Single Publication

Fire Name: Garden Fire 

Fire Size: 3,061 

Cause: lightning 

Location: approximately two (2) miles southwest of the confluence of Panther Creek and the Main Salmon River on the North Fork Ranger District in the Frank Church River of No Return Wilderness. 

Fuels: grass, brush, dead and down fuels, and timber

Resources: 1 Type 1 Crew, 1 Type 2 Crew, 10 Engines, multiple helicopters.  

InciWeb: https://inciweb.wildfire.gov/incident-information/idscf-garden-fire  

Fire situation: Firefighter and public safety is the number one priority for the Garden Fire.  Fire behavior on the Garden Fire is active, the fire is creeping and running with single and group tree torching and occasional uphill runs.  Fire is active on all sides with growth to the north in Garden Creek, south into Clear Creek, west into Elkhorn Creek, and east towards Panther Creek.  Smoke continues to be visible in lower Panther Creek and along the Main Salmon River.  Firefighters currently are not observing long range spotting and potential for crown fire is low due to the fire burning in the 2000 Clear Creek Fire and adjacent to the 2007 Clear Sage Fire.  However, fire managers have observed fire growth anywhere from 500 to 1,200 acres in a single day.  Smoke continues to drift into the North Fork and Salmon areas from the Garden Fire and other fires to the west. 

Fire managers are using a point protection strategy (a wildfire response strategy, which protects specific assets or highly valued resources from the wildfire without directly halting the continued spread of the wildfire) to minimize exposure to fire personnel while protecting identified values, including private property and Forest Service infrastructure.  Today, there will be an increased presence of firefighters and aerial resources, primarily in the Panther Creek and Salmon River areas. Visitors using the Garden Creek or Clear Creek trails are encouraged to #KnowBeforeYouGo and to be aware of the fire activity in the area.  Trailheads are posted with fire information. 

Weather:  ...RED FLAG WARNING IN EFFECT FROM FRIDAY AFTERNOON THROUGH FRIDAY EVENING FOR GUSTY WINDS AND LOW HUMIDITY...A dry cold front will bring strong gusty winds this afternoon.  The combination of low humidity and gusty winds will allow fires to spread quickly. Breezy conditions may linger into Saturday, but humidity should be a little higher.

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