Wildfires ravage North Central Washington as firefighters battle multiple blazes

As many celebrated Independence Day across North Central Washington, firefighters spent the Fourth of July weekend responding to multiple fires - prompting evacuations and emergency responses in several communities.

The Chelan Hills Fire, which started shortly after 12 a.m. Saturday near Orondo, grew to an estimated 9,735 acres by Monday morning and remained 0% contained, according to the Southeast Washington Type 3 Incident Command Team. At least one person is believed to have died in the fire.

Authorities believe the human-caused fire, which may have been sparked by fireworks, destroyed more than 100 homes and other structures in the McNeil Canyon Road area, according to Douglas County Sheriff Tyler Caille.

"It's going to be some days before we can get a final number. It's going to take teams to go into every parcel to determine what that's going to look like and what that number is, but it's a very significant number," Caille said. "In over 30 years of fire service for Douglas County, this is the worst fire I've seen within the county with this number of losses to structures."

Elizabeth Kirk, a homeowner in the area and homesteader with millions of social media followers, posted on Instagram about the loss of her home and farm animals in the fire.

"We made it out safe, luckily, our whole family, everyone is alive. Unfortunately, we lost several goats; we lost all of our meat rabbits," she said in a video.

The video continues to show her family's burned home, farm equipment and vehicles, which were all damaged in the fire.

A person was found dead in a crashed vehicle within the fire footprint, Caille said in a news release Monday. He added that the vehicle had slid off the roadway and was consumed by the fire. Deputies working the scene of the fire discovered the wreck while conducting a follow-up investigation on a missing person report, after one resident who lives in the Chelan Hills Fire area was unaccounted for Sunday.

RiverCom dispatch logs show Douglas County deputies were asked for help locating a missing person in the area at 4:18 p.m. Sunday. Caille did not identify the person sought.

The Douglas County Coroner's Office will work to identify the deceased person and notify their family members. Caille said police are continuing to work with the Type 3 incident team managing the fire to check the area for anyone else who was unable to safely evacuate.

Firefighters continued working Monday to strengthen containment lines, protect homes and agricultural property, and secure the fire's perimeter as nearly 60 ground resources and air support were assigned to the incident.

The incident management team is currently stationed at the Chelan Community Gym at 309 E. Johnson Ave. in Chelan.

The American Red Cross also set up a shelter across from the gym in a Lake Chelan School District building, 324 E. Johnson Ave., in Chelan, where spokesperson Crystal Mounsey said no residents were staying.

They added that residents who evacuated from the Chelan Hills Fire had stopped by to pick up supplies and information, with one person planning to check in Sunday evening.

Navarre Coulee Fire

A brush fire was reported at about 9:30 p.m. Saturday in Navarre Coulee between Entiat and Chelan and grew to an estimated 300 acres by Sunday afternoon, prompting Level 2 and Level 1 evacuation notices from Chelan County Emergency Management.

Level 2 "get ready" notices were issued for the west side of Navarre Coulee from Highway 97A to Johnson Creek Road, including Johnson Creek and Oklahoma Gulch. Level 1 "be aware" notices remained in effect for the east side of the coulee from Highway 97A to Johnson Creek Road, according to emergency management.

As of Monday, the fire was 80% contained, and all evacuation notices were called off.

Wenatchee fires

Two separate brush fires prompted evacuations in the Wenatchee area.

The No. 2 Canyon Fire was reported around 10:30 a.m. Sunday in No. 2 Canyon and prompted level 1 - be aware and level 2 - be ready - evacuations for No. 1 and No. 2 Canyons before crews gained control at around 4 p.m.

"We did have some helicopters on scene from outside cities that responded, and also, we had some fixed-wing aircraft as well involved in helping us contain the fire rather quickly," said Wenatchee Valley Chief Jon Perry.

He added that approximately 50 acres burned with no structures damaged and no injuries reported.

"Now, the dangers of going up No. 2 canyon and then up into the mountains were real," Perry said.

The fire remains under investigation by the state Department of Natural Resources.

Later that night, a fire was reported at the 700 block of Queens Court in Wenatchee at around 10:30 p.m.

Perry said the neighborhood went into level 2 evacuations, but crews quickly contained the fire by midnight.

"Certainly, numerous structures, meaning single-family residences, were threatened by that fire up in that area," he said.

He added that residents reported seeing people firing off illegal fireworks in the area, though he's not sure it was the cause of the fire.

The fire burned about 2 acres. No structures were damaged, and there were no reports of injuries.

East Wenatchee weekend incidents

During the Fourth of July weekend, the East Wenatchee Police Department responded to more than 27 fire- and fireworks-related calls.

Chief Rick Johnson said in a news release that the calls spanned from Friday to Sunday.

"Despite the regional attempt to educate the public regarding the risk of illegal fireworks, some members of our community choose to disregard the warnings," Johnson said.

Along with the Wenatchee Police Department, Douglas County Sheriff's Office and Wenatchee Valley Fire Marshal, police arrested a 48-year-old woman Friday on two counts of reckless burning, in connection with Wednesday's brushfires on the Loop Trail below Fred Meyer.

A 41-year-old male was also cited on Saturday for discharge of fireworks, which carries a $205-dollar penalty.

On Sunday, Johnson said, East Wenatchee police located a 46-year-old male who reportedly admitted to starting a brush fire on the 1000 block of 12th Street Northeast earlier that morning.

That case was sent to the city prosecutor for possible reckless burning charges.

Johnson added that this year's calls were down 23% from 2025.

"Like every summer, our area continues to be at a high risk of fire danger. Please make good choices and help keep your neighbors safe," Johnson said.

- Jefferson Robbins contributed to this report

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This story was originally published July 7, 2026 at 2:09 AM.