Pacific Northwest Wildfires Scorch 600,000 Acres In WA, OR

SEATTLE — State fire assistance was authorized Tuesday for two wildfires burning in Okanogan County, as firefighters battle more than a dozen major blazes burning across Washington and Oregon.

The Cedar Creek Fire, burning near Mazama, ignited July 8 and has charred more than 8,000 acres. As of Tuesday, it was just 11 percent contained. Burning to the east, near Winthrop, the Cub Creek 2 Fire has swept across more than 32,000 acres since igniting last Friday. According to the U.S. Forest Service, that fire was just 5 percent contained Tuesday afternoon.

Pyrocumulus clouds from the Cub Creek 2 Fire were visible from Seattle on Monday, more than 100 miles away.

As of Tuesday morning, the Northwest Interagency Coordination Center said 16 large fires were burning uncontained in the Pacific Northwest, including nine in Oregon and seven in Washington.

In southern Oregon, the Bootleg Fire neared 400,000 acres in size Tuesday and remains the largest wildfire currently burning in the United States. Firefighters asked for more outside help as the threat of lightning added to already extreme fire conditions. Fire officials estimated the fire was 30 percent contained but said flames continued to be "extremely active." Despite being in a remote part of the state, the gargantuan wildfire has burned at least 70 homes, and thousands more remain under threat.

Western wildfires impact air quality across the country; Western Washington is in the clear for now

Smoke from wildfires in the West has already reached the East Coast Tuesday, prompting a statewide air quality advisory in New York. In Washington, Puget Sound is expected to steer clear of smoke impacts for now. East of the Cascades, negative air quality impacts were especially pronounced in areas nearest the Okanogan wildfires.

In response to the growing wildfires, the Washington State Department of Natural Resources announced it would close state-managed lands to the public Friday in the Northeast and Southeast regions.

Washingtonians can fire live air quality and smoke plume maps via the EPA's AirNow tool and check the latest smoke forecasts on the Washington Smoke Blog.