Small wildland fires break out in and near Cheney

CHENEY — Area firefighters were kept buys last weekend by a pair of small wildfires that broke out Saturday and Sunday.

The first took place early Saturday afternoon, April 17, when Cheney Fire Department crews responded to a small fire on the 100 block of Terra Vista Lane near Cheney-Plaza Road. Crews were able to knock the fire down quickly, containing it to low-lying brush.

No other details were available at press time. Public safety officials haven’t determined a cause of the fire, but suspect a group of juveniles spotted in the area earlier in the day may be associated with the incident.

“We had a separate call for service earlier that morning where officers discovered a large number of items placed on the tracks,” Cheney police Sgt. Nate Conley said. “Officers quickly moved the items before a train came through the area. It’s my understanding that witnesses said juveniles were responsible for the track incident and likely the brush fire.”

Conley said they have not been able to confirm the brush fire was caused by the earlier group of juveniles spotted along the tracks, and have not identified any suspects. Fire Chief Tom Jensen said they requested a Department of Natural Resources fire investigator to look into the wildfire’s source.

At about 9:30 p.m. Sunday, April 18, fire crews responded to a wildfire along State Route 904 about two miles north of Cheney. According the Washington State Patrol, the highway was closed between Jensen Road and Paradise Road.

While Spokane County Fire District 3 crews eventually took over command of the fire, it was Cheney crews who first responded.

“It was on the border of our jurisdiction but was indeed in District 3’s territory,” Jensen said. “We received the call as a passerby noticed a tree on fire near the power line.”

According to a post on SCFD 3’s Facebook page, crews were successful in knocking down the fire and quickly securing lines around its perimeter, engaging in mop-up operations. Traffic was detoured around the area using Murphy or Andrus roads, with SR 904 eventually fully reopening about 2 a.m.

The two Cheney-area fires weren’t the first in the area. Fire crews from SCFD 8, Spokane Valley, city of Spokane and DNR battled a 12-acre fire last Wednesday afternoon along State Route 27 south of Spokane Valley near Mica.

Local fire agency officials have expressed some concern about the possibility of a heightened and earlier than normal wildfire season, due to an extended period of lower than normal precipitation coupled with warming temperatures. DNR last week issued temporary burn restrictions on DNR-protected lands prohibiting debris burns in Eastern Washington.

John McCallum can be reached at [email protected].