Washington golfers defy 'apocalypse' to finish their round

Golfers in the US state of Washington avoided a hazard by keeping their irons in the fire, being photographed nonchalantly finishing a round despite wildfires raging just metres away from them.

The fires which were burning in the neighbouring state of Oregon just across from the Columbia River Gorge have been raging for days, but this clearly didn't deter the golfers.

Around half a dozen golfers were in the photos at the Beacon Rock Golf Course as plumes of black smoke rose nearby.

The golf course owners said on their Facebook page that their "golfers are committed to finishing the round!"

"View from the Clubhouse. Viewing the magnitude of the fire and thinking of how many people will be affected and for a long time. So thankful no lives lost," the photo is captioned.

One golfer described it to 9News as a scene fro the "apocalypse."

A 15-year-old boy has been questioned over igniting fireworks in nearby Eagle Creek which may have contributed to the fire.

While hurricanes to the southeast of the US have captured many of the headlines in recent days and weeks, large areas of the west coast have suffered major wildfires.

Around 60 separate fires are currently burning from the southwest in California, to the northwest in Washington.

Warnings have been issued about smoke and air quality issues over a distance of almost 1,500 miles stretching from Santa Barbara in California to Dawson Creek in British Columbia, Canada.