For a second consecutive day, wildfires continued to break out at a rapid pace around Southwest Washington, threatening homes, prompting minor evacuations and sending scores of state and local firefighters to remote corners of the region.
No injuries were reported, but one firefighter was hospitalized for dehydration, according to Dave LaFave, chief of Cowlitz 2 Fire & Rescue. Further details were not available.
There was an unconfirmed report that flames damaged one house.
A respite from arid, unseasonably warm weather is expected Thursday and over the weekend, but in response to the unusual fire activity, Cowlitz County enacted an emergency burn ban just before 5 p.m. Wednesday. It prohibits all land clearing, residential and forestry-related burning until further notice. The county fire marshal is rescinding all issued burn permits, but they can be reissued or extended when the ban is lifted.