Firefighters continue to douse flames in the Halfway Fire burning in forest land in the Chinook Pass area. They say Air tankers and helicopters greatly aided firefighters in minimizing the growth of the fire on Monday. Aircraft personnel also helped refine the size estimate down to 74 acres; however, only a small portion of the perimeter has containment lines in place.

A small incident team has assumed management of the fire and additional firefighting resources have been ordered to arrive later today.  The less favorable development is that the National Weather Service has issued a red flag warning for high winds today.

According to a release from the US Forest Service with the lack of secure containment lines and the expected winds, the Yakima County Sheriff’s Office is issuing evacuation notices to residents in the vicinity of the blaze.  This is being done as a precaution should fire activity increase significantly.

·        LEVEL 3:  Camp Roganunda Christian Camp, 25 homes in the Crag and Stillwater summer home tracts, and Halfway Flat and Sawmill Flat Campgrounds are under a level 3 mandatory evacuation notice.
·        LEVEL 2:  The Cedar Springs Recreation Residence tract, consisting of four summer homes, is being issued a level 2 evacuation notice.  This indicates there is an imminent threat and residents should either leave or be prepared to leave on short notice.
·        LEVEL 1:  The community of Cliffdell, and Indian Flats, Hawks Nest, Idlewild, and Cliffdell Recreation Residence tracts are being issued Level 1 notifications.  This means that these areas could be affected by the fire and residents should be alert to changing conditions, but they are not yet being advised to leave their homes.
·        In addition, the Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest is anticipating closing the area around the fire to public entry.  Highway 410 remains open but drivers need to be aware of firefighters in the area.

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