Smoke Lifting Fire Activity Slowed In State

TWISP, Wash. (AP) — Fire officials in Washington state say smoke is lifting over a complex of wildfires burning in north-central Washington.

Spokeswoman Suzanne Flory says visibility has improved and so has air quality, but so far fire activity has not heated up.

Flory says smoke often works as a cap on fire activity and when it lifts, the humidity goes down, temperatures go up and often fire activity increases.

Fire officials won't know until late Sunday or early Monday how much the Okanogan Complex of fires grew Sunday. The fires had burned more than 375 square miles by Sunday morning, and the fires were about 10 percent contained.

Meanwhile, officials say three firefighters injured in a fire near Twisp, Washington, on Wednesday are recuperating at home after being released from the hospital. A fourth injured firefighter is being treated at a hospital in Seattle. Three others were killed in the fire.