The story from KIRO-TV:
EVERETT, Wash. — Firefighters in Snohomish County continue to battle a stubborn fire on Jetty Island off the Everett waterfront.
The fire began on the first day of Jetty Island Days, in which the island was opened to visitors.
The fire lit up the night sky in red Wednesday as flames spread through brush that was 8 feet tall.
The flames had mostly died down by Thursday morning, but firefighters will work throughout the day to make sure the fire is out. [Read more...]
And coverage by Katya Yefimova in the Everett Herald:
Firefighters are struggling to control a 300-foot-wide fire burning on Jetty Island.
The fire was sending up smoke that drifted past Everett.
Firefighters were called just before 3 p.m., Everett spokeswoman Kate Reardon said. The 300-foot-wide blaze started on the northwest corner of the island.
The fire is burning through 8-foot-tall bushes, she said.
An Everett police boat carried firefighters to the island to assess the fire, Everett police Sgt. Robert Goetz said.
Six firefighters are trying to control the flames with hand tools and portable pumps, Reardon said.
“It is expected that the fire will burn through the night and that firefighting will continue into Thursday,” Reardon said.
About 600 people came to the island today, the first day visitors were allowed this summer, Reardon said.
The fire is burning on a portion of the island rarely used by people.
Also published this morning in the Seattle Times, this ironically timed profile of Jetty Island recreational opportunities:
You know summer is really here, not just because of the Fourth of July, but because it’s time for Jetty Island Days.
Each summer, the Everett Parks and Recreation Department fires up the free Jetty Island ferry, carrying passengers every half-hour from Everett’s 10th Street Marina Park to Jetty Island, a two-mile long, man-made island with sandy beaches and shallow warm water at the mouth of the Snohomish River.
It’s a little bit of summery heaven for beachcombers, sun worshippers, birdwatchers and kite fliers.
There are also 45-minute interpretive nature walks at 12:15 and 3:15 p.m. daily, and other educational programs.
Details: Ferry runs July 1 to Sept. 7. The ride is free, though donations are suggested. Ferry runs 10 a.m.-5:50 p.m. Monday-Thursday; 10 a.m.-8:50 p.m. Friday and Saturday; 11 a.m.-6:50 p.m. Sundays.
More information: 425-257-8300 orwww.everettwa.org/default.aspx?ID=503
