20 acres burned in Richland

Jul 05, 2009 (Tri-City Herald - McClatchy-Tribune Information Services via COMTEX) -- MDWS | Quote | Chart | News | PowerRating -- Fireworks are likely to blame for a 20 acre fire that lit the sky in south Richland, officials said.

An orange glow could be seen for miles as winds fanned flames across the hillside above Meadow Springs.

Quick action, however, by crews on both ends prevented the blaze from spreading to the east and west, said Richland Fire Battalion Chief Ted Ricci.

A dirt road above the hill and a canal on the south end helped keep the fire contained to the hillside, he said.

Still, homeowners on the west end of the hillside on Clermont Drive and above the hill at Morency Drive used garden hoses to wet the brush around their yards.

Others had shovels out to cover up any flying embers that landed nearby.

The fire started around 10:30 p.m. Crews from the Kennewick and Hanford fire department, the Department of Fish & Wildlife and Benton fire districts 1, 2 and 4 responded to assist.

Some crews had been out at a wildfire near Highway 397 and Olympia and drove right over to Richland's fire when the earlier fire was contained.

Other crews left the Meadow Hills fire when additional units arrived to help to respond to fires in their cities.

Details on those incidents were not immediately available.

Debbie Rinettie, who lives on Clermont Drive, said she was standing outside her home when the hillside caught fire.

"It was quick," she said. "By the time I ran into the house and got the phone (to call 911), it had started to spread."

Rinettie said she saw some people setting off fireworks in the cul-de-sac above the hill, then she heard some firecrackers go off.

She thought they were done when a truck drove off, but then she saw two people run to the edge of the hill and the hill caught on fire.

Stevie Isaac, 19, of Richland, stood at the top of the hill with her older brother, Derek, 20, and watched as fire crews drove along the canal road trying to reach the hot spots.

"It's crazy," she said as she snapped pictures with her cell phone.

Isaac, who lives nearby, had been driving home after watching Kennewick's fireworks show at Columbia Park when she saw the telltale orange glow.

"I thought 'Oh no. I hope it's not my house,' " she said.

Once she knew her home was safe, she drove above the hill and likely watched from the same area where the suspected fireworks had been set off.

Heat from the flames could be felt by those standing above the hillside and fireworks debris littered the road.

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