Little Giant Fire

August 17, 2026 · Morning report · Plain, Washington

Data captured Aug 17, 8:13 AM PDT · unofficial & automated — in an emergency use Watch Duty and official alerts, not this page

This is an archived report from August 17, 2026 · Morning. Read the latest brief →

The Bennetts' house remains inside the Little Giant Level 1 "Get Ready" zone, with no zone edits since yesterday afternoon's republish; the GIS perimeter is unchanged at 132,351 acres, 10% contained, and now roughly 39 hours stale, while InciWeb and local press still cite 132,978 acres from Aug 16 with no newer figure surfacing in today's sweep. Air quality worsened overnight — AQI rose to 112 and PM2.5 nearly doubled to 49.2 µg/m³ — and the active NWS Air Quality Alert is due to expire at noon today. The unverified heat cluster 6.4 mi N logged one more detection but is still confined to a single day, and winds stay westerly, away from Plain.

Evacuation status

The Bennetts' house is INSIDE Little Giant - Level 1 (Get Ready) (Level 1). Follow official instructions — see the sources below.

Fire size132,351 acGIS perimeter of Aug 15, 4:57 PM PDT

Contained10%of the perimeter, per NIFC

Nearest fire edge7.3 miN of the house · as of Aug 15, 4:57 PM PDT

Satellite heat, 24 h7 minearest detection, N of the house · 435 in the surrounding ~50 mi

Air quality112 AQIUnhealthy for sensitive groups · modeled at the house

County road blocksnonelogged by the county · construction delays are in Roads, below

Level 3 — Go now
Level 2 — Get set
Level 1 — Get ready
Fire perimeter
Satellite heat, 24 h (brighter = fresher)
The Bennetts' house

Evacuation zones from the Chelan County Sheriff's live layer; fire perimeter from NIFC as of Aug 15, 4:57 PM PDT. Base geography is hand-plotted and approximate. Rings mark straight-line miles from the house. Containment lines are not mapped — no public GIS source carries them; the brief describes where they are.

The last 24 hours

The house is still inside the Level 1 "Get Ready" zone, and nothing edited overnight: no zone in the system shows a timestamp newer than yesterday afternoon's 3:20–3:21 PM PDT republish of Level 2 (2.0 mi NNE) and Level 3 (3.7 mi NNE), both unchanged in position.

The GIS perimeter hasn't refreshed since Aug 15, 4:57 PM PDT — still 132,351 acres, 10% contained, now roughly 39 hours stale. Today's sweep (InciWeb, Lake Chelan Now, the Chelan County evacuation page, lakewenatcheeinfo.com, wasmoke.blogspot.com, and a general search for Aug 17 developments) found nothing newer than what was already in last night's report: InciWeb's post is still the Aug 16, 8:45 AM update (132,978 acres, 10%, working current per the reconciliation rule), and the Chelan County evacuation-zone page is still on its Aug 16, 10:47 AM revision. lakewenatcheeinfo.com again returned no usable content (the recurring bot-check gap), and lakechelannow.com and wasmoke.blogspot.com surfaced only stale Aug 13–14 posts.

VIIRS heat: 435 detections in the region in the last 24 hours, nearest 7.0 mi N (fresh, acquired ~3:13 AM PDT), unchanged in distance from last night. The unverified cluster at 6.4 mi N picked up one more detection (3 total, max FRP up to 13.1 from 1.1) but is still confined to a single day (Aug 16) — not yet a second day of activity, so it stays flagged UNVERIFIED rather than established.

Fire weather

Favorable: SW 1–6 mph today, shifting NW around 7 mph tonight and NW 6–10 mph (gusts to 20) Tuesday — no north or northeast component toward the Chiwawa or White River drainages in the five-day forecast. No Red Flag Warning. The only thunderstorm chance in the window is a 30% chance of showers Friday night, five days out.

Air quality

Worse: modeled AQI is 112 (up from 108), and PM2.5 rose to 49.2 µg/m³ from 20.6 — smoke is heavier over the house than last night despite stable winds. The NWS Spokane Air Quality Alert issued Aug 16 at 11:54 AM is due to expire today at 12:00 PM PDT; worth watching whether it's renewed given the overnight increase.

Roads: no new blocks logged.

The plan, decided in advance

If a Level 1 zone reaches the house: confirm go-bags, documents, and medications are staged; keep both vehicles above half a tank; recheck this page and Watch Duty morning and evening.
If Level 2 reaches the house: load the cars, position them facing out, and leave early if anyone is home alone or mobility-limited. Do not wait for Level 3 to decide.
If Level 3 reaches the house — leave immediately: primary route Beaver Valley Rd → SR 207 → US 2; alternate Chumstick Hwy to Leavenworth (mind the pilot-car delays); US 2 west over Stevens Pass if east is compromised.

Default plan drafted from Ready-Set-Go guidance — worth a family walk-through while things are calm. Authorities' instructions override it.

Evacuation zones, measured from the house

Zone	Level	From the house	Boundary last edited
Little Giant	Level 1	INSIDE THIS ZONE	Aug 15, 3:03 PM PDT
Little Giantchanged <24 h	Level 2	2 mi NNE (20°)	Aug 16, 3:20 PM PDT
Little Giantchanged <24 h	Level 3	3.7 mi NNE (16°)	Aug 16, 3:21 PM PDT
LG Entiat	Level 3	8.4 mi ENE (58°)	Aug 10, 9:31 AM PDT
LG Entiat	Level 2	10.8 mi ESE (104°)	Aug 8, 6:15 PM PDT
LG Entiat	Level 1	12.3 mi ESE (115°)	Aug 8, 5:51 PM PDT
LG Chelanchanged <24 h	Level 3	15.1 mi NE (53°)	Aug 16, 3:17 PM PDT
LG Chelanchanged <24 h	Level 2	16 mi ENE (76°)	Aug 16, 3:18 PM PDT
LG Chelan	Level 1	17.2 mi E (85°)	Aug 13, 1:33 PM PDT
LG Manson	Level 3	23 mi NNE (33°)	Aug 1, 8:16 PM PDT
LG Manson	Level 2	23.9 mi NE (42°)	Aug 1, 8:12 PM PDT
LG Manson	Level 1	25.4 mi ENE (59°)	Aug 2, 1:25 PM PDT

Zone geometry comes only from the Sheriff's GIS layer — news descriptions of boundaries have run 10+ days behind the actual polygon edits. Distances are straight-line to the zone boundary.

Wind and weather, next four days

Air Quality Alert — in effect until Aug 17, 12:00 PM PDT

TodaySW 1 to 6 mphSmoke · 88°F
TonightNW 7 mphPatchy Smoke · 54°F
TuesdayNW 6 to 10 mphPatchy Smoke · 84°F
Tuesday NightNW 6 to 10 mphMostly Clear · 51°F
WednesdayW 1 to 6 mphSunny · 87°F
Wednesday NightNW 5 mphPartly Cloudy · 54°F
ThursdaySW 3 mphSunny · 89°F
Thursday NightNW 1 to 5 mphPartly Cloudy · 58°F

Report history

Report	Fire size (GIS)	Contained	Nearest edge	Zone status
Sep 17 · Evening	172,814 ac	81%	5.2 mi NNE	outside all zones
Sep 17 · Morning	172,814 ac+109	81%	5.2 mi NNE	outside all zones
Sep 16 · Evening	172,705 ac	81%	5.2 mi NNE	outside all zones
Sep 16 · Morning	172,705 ac	81%	5.2 mi NNE	outside all zones
Sep 15 · Evening	172,705 ac	81%	5.2 mi NNE	outside all zones
Sep 15 · Morning	172,705 ac+22	81%	5.2 mi NNE	outside all zones
Sep 14 · Evening	172,683 ac−12	81%	5.2 mi NNE	outside all zones

Previous reports(69)

Sep 14 · Morning	172,695 ac	81%	5.2 mi NNE	outside all zones
Sep 13 · Evening	172,695 ac	81%	5.2 mi NNE	outside all zones
Sep 13 · Morning	172,695 ac	81%	5.2 mi NNE	outside all zones
Sep 12 · Evening	172,695 ac	81%	5.2 mi NNE	outside all zones
Sep 12 · Morning	172,695 ac+103	81%	5.2 mi NNE	outside all zones
Sep 11 · Evening	172,592 ac+191	81%	5.2 mi NNE	outside all zones
Sep 11 · Morning	172,401 ac	81%	5.2 mi NNE	outside all zones
Sep 10 · Evening	172,401 ac+4	81%	5.2 mi NNE	outside all zones
Sep 10 · Morning	172,397 ac+198	81%	5.2 mi NNE	outside all zones
Sep 9 · Evening	172,199 ac+32	81%	5.2 mi NNE	outside all zones
Sep 9 · Morning	172,167 ac+641	81%	5.2 mi NNE	outside all zones
Sep 8 · Morning	171,526 ac+68	81%	5.2 mi NNE	outside all zones
Sep 7 · Evening	171,458 ac	81%	5.2 mi NNE	outside all zones
Sep 7 · Morning	171,458 ac+295	81%	5.2 mi NNE	outside all zones
Sep 6 · Evening	171,163 ac	81%	5.2 mi NNE	outside all zones
Sep 6 · Morning	171,163 ac	81%	5.2 mi NNE	outside all zones
Sep 5 · Evening	171,163 ac	81%	5.2 mi NNE	outside all zones
Sep 5 · Morning	171,163 ac+178	81%	5.2 mi NNE	outside all zones
Sep 4 · Evening	170,985 ac	81%	5.2 mi NNE	outside all zones
Sep 4 · Morning	170,985 ac+17	73%	5.2 mi NNE	outside all zones
Sep 3 · Evening	170,968 ac+213	65%	5.2 mi NNE	outside all zones
Sep 3 · Morning	170,755 ac	65%	5.2 mi NNE	outside all zones
Sep 2 · Evening	170,755 ac+110	49%	5.2 mi NNE	outside all zones
Sep 2 · Morning	170,645 ac+5	49%	5.2 mi NNE	outside all zones
Sep 1 · Evening	170,640 ac−144	49%	5.2 mi NNE	outside all zones
Sep 1 · Morning	170,784 ac	49%	5.2 mi NNE	outside all zones
Aug 31 · Evening	170,784 ac+7,706	49%	5.2 mi NNE	outside all zones
Aug 31 · Morning	163,078 ac−11	49%	5.2 mi NNE	Little Giant - Level 1 (Get Ready)
Aug 30 · Evening	163,089 ac+535	27%	5.2 mi NNE	Little Giant - Level 1 (Get Ready)
Aug 30 · Morning	162,554 ac+14	27%	5.2 mi NNE	Little Giant - Level 1 (Get Ready)
Aug 29 · Evening	162,540 ac+296	27%	5.2 mi NNE	Little Giant - Level 1 (Get Ready)
Aug 29 · Morning	162,244 ac−717	27%	5.2 mi NNE	Little Giant - Level 1 (Get Ready)
Aug 28 · Evening	162,961 ac+1,829	25%	5.2 mi NNE	Little Giant - Level 1 (Get Ready)
Aug 28 · Morning	161,132 ac+11,271	25%	5.2 mi NNE	Little Giant - Level 1 (Get Ready)
Aug 27 · Evening	149,861 ac	23%	5.2 mi NNE	Little Giant - Level 1 (Get Ready)
Aug 27 · Morning	149,861 ac	23%	5.2 mi NNE	Little Giant - Level 1 (Get Ready)
Aug 26 · Evening	149,861 ac+2,235	23%	5.2 mi NNE	Little Giant - Level 1 (Get Ready)
Aug 26 · Morning	147,626 ac	23%	5.2 mi NNE	Little Giant - Level 1 (Get Ready)
Aug 25 · Evening	147,626 ac+1,584	21%	5.2 mi NNE	Little Giant - Level 1 (Get Ready)
Aug 25 · Morning	146,042 ac	21%	5.2 mi NNE	Little Giant - Level 1 (Get Ready)
Aug 24 · Evening	146,042 ac+1,212	15%	5.2 mi NNE	Little Giant - Level 1 (Get Ready)
Aug 24 · Morning	144,830 ac	15%	5.2 mi NNE	Little Giant - Level 1 (Get Ready)
Aug 23 · Evening	144,830 ac+2,604	15%	5.2 mi NNE	Little Giant - Level 1 (Get Ready)
Aug 23 · Morning	142,226 ac	15%	5.3 mi NE	Little Giant - Level 1 (Get Ready)
Aug 22 · Evening	142,226 ac+8	15%	5.3 mi NE	Little Giant - Level 1 (Get Ready)
Aug 22 · Morning	142,218 ac+2,731	15%	5.3 mi NE	Little Giant - Level 1 (Get Ready)
Aug 21 · Evening	139,487 ac	12%	6.6 mi N	Little Giant - Level 1 (Get Ready)
Aug 21 · Morning	139,487 ac+910	12%	6.6 mi N	Little Giant - Level 1 (Get Ready)
Aug 20 · Evening	138,577 ac+102	12%	6.6 mi N	Little Giant - Level 1 (Get Ready)
Aug 20 · Morning	138,475 ac+882	12%	6.6 mi N	Little Giant - Level 1 (Get Ready)
Aug 19 · Evening	137,593 ac+299	10%	6.7 mi N	Little Giant - Level 1 (Get Ready)
Aug 19 · Morning	137,294 ac+1,309	10%	6.8 mi N	Little Giant - Level 1 (Get Ready)
Aug 18 · Evening	135,985 ac	10%	7 mi N	Little Giant - Level 1 (Get Ready)
Aug 18 · Morning	135,985 ac+1,350	10%	7 mi N	Little Giant - Level 1 (Get Ready)
Aug 17 · Evening	134,635 ac+2,284	10%	7.1 mi N	Little Giant - Level 1 (Get Ready)
Aug 17 · Morning	132,351 ac	10%	7.3 mi N	Little Giant - Level 1 (Get Ready)
Aug 16 · Evening	132,351 ac	10%	7.3 mi N	Little Giant - Level 1 (Get Ready)
Aug 16 · Morning	132,351 ac+4,266	10%	7.3 mi N	Little Giant - Level 1 (Get Ready)
Aug 15 · Evening	128,085 ac	10%	8.1 mi N	Little Giant - Level 1 (Get Ready)
Aug 15 · Morning	128,085 ac	10%	8.1 mi N	outside all zones
Aug 14 · Evening	128,085 ac	7%	8.1 mi N	outside all zones
Aug 14 · Morning	128,085 ac−219	7%	8.1 mi N	outside all zones
Aug 13 · Evening	128,304 ac+533	5%	8.1 mi N	outside all zones
Aug 13 · Morning	127,771 ac+283	5%	8.1 mi N	outside all zones
Aug 12 · Evening	127,488 ac	5%	8.6 mi NNW	outside all zones
Aug 12 · Morning	127,488 ac+5,087	5%	8.6 mi NNW	outside all zones
Aug 11 · Evening	122,401 ac	2%	8.6 mi NNW	outside all zones
Aug 11 · Morning	122,401 ac+5,445	2%	8.6 mi NNW	outside all zones
Aug 10 · Evening	116,956 ac	2%	8.6 mi NNW	outside all zones

Sources

Previous briefs

Full archive →

The limits of this page

This page is an automated, unofficial synthesis and can be wrong or stale. It is not a substitute for official alerts. For live evacuation status use Watch Duty, Chelan County Emergency Management, and Everbridge alerts. In an emergency, follow instructions from local authorities.