Authorities arrest arson suspect in connection with wildfires in Spokane

A series of catastrophic wildfires near Spokane, Washington, have razed approximately 600 buildings, prompted the evacuation of thousands, and remain uncontained as of Monday morning. The fires, dubbed the Spokane Complex Fire, have scorched over 7,700 acres, according to NBC News. The complex fire is actually three separate blazes – the Old Trails Fire, the Fairview Fire, and the Autumn Lane Fire.

Spokane, Washington’s second-largest city, is situated in eastern part of the state, close to the Idaho border. Mayor Lisa Brown declared in a Sunday news conference that the fires represent "the worst natural disaster our region has ever encountered." As early Monday, nearly 900 firefighters and support staff were battling the infernos.

The origin of the fires is still under investigation. No casualties have been reported thus far. For those seeking to monitor the Spokane wildfires, follow the latest warnings, or view smoke and air quality data, several resources are available. The Western Fire Chiefs Association's website (WFCA.com) provides a mapping tool that utilizes data from NASA and NOAA, offering real-time insights and metrics such as a "threat score" for each fire.

Watch Duty, a nonprofit organization, offers an app and mapping tool that supplies current information on evacuation orders, shelter locations, and details about local firefighters. Lastly, Wildfire Aware, an app developed by spatial analytics firm Esri, enables users to search any active fire in the United States and track its progression with remarkable precision, drawing data from authoritative sources in ArcGIS Living Atlas.