JBLM brush fire burns near Roy Y

UPDATE as of Wednesday: The base said firefighters planned to drop water on the fire in the artillery impact area Wednesday. They’ll drop water for a few hours each day before the ranges open, to help put out the fire and also cut back on smoke. Firefighters can’t get to the area on the ground, because the range has unexploded devices on it.

The fire near the Roy Y is bordered by marsh on one side, and firefighters are containing it on the other, the base said. It’s not clear how it started.

INITIAL POST: A couple of brush fires burned at Joint Base Lewis-McChord on Tuesday.

Firefighters from the base headed to one in a wooded area near the Roy Y about 4:45 p.m, base spokeswoman Catherine Caruso said.

One person told The News Tribune it was visible from 176th Street South and Spanaway Loop Road South.

Crews have been monitoring another brush fire in the artillery impact area of the base, which has been burning for a couple of weeks.

Caruso said it’s not unusual to have summer brush fires on the base but that it’s been a hot, dry season, and this week in particular has brought a lot of smoke to the area.

This story was originally published July 21, 2015 at 9:06 PM with the headline "JBLM brush fire burns near Roy Y."