Fire officials warn that Friday and Saturday will bring dangerous conditions for crews working to contain the Spokane Complex Fire. They described their work over the weekend as “crucial” because the heat, low humidity, and wind could cause the fire to spread.
A spokesperson told KIRO 7 two additional fires started Friday, but were quickly contained.
“All you see are chimneys, swimming pools and shells of cars,” Brian Turpen, a Spokane firefighter who has been working the incident since the very beginning, said of the affected areas.
Turpen shared chaotic footage of the early hours of the wildfire as it swept through the Indian Hills neighborhood, spreading between houses and burning them to the ground.
According to fire officials, no one was killed or injured.
“I am shocked that everybody got out and so thankful for that,” Turpen said. “We were going, at one point, door to door, breaking doors in and doing a quick search to make sure everyone was out.”
Though the fires are still burning, some families have been able to return to parts of the Indian Hills area to see what remains of their homes. KIRO 7 spoke to a family who was digging through the rubble to find any possessions that were not destroyed.
“We didn’t think it would jump the river,” Nikki Minnihan, who was helping her sister search through the remains of her house, said. “And it spread so fast. No one had time. It went to level three so quickly.”
Nearby, a KIRO 7 crew spotted numerous bowls of water and pet food, apparently left by an owner in hopes that their animal survived the fire.
“It’s devastating. It’s heartbreaking for so many,” Minnihan said.
2,000 firefighters from more than 150 agencies are now fighting the fire, according to fire officials.
Spokane Mayor Lisa Brown told KIRO 7 it will take a long time for the city to return to normal, but she believes the people who live there are up to the challenge.
“I see us taking this on and working to help people reconstruct their lives, rebuild their homes and make this region stronger than ever,” Brown said.