Johnson Fire cuts 6 mile long swath

Photos by Nick Van Arsdle and Shea Stanton

Last Thursday’s blast of a wind front through Whitman County during the height of harvest took a toll on fire crews and volunteers. At least five fires were logged in the area with the largest being a fire that ripped across six miles of the county south of Pullman.

A red flag alert had been issued in advance of the storm front Thursday.

The fire closed Highway 195 and threatened several homes.

The fire reportedly started in the Mac Hatley road area west of Highway 195 and roared across the highway near the Gimlin Road intersection. The National Weather Service reported winds in excess of 45 miles per hour in the area.

The fire had a half-mile front and spread across approximately six miles of farmland. No standing grain was burned in the fire, but some garbanzo fields were consumed.

Residences along Country Club Road, Gimlin Road and Staley Road were threatened by the blaze, and firefighters concentrated on protecting those homes as the blaze moved eastward. Guy Therrien lost a tractor in the blaze, and a few outbuildings were caught in the fire’s path.

Smoke and dust from the fire and wind made travel hazardous and troopers closed down the highway from approximately 2:20 p.m. until shortly before 5 p.m.

Mike Heston, information officer with the Pullman Fire Department, estimated more than 100 firefighters, farmers and impromptu volunteers battled the blaze which started around 3 p.m. Most went home before midnight, though some stayed on scene until 8 a.m. to fight flare-ups.

A two-car accident caused by the low visibility on the highway sent Sarah F. Marmon, 23, Albion, to Pullman Regional Hospital with neck pain. Marmon’s 1996 Toyota Corolla was hit from behind when she slowed down for the smoke about eight miles north of Colton. According to the Washington State Patrol report, Marmon was driving north at 6 p.m. and was struck by the 2005 Dodge Durango driven by Bruce Reed, 69, Clarkston.

Heston said the fire is believed to have started from a rotary mower that was cutting down stubble. It is believed one of the blades hit a rock, causing a spark that caught fire on the dry stubble.

Crews from the Pullman, Colton and Uniontown, Palouse, Colfax and Albion rural fire departments were called in, as were city crews from Pullman and Moscow. Rural departments from Genessee and Asotin County were also called in for assistance.

A number of local fertilizer companies provided their water trucks for the fight. Pullman Grange Supply brought in a fuel truck to gas up trucks. Area farmers broke out their tractors and discs to plow fire lines.

Whitman County’s Emergency Management department brought sandwiches and water for the fire crews about 8 p.m.

The Palouse rural crew had to leave the scene at about 3 p.m. to respond to a field fire which broke out in the Blair Road area west of Palouse. That fire also moved quickly east under the pressure of the wind. Garfield crews also assisted on that fire.

Thursday morning at about noon, Rosalia and Oakesdale fire crews responded to a fire on the Oakesdale Road just west of Oakesdale. That fire burned standing grain.

Two Rosalia firefighters were banged up while responding to a Spokane County fire in the Wells Road area of the Cheney Plaza Road. Their truck went into the ditch. Chief Bill Tensfeld said the two volunteers went to Spokane after the fire for a checkup.

St. John crews were called to a fire about six miles west of Steptoe during the storm. Disc crews also helped extinguish that blaze. St. John firefighters were also called out on the Endicott road when a tree blew over a powerline near Jones Road.