LEWIS COUNTY, Wash. — The U.S. Forest Service said at least 40 new fires sparked over a two-day period in the Gifford Pinchot National Forest on Thursday and Friday.
"I've worked on the Gifford Pinchot National Forest since 1991 and I haven't seen anything quite like this," said Gala Miller, the public affairs officer of Gifford Pinchot National Forest.
Miller said it's unclear how many acres have burned. There are more than 100 fire personnel from various firefighting agencies responding. Meanwhile, Gifford Pinchot National Forest isn't the only place that had fires sparked by lightning last week. There's a half-acre fire in Mount Rainier National Park that started on Friday. Governor Jay Inslee posted a video on his X (formerly Twitter) account on Saturday checking out the fire for himself.
"These forests have been hit by lightning for thousands of years and have been healthy,” said Gov. Inslee. “But now, the climates changing dramatically, it's becoming, it's becoming hotter, we're getting more wind."
Miller said there's been a lack of moisture within the Pacific Northwest this summer. From Aug. 23 to Aug 26 there were more than 2,300 lightning strikes in the region. "We have not seen any wetting rain in well over a month,” said Miller. “So, the forests are really tinder dry and are kind of ripe for fire."
As of Sunday afternoon, no evacuation orders are in place for towns near either of the national parks, but Miller advises people to stay away from forests.
"They'll burn until we have a significant rain event. And last year that was I think late October,” said Miller. “I'm hoping that's not the same this year."