The Swawilla Fire was a large
wildfire
A wildfire, forest fire, or a bushfire is an unplanned and uncontrolled fire in an area of Combustibility and flammability, combustible vegetation. Depending on the type of vegetation present, a wildfire may be more specifically identified as a ...
in
Ferry
A ferry is a boat or ship that transports passengers, and occasionally vehicles and cargo, across a body of water. A small passenger ferry with multiple stops, like those in Venice, Italy, is sometimes referred to as a water taxi or water bus ...
and
Okanogan counties, located in the
U.S. state
In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its so ...
of
Washington
Washington most commonly refers to:
* George Washington (1732–1799), the first president of the United States
* Washington (state), a state in the Pacific Northwest of the United States
* Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States
** A ...
. The fire started on July 17, 2024, and was declared 98% contained on August 9. It was the sixth fire to burn more than 1,000 acres as part of the
2024 Washington wildfire season, and was the largest fire of the entire season, at 53,343 acres covered.
Although the fire did not cause any direct injuries or fatalities, it did destroy 2 structures and inflicted a total of $19,008,764 (2024
USD
The United States dollar (symbol: $; currency code: USD) is the official currency of the United States and several other countries. The Coinage Act of 1792 introduced the U.S. dollar at par with the Spanish silver dollar, divided it int ...
) in damages to vegetation, roads and trees located near the
Franklin D. Roosevelt Lake
Franklin D. Roosevelt Lake (also called Lake Roosevelt) is the reservoir created in 1941 by the impoundment of the Columbia River by the Grand Coulee Dam in Washington state. It is named for Franklin D. Roosevelt, who was president during the ...
. The fire led to evacuations in multiple communities, most notably
Keller, and temporary closure of the
Keller Ferry.
Progression
The fire was started by a
dry lightning
A dry thunderstorm is a thunderstorm that produces thunder and lightning, but where all or most of its precipitation evaporates before reaching the ground. Dry lightning refers to lightning strikes occurring in this situation. Both are so common ...
strike on July 17 in the Swawilla Canyon area, and began to progress north.
Initial efforts to contain the fire were not effective and by July 20,
Washington State Department of Transportation
The Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT or WashDOT, both ) is a governmental agency that constructs, maintains, and regulates the use of transportation infrastructure in the U.S. state of Washington (state), Washington. Establi ...
, operator of the
Keller Ferry, made the decision to keep the ferry route closed after completion of scheduled maintenance that started July 16. The area surrounding the ferry's northern landing was by that point subject to a level 3 "go now" evacuation order by the fire command.
By July 21, the fire had burnt onto Mica Peak and Mica Ridge, and the progression of the fire slowed down slightly.
Firefighters also began to prioritize the protection of structures located along
Washington State Route 21 and Manilla Creek Road.
The fire grew to an estimated by the end of July 21.
The Swawilla basin and Manilla Creek Roads, along with Highway 21 south of Manilla creek were all closed to the public on the 21st. Oversight of the fire was handed from the Northeast Washington Incident Management Team to Northern Rockies Complex Incident Management Team 6 who would coordinate with the
Colville Agency of Confederated Tribes and the Washington
Department of Natural Resources
This article lists subnational environmental agencies in the United States, by state. Agencies that are responsible for state-level regulating, monitoring, managing, and protecting environmental and public health concerns. The exact duties of ...
.
On July 23, the fire had grown to , and the town of
Keller was issued a Level 2 Evacuation warning as a result of the approaching fire, and the fire progress further south along State Highway 21. By July 24, the fire had rapidly grown, covering .
A level 2 evacuation warning was initially issued for areas in the Buffalo Lake and McGinnis Lake vicinity west to the Columbia River north of
Elmer City at 10:00. The Keller area Level 2 evacuation warning was upgraded to a Level 3 "Go" warning at 7:30 p.m. the same day, covering the areas from Empire Creek to north of Keller at Silver Creek Road. At the same time the Buffalo and McGinnis Lakes area was raised to a level 3 notice as well. To accommodate evacuees, evacuation centers were established in the
Lake Roosevelt High School at
Coulee Dam and
Pascal Sherman Indian School in Omak.
To assist with the increased level 3 evacuations, the Keller Ferry resumed service on July 25 from the northern launch only, and was running overnight, contrary to regular scheduling of stopping at 11:00pm.
On July 25, the fire had reached ,
and by July 26 this number had jumped to .
The area of fire that burned along the Swawilla Basin was contained, and priorities shifted to structure and life protection. On July 28, the fire had reached and another evacuation center was set up at the
Republic Fairgrounds, and the center at Coulee Dam was closed.
Containment reached 10% on the same day with major fire activity on the slope of
Mount Tolman fanned by winds. Air operations were concentrated in the northeastern quadrant of the fire. Areas of the southwestern burned zone were reopened from Buffalo Lake Road to Peter Dan Road.
On July 30, firefighters had established fire lines in and around Keller to protect structures, however the level 3 evacuation notice was extended north to Cache Creek Road and east across the
Sanpoil River
The Sanpoil River (also spelled San Poil) is a tributary of the Columbia River, in the U.S. state of Washington. The river is named for the Sanpoil, the Interior Salish people who live along the river course. The name is from the Okanagan ...
"mouth" to areas of the eastern shore of the mouth. The Peter Dan/Manilla Creek Road corridor and then Highway 21 south to the ferry landing were transitioned to level to for residential use. The evacuation shelters had been updated again, with human shelter only available at the Republic Fairgrounds, but livestock shelters were open at the
rodeo grounds in both
Grand Coulee
Grand Coulee is an ancient river bed in the U.S. state of Washington. This National Natural Landmark stretches for about southwest from Grand Coulee Dam to Soap Lake, being bisected by Dry Falls into the Upper and Lower Grand Coulee.
Geo ...
and Nespelem. As work on the Bridge Creek Fire transitioned towards mop-up work, the transition of teams and resources to the Swawilla fire started.
Fire teams patrolled containment lines around Keller, and along Highway 21 performing controlled burns to reduce fuel pockets and strengthen the fire perimeter in preparation for increasing fire weather conditions forecast for coming days.
Unmanned aerial vehicle
An unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) or unmanned aircraft system (UAS), commonly known as a drone, is an aircraft with no human pilot, crew, or passengers onboard, but rather is controlled remotely or is autonomous.De Gruyter Handbook of Dron ...
systems were on night operations were used for remote controlled ignition of burns along the Mount Tolman fire lines. By August 2, the fire had reached
in size while being 65% contained,
and with the Bridge Creek Fire at 90% containment more teams were transferred south to the Swawilla. The Republic fairgrounds transitioned to sheltering livestock and animals while taking no more evacuees.
By August 3, the fire had reached , but fire line construction and cooperative weather conditions allowed for the evacuation levels in a number of sections to be reduced to 2. Notably the Highway 21 corridor, Keller and the immediate vicinity, and the region between the Columbia and Manilla Creek/Peter Day Road. The eastern shore areas of the Sanpoil River mouth effected by evacuation notice were dropped down to level 1 notice, as was the area between Buffalo Lake and the Columbia north of Elmer City.
The resources allocated to the fire as of August 3 included 685 personnel including 11 fire crews, 51
fire engine
A fire engine or fire truck (also spelled firetruck) is a vehicle, usually a specially designed or modified truck, that functions as a firefighting apparatus. The primary purposes of a fire engine include transporting firefighters and water to ...
s, and two
Type 2 helicopters.
Incorrect damage statement
An incorrect news story by ''560 KPQ 101.7'' asserted the fire to have destroyed 28 structures as of August 1. This number was disputed by InciWeb command late on August 1.
References
{{2024 wildfires
2024 wildfires in the United States
Wildfires in Washington (state)