TAIL END OF SLIDE AT BURKE, IDAHO

Date: February 28, 1910 Source Type: Postcard Printer, Publisher, Photographer: Spokane Post Card Company Postmark: None Collection: Steven R. Shook Remark: Five people perished in the Burke avalanche on February 28, 1910. More than 300 individuals participated in efforts that rescued 17 individuals trapped in the snow.

From a weather perspective, 1910 was an amazing year in the Pacific Northwest. The winter of 1910 went well into spring, resulting in a massive depth of snow. The snow depth caused numerous avalanches in the Bitterroot Mountain ranges bordering Idaho and Montana, as well as the Cascade Mountains of Washington. Numerous deaths resulted from these avalanches. By mid-summer, however, the Inland Northwest was experiencing a significant drought.

In August of 1910, between 1,000 and 3,000 wildfires were burning in Northern Idaho, Northwest Montana, and the southern reaches of Alberta, Canada. Numerous conflagrations converged that led to the Great Fire of 1910, sometimes referred to as "The Big Blowup." The firestorm of August 20-21, 1910, resulted in the loss of one-third of the town of Wallace, Idaho; at least 87 people were killed on these two days in Northern Idaho. An entire fire crew near Avery, Idaho, totaling 28 men, perished in this firestorm. They have been referred to as "The Lost Crew."