The Washington State Department of Natural Resources (DNR) has found 'no silver bullet' in their investigation into the cause of the Pioneer Fire, that in the summer of 2024 charred the north shore of Lake Chelan. The two-and-a-half month long burn would eventually threaten Stehekin and blacken nearly 39,000 acres of the Sawtooth Wilderness.
DNR Communications Director Ryan Rodruck says a preliminary report on the fire’s cause suggests it began June 8, 2024 near where a man was using power equipment, along Pioneer Creek. The investigative report says the landowner denied welding or grinding in the area prior to the fire, but said he’d been running power equipment, including a generator and air compressor.
The owner of the land where the fire is believed to have originated told DNR fire investigators he was inside a building repairing a welder when he discovered the fire outside. He would later tell investigators that he was conscious of fire hazards and, while clearing brush the day prior to the fire's start, using a weed eater with plastic blades to avoid creating sparks.
The unidentified property owner said he used a bulldozer to build a fire break to protect buildings on the property.
A specific cause for the fire has not determined.
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