Crews at Fairchild Airforce Base here in Spokane were training firefighters amid the upcoming fire season. One training activity included digging fire lines, which is used to expose the soil with the hopes of stopping the spread of a wildfire. They are getting hands-on training, helping address the problem the best way they can.
“Hands-on training is always the best,” Leonides Beltran, a specialist in the National Guard, said. “That’s how we can stop fires.”
About 80 national guardsmen were on the scene doing this training at the base earlier on Sunday. While they may not be at work fighting off wildfire, trainees are beginning to understand the importance of this training.
“Training’s essential,” Beltran said. “That’s how you build a successful crew. you build successful team members.”
KXLY-TV ABC 4 Spokane
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An encampment fire under the Denny Way overpass spewed a large plume of smoke over I-5 Sunday afternoon.
Seattle Fire crews responded to the fire at Eastlake Ave and Denny Way just after 12:30 p.m. No injuries have been reported and the cause of the fire is under investigation.
KOMO-TV ABC 4 Seattle
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Just before 1 PM Sunday Everett Fire crews were called to a mobile home park in the 7700 Block of Hardeson Road for reports of heavy smoke coming from one of the homes.
There were no people there at the time and firefighters had to force entry to gain access to the fire.
A dog was inside but was quickly accounted for.
Firefighters were able to contain the fire to the general area of origin and keep it from spreading to other rooms but the home suffered serious damage and the residents will need to make repairs before they can live in it again.
There were no injuries and an investigator with Everett Fire has been called to the scene to determine the cause.
My Everett News
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May is wildfire prevention month, and the city of Gig Harbor is doing what it can to prepare for wildfire season. To make sure your home or neighborhood is prepared for the coming fire season, the Pierce Conservation District, East Pierce Fire & Rescue, Orting Valley Fire, Greenwater Fire and Washington State Department of Natural Resources have teamed up for a Virtual Firewise Seminar that will take place May 25 at 6 p.m. for communities, home owners associations and property owners.
“We are supporting and encouraging the virtual seminar, and the programming will be geared more towards the homeowner, providing information on how people can mitigate wildfire risks in our communities and in our neighborhoods,” said Eric Waters, division chief at Gig Harbor Fire & Medic One.
The News Tribune
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Last week, three bear cubs returned to their natural habitat. The bears were badly burned during last year's wildfires near Lake Chelan and Cedar Creek.
Rich Beausoleil, a bear and cougar specialist with the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife, was involved in the capture of the injured cubs last year.
This week, he helped release them. "After our response, capture efforts, and many months of intense rehabilitation, this week's release of the bears burned in the North Cascades fires last year went extremely well," Beausoleil said. "The bears, who last year could barely walk, came blazing out of the transport cages, running like champs! They ran down the trail for about 25 yards and then veered off into the woods where they were born and never looked back. "
KIMA-TV CBS News Yakima
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