OLYMPIC NATIONAL PARK — Of the 12 fires sparked by lightning last month in the park’s wilderness, half have burned themselves out and three cover less than an acre — but the largest fire, the 350-acre Constance fire about 15 miles west of Brinnon, continues to grow.
Ten firefighters were assigned to the Constance fire Saturday, and up to three helicopters dropped water on the fire’s east and south flanks, said Cat Hawkins Hoffman, Olympic National Park spokeswoman.
Trail closures were extended to include the main Dosewallips trail from the park boundary to the junction of the Gray Wolf Pass, as well as the Dose Meadows trails, the Constance Pass trail and the trail from Dose Forks to Honeymoon Meadows.
Park officials say there is no immediate danger to human life or to structures.
“We’re not even looking at evacuations at this time,” said Todd Rankin, incident commander overseeing the dozen blazes, at a meeting at the Brinnon Community Center on Friday that was prompted by wind-blown smoke that filled the town Wednesday.
“We do not believe that will be necessary unless something dramatic changes and if it does we will have many, many days to let you know that it’s a possibility.”
Rankin spoke to about 50 people about their concerns about the Constance fire — which covered about 270 acres on Friday, and which had grown to 350 acres by late Saturday.
The fire, which has been burning since about July 11, was discovered by park staff on July 16. For weeks, it burned untouched on steep terrain because crews were unable to reach it.
Rankin said crews had created a defensive line on the eastern side of the blaze in order to keep it from spreading toward the town. The plan, as of Friday, was to let the fire run its course and burn into the west.
Because of the smoke, a few residents at the public meeting voiced concern over health issues if the fire kept burning.
Rankin said on Friday that earlier crews had been pulled out because of the steep terrain.
“We had rocks the size of half-a-volkswagen and giant logs falling off the ledges. We made the call to pull out.”
Rankin said the only structure currently in danger was a ranger station in the park. Flames had come within 700 yards to that building.
Heatwave Complex
The rash of fires in the park, called the Heatwave Complex, was started by lightening strikes.
None of the other 11 fires were near any communities. All are being monitored for changes that may threaten human life, said Diane Abendroth, National Parks spokeswoman, Friday.
By Saturday evening, six park fires had burned themselves out.
Those were Jefferson County’s Dose fire, which began July 11; the Second Column, which also started July 11; Five Ridge, which began Tuesday: and Wilder One and Wilder Two, both of which began Wednesday; and Clallam County’s Long fire, which was ignited Wednesday. Each burned less than an acre.
In addition to the Constance fire, blazes still burning as of Saturday night were the Solduc and Morganroth fires in Seven Lakes Basin in Clallam County, both of which began Wednesday and which remained under an acre Saturday night, and the Knife, 10 Mile and Buckinghorse in Jefferson County.
Abendroth said of the remaining fires, only two are currently of any significance.
The Buckinghorse fire ignited Wednesday and quickly grew to 100 acres. It is located near the middle of the park in Jefferson County.
The 10 Mile fire, which ignited June 13, was burning a 10-acre patch about five miles south of the Constance fire as of Saturday night.
Both of the fires are being monitored, officials said. Crews were currently digging lines around the 10 Mile fire this weekend to keep it from spreading to the east.
The Knife fire, which began Wednesday, was less than half-an acre in size Saturday night.
Recent hot and dry weather combined with lightning ignitions has caused unusually active fire behavior for the Olympic Peninsula, park officials said.
Danger not over
But the danger is far from over.
The National Weather Service issued a red flag warning Friday for Saturday because of the dry conditions, and on Saturday, Karen Gustin, park superintendent, issued a ban on backcountry campfires effective Monday.
Under the ban, all campfires are prohibited in the park, with the exception of those in established fire pits in front-country campgrounds.
Park officials said that fires that ignite naturally, such as those caused by lightning, help maintain natural diversity in park forests and meadows, and benefit wildlife such as woodpeckers and elk, and vegetation such as Douglas fir.
Rankin said the fires would eventually go out on their own, but it may take some time.
“They will probably burn until the rain comes,” he said.
“We will do our best in the mean time to manage them.
Fire management updates can be tracked on the web at www.inciweb.org.
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Reporter Erik Hidle can be reached at 360-385-2335 or at erik.hidle@peninsuladailynews.com.
