A large wildfire spreading toward the Hanford Site was stopped Monday with a backfire set at the security perimeter to prevent the blaze from entering the areas of the Department of Energy facility left contaminated from plutonium production. The fire, called the Range 12 Fire, started Saturday on the Yakima Training Center west of Hanford and had spread over 94 square miles by Sunday evening. Authorities decided Sunday to set a fire on Rattlesnake Mountain to protect Hanford and nearby Benton City.
Firefighters initially tried to set a backfire line at the top of the mountain to preserve as much habitat as possible, but had to move down the mountain to the 1200 Foot Road for safety as the Range 12 Fire advanced toward the backside of the mountain. Firefighters on Sunday night set a backfire along 6 miles of the 1200 Foot Road, which parallels Highway 240. Highway 240 runs through Hanford, with much of the production portion of the site to the northeast and the security zone, including Rattlesnake Mountain, to the southwest.
The backfire and the Range 12 Fire merged together late Monday morning, burning the Range 12 Fire out as it reached 110 square miles. Mop-up continued on the fire Monday afternoon and evening. Rattlesnake Mountain also burned in 2000 during the Command 24 Fire, which moved across Hanford and threatened waste storage areas at its center and burned 11 homes in Benton City.
