Single Publication

Wapiti Fire: Location: near Grandjean, ID. Reported: July 24, 2024, Cause: Lightning. Size: 126,817 acres, Completion: 80%, Total Personnel: 186. 

Frog Fire: Location: east of Clayton, ID. Reported: September 7, 2024, Cause: Lightning. Size: 3,020 acres, Containment: 87%, Total Personnel: 34.   

Weather:  Today’s winds are expected to be lighter than they were yesterday, with gusts around 10 -15 mph in exposed terrain. It will be a little drier, and temperatures will be a few degrees warmer. (60s and 70s in the fire areas.) Clouds and winds will increase a bit tonight and tomorrow, but little rain is expected. 

Current Situation:  Yesterday, increased fire activity was apparent on both the Wapiti and the Frog Fires, producing smoke in several interior areas, but not threatening containment lines. Increased smoke also showed an uptick in fire activity in the Sawtooth Wilderness, the southeast corner of the Wapiti Fire, where the fire is burning through isolated timber stringers in very rugged and inaccessible terrain.  

While firefighters have completed most suppression and repair activities, today crews will be working in several areas on both the Wapiti and the Frog Fires. Engine and hand crews will patrol containment lines and use helicopters to monitor internal fire activity. A Wildland Fire module will work on the Frog Fire, maintaining containment lines in the northeast part of the fire, and searching for the heat signature found by an infrared flight in the Red Ridge area. On the Wapiti Fire, a task force will be in the Grandjean area to remove hazardous trees and debris, restore access to the Sourdough area, and monitor the area. Firefighters will continue to remove fire-weakened hazard trees, or “snags” and clearing debris in the fire area on several closed Forest Service roads including Stanely Lake road and along Hwy 21. 

Evacuations:  Evacuation status for Stanley Zone 1 is currently at READY. Sign up for Custer County CodeRED emergency notifications:  text CUSTER to 99411 or enroll at https://public.coderedweb.com/CNE/BF28E45537FF. You can sign up for Boise County Alert Sense emergency notifications at https://public.alertsense.com/SignUp/publicUser.aspx?regionid=1163. For more evacuation information on the Wapiti Fire, please see the Custer County Sheriff’s Facebook page, https://www.facebook.com/p/Custer-County-Sheriff-Idaho-61558947312289/, and the Boise County Sheriff’s Facebook page, https://www.facebook.com/boisecountysheriff/. 

Closures:  Please reference the map and description at https://inciweb.wildfire.gov/incident-closures/idbof-wapiti-fire. Many trails remain closed for public safety. The Wapiti Fire area closure, which covers portions of the Sawtooth, Boise, and Salmon-Challis National Forests was reduced on the southern end, excluding the Lowman, Ten Ax, Two Raven, and Sourdough communities. An interactive map for all closures on the Boise National Forest is found at https://experience.arcgis.com/experience/642380b0eb124c8cab6bd9ad3d7146ad/page/Overview/#data_s=id%3AdataSource_5-1888bd00a2c-layer-13-1888bd00b53-layer-16%3A82. The area closure in place around the Frog Fire includes FS 667 (Big Boulder Creek Road) and Trail 047 where it is adjacent to the closure boundary. The closure excludes FS Roads 669 and 670 and Trail 682. Please reference the map and read the full closure description at https://inciweb.wildfire.gov/incident-closures/idstf-frog.