<EDITOR'S NOTE: This has been corrected to reflect information from Olympic National Park spokeswoman Barb Maynes that two people airlifted out of the park Thursday were hikers not connected to the effort against the Cox Valley Fire.
OLYMPIC NATIONAL PARK — Last week’s lightning has sparked three small wildfires in the national park.
All were discovered this week after a series of storms last Thursday, July 21, that led to more than 400 lightning strikes over the Olympic Mountains, said Barb Maynes, Olympic National Park spokeswoman.
The largest one, the Godkin Fire in the Elwha River Valley, had grown to 40 acres by Thursday, Maynes said.
It was discovered near the confluence of Godkin Creek and the Elwha River in the geographic center of the park late Monday. At that time, it covered about 7 acres.
It is about 15 miles south of Hurricane Ridge. Smoke may be visible from the Ridge, Maynes said.
Another fire, ignited by the same storm, was found near the Godkin Fire on Tuesday. The Hayes Fire covered less than one-fourth of an acre by Thursday, according to Maynes.
Cox Valley Fire
A third blaze was confirmed Thursday. The Cox Valley Fire is closer to Hurricane Ridge than the other two. It is a bit north and east of the Hurricane Ridge Visitor Center area at about 4,200 feet, Maynes said.
As of Thursday, it covered about half an acre.
“It was reported the same night as the lightning storm but had not been spotted since [despite active searching] until it began to put up smoke this afternoon,” Maynes said Thursday.
“It is visible from the lowlands and was called in by someone in Sequim.”
Maynes said late Thursday that two people airlifted from the park were hikers on a recreational trip, contrary to original reports earlier Thursday from another agency that said the two were firefighters suffering heat exhaustion.
A helicopter on fire duty was diverted to fly the two out, Maynes said. She added that the hikers had became ill and were unable to complete their trip. It was unknown if they were suffering from heat exhaustion.
The two were taken to a landing zone near the park gate on Olympic Hot Springs Road before a Clallam County District 2 medic unit took both men to the hospital.
Godkin Fire
The closest park facilities to the Godkin Fire are the Elwha River Trail and Camp Wilder Shelter, both of which are located across the river from the fire and are not at risk, Maynes said.
That fire is burning in rugged and steep terrain on the west side of the valley, about a third of a mile uphill from the river at an elevation of 2,300 feet.
A six-person crew composed of Olympic National Park and Olympic National Forest firefighters began on-the-ground assessment of the fire, fuel moisture and other conditions Tuesday.
