Washington, August 03 (QNA) - Wildfires burning out of control in eastern Washington state have forced the evacuation of about 5,000 homes and destroyed nearly 600 structures, US authorities said on Monday.

The fires have scorched more than 8.2 square miles (about 21 square kilometers) around Spokane, Washington's second-largest city, and are among dozens of wildfires burning across the western United States, stretching federal firefighting resources.

Authorities said no fatalities had been reported in the Spokane area so far.

Meanwhile, firefighters entered the 10th consecutive day of efforts to contain a wildfire that has burned nearly 525 square miles (about 1,360 square kilometers) of grassland across western Idaho and eastern Oregon.

The National Weather Service (NWS) also issued air quality alerts for eastern Washington, eastern Oregon, western and central Idaho, and western Montana.

In addition, red flag warnings remain in effect for parts of Utah, Montana, and western Nebraska, while excessive heat warnings have been issued for southern Arizona, California, Nevada, and northern Montana. (QNA)