Darrington Fire District #24

09/03/2026

Effective 12:01 a.m. Friday, September 4, Snohomish County’s burn ban will be reduced from Stage 2 to Stage 1 due to recent rain and improved weather conditions.

Under Stage 1, recreational and cooking fires are allowed in approved fire pits, but residential open burning remains prohibited. Recreational fires must be no larger than 3 feet wide and 2 feet high, kept at least 25 feet from structures or combustible materials, and have a water source readily available.

⚠️ If a Red Flag Warning is issued, all outdoor burning—including recreational fires—is prohibited.

Please burn responsibly, have a fire extinguisher, hose, or 5 gallon bucket of water handy and, when in doubt, don’t burn.

09/02/2026

We highly recommend signing up for alerts, this is one of the few ways we can inform you of any actions you need to be taking during an emergency that may affect your area.

Here’s a key step to take during : Sign up for SnoCoAlerts.
Snohomish County’s early warning and notification system delivers critical information right to your cellphone. Powered by Smart911, this robust system is one of the key tools to keep you informed during a disaster.
Signing up is quick and easy. Just go to this link to begin: https://Snocoalerts.snoco.org

08/23/2026

Do you know that even with the rain we are still in a stage 2 burn ban with a “Very High” fire danger rating in our area meaning no recreational fires and yes removing of signs still means the stage 2 burn ban applies to you.

Our friends over at Mt. Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest - US Forest Service have put a lot of hard work putting out signs around popular camping areas, trail heads, and inside of fire rings to make sure everyone should know camp fires are not allowed.

If you see any unauthorized fires please report to 911.

If you would like a reminder of what’s is or isn’t allowed during the burn ban here is the press release from Snohomish County Fire Marshals Office with guidelines : https://snohomishcountywa.gov/m/newsflash/home/detail/3245 -296c8e21da21882f1a62272d73ffc78a

08/21/2026

Red Flag Warning issued August 21 at 1:02PM PDT until August 22 at 8:00PM PDT by NWS Seattle WA

West Slopes of the North Cascades Generally above 1500 Feet
The National Weather Service in Seattle has issued a Red Flag Warning for lightning and gusty outflow winds, which is in effect from 5 AM to 8 PM PDT Saturday. The Fire Weather Watch is no longer in effect.

AFFECTED AREA
Fire Weather Zone 658 West Slopes of the North Cascades Generally above 1500 Feet.

LIGHTNING
Scattered thunderstorm coverage is possible across the North Cascades.

OUTFLOW WINDS
Any storms that develop will be capable of gusty and erratic outflow winds between 20 and 30 miles per hour. Outflow winds can occur ahead of and behind storms and cause erratic wind directions.

IMPACTS
Scattered lightning in dry fuels can cause multiple fire starts. Thunderstorms can also bring sudden sharp wind shifts on existing fires, causing rapid changes in a fire's rate of spread and direction of spread. Thunderstorm outflow winds can be a threat for several hours following the start of a new lightning-caused fire. If a fire were to begin, air quality may diminish in the surrounding area.

INSTRUCTIONS
A Red Flag Warning means that critical fire weather conditions are either imminent or occurring now. Any fires that develop will likely spread quickly. Outdoor burning is not recommended.

08/15/2026

The North lowlands and North cascades (Snohomish, Skagit, Whatcom counties) fire danger status has changed to “Very High” meaning:

Easy Ignition: Campfires, vehicle sparks, tools, and discarded ci******es can start a fire immediately.

Rapid Spread: Flames move fast and grow intense quickly, outpacing initial attack responses.

Spotting: Strong winds can carry burning embers ahead of the main fire, creating new blazes.

Difficult Control: Fighting and putting out the fire requires a long, heavy effort by safety crews

Reminder a Stage 2 burn ban is in effect for all of Snohomish and Skagit counties which means most outdoor burning is prohibited unless it’s a propane BBQ, table top, or fire ring. And please extinguish ci******es and DO NOT flick them out your car window.

Please work on defensible spaces around homes to minimize possible fire spread in the event of an outdoor fire. Learn more about defensible spaces here: https://dnr.wa.gov/wildfire-resources/community-wildfire-resilience-and-preparedness/defensible-space-prepare-your-home

08/15/2026

The Mt. Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest is temporarily prohibiting target shooting across all forest lands, roads, and trails beginning August 14, 2026, due to very high fire danger, dry forest conditions, and severe regional resource constraints.

Shooting remains authorized for individuals actively engaged in a lawful hunt under valid state regulations.

Please visit https://www.fs.usda.gov/r06/mbs/alerts/public-use-restriction-discharging-firearm for details on current restrictions.

08/14/2026

08/14/2026

Good morning everyone!

Here is another update for the Prairie Mountain Fire.

The biggest news for today is the rain helped with fire efforts and containment is at 90% as of this morning.

Also, the official cause of the fire has been determined as the results of recreational target shooting.

We so appreciate everyone who has been working so hard.

For any questions, please email [email protected]

08/12/2026

Red Flag warning has been issued for the mountainous areas in our area by NOAA and will be in effect until 11 PM. Please be vigilant and refrain from activities that could produce a fire. Any abnormal smoke or fire please report to 911

Weather statement from NOAA:

RED FLAG WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 11 PM PDT THIS EVENING FOR LIGHTNING AND GUSTY OUTFLOW WINDS FOR FIRE WEATHER ZONES 652, 658, AND 661... ...FIRE WEATHER WATCH IN EFFECT FROM THURSDAY MORNING THROUGH THURSDAY EVENING FOR LIGHTNING AND GUSTY OUTFLOW WINDS FOR FIRE WEATHER ZONES 652, 658, 659, AND 661

The National Weather Service in Seattle has issued a Fire Weather
Watch for lightning and gusty outflow winds, which is in effect
from Thursday morning through Thursday evening.

* AFFECTED AREA...Fire Weather Zone 652 West Portion of the
Olympic Mountains, Fire Weather Zone 658 West Slopes of the
North Cascades Generally above 1500 Feet and Fire Weather Zone
661 East Portion of the Olympic Mountains.

* LIGHTNING...Isolated to scattered thunderstorm coverage is
possible across the northern Cascade Mountains and the Olympic
Mountains. Thunderstorms will develop today from the northwest
and spread across the area.

* OUTFLOW WINDS...Any storms that develop will be capable of
gusty and erratic outflow winds between 20 and 30 miles per
hour. Outflow winds can occur ahead of and behind storms and
cause erratic wind directions.

* IMPACTS...Scattered lightning in dry fuels can cause multiple
fire starts. Thunderstorms can also bring sudden sharp wind
shifts on existing fires, causing rapid changes in a fire's
rate of spread and direction of spread. Thunderstorm outflow
winds can be a threat for several hours following the start of
a new lightning-caused fire. If a fire were to begin, air
quality may diminish in the surrounding area

08/12/2026

Good morning to our Darrington area community.

Please see the below information regarding the Prairie Mountain Fire. Crews continue to make progress on containing the fire.

For more information, please contact [email protected].

08/11/2026

Yesterday, 08/10/2026, at approximately 7:38pm, D24 was dispatched to the report of a camp fire that had escaped its fire ring 1.5miles up French Creek Rd.

Crews arrived on scene to find an unofficial campground with a 50'x40' fire that was starting to climb into the trees. Quick action was taken and the fire was knocked down before it could grow an larger. Once the flames were under control, crews spent a little over an hour "mopping up" the scene by cutting down a hazardous tree, bucking up logs, establishing a fire line, and churning over debris to make sure the fire could not start again.

The scene was eventually turned over to 2 DNR engines for fire watch.

We are grateful for the quick actions of our volunteers to make sure this incident didn't grow to something more serious and for DNR crews who helped make sure it was fully extinguished.

We also want to remind everyone that Snohomish County and also the USFS in our area is at a Stage 2 Burn Ban. This means there is no outdoor burning including camping or cooking fires. The only exceptions are contained propane/natural gas style fire pits and grills.

With this French Creek Fire and also the Prairie Mountain Fire growing to 147 acres, we strongly urge everyone to use common sense and refrain from any outdoor burning.

Washington State Department of Natural Resources