Wildfires have forced around 60,000 people to evacuate parts of the north-western US state of Washington, destroying hundreds of buildings and leaving thousands without power. Three major blazes continued to burn around the city of Spokane on Monday, with officials warning the fires had not been contained. Investigators have yet to work out how the blazes started. The fires in Spokane are among a total number of 16 large, uncontained wildfires on the landscape in Washington state as of Monday morning, according to the state's department of natural resources. The National Weather Service (NWS) had warned of "extremely critical" fire weather over the weekend, with strong winds and unusually dry conditions helping the flames spread rapidly.