Level 1 evacuation alert issued for Lower Coyote Creek Fire

Due to a Red Flag Warning for fire conditions and potential changes to fire behavior, a Level 1 evacuation order has been placed on the area between Redthunder-Cutoff Road, Mill Creek Road, to Harrison Ranch Road on the Lower Coyote Creek Fire burning about four miles west of Nespelem.

A map of the fire shows the evacuation zone northeast of the burn area and northwest of the town of Nespelem. It straddles SR-155 and includes at least 15 "structure address points."

Isabelle D. Hoygaard, DNR public information officer on the fire, said the Level 1 evacuation alert means residents should be aware of the danger that exists, and monitor local media outlets for information. Residents with special needs, or those with pets or livestock, should take note and make preparations for relocating family members, pets, and livestock.

Hoygaard said crews will continue to evaluate the fire behavior throughout the day and changes to the evacuation levels are possible. Houses along the Columbia River Road are also now on a level 1 evacuation notice, lowered from a higher alert yesterday.

The fire started Sunday and was estimated to have burned 4,500 acres by Monday night.

Last night, crews made progress on constructing a line along the northern side of the fire, using bulldozers, hand crews and burnouts, Hoygaard said.

Today, aerial support will continue to help to ground crews to slow the fire's progress. Day crews will continue work on constructing a line around the fire, focusing primarily on its northern section, she said.

The fire is burning directly west of the Greenhouse Fire, which started July 23 near the Colville Tribes greenhouse operation along the Columbia River and had burned more than 5,100 acres over the next week.

The Lower Coyote Creek Fire reportedly started somewhere near the fish pen operations. One old cabin has burned.

The Northeast Interagency Incident Management Team 1 took over command of the fire Monday night.