nation.
The weather was expected to worsen fires in some areas over the weekend, as the federal government said it would exhaust its firefighting budget next month.
The giant Soda Fire, on the Idaho-Oregon border, scorched grassland ranchers need to feed cattle and primary habitat for sage grouse, a bird being considered for federal protection. The Owyhee County sheriff’s office recommended residents evacuate several areas on the southern edge of the fire, and some roads were closed to recreational visitors. Locals were allowed in.
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A fire on the Warm Springs Indian reservation in rural central Oregon exploded to more than 50 square miles on Friday, forcing evacuations of a rural subdivision and a resort that had 400 guests booked on Thursday night. The fire was expected to keep growing as strong winds push it through dry grassland. Earlier this week, sparks from a passing vehicle started the flames that have destroyed three structures, including a mobile home. In eastern Oregon, a 34-square-mile, lightning-sparked fire burned 20 to 25 structures south of Canyon City and forced evacuations of residents in the area, while others were warned to be ready to leave quickly, KTVZ-TV in Bend reported. The deputy state fire marshal said the structures were destroyed along Canyon Creek, located along Highway 395 south of the endangered town of Canyon City.
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http://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/aug/15/wildfires-soda-fire-idaho-becomes-largest-us