Nakia Creek Fire in Washington state forces thousands of evacuations

A wildfire in Washington state near the Oregon border was raging Sunday night, prompting evacuation orders for thousands of homes amid record-breaking heat.

The Nakia Creek Fire broke containment lines as it rapidly spread to about three square miles while burning through a terrain of timber and brush, said Ryan Rodruck, a spokesperson for the Washington State Department of Natural Resources. The Clark Regional Emergency Services Agency’s map put between 35,000 and 40,000 homes in the evacuation zone by Sunday night, according to local reports, but the total number of evacuations was unclear.

The blaze in eastern Clark County – near Vancouver, Washington, and Portland, Oregon – was being fueled by gusty winds and low humidity. The National Weather Service issued a red flag warning for wind and low humidity throughout the metropolitan area.