Thousands of people in Spokane County, Washington, have been evacuated as parts of the city of Spokane are under a “Leave Immediately” emergency as three wildland fires forced evacuations.
Spokane County Emergency Management describes the emergency as “Level 3: Go, Leave Now, Leave Immediately!”
Officials said 60,000 people within Spokane city limits have been evacuated. Spokane County Fire District 3 Fire Chief Cody Rohrbach said 640 structures were destroyed in the Old Trails Fire alone.
The county website states:
“There is an immediate threat to your safety—you need to leave NOW. Emergency services may not be able to assist you. You will not be allowed to return until conditions are safe.”
As Tom Gantert reports for The Epoch Times, Washington Gov. Bob Ferguson declared a statewide wildfire emergency on July 31 and imposed a statewide ban on most outdoor and agricultural burning through Sept. 30 as drought, unusually high temperatures, and strong winds continue to fuel record-setting wildfires across the state.
The emergency declaration was issued ahead of what the National Weather Service described as a “particularly dangerous situation” Red Flag Alert, with “extreme” weather conditions.
According to the governor’s office,
