Mass evacuations underway as wildfires bear down on Spokane, Washington
Explosive wildfires in Spokane, Washington, have destroyed more than 600 structures, many of them within the city limits. The fast-moving flames led to mass evacuations and chaos, as families fled their homes. Adam Yamaguchi reports and Andrew Kozak looks at the forecast and the record heat threatening 50 million Americans.
Wildfires are sweeping through Spokane, Washington, prompting mass evacuations and widespread destruction. The fast-moving fires have destroyed over 600 structures, many within the city limits, with photos and videos showing houses engulfed in flames or reduced to ash. According to CBS News, the fires have led to chaos, with families fleeing their homes.
The fires are affecting thousands of people, with large parts of Spokane under Level 3 evacuation orders, which instruct residents to "Leave NOW! This may be your only notice," as reported by NPR. The city's mayor, Lisa Brown, said some major facilities have been evacuated, including water reclamation facilities, a waste-energy plant, and the Department of Veterans Affairs hospital.
As of 3:30 p.m. local time, about 200 homes in Spokane had been evacuated, but officials expected that figure to change, according to the Jerusalem Post.
The situation is severe, with 60,000 people left without power due to the strong winds and high temperatures driving the fires, as reported by Sky News. The wildfires cover over a quarter of a million acres in Washington state, with about 4,000 people fighting more than a dozen fires throughout the state. A statewide emergency and burn ban have been declared by Governor Bob Ferguson.
Brief written by urgent.news from CBS News, Free Malaysia Today, NPR, Sky News, Jerusalem Post — 5 reports on this story. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
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- Washington wildfires scorch over 2,50,000 acres of land; trigger mass evacuations timesofindia.indiatimes.com
- Wind-driven wildfire prompts evacuations in eastern Washington apnews.com
- Washington fires burn 250,000 acres, triggering evacuations and power outages in region jpost.com
- Fast-moving wildfire in Washington state prompts evacuations cbsnews.com
- Washington state wildfires trigger evacuations bbc.co.uk
