US military, National Guard join firefighters

CHELAN, Washington, Aug 19, (AP): Fire managers overwhelmed by massive wildfires blazing across the West are looking for help wherever they can find it and have called in 200 active-duty military troops to fight the flames.

It’s the first time since 2006 that the National Interagency Fire Center in Boise has mobilized soldiers for fire-suppression.

National Guard troops set controlled burns outside Chelan to use up fuel as helicopters dropped water. More than 1,000 people worked to protect homes from the lightning-sparked blazes that began there last week, have burned more than 170 square miles (440 sq. kilometer) and destroyed an estimated 75 buildings.