What started as a grass fire on the south end of Milton-Freewater Wednesday, July 7, grew quickly to about 800 acres and burned wheat fields and multiple structures. As of Thursday morning, the fire was contained, officials said.
Milton-Freewater City Manager Linda Hall said the latest information indicates the fire started near Highway 11 and Sykes Boulevard.
It very quickly spread to Main Street.
Of the 800 acres burned, Hall said some was in the city limits, but most of the fire was just outside the city.
Hall said multiple structures, including one farm shop and several out buildings, were lost in the fire. There were no injuries and no residences involved.
Hall said the fire was originally contained a little after 9 p.m. The fire rekindled in one area at about 3 a.m. Thursday morning. Crews were re-dispatched and the fire was re-contained quickly.
Milton-Freewater Rural Fire Chief Rick Saager said at 8:35 a.m. Thursday that crews were still tending to hot spots.
Hall said she has heard there are claims on social media that a residence was lost on Orchard Street.
“That is incorrect,” she said.
The Milton-Freewater Fire Department and the Milton-Freewater Rural Fire Department were both dispatched to Southeast 14th Avenue, South Main Street and Sykes Boulevard at about 5:30 p.m.
The departments reached out to other agencies for aid, and support came from Walla Walla Fire District 4 and East Umatilla Rural Fire and the Bureau of Indian Affairs.
A fire helicopter out of Pendleton battled the evening wind as much as the black smoke roiling up, dipping water out of the Walla Walla River and, at least once, the city’s public pool. The pilot continued dousing hot spots until dark.
According to information from the Milton-Freewater Rural Fire Department, winds up to 25 mph helped the fire to spread.
The fire jumped multiple fire lines as crews continued to form new ones.
At one point, city utility officials had to make a choice to “de-energize” the electrical load for safety, Hall said.
Some residents at the southeast end of the city left their homes as a precaution, residents there said.
Hall said she’s grateful for the assistance from area agencies to put the fire out before it became worse than it was.
“I think it’s important note what an amazing job the responding agencies did working together,” Hall said.
Saager said help was also provided by local farmers with tractors and disks.
