Clouds are building and temperatures are cooling across Washington state.
After a summer of what the Washington Department of Natural Resources considers the worst drought since 1894, will this weekend’s rain event put an end to the wild record-setting 2021 fire season?
“I would say to you that we are now at the very tail end, and we’re seeing a very strong sense of relief,” said Washington Commissioner of Public Lands Hilary Franz. “We’re still going to have all hands on deck ready. But I think this weekend and forward, we are largely coming out of the woods. But it doesn’t mean we can just ban safety precautions.” On Thursday, Sept. 16, the public will once again be allowed to access DNR-protected lands east of the Cascade mountains - an area that has been off-limits since July 23.