The Nation - News from July 29, 1985

Blazes feeding on tinder-dry trees and brush continued their advance across rugged sections of the Northwest and the northern Plains as weary firefighters struggled to cut firebreaks across their paths. “Our main concern is the physical exhaustion of the fire crews. There’s been very little opportunity for any days off,” said Pam Gardner, spokeswoman for the Payette National Forest in Idaho, where the French Creek fire grew to 14,500 acres Sunday, up 500 acres from the day before. A crew of 460 firefighters and four helicopters was battling the blaze, which was only 55% contained. Elsewhere, smoke and flames rose over parts of Oregon, Montana, Washington, Wyoming, South Dakota and British Columbia.