The Green Ridge Fire continues to slowly grow in the Blue Mountains 30 miles east of Walla Walla, with an additional 49 acres burned Monday, Aug. 23.
The fire, which has burned for more than six weeks, has consumed 39,471 acres of mountainous wilderness as of Tuesday, Aug. 24, and is 35% contained. Despite warming temperatures and drier conditions Monday, fire growth remained minimal due to residual moisture from the weekend’s light rains.
Crews continued work Monday to mop up uncontained fire line on the fire’s western and northeastern perimeters. While containment did not increase from 35% Monday, fire officials are optimistic that containment will increase in those areas in coming days.
Winds are expected to increase as a cold front moves over the area, and a drying trend will continue in the mountains east of Walla Walla, bringing lower relative humidity and potentially increasing fire activity.