CLE ELUM, Wash., Aug. 30 (UPI) -- A wildfire in central Washington has been fully contained more than two weeks after it started and consumed 23,500 acres, fire officials said.
Fire officials said crews will monitor the Taylor Bridge Fire burn area east of Cle Elum after it destroyed dozens of homes and involved more than 1,000 firefighters at its height, the Yakima Herald-Republic reported Thursday.
Mop-up operations also were under way at the Diamond Butte Fire, which was declared contained earlier. The fire was smoldering in an area of the closed section on the Yakama Indian Reservation, officials said.
The Diamond Butte Fire was started by lightning Aug. 19 and burned an estimated 285 acres in a heavily forested area.
The Taylor Bridge Fire started Aug. 13 at a bridge construction site. Authorities said the fire burned 61 homes and 35 other buildings, and damaged seven other structures.
