Single Publication

River Road East Fire

Fact Sheet

August 19, 2023 at 11:00am

Fire Information: 406-345-5972 2023.riverroadeast@firenet.gov

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61550604712286

Location: 6 miles east of Plains, Montana

Start Date: 8/18/2023 Cause: Unknown Size: 11,951 acres Containment: 0%

KEY MESSAGES

-The cause of this fire is currently unknown and under investigation.

-Highway 200 has been reopened as of 2:00 am on 8/19/23. Areas along the highway have been impacted by the fire so drivers are asked to drive carefully and to not stop along the highway for the safety of firefighters and the public.

-Yesterday, the red flag high wind speeds made it not safe for aircraft to fly for fire suppression.

EVACUATIONS AND CLOSURES

For Evacuation updates please visit the Sanders County Sheriff's Office Facebook Page at https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100064593409765

The Montana Red Cross has opened a shelter at the Church on the Move, 300 Clayton St., in Plains, MT for displaced residents. All Red Cross services are free. Evacuated livestock can go to the Fairgrounds.

River Road East is Closed to public travel to allow firefighters to safely work on the fire.

CURRENT STATUS

The fire was extremely active yesterday afternoon and into the evening driven by dry conditions and high winds. The fire has burned both south and north of Highway 200 and the Clark Fork River near Paradise Montana. Fire crews focused on public safety and point protection of structures where safe to do so yesterday and continued working through last night. Both a Structure Protection Group and a Night Shift have been staffed and will be working on the fire. Additional fire personnel have been ordered and will be arriving. A local Type 3 Incident Commander is currently in command of the fire until 1800 today.

PLANNED ACTIONS

Northern Rockies Complex Incident Management Team 1 will take command of the fire at 6:00pm on 8/19/23 to support the land management agencies. Team 1 members have been arriving to provide additional support and to manage the additional equipment and personnel that have been ordered for this fire. Two branches of the fire have been established and operations personnel from the team are already in place on the fire. The priority for fire crews remains structure protection and fire suppression where personnel have the best opportunity for success. Low level smoke conditions might limit the ability for fire aircraft to fly today due to safety concerns. The fire has spread to the north and onto Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribe lands so the team is also in contact with CSKT representatives.

WEATHER

The weather will be partly cloudy with areas of smoke and haze. Temperatures will range from 78 to 88 degrees in the valleys. Relative humidity levels will be as low as 10 to 20%. Winds will be from the southwest and then shifting to the west at 5-15 mph.