The fire started on July 25 by undetermined cause but thunderstorms were in the area.
Every event with a place to put it; 1 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. Tap one for its entry below.
Deaths and injuries are direct and indirect together, as the offices filed them. Damage is property and crops in the dollars of the year, not adjusted for inflation, and only where an office estimated it.
The episode as NWS OTX wrote it up.
The fire started on July 25 by undetermined cause but thunderstorms were in the area.
The local office's own words before the first event, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.
NWS Spokane, WA wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Jul 25, 2:38 PM PST, 1 hour 8 minutes earlier.
Area Forecast Discussion
National Weather Service Spokane WA
338 PM PDT Thu Jul 25 2024
.SYNOPSIS...
Gusty winds and dry weather will mean lingering fire weather
concerns this evening, before things start to improve later
this evening into Friday. However smoke from regional wildfires
may impact some of your activities. The weekend will be dry with
seasonably warm weather. The arrival of a slow moving frontal
system Monday and Tuesday will bring the chance for showers and
thunderstorms. Above average temperatures and dry weather will
likely return toward the end of next week.
&&
.DISCUSSION...
This afternoon through Friday night: An upper trough will continue
to migrate across the region this evening, before the region
starts to shift into a more benign regime for Friday. Tonight that
upper trough and moisture caught up in it will continue to provide
some scattered to broken cloud cover over the northern CWA, with a
some embedded showers over the northeast WA and north ID counties
before about 7-8 PM. Then the clouds and showers collapsing with
sunset. Winds will remain breezy this afternoon, sustained near
10-20 mph with gusts near 25-35 mph. Regional RH values are
starting to bottom our in the upper teens to lower 20s. The winds
will start to abate with sunset and RHs will start to recover. Red
Flag Warnings remain in effect for portions of eastern and central
WA, including around the Colville Reservation around the Swawilla
Wildfire.
Friday itself will be a bit warmer than today, but still a bit
below normal. Clouds will be more limited and transient too and
winds will be lighter. However with active wildfires surrounding
much of the Pacific Northwest from Canada to California, including
some very active ones in our own CWA, the region will have to
contend with smoke and haze. HRRR models continue hold some of the
denser smoke around the Cascades and northern counties, as well
as over the far southeast CWA early this evening. However heading
into the overnight and Friday that smoke and haze is forecast to
expand over more of the Columbia Basin and eastern Washington.
This includes the Spokane/C’dA area. It linger throughout much of
the day into Friday night, even into Saturday though by then model
start to shift the focus more over Idaho, back over the Cascades
and toward the southern third of WA. So keeping an eye on air
quality is something to keep in mind, looking to sources as such
airnow.gov or local resources. /Solveig
Saturday to Thursday: Saturday will feature elevated fire weather
conditions in central Washington thanks to weak troughing and a
marine layer in western Washington. Wind speeds of 10 to 15 mph
with gusts to 25 mph will be common across the Columbia Basin,
West Plains, and Palouse during the afternoons Saturday and
Sunday. Typical evening winds through the Cascade gaps will
deliver gusts up to 30 mph to Wenatchee, Vantage, and Waterville.
The ensembles show a 10-30% chance of reaching Red flag thresholds
in central Washington Saturday and even into eastern Washington
on Sunday.
Monday and Tuesday: A trough offshore the WA coast Monday will
increase our precipitable water and shower chances in the Inland
Northwest. The latest National blend of models shows a 10-30%
chance of measurable precipitation for the Columbia Basin, L-C
valley, Palouse, and north Idaho through Tuesday night. There is a
30-70% chance of measurable precipitation near the Cascade crest,
Pasayten Wilderness, and northern mountains of Washington through
Tuesday night. There does not appear to be a great amount of
destabilization during this period so widespread lightning
activity is not expected at this time.
Wednesday onward: Models suggest a return of strengthening
ridging in the NW US with warmer temperatures. With a gulf of
Alaska trough in place, winds will be a daily concern. /Butler
&&
.AVIATION...
00Z TAFS: VFR conditions will prevail for the period. Winds will
taper this evening. HRRR smoke indicates MVFR conditions possible
for KGEG-KCOE but confidence is not high enough to put in the TAF.
FORECAST CONFIDENCE AND/OR ALTERNATE
SCENARIOS: There is low confidence on how smoke will impact
visibility across the Inland Northwest. Lighter winds Thursday
evening may allow visibility reductions to increase in coverage.
-----------------------
Confidence descriptors:
Low - Less than a 30 percent chance
Moderate - 30 to 70
percent chance
High - Greater than a 70 percent chance
For additional probabilistic information for NWS Spokane airports,
please refer to the Aviation Dashboard on our webpage:
https:/www.weather.gov/otx/avndashboard
&&
.PRELIMINARY POINT TEMPS/POPS...
Spokane 50 83 54 87 57 86 / 0 0 0 0 0 0
Coeur d'Alene 48 81 51 84 54 83 / 0 0 0 0 0 0
Pullman 44 79 47 81 50 81 / 0 0 0 0 0 0
Lewiston 56 89 59 91 62 91 / 0 0 0 0 0 0
Colville 40 81 44 84 46 84 / 10 0 0 0 0 0
Sandpoint 43 78 47 81 50 81 / 20 0 0 0 0 0
Kellogg 52 77 56 81 57 80 / 0 0 0 0 0 0
Moses Lake 49 85 52 88 55 89 / 0 0 0 0 0 0
Wenatchee 55 86 60 89 61 88 / 0 0 0 0 0 0
Omak 50 89 57 91 59 91 / 0 0 0 0 0 0
&&
.OTX WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
ID...None.
WA...Red Flag Warning until 9 PM PDT this evening for Colville
Reservation (Zone 702)-Eastern Columbia Basin -Palouse -
Spokane Area (Zone 708)-Lower Palouse -Snake River (Zone
709)-Okanogan Valley (Zone 703)-Waterville Plateau (Zone
706).
&&Preliminary Local Storm Report
National Weather Service Spokane WA
1103 AM PDT Thu Jul 25 2024
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
0630 PM Tstm Wnd Dmg Kamiah 46.23N 116.03W
07/24/2024 Lewis ID Utility Company
Avista reported approximately 600 without
power in the Kamiah area due to thunderstorm
wind gusts. Nearby observations show wind
speeds around 45 to 55 mph.
&&
DBThe national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
1 wildfire. Local standard time, as filed.
Dominion Fire started on July 25 by lightning . It burned 275 acres of timber. It was contained on July 28. Cost is estimated.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Idaho in 2024Every state in 2024This day in weather historyWarnings in Idaho, July 2024
NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database, compiled from the National Weather Service’s monthly Storm Data. Complete through 2026-06; NCEI adds each month about 75 days after it ends and revises past years a few times a year. Rebuilt 2026-09-24. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 1206832.