Crews worked quickly Monday afternoon to stop wind-whipped brush fires that briefly closed Interstate 90 and led to temporary evacuations of homes about 25 miles south of Spokane.
According to The Spokesman-Review, a fire near Ritzville closed I-90 in both directions between mile 218 and 220. Left lanes in both directions were later reopened after the flames were corralled and the smoke began clearing.
Another fire, called the Snider Road Fire, started near Fishtrap in Lincoln County and was driven by wind gusts as strong as 40 mph.
Winds spread the fire into Spokane County, leading to a level 3 evacuation in some areas near the Tyler exit west of Cheney, Spokane County Sheriff John Knowles said. Agencies from both counties worked together.
The fire had burned about 520 acres before the state Department of Natural Resources announced in the late afternoon that forward progress of the fire had been halted.
