Twin Wildfires Shut Down Highway 104 in Jefferson County, Snarl Hood Canal Traffic

A pair of wildfires broke out along State Route 104 in Jefferson County on Thursday afternoon, growing into a 20-to-25-acre blaze that shut down the highway in both directions overnight and pulled in more than 100 firefighters from across the region. The main fire, burning west of the Hood Canal Bridge near Rocktogo Road, was 25% contained as of Thursday evening as crews worked to keep it from spreading further into heavy timber.

According to Peninsula Daily News, emergency dispatch logs show the initial fire was reported shortly after 1 p.m. Thursday as a 50-by-50-foot brush fire burning directly underneath power lines near Rocktogo Road, before a second spot fire ignited nearby. That secondary eastern fire, roughly half an acre in size, remained mostly contained by Thursday evening, while the larger western fire crept into heavy timber as ground crews used heavy machinery overnight to cut firebreaks through the underbrush.

The Brinnon Fire Department identified the two blazes as the South Branch Fire and the Rocktogo Road Fire in an update posted to Facebook Thursday evening. The department said a UH-1 helicopter was conducting water drops in support of ground crews, and warned the public not to fly drones near the incident, since unauthorized drones can prevent aircraft from safely operating near the fire.

Highway Closed, Traffic Diverted Around Hood Canal Bridge

Transportation and fire officials closed State Route 104 in both directions near milepost 10 and Southpoint Road overnight Thursday, diverting traffic onto State Route 19 (Beaver Valley Road), Oak Bay Road, and Paradise Bay Road, per the same Peninsula Daily News account. The Brinnon Fire Department urged travelers heading toward the Hood Canal Bridge to allow significant extra time and to follow all traffic-control directions, while also advising the public to avoid the Highway 104, Beaver Valley, and Oak Bay area altogether and not to stop along roadways to watch fire operations.

The closure carries outsized weight for the North Olympic Peninsula because State Route 104 is the primary route to the Hood Canal Floating Bridge, the only direct highway link between Kitsap County and Jefferson and Clallam counties. The corridor carries an estimated 18,000 to 19,000 vehicles a day, according to WSDOT, making any shutdown near the bridge a major bottleneck for the region.

Massive Mutual-Aid Response Mobilizes Across Two Counties

More than 100 firefighters responded to the scene Thursday, drawing personnel and equipment from East Jefferson Fire Rescue, Quilcene Fire Rescue, the Brinnon Fire Department, Naval Magazine Indian Island, Clallam County Fire District 3, North Kitsap Fire Rescue, and the Washington Department of Natural Resources, the report notes. Clallam County and Kitsap County resources were also responding to the wildfires as of Thursday evening, according to the Brinnon Fire Department's update, and the Washington Department of Natural Resources had an incident commander on scene and was expected to assume a larger command role as the response continued.

Federal firefighters based at Naval Magazine Indian Island routinely deploy off-base to assist Jefferson County's civilian fire departments under regional mutual-aid agreements, the same Peninsula Daily News report explains, which is why Navy fire apparatus and personnel were actively engaged in the wildland response. The Jefferson County Emergency Operations Center was operating at Level 4 as agencies coordinated the response, and the Brinnon Fire Department said a formal incident briefing was scheduled for 3 p.m., with the department planning to post another update once it received confirmed information. As of Thursday evening, no evacuation zones had been established, and officials had not yet released a reliable estimate of the total fire size beyond the acreage reported by East Jefferson Fire Rescue.

Investigators Weigh Two Possible Causes

Washington State Patrol and local fire officials said potential ignition sources under investigation by the Jefferson County Fire Marshal include overhead tree branches contacting electrical lines or sparks generated by a passing vehicle with mechanical or tire issues, the same outlet reports. The fire marshal's office had not determined which scenario sparked the blaze as of Thursday evening.

It would not be the first time a vehicle problem ignited a roadside fire along this stretch of highway. A previous wildfire along State Route 104 near Sandy Shore Lake Road was sparked by a westbound vehicle traveling with a broken axle or wheel, leading to a multi-hour closure, according to Jefferson County records. The dry conditions fueling Thursday's fires were not a surprise: Jefferson County has been under an active Declaration of High Fire Hazard since July 22, issued by the County Fire Marshal and Fire Chiefs under county code provisions that bar recreational campfires, charcoal briquettes, consumer fireworks, and target shooting outside established ranges, per Jefferson County Public Health.

Thursday's fires add to a string of recent emergency responses across Jefferson County's rural fire districts, which have leaned on shared resources and mutual aid in a recent paramedic coverage push earlier this year. Open questions remain for the fire marshal to resolve, including the precise ignition cause, a final containment timeline for the South Branch and Rocktogo Road fires, and whether WSDOT will require any slope or timber mitigation work before fully reopening State Route 104 to unrestricted travel.