Arson Suspect Timed Spokane, Washington, Fire for High Wind Day

The 37-year old man suspected of starting one of the fires burning around Spokane, Washington told a detective that he planned the arson attack for Sunday to coincide with a “high winds” day, according to court documents.

That blaze was one of three that destroyed roughly 700 buildings and forced 70,000 people to evacuate earlier this week.

Aaron Farinacci, of Spokane, was arrested Monday. Police said he admitted to starting other fires in the area since last year, according to court documents. Detective Michael Drapeau said Farinacci waived his constitutional rights and decided to answer police questions.

Sunday’s blaze was one of 16 other large fires burning this week in Washington state. The smoke has clouded skies above Seattle and Portland, Oregon, prompting air quality warnings.

Fire risks are set to intensify in coming days. Red-flag fire warnings have been posted across parts of Oregon and Washington, including Spokane, where a dry weather front is expected to bring wind gusts up to 30 miles (48 kilometers) per hour, according to the National Weather Service.

Conditions across the region and neighboring states caused the U.S. Storm Prediction Center to forecast an elevated risk, or level one of three, for Friday.

“A combination of strong winds, low relative humidity and warm temperatures can contribute to extreme fire behavior,” the weather service said in the warning that expires at 11 p.m. on Saturday.

Washington Gov. Bob Ferguson, who frequently challenged President Donald Trump in court as the state’s attorney general during his first term, invited the president to visit Spokane and see the wildfire devastation firsthand in a post on X.

Firefighters have built containment lines around three fires that have burned more than 10,000 acres near Spokane, allowing some residents to return home, Washington Commissioner of Public Lands Dave Upthegrove said Wednesday in a Facebook post. Even so, 16 large fires remain active statewide, according to the Washington Department of Natural Resources.

Meanwhile, The U.S. Postal Service warned that wildfires in Washington and Oregon could delay mail and package deliveries.

Little relief is expected from the weather. Air quality alerts remain in effect across much of the Pacific Northwest and neighboring Idaho as wildfire smoke blankets the region. That has pushed air quality into dangerous and very dangerous categories in some areas, including parts of southern Canada.

There is no rain in the forecast across the region and with an El Niño strengthening in the Pacific, the region may see dry weather in the long term, said David Roth, a senior branch forecaster at the U.S. Weather Prediction Center. Through Aug. 4, more than 93% of Washington’s lands were abnormally dry and almost 64% were in drought, according to the U.S. Drought Monitor. Oregon was almost 91% in drought.

El Niños tend to suppress the jet stream across the U.S., which means most storms pass south of Washington and Oregon, Roth said. Currently the U.S. Climate Prediction Center calls for a slight chance of above normal rainfall in eastern Washington and Oregon from Aug. 13 to 19 and near average elsewhere.

Top photo: A home destroyed by the Old Trails wildfire in Spokane, Washington, on Aug. 5. Photographer: Erick Doxey/Bloomberg.