July 3, 2023
Benton County – State fire assistance has been mobilized under the Washington State Fire Services Resource Mobilization Plan in support of local firefighters working to contain the OIE Fire located in Benton County, near Benton City. Washington State Patrol Chief John Batiste authorized the mobilization of state firefighting resources on July 3, 2023, at 4:30 p.m. at the request of Fire Chief Dennis Bates, Benton County Fire District 2.
The OIE Fire started on July 3, 2023, at approximately 1:15 p.m. This fire is estimated at 1,300 acres and growing. It is burning in grass and brush and is threatening homes, crops, electrical distribution, and interstate commerce. No evacuations are in effect at this time, however shelter-in-place orders have been issued. The fire cause is currently under investigation.
The State Emergency Operations Center at Camp Murray remains activated at Level 3 to help coordinate state assistance for the OIE Fire. Mobilization specialists from the Fire Protection Bureau have ordered 1 strike team and miscellaneous single resources, and the fire will be managed by a Local Type 4 Incident Management Team. State Fire Marshal’s Office personnel are both en route to the scene and working remotely to coordinate the dispatch of resources.
Under the State Fire Services Resource Mobilization Plan, the Fire Protection Bureau coordinates the initial dispatch and continued administrative oversight of resources and personnel for the duration of the mobilization. The Mobilization Plan is implemented to provide a process to quickly notify, assemble and deploy fire service personnel, equipment and other resources from around the state when fires, disasters or other events exceed the capacity of local jurisdictions. More information about the Washington State Fire Services Resource Mobilization Plan is available at: https://wsp.wa.gov/all-risk-mobilization/.
###