A brush fire on Interstate 5 in Seattle, Washington, ignited early Friday reportedly at an encampment before burning up trees in its wake.
Seattle firefighters responded to a call about an encampment fire located above James Street off-ramp that was blocked by the crews when they arrived at the scene, according to Fox 13.
UPDATE: Here is a visual of the incident on NB I-5 collector/distributor off-ramp to James St blocking the ramp. Incident Response, Fire, State Patrol & Seattle Police are on the scene.
— WSDOT Traffic (@wsdot_traffic) July 21, 2023
Seek alternative routes and expect delays! https://t.co/o7N1qoWYbn pic.twitter.com/JRCD2QCOsd
Video footage shows the blaze that was near a hospital, and the outlet’s traffic reporter called it a “raging inferno.”
However, he noted the smoke had turned from black to white, which meant water was being used to quell the flames.
It is not yet known if an encampment was at the location where the fire started. https://t.co/nUgwrdoKAp
— KIRO 7 (@KIRO7Seattle) July 21, 2023
What caused the blaze currently remains unknown, the Fox article noted.
“It’s been a warm and dry summer, increasing the risk of brush fires. This month alone, we’ve responded to over 190 bark and brush fires in Seattle. We urge everyone to do what they can to prevent brush fires this summer,” the Seattle Fire Department told citizens in a social media post on Tuesday:
It's been a warm and dry summer, increasing the risk of brush fires. This month alone, we've responded to over 190 bark…
Posted by Seattle Fire Department on Tuesday, July 18, 2023
The agency also listed ways community members can help prevent such instances around their homes.
In September, Republican Washington state U.S. Senate candidate Tiffany Smiley revealed her energy and environment policy proposal to Breitbart News, a document that also addressed preventive measures for forest fires:
A major issue on the west coast, Democrat politicians have been criticized by Republicans for banning proper forest management procedures, like clearing dead brush so as to not act as kindling for fires.
Smiley calls for local input for forest management on federal land which the proposal says is “critical for healthier trees, reduced vegetation, and increased moisture retention to slow and stop the spread of fire.”
Meanwhile, environmental conditions have been just right for wildfires to occur in the state due to low moisture.
The problem has caused great concern among people in Western Washington, Fox 13 reported June 6:
“Seeing the fire, feeling the flames, feeling the heat, it made you uncomfortable,” Graham resident Shana Bradley told the outlet.
