Fire crews are digging lines to prevent the rapidly growing Sourdough Fire from crossing Diablo Dam Road and threatening Seattle City Light’s dam on Diablo Lake in east Whatcom County.
The dam provides 30%–40% of Seattle’s electricity, fire public information officer Margie Ferrucci said.
“It’s imperative we keep it as safe as possible,” she said.
Meanwhile, helicopters are making runs at the fire itself, dropping water scooped from the lake, Ferrucci said.
The Sourdough Fire grew overnight from 38 acres on Thursday to 534 acres by Friday morning, Aug. 4. The fire spread rapidly in high winds as burning timber fell down the steep slopes of Sourdough Mountain’s southern flank, Ferrucci said.
The fire is 0% contained and has “significant growth potential throughout the remainder of the summer,” according to the Southern Area Gray Incident Management Team website. Three helicopters and 163 firefighters are working the blaze.
Some of the firefighters are stationed in the company town of Diablo and the North Cascades Environmental Learning Center on the lake’s north shore, to protect structures at those locations.
Ross Lake Resort evacuated Thursday, Aug. 3 after the site lost power, Ferrucci said. A number of trails and campgrounds in the area are closed. A full list of closures is available on the North Cascades National Park website.
Diablo Lake is closed to all use from the log boom north of Highway 20, and Ross Lake is closed to boating. Ferrucci said officials are preparing to close Diablo Lake entirely.
