Imperial Valley press., 1929-08-09

PORTLAND, Ore, Aug. 9. W.H-
| Nearly thousand kebl1ckened
sweating, red eyed men battlcd the
! greatest enemy of the Pacific north
west in three states today on a
score of different fronts where fire
was attacking the world s last great
stands of virgin timber.
| The state of Washington was
| hardest hit. In addition to destroy
/ ing thousands of acres of valuable
timber, fires had paralyzed high
way traffic and electric tower lines
/ at one point and an irrigation sys-
! TEN at another.
! Springdale, small town 40
miles from Spokane, still was with
out electric power today as the re-
! suit of fire which destroyed a
! high tension line and blocked the
highway into Spokane
The fir clad foothills of Mt.
Rainier. were in danger of being
stripped Of more than million
acres of green timber and Lush
mountain meadowlands.
Wenatchee Valley apples are in
danger of shriveling and dropping
from the trees before they reacn
maturity unless water reaches them
soon. A fire near Lake Chelan,
which destroyed five miles of large
irrigation flume is responsible.
One Life Lost
| Thousands of acres of ma aiestic
forest giants have been sacrificed.
In Washington one life has been
lost as a direct result of the fires.
Frank Franz, a laborer who was
struck by falling rocks whie fight
ing ,he Mt. Rainier fire, died yes
! terday.
In Oregon fire on the klamath
Indian reservation and one in the
Crater Lake National Forest are
the most serious. Five or six other
fires are burning in the state but
are considered minor.
The situation in Idaho is similar
with all fires of comparatively
minor nature or confined by lines
of firefighters who have been able
to bring them under control.
SAN LUIS OBlSPO, Calf, Aug.
9. U.R-The brush fire raging in
the Santa Lucia mountains in the
Rinconda section still was out of
control today and additional men
were arriving to take up the fight
While they strove to control that
blaze, two new fires developed one
near Crcston, to the northwest of
their battle-ground, and the other
on the coast near Avila.
YREKA, Calf, Aug. >. U.P)-
The great Badger Creek forest fire
, was brought under control today
and the town of HawkinSville
saved.
The fire left a wide trail of ruin
and desolation in its wake.
Hundreds of deer and cattle were
burned to death. A $4,000 auto
mobile camp was reduced to ashes,
and tourists were forced to flee for
their lives.
Thousands of acres of timber, in
cluding valuable stands of cedar
and yellow pine, as well as brush
and grazing lands, were burned
over.
The fire descended from Badger
Creek, where it started when burn
ing automobile ignited grass and
leaves, and swept up and over Hum
bug mountain, famed by high
! wind.
An area from the Klamath to
the Shasta river has been devastat-
ed.
Hawkinsville, directly in the path
of the advancing flames and at one
time thought doomed, is two miles
north of Nreka
SAN LUIS OBlSPO, Calf, Aug.
8. WP-A call was sent out this
afternoon for more men to battle
the largest fire in the history of
San Luis Obispo county.
Although 250 fighters are strung
along the line, the flames continued
to make headway.
Approximately $4,000 acres of
brush, grain and grazing lands have
been burned over since the fire
started Wednesday in the Rinconda
section, east of Santa Margarita
United States forest supervisors
arrived from Santa Barbara today |
to take charge of the fight. They
were equipped with portable radios !
to use in directing their men.
Fires which started late yester ,
| day III the Crescent and Pecho see
tions were extinguished early to-
| day by ranchers and railroad work |