Wildfires near Spokane destroy more than 700 buildings, force 64,000 to flee

Wildfires burning near Spokane, Washington, have caused extensive damage and forced thousands to evacuate, according to officials. As of Monday, at least 700 buildings had been destroyed and 64,000 people were under evacuation orders, up from 4,000 the previous day. The fires, which began on Saturday, have scorched over 8,000 acres and forced residents from the city's suburbs on the northern edge of Spokane, a city of approximately 230,000 people.

The cause of the blazes is still under investigation, but no injuries or fatalities have been reported yet.

More than 1,100 firefighters are fighting the fires, with roughly 1,100 battling the Spokane blazes as of Monday. This represents a small fraction of the 29,200 personnel assigned to wildfires nationwide, many of whom are concentrated in Oregon, Washington state, and Idaho. The National Interagency Fire Center in Boise reported more than 100 large new wildfires on Sunday across 15 states, with the majority located in the Northwest.

The Spokane-area fires are currently the top firefighting priority in the entire United States, including the drought-parched Pacific Northwest. Record drought conditions in British Columbia have also led to "explosive" fire behavior in that province. Aerial firefighting assets are currently limited to four fixed-wing tanker aircraft, with no water-dropping helicopters available in Spokane.

Fire managers are hopeful that cooler, less windy weather expected on Monday and Tuesday will allow crews to make greater progress. However, extreme heat, low humidity, and gusty conditions are forecast to return at midweek, making containment efforts more challenging. Despite some easing in fire activity compared to Sunday, authorities are reluctant to lift evacuations in most of the fire zone, as letting people return home could lead to another evacuation just 24 to 48 hours later.

The increase in wildfire activity in North America, Europe, and other regions is largely attributed to human-caused climate change, according to scientists.