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Spectacular Log Fire in Yakima Disrupts Washington State Fair

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yakima b KIMA

KIMA-TV

A FAST-GROWING FIRE IN STORED LOG PILES at the Boise Cascade sawmill in Yakima, Washington, Saturday brought everything around it to a standstill.  The fire was reported around 3:30 pm and involved a 25-ft.-high pile of bark.  Within 15 minutes, due to extremely heavy winds in the area,  it had spread to several log beds where hundreds of dressed logs were stored, generating a 4-alarm response that has kept firefighters working on the scene for nearly two days now.

KIMA-TV Ch. 29 ran this video report from the scene:

At one point the fire damaged a power line and temporarily knocked out service to the entire city, including the busy midway at the Washington State Fair.  Traffic was at a standstill throughout the area as several roads next to the fire had to be closed because of the intensity of the fire.

This is the third time in three months that the sawmill has had a fire in the storage lot.

The Yakima Herald-Republic reviews the circumstances of the fire and the recent history of problems at the facility that has some log beds that are as much as 1,000 feet long.  Read the story HERE.

Posted by on September 28, 2009 • Filed under: fire
  • Mark

    We had a simialr situation and had a terrible time dealing with it because of the lack of proper permits and the typical who is responsible questions. Because of our fire suppression efforts a huge number of fish were killed in a nearby stream and the Fish and Wildlife folks were not happy about that either.

    It is still an issue after almost 10 years of pointing fingers and a lack of cooperation on the part of the property owner. Kuddos to the FD on pushing for the facility to comply with the NFPA requirements and any other local codes required.

  • Mark

    We had a simialr situation and had a terrible time dealing with it because of the lack of proper permits and the typical who is responsible questions. Because of our fire suppression efforts a huge number of fish were killed in a nearby stream and the Fish and Wildlife folks were not happy about that either.

    It is still an issue after almost 10 years of pointing fingers and a lack of cooperation on the part of the property owner. Kuddos to the FD on pushing for the facility to comply with the NFPA requirements and any other local codes required.

  • alexa24

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  • alexa24

    This is a very useful and innovative blog.

    You should share some of this with the bizymoms Yakima community

  • alexa24

    This is a very useful and innovative blog.

    You should share some of this with the bizymoms Yakima community