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Terrifying video captured a raging wildfire turning a Spokane neighborhood into a smoke-choked hellscape Saturday as flames tore through homes and forced thousands of residents to flee during one of the worst fire disasters in the Washington city’s history.
Footage filmed along North Indian Trail Road showed thick, black smoke towering over a residential neighborhood as the fast-moving Old Trails Fire bore down on homes, reducing the area to a haze as the massive plume swallowed the skyline, according to 4 News Now.
Nearby, police sped toward the flames as residents fled south along North Indian Trail Road while the inferno advanced through northwest Spokane.
The wind-driven blaze ignited near Old Trails Road and Euclid Avenue around midday before jumping the Spokane River and racing into northwest Spokane, where Indian Trail, Five Mile Prairie and other neighborhoods came under Level 3 “Go Now” evacuation orders, The Spokesman-Review reported.
By Saturday evening, the fire had ballooned to 3,509 acres and remained 0% contained, with wind gusts of 35 to 45 mph driving flames through Riverside State Park and into residential neighborhoods, the report said.
Authorities confirmed homes had been destroyed, though officials had not released a damage estimate.
The wildfire erupted as Washington grappled with an unprecedented fire emergency.
Gov. Bob Ferguson declared a statewide wildfire emergency and activated the Washington National Guard as extreme heat, drought and powerful winds fueled explosive fire conditions across the state.
The National Weather Service also issued Washington’s first-ever “Particularly Dangerous Situation” Red Flag Warning for Eastern Washington, warning that new fires could spread rapidly and spiral out of control.
The rare warning is reserved for the most dangerous fire weather, when strong winds, low humidity and dry vegetation create conditions for explosive wildfire growth.
“When the sun sets and the sun rises, we are going to be in shock,” Washington Adjutant General Maj. Gen. Gent Welsh warned during a Saturday evening news conference.
“This is an extraordinary fire season. This is not normal; this is unusual,” Washington Public Lands Commissioner Dave Upthegrove said.
The Old Trails Fire was one of several wildfires burning across the Spokane area, alongside the Fairview Fire near Mead and the Autumn Lane Fire near Nine Mile Falls, both of which also triggered evacuation orders.
The fast-moving fire forced the evacuation of the Mann-Grandstaff VA Medical Center and other care facilities, while the American Red Cross opened emergency shelters for displaced residents.
As smoke blotted out the sun and traffic clogged evacuation routes, emergency officials urged residents to stay away from affected neighborhoods unless they were evacuating, warning that congestion was hampering firefighting efforts.
The cause of the Old Trails Fire remains under investigation.
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