Spokane Firefighters Ground Air Support After 26 Drone Incidents Over 3 Wildfires
Updated
Updated · KXLY Spokane · Aug 3
Spokane Firefighters Ground Air Support After 26 Drone Incidents Over 3 Wildfires
3 articles · Updated · KXLY Spokane · Aug 3
Summary
Air support over Spokane County's three major wildfires was grounded after firefighters logged 26 incidents of private drones flying over active fire zones.
The shutdown was ordered for safety, removing aircraft from suppression efforts even as the Autumn Lane, Old Trails and Fairview fires remain active with zero containment.
920 firefighters are assigned to the Spokane Area Fires, and incident command expects that force to rise to 2,000 in the coming days.
Autumn Lane showed only minimal growth but prompted higher evacuation levels in some nearby areas, underscoring that all three fires still pose an active threat.