Cold Creek Fire burns over 40,000 acres in Washington

It is 31 miles east of Yakima

Cold Creek Fire
The Cold Creek Fire on the Hanford Reach National Monument. Photo by Franklin County Fire District 3.

A human-caused wildfire in south/central Washington has burned 41,920 acres 31 miles east of Yakima (see the map below). The fire has spread onto a portion of the Hanford Nuclear site that is closed to visitors but does not pose a danger to the public, according to the Washington state Department of Ecology’s Nuclear Waste Program — the agency responsible for oversight of federal environmental cleanup at the site.

The fire began Thursday morning as two fires burned together, and by 6 p.m. had blackened 8,000 acres.

Cold Creek Fire
A portion of the 41,000 acres that burned in the Cold Creek Fire. Photo by Washington Dept. of Ecology’s Nuclear Waste Program.

By Saturday afternoon the spread of the fire had slowed considerably and firefighters expect to have it contained by Sunday.

The Cold Creek Fire is the largest in Washington so far this year. The next largest was the 243 Command Fire that burned 20,380 acres 13 miles west of Royal City.

Map of the Cold Creek Fire
Map of the Cold Creek Fire at 2 p.m. PDT July 19, 2019, by David Winter. Click to enlarge.

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Author: Bill Gabbert

After working full time in wildland fire for 33 years, he continues to learn, and strives to be a Student of Fire.