OLYMPIC NATIONAL PARK — Olympic National Park’s Hurricane Ridge will be closed indefinitely, after an early-May fire that completely destroyed its Day Lodge.
Previously, the parks service had said that it would have an update on a potential reopening timeline by June 2. But now, as crews have assessed the damage from the devastating fire, that timeline will remain open-ended.
This dates back to Sunday, May 7, when firefighters found the lodge fully engulfed in flames late in the afternoon. No one was at the lodge at the time and there were no reported injuries.
The Day Lodge had been closed to visitors since March for renovations, and the park received nearly $11 million in federal funding for the work. The 17-mile mountain road leading up to the building has also been closed since construction began, according to the National Park Service. Before the fire, it was rescheduled to open by Memorial Day.
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Hurricane Ridge has long been a popular spot for nature lovers across the region, averaging around 300,000 visitors a year since it opened in the 1950s.
It remains unclear as to how the fire started.
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