Single Publication

Bear Creek Fire              

August 19, 2023

Bear Creek Fire start date: 

August 1, 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: 415 acres

Containment:  0%

Completion: 64%   

Personnel:  63

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

Closures:

• Cloman Park in Pagosa Springs
• https://tinyurl.com/trails-and-roads

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 drainage, natural resources, cultural and historic sites, recreation assets and critical infrastructure including powerlines and gas utility lines.

A Multi-Mission Aircraft flight to identify hot spots throughout the Bear Creek Fire was completed Friday morning. There were no concentrated pockets of heat partially due to the rainfall Thursday night.

Bear Creek Wildfire: Indirect control lines are being utilized to accomplish multiple objectives of full control in accessible parts of the fire and confinement in areas that are remote and/or present high safety risks to firefighters. Overall, 64% of these objectives have been completed.

Firefighters have been unable to directly engage the fire for safety and logistical reasons. The clearing of vegetation along the Weminuche Trail and mastication of vegetation along the Mosca Road to develop indirect control lines continued.

Mosca Wildfire: 100% containment on this full control suppression strategy fire was achieved on Thursday.

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 an indirect contingency line, completing about 0.3 miles/day.
• Crews in the Weminuche Valley area developed and implemented structure protection plans.
• Completed prep along the Weminuche Trail located above the north edge of the private land all the way to Poison Park and to the Wilderness boundary.
• Ground truthing potential indirect fireline locations along the surrounding creeks and trails; developing plans in the event they are needed.
• Pike hotshots completed their work on the contained Mosca fire. They were transported by helicopter to the Incident Command Post (ICP).

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, with the intent of connecting them into the Weminuche Valley.
• Continue structure protection.
• Monitor fire behavior.

WEATHER:

Today will be drier with a 20% chance of scattered showers and thunderstorms in the afternoon and evening. Temperatures could reach into the low 80’s. Winds will increase throughout the day and will increase with thunderstorms.

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

Facebook: https://tinyurl.com/mr2tpj69

Email :  2023.bearcreek@firenet.gov       

Information Line : 970-426-5370