The Cooper Fire near Highway 14 and Cook-Underwood Road was considered 80 percent contained heading into the night…as crews planned to stay through the night to ensure it did not flare up. The fire that started around 3 p.m. Thursday burned about ten acres, but by 8 p.m. firefighters were closed to containing it, and residents who had left their homes began to return. Fire public information officer Stan Hinatsu confirmed three houses in the Circle Driver area were damaged by the fire. One had a damaged deck, another damaged siding, and a third had a fire in the attic. About 100 firefighters from the Washington Department of Natural Resources…the U.S. Forest Service…Klickitat County…and Skamania County crews took part in the firefighting effort…while a helicopter doing water drops assisted in the effort. A downed power line is believed to be the cause of the fire…and dry air and a strong east wind fanned the flames. Highway 14 was closed at milepost 63 for a few hours by the fire.
