Summary
This fire started after a sudden gust of strong wind on the evening of August 12 at about 9 PM.  The fire started along the West Chewuch Road about 1.5 miles north of Winthrop, below a electrical transmission/distribution line.  Apparently the wind either knocked the line down or short circuited the line and sparks from the shorting line started the fire.  The fire burned in an adjacent field and surrounding shrub-steppe and very open ponderosa pine slopes east of the road and down to the Chewuch River.  The fire burned an estimated 10-20 acres.  One family  lost their home in the fire.  Many other homes were threatened by the fire. The exceptional and extremely rapid response by many local firefighters and other firefighters that were still in the Methow Valley were responsible for rapidly containing the fire and preventing widespread damage to the community.

This is an example of a wildfire caused by a short in an electrical transmission line, next to a road in a private residential area.  The terrain is open, with only a few trees.  Despite the small size, this wildfire caused much more damage to the local community than two fires nearly 100 times the size that have burned in the surrounding mountains in recent months.  It is a good reminder that the best way to prevent wildfire damage to our local communities is to focus on making homes and properties fire-safe and to have well-trained and equipped local firefighters.  The wildfire that threatens your home is much more likely to start nearby than far away in the backcountry.  

Firefighters from Mazama, Winthrop, and Twisp stations were deployed to the fire and well as from the local Methow Valley Ranger District and other firefighters that were in the valley mopping up after the 30-mile fire and the Libby South fire.

About 1 hour after fire started on August 12, 2001	Fire ignition location along road, below transmission line
Shrub-steppe area where fire burned  and mop up crew	Scattered ponderosa pines in residential area where fire burned.

All photos above are copyright 2001 by Peter Morrison,  please contact us before use or reproduction. 

 Information Sources

Peter Morrison - First hand account

Local Police

News Articles

For more information: info@pacificbio.org

Copyright 2001 Pacific Biodiversity Institute