A Washington wildfire that tore through 3,000 acres and as many as a two dozen structures in a few hours could be fed by gusty winds and lightning Monday, authorities said. The Sleepy Hollow Fire in Wenatchee - about 140 miles east of Seattle - sparked Sunday afternoon and spread rapidly, Washington State Fire Marshall spokesman Bill Slosson said.
Evacuation orders were in place for at least 80 homes in the path of the fire. Trooper Darren Wright with the Washington State Patrol tweeted Monday there were no reports of injuries. Firefighters encountered hot, dry and windy conditions fighting the fire. Dry thunderstorms were possible for the fire area on Monday morning, and a red-flag warning denoting extreme fire conditions is in effect through the day.
Evacuations were mainly in the north end of town and included a Wal-Mart store, the Chelan County Emergency Management office said. The store did not burn, but several commercial buildings were near the blaze, Washington State Patrol Trooper Darren Wright said. Emergency management officials late Monday morning also briefly issued a shelter-in-place order after ammonia started leaking from a fruit warehouse. They later said it had dissipated and was no longer a threat.
The Blue Bird warehouse, which uses ammonia for cold-storage, was among a few commercial buildings to burn. Bonny, who lives just outside Wenatchee, called the speed of the blaze "just mind-blowing." Phil Bentz, who lives on the same side of the river as the fire, said his home hadn't been evacuated. "We were waiting for someone to knock on the door, but they didn't come. So far, so good," Bentz said.
About noon Monday, fire trucks poured water on a burning warehouse in downtown Wenatchee, sending big black clouds into the air over the city. Farther north of town, scorched hillsides showed where the flames were stopped just short of irrigated apple orchards and residential subdivisions.
