Single Publication

Bear Creek Fire

August 14, 2023

Bear Creek Fire start date: August 1, 2023

Mosca Fire start date: August 7, 2023

Location:  23 miles Northwest of Pagosa Springs, Colorado

Cause:  Lightning

Incident Commander: Jay Kurth

Management Team: NIMO Team 1

Management:  Suppression

Fire size today: Bear: 408 acres Mosca: 7 acres

Containment:   0%     

Personnel:  90

Evacuation Information: Weminuche Valley is under pre-evacuation notice. Local residents should follow incident information and updates.

Closures:

• Fire area closure
• Cloman Park in Pagosa Springs

Latest Smoke Outlook: outlooks.wildlandfiresmoke.net/outlook/933fc4e4 

INCIDENT OBJECTIVES:

• Firefighter and Public safety are the highest priority.
• Protect private lands within the Weminuche Creek drainages, natural resources, cultural and historic sites, recreation assets and critical infrastructure including powerlines and gas utility lines.

Yesterday scattered thunderstorms and cloudy weather limited active fire behavior.  The aspen stands to the east and south of the fire continued to slow fire growth, as they are less susceptible to fire spread.  Firefighters have been unable to directly engage the fire due to the steep remote terrain and heavy fuel loading of dead standing and down trees. While fire fighters are prepared for the fire to back down to the Weminuche Valley, significant fire growth is not expected today.  The potential for spread remains in Bear Creek towards the Little Sand and Shaw Creek trails. 

The Mosca Fire did not grow and had minimal active burning. The fire is burning in a remote area northwest of Bear Creek near Slide Mountain in steep terrain.

YESTERDAY’S ACCOMPLISHMENTS:

• Fire managers continued to use two masticators on the Mosca Road to the south of the fire to reduce fuels and to create a contingency line if that is needed.
• Crews in the Weminuche Valley area assessed risk level to private land/structures and developed and implemented structure protection plans.
• Local ground-fire resources continued to directly monitor fire growth and directional spread. These observations are critical to assessing the probability of success of the current incident strategy being achieved.
• Pike hotshots were flown in by helicopter, finished cutting an access trail into the Mosca fire and camped on site.

TODAY’S PLAN:

• Continue fuels mitigation along the Mosca Road corridor with masticators.
• Operational supervisors will continue scouting indirect control opportunities to the south along the Mosca Road, connecting that into the Weminuche Valley.
• Continue to collaboratively develop Management Action Points (MAP) with cooperators and stakeholders. MAPS are clearly specified incident conditions that, when reached, prompt a predefined fire management action or trigger the implementation of new strategies/tactics.
• Resource advisors will evaluate Shaw Creek trail as a potential containment line.
• Pike hotshots will camp in the Mosca fire area and will begin cutting dead trees away from the fire perimeter.

WEATHER:

• The weather trend includes thunderstorms and hail on Monday, gusty winds, and stable temperatures. Sunday afternoon the area received 2/10” of “wetting rain.” Later in the week, the probability of thunderstorms will decrease.

Incident Information: https://tinyurl.com/mrx4pp27

Facebook: https://tinyurl.com/mr2tpj69

Email :  2023.bearcreek@firenet.gov       

Information Line : 970-426-5370