Virginia Lake Complex

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Story & Photos by PFC Josh Corsa   -   Posted Aug, 2001
     When Chris McCuen flew over the fledgling Virginia Lake Fire Complex on a dry, windy August afternoon, he knew the fires would be bad.
     Now, one week into the battle against the fire, he realized how right he was.
It (the fire) was moving pretty good, McCuen recalled while driving his mud-splattered truck through the some of the over 40,000 burned acres of wilderness in this particular fire. It was throwing spot fires 1/4 to 1/2 mile ahead of the fire.

     As he turned a corner along the dusty back road, McCuen described the forest he used to know.  Ive personally never seen anything like this out here, the veteran firefighter, who has been fighting fires in this area since he was 14, recalled.  You used to be able to only see about ten feet in, the forest was so dense.  Now, he can clearly observe the opposite hillsides, more than a mile away from his vantage point in the torched landscape.
     McCuen, a fire prevention officer with the Confederated Tribes of the Colville Nation, is one of nearly one thousand firefighters and support personnel that are currently battling the Virginia Lake Fire Complex, a group of three fires that have currently consumed 79,723 acres on the Colville Indian Reservation, three miles East of the town of Omak, in North Central Washington.

     The largest fire, the Virginia Lake Fire, which was sparked by lightning on August 12, destroyed nine houses, although through the efforts of the firefighters from as far away as Grays Harbor County and bucket drops by National Guard helicopters, nearly 100 houses have been saved, some of which lay directly in the fires path.
     Through the efforts of nearly 2,000 firefighters, including more than 150 soldiers from the National Guard, two of the three fires, the Virginia Lake and Goose Lake fires, have been contained.  One fire, however, the stubborn St. Marys fire, has continued to grow in size, and has grown from 6,700 acres on Aug. 18 to more than 31,000 acres at present.

     On Tuesday, the fire made a significant run, extending more than three miles and threatening numerous more structures.

     No homes were lost, and as of Thursday night, efforts to contain the fire were succeeding, and the fire has become less active due to high humidity and rain.
     The National Guards effort includes three efforts. Soldiers from the 66th Aviation Brigade are transporting firefighters and support air operations with four helicopters.  The four helicopters, two UH-60 Blackhawks and two CH-47 Chinooks, have provided the bulk of the air assets, with the Blackhawks dropping as many as 79 650-gallon loads in one day, and the Chinooks dropping as many as 41 2,000-gallon loads in one day.

     The crews have been credited with save twenty two houses with their bucket drops.  A 97-soldier contingent from the National Guards 81st Infantry Brigade arrived Wednesday to begin assisting firefighting efforts and local law enforcement with traffic control and roadblocks.

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