U.S.

Wildfires Continue To Scorch Northwestern U.S.

As many as 31 distinct fires continue to threaten homes in parts of Washington State and Oregon.

Wildfires Continue To Scorch Northwestern U.S.
The National Guard / CC BY 2.0
SMS

The hottest month of the year may be behind us, but wildfires continue to ravage the Pacific Northwest. 

"​The destruction left behind by a raging wildfire in north central Washington State."

The damage is shocking, and difficult to track; the U.S. Forest Service counted 31 distinct fires on Saturday

But as residents of the region are learning, it only takes one fire to destroy a home. 

“Lost everything. It feels unreal. It feels like it’s not happening.

One fire near Pateros, Washington recently burned 300 homes — the most in that state's history.

But it's another fire that's been dominating headlines — the Rowena fire, named for the small Oregon town nearby. 

An Oregon official on Friday called it the "nation's top firefighting priority"as it forced hundreds of families from their homes. 

"We saw the panic, and felt the fear, as firefighters and deputies ordered residents to get out."

But after evacuations, close to a thousand firefighters went to work.

And on Saturday night, they had an announcement: the fire was contained, and almost 740 homes had been saved. 

Farther south, a California fire in Mendocino making headlines for a different reason

"Eight firefighters have been burned tonight battling the Lodge Fire, some of them suffering from serious injuries" 

 An official tried to explain“Basically, it was the end result of some very extreme fire behavior that was unexpected."

The firefighters were treated and released from the hospital, but the Lodge Fire remains uncontained, and has so far torched 7,100 acres. 

This video includes images from Getty Images