Aug. 26, 1931: Inchelium boys starts six fires

Federal officers at Colville, Wash. said the arrest of a 15-year-old Indian boy had solved at least six incendiary fires in the Colville forest this season. The boy, Alfred E. Paine, told officers he set them to see the smoke and flames. He was held under $3,000 bond.

Aug. 8, 1930: Fire at Barnaby Creek

Near Inchelium, 150 fighters were reported controlling a large fire at Barnaby Creek.

July 10, 1929: Forest ablaze near Inchelium

-Fire covers two sections in two days — smaller flame near Omak

WILBUR - Forest rangers are fighting a blaze near Inchelium, according to officials at the Indian agency office at Nespelem. The fire has burned two days and covered two sections, but since the plot was last burned late in 1926, the damage is not considered great. The fire is coming under control, it is believed. A smaller fire was reported at the agency today near the old St. Mary's Mission at Omak.

July 30, 1985: Two men missing in plane crash

Vintage aircraft sinks into Columbia

NORTHPORT - Authorities today were attempting to recover the wreckage of a vintage firefighting tanker plane that crashed into the Columbia River Monday afternoon with two men aboard.

The pilot, James E. Dunlap, 53, of Port Orchard, Wash., and the copilot, Timothy J. Trudell, 35, of Inchelium, remained missing today and were presumed dead, authorities said.

Divers who reached the wreckage following the 4 p.m. incident two miles south of Northport were unable to locate the men's bodies inside the wreckage, said a spokeswoman for the state Department of Natural Resources in Colville.

The twin-engine PBY Super Catalina tanker came to rest in about 30 feet of water 200 feet off shore, said a spokesman for the Stevens County sheriff. Rescue efforts were hampered by the swift current, he said. Authorities said the crash occurred as the pilot was attempting to reload the tanker with water during efforts to control a 70-acre forest fire seven miles south of Northport. That fire in pine trees on private land was contained overnight, officials said.

Plans called for bringing a barge upriver to recover the plane. Divers reportedly had attached lines with buoys to the aircraft in case it moved further downstream.

Reports indicated the plane floated for a short distance downriver after the accident before sinking. There were conflicting reports about whether the plane came to rest on its belly or its top.

An investigator for the National Transportation Safety Board based in Seattle was expected to arrive at the crash site later today.

Elsewhere, firefighters overnight contained a blaze that zipped across more than 20,000 acres of Eastern Washington range north of Yakima. Monday, the fire jumped control lines and burned outbuildings and vehicles.

The PBY tanker was the only aircraft of its kind in the continental United States, and was stationed during recent summers at Deer Park Airport.

Don Morse, owner of Deer Park Aviation, said the plane and crew had spent Sunday night in Wenatchee after helping fight a fire near Blewett Pass. They returned to Deer Park at 10 a.m., refueled and left for Northport at 1:45 p.m.

A DNR spokeswoman said the aircraft was being used under a contract between the state and the owner Aries Aire Ltd., of Moses Lake.

Morse said the aircraft has flown all but four days since July 1. Last Thursday, a cylinder was replaced on the right engine, he said. Morse speculated the possibility that an engine failed based on witness reports that the aircraft tipped to one side as it crashed. 

The PBY, which was built for the U.S. Navy 40 years ago, gathers water by landing on a lake or river and scooping 1,400 gallons into the fuselage. Fire retardant is mixed with the water. A siren aboard the plane warns boaters in the area of the pickup. Once loaded, the plane drops its water in either full or partial loads.

Also known as a "Super Cat," the PBY had a cruising speed of 175 MPH. It would slow to 70 MPH for water loading.

Originally equipped with 1,200-horsepower engines, the plane was modified with 1,750-horse from an Air Force B-25 bomber.

The owner of the aircraft, Bob Schaefli of Ephrata, was reportedly at the crash site today. The pilot and co-pilot were employees of Schaefli's Aries Aire Ltd. Both men were married and had children, Morse said. 

Three other big fires, in the Cascade Mountains, scorched more than 1,400 acres. 

The range fire near Yakima began at about 5 p.m. Sunday on Game Department land about seven miles north of Yakima in the L.T. Murray Wildlife and Recreation Area, said Game Department spokesman Harry Morse.

Aug. 31, 1931: Charge Indian set fires

 Alfred E. Paine, 15, half-breed, brought here for trial.

Alfred E. Paine, 15, half-breed Indian, was brought to the county jail from Inchelium last night by Deputy United States Marshal Dilley on a charge of setting fires to that section of the country. The case will be handled by the federal court.

Aug. 15, 1910: Fires rage near Inchelium

The forest fires are worse than two weeks ago and are burning millions of feet of fine pine timber on the south half of the Colville Reservation. A number of Colville Indians lost crops. A large number of Indians and people from this place have been fighting the fire for two days to keep it from the sawmill owned by Cole Brothers & Co. near Meteor, Wash.

Aug. 11, 1910: Indians fight to save crops

 The forest fires in this part of the country are not burning so badly as they were. The Indians are still fighting them back from their crops.

Aug. 8, 1930: 100 men battle Elbow Lake fire

In the Elbow Lake region, a 15-mile frontage of fire was being held by 100 men today, according to Inchelium reports, and was well under control.

Sept. 7, 1958: People mistake fire at Carter's in Inchelium

"His" Smoke's Fine

In Inchelium, Don Carter awoke at 5:15 a.m. to find smoke pouring through his home at the rear of his Inchelium Trading company.

He jumped up, evacuated his three small daughters, tossed out the credit records and the safe.

Within minutes, some 35 helpful neighbors were plowing through the house carrying all the furnishings to safety.

Suddenly, from within the smoke-thick house, neighbor Lawrence Gent called a stop.

He'd found the "fire" — a forgotten pot of meat scraps, simmering on the stove for the dog.

Of them all, the only man ahead was R.R. Lemmer, E3817 Eighth, Spokane, wholesale meat distributor who serviced Carter's store.

"BEFORE the fire," grins Lemmer, "they used to kid me every time I walked in there."

"The way it smells in there now, though, NOBODY kicks about my cigar!"

1918: Ed Moore house fire

The Ed Moore farm house west of Inchelium was entirely destroyed by fire Tuesday afternoon, and J. W. Crull, who with his family was living on the place, died of heart failure during the fire, as a result of over exertion. The fire started upstairs, only the organ and some bedding being rescued. Mr. Moore, who has been living at Inchelium, lost some household goods, pictures and relics which had been left in the house. He had some insurance on the property. Mr. Crull, who with his wife and three children occupied the home, formerly came from Weiser, Idaho, and lived at Deer Park last winter. He has four sons in the army, and a daughter lives at Weiser. He was 60 years of age.

From The Colville Examiner, Saturday, September 7,1918