Washington fire

On Wednesday, Washington Lands Commissioner Hilary Franz was walking through the streets of Malden with the town’s mayor, Chris Ferrell. Whitman County Sheriff Brett Myers was following a short distance behind and remembering what happened Monday afternoon.

Usually, fire season starts to tamp down in September. This year has been anything but normal. In an unprecedented fire event, at least 80 fires started in Washington over Labor Day weekend.

It was a wild weekend for wildfire in the Northwest. A cold front brought lightning and high winds -- but no rain -- to the region east of the Cascades already plagued by extremely dry conditions.

A large wildfire is burning outside of Naches, in central Washington. It started Sunday afternoon, and is called the Conrad fire. It’s currently estimated at more than 5,000 acres and about 20 percent contained.

Washington Senator Maria Cantwell questioned the acting head of the U.S. Forest Service, Vicki Christiansen, this week. Among the senator's top concerns: There may not be enough air support for fires in the West this year.

We’ve seen more wildfires burning into urban communities lately. But there’s a lot homeowners can do to protect themselves, according to top scientists at the Missoula Fire Sciences Lab.

Wildfire smoke can be annoying. It makes your eyes water and your nose run. But for some people with certain medical conditions, wildfire smoke can be especially unhealthy — and sometimes deadly. That’s why experts say people need to prepare before fires start. One big way to help: get an air filtration system.

Forests and grasslands in eastern Washington are at high risk for large, intense wildfire. This spring Washington’s Department of Fish and Wildlife plans to using controlled burning on more than 1,000 acres in Okanogan, Ferry and Pend Oreille counties.