Wind has settled during day 3 of the crews battling Williams Lake Fire

CHENEY, Wash. – There are less winds on day 3 of firefighters battling the Williams Lake Fire. 

The fire, which started Wednesday, has burned somewhere between 1.5 and 2.5 square miles in western Spokane County. Level 3 evacuations – meaning leave now – have been expanded for people living near the flames. Those living in the area between Cheney plaza, Grogen, Martin, and Texas Ferry road have been advised to evacuate.  

RELATED: Evacuations expanded for people living near Williams Lake fire

The Department of Natural Resources says they are focusing their efforts on fighting the fire more than measuring how much has burned. 

It is all hands on deck as crews from across the state convene on the area to help in the fire fight. Fire crews are currently at Cheney Middle School where they’ll soon head back out for day 3 of fighting this fire. According to Eric Keller, Public Information Officer for the fire, more people showed up for overnight to fight the fire with a chance to make a lot more progress today. 

Crews are trying to utilize their air resources as much as possible, but the fire is still not at all contained or controlled. 

The silver lining is that temperatures are not in the triple digits and for fire crews, this is the first big fire of the year. 

“Crews are holding up pretty good. It’s not hot-hot out. It’s windy,” Keller said. 

While all the rain earlier this summer helped delay the start of fire season, it has also led to rapid growth which is fueling the fires. 

For some, it’s the most they have seen in about 20 years of fighting fires.

READ: 10 homes lost to wildfire in Lind, entire town of Lind being evacuated

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