(STORY IMAGE:KHQ.COM)
MALDEN, Wash. -350 acres of what was once wheat grass is now just ash after a raging wild fire started Wednesday afternoon just outside the town of Malden.
"These fuels today are very dry and it doesn't take much to ignite them," said Trooper Jeff Sevigney about the fire conditions.
For Mallory Santanicola and her dog Micky, the sight of smoke and flames made her worry.
“We saw the flames right up over the hill and I just saw big black smoke clouds," said Santanicola.
That was the closest Santanicola had ever seen a wild fire that close to her house, making one of her biggest fears become a reality.
“One of my biggest fears is losing my house to a fire and everything that I own is in that house right there and if it were to have gone up in flames I would have been devastated.”
Thankfully fire crews worked throughout the night to contain the fire and say it's now contained. Crews will stay overnight making sure that all of the hot spots are contained.
The cause of the fire is still under investigation.