Dollar Mountain Fire Multiple Incidents 1929

One of the largest fires of the 1929 fire season, the Dollar Mountain Fire on the Colville National Forest in Washington, was contained at 98,000 acres after burning for a month. Among the firefighters mobilized to this fire were 300 Russian-Canadians from a religious group, the Doukhobors. On August 8, 1929, a crew of 65 of these firefighters was entrapped and spent the night in the black before all of them returned safely to camp the next morning. In the vicinity of this entrapment the waterway was named Doukhobor Creek to honor these firefighters.

On August 12, strong winds pushed the Dollar Mountain Fire toward two fire camps with 150 personnel each. Both of these fire camps were moved minutes before burnovers occurred. While equipment was lost in both camp burnovers, no injuries or fatalities were reported.

On August 15, 1929, Vasiliy P. Makeiff (sometimes erroneously recorded as William Mikaryoff), a Doukhobor firefighter, was hit by a tree and received a fatal skull fracture. The injured firefighter was taken to Mt. Carmel Hospital in Colville, where he died from his injuries. 

Multiple, Fatality, Fire Behavior