Gray Fire burns 3,000 acres of Washington State near Spokane killing at least one, as local mayor warns residents: ‘Get out NOW!’

Apocalyptic scenes have emerged in Washington State, where wildfires caused the evacuation of thousands of people and scorched 3,000 acres, killing at least one.

The gray fire started around noon on Friday and a few hours later swept through 4.7 square miles of grass, wood and wheat, propelled by winds of 35 miles per hour, the Washington State Department of Natural Resources said.

Medical Lake and Four Lakes, about 15 miles southwest of Spokane, have a combined population of 5,000 — the local mayor warned residents to “get out now!” as the fire continued to threaten those communities.

A red flag alert, meaning critical fire situations were or will soon occur, will go into effect at about 10 a.m. Saturday for eastern Washington state and northern Idaho, the National Weather Service said.

That’s what the Spokane County Sheriff said kq that at least one person had died in connection with the gray fire, but the circumstances remain unclear.

As of 7 a.m. Saturday morning, Spokane County Emergency Management lowered the threat level to 2, “Be ‘Set!” near Granite Lake, Tyler and Malloy Prairie and I-90 south.

But the fires continued to rage in other parts of the area.

Washington State Department of Natural Resources Joe Smillie told the New York Times that the massive fire destroyed several buildings in Medical Lake, but those numbers have yet to be quantified.

As of Friday night, there was zero percent wildfire containment and officials have yet to release updates for Saturday.

Medical Lake Mayor Terri Cooper warned residents and posted on Facebook “All citizens of Medical Lake, leave now.”

“We are below level 3 evacuations. If you need transportation, buses are available at the Medical Lake High School ballpark,” she said.

“They’ll take you to Cheney High School (Red Cross Evacuation Shelter). Small animals are okay. If you need help with large animals, call 911 and they will assist. Please stay diligent and safe.”

Hours later, the city issued a boiled water warning saying they were “not sure about the water.”

“We are not sure about the water quality so to be safe we ​​are asking our water customers to boil water until we can fix the system and test the water to make sure it is safe to drink,” they posted them on Facebook.

Washington State Department of Natural Resources Joe Smillie said the massive fire destroyed several buildings in Medical Lake, but those numbers have yet to be quantified.

The gray fire started around noon on Friday and a few hours later it swept through 4.7 square miles of grass, wood and wheat, propelled by winds of 35 miles per hour, killing at least one person.

The gray fire led to the evacuation of thousands and was issued a Level 3 fire warning – some of those areas were reduced to Level 2 as of 7am Saturday morning

“We will have to take steps to evaluate the water system and test the water. We will inform customers when the water is safe to drink without boiling.’

Overnight, frightening videos and photos emerged from the area, some revealing the extent of the raging blaze.

In a video posted to TikTok from a plane flying over Medical Lake, huge areas were lit up by the blaze.

The area appeared to be consumed by smoke with another video showing burning buildings on the edge of the lake as embers and ash rose from the sites.

The Washington State Department of Natural Resources also warned that strong winds could carry fire that has burned Cascades in British Columbia into the United States.

The fire, the Crater Creek Fire, has burned at least 54,000 acres since it began in July.

“We have a long night ahead of us, but please keep yourself safe,” Hilary Franz, Washington’s public lands commissioner, tweeted.

The Washington State Department of Natural Resources also warned that strong winds could carry fire that has burned Cascades in British Columbia to the United States

Farther north, most residents of Yellowknife, a city of 20,000 in the Northwest Territories, were forced to flee as a wildfire approached the city limits

“We will focus on getting these fast-moving fires under control.”

A state of emergency was declared on Saturday in the western province of British Columbia in Canada due to dangerous wildfires.

Some homes on the outskirts of Kelowna, a major resort town, were on fire and some were destroyed.

In a video posted to TikTok, residents could be seen in a boat watching houses and buildings burn to ashes.

Farther north, most residents of Yellowknife, a city of 20,000 in the Northwest Territories, were forced to flee as a wildfire approached the city limits.

Videos show the fire exploding in the nearby forest as vehicles try to escape from the fire zone.