East Fork Fire: Warmer temperatures have reawakened the fire, leading to increased fire behavior and smoke yesterday. The fire burned actively in the Bear Wallow and Brown Duck Creek areas. Crews successfully burned west of Moon Lake Road and north of Bear Hollow Road, which will hold fire progression to the southeast.

Center Creek Trail Fire: The Center Creek Trail Fire is showing limited fire behavior and currently poses no threat of moving south toward the wilderness boundary.

Closures: Closures are in effect for the Ashley National Forest and on Uintah and Ouray Tribal Lands. Duchesne County Sheriff’s Office has closed county roads in and near the fire area.

All closures are posted at https://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/closures/7052/.

Closure Map: https://go.usa.gov/xG8PW

Community Meeting: A virtual community meeting will be held Tuesday, September 15, 2020 at 7 p.m. Two options will be available for viewing: The Ashley National Forest Facebook page will live-stream the event, and a Zoom link will be provided in tomorrow’s update.

Today’s Operations: Assuming favorable conditions, burning operations on the south fire perimeter may begin west of Bear Hollow Road to Mountain Sheep Pass. By intentionally introducing fire, low to moderate fire behavior will help contain the fire to the Bear Wallow area. This will stop future spread by eliminating fuel sources ahead of the fire. The north/northeast fire perimeter is expected to be active again today, burning along Brown Duck Creek. Helicopter water bucket drops will work to extinguish hot spots and herd the fire toward the wilderness. Crews and dozers are digging containment lines ahead of the fire’s eastern perimeter. Crews continue to increase containment lines along Rock Creek Road near Upper Stillwater Reservoir. Team 7’s long term strategy to contain all fire outside the wilderness continues.

Weather: Today’s temperatures are expected to be about 76 degrees, about 2-4 degrees higher than yesterday, continuing an upward warming trend. Correspondingly, relative humidities are declining and fire behavior is becoming more active. Winds will be from the southwest 7-11 mph with gusts to 17 mph. Large heavy fuels continue to burn, and grass and shrubs have dried out and are receptive to fire. Today’s burning operations will produce additional smoke, visible in surrounding communities. Weather tonight will be in the high 40s.

Safety: The public is asked to respect road and area closures. Please drive with caution as firefighters are working in the area and smoke reduces visibility. Drones are hazardous to fire aviation assets and are not permitted in the fire area. Remember: If you fly, we can’t. Firefighter and public safety are the highest priority for Great Basin Team 7.

Resources: 4 Helicopters, 26 Engines, 5 water tenders, 1 Hotshot crew, 1 Type 2 Initial Attack handcrew, 2 dozers and 3 Wildland Fire Modules. Currently 284 firefighters are assigned to the East Fork Fire. The Center Creek Trail Fire has 25 firefighters assigned.

East Fork Fire: Aerial resources continued supporting suppression operations yesterday. Ground crews directed helicopter water bucket drops on hot spots along the fire perimeter. Crews continued line construction from Moon Lake Road to Rock Creek Road and containment increased to 18%. Warmer temperatures and low humidity increased fire activity, notably west of Moon Lake and north of Twin Pots Reservoir

Center Creek Trail Fire: Helicopters continued dropping water on hotspots on the southeast portion of the fire yesterday. The Center Creek Trail Fire is showing limited fire behavior and currently poses no threat of moving south towards the wilderness boundary.

Closures: Closures are in effect for the Ashley National Forest and on Uintah and Ouray Tribal Lands. Duchesne County Sheriff’s Office has closed county roads in and near the fire area.

All closures are posted at https://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/closures/7052/.

Closure Map: https://go.usa.gov/xG8PW

Today’s Operations: Assuming favorable conditions, burning operations on the southeast fire perimeter may begin west of Moon Lake Road and north of Bear Hollow Road. By slowly introducing fire, low to moderate fire behavior can produce desirable fire effects and increase firefighter safety along the established and well-prepared road system on Moon Lake Road and Bear Hollow Road. Further west, helitack crews will guide helicopter water buckets on isolated hotspots as crews implement preparation activities on Rock Creek Road near Upper Stillwater Reservoir. Team 7’s long term strategy to contain all fire outside the wilderness continues.

Weather: Today’s temperatures will rise to about 72 degrees, about 3-4 degrees higher than yesterday, continuing an upward warming trend. Correspondingly, relative humidities are declining and fire behavior is becoming more active. Large heavy fuels continue to burn, and grass and shrubs are becoming more receptive to fire. Today’s burning operations will produce additional smoke, visible in surrounding communities. Weather tonight will be in the low 40s with steady north/northwest winds of 7-10 mph and gusts to 15 mph.

Safety: The public is asked to respect road and area closures. Please drive with caution as firefighters are working in the area and smoke reduces visibility. Drones are hazardous to fire aviation assets and are not permitted in the fire area. Remember: If you fly, we can’t. Firefighter and public safety are the highest priority for Great Basin Team 7.

Resources: 4 Helicopters, 23 Engines, 1 Hotshot crew, 1 Type 2 Initial Attack handcrew, 2 dozers and 3 Wildland Fire Modules. Currently 259 firefighters are assigned to the East Fork Fire. The Center Creek Trail Fire has 23 firefighters assigned.

 

East Fork Fire: Clear skies on Friday allowed aerial resources to be utilized for suppression operations. Ground crews directed helicopter water bucket drops on hot spots along the fire perimeter. Clear skies, combined with warmer temperatures, increased fire activity, where crews completed prep work on the Yellowstone Road and continued line construction from Moon Lake Road to Rock Creek Road.

Center Creek Trail Fire: Helicopters worked the southeast portion of the fire yesterday, dropping water on hot spots. Tactical operations like this, along with the continued development of defensible space further south, are part of Team 7’s strategy.

Closures: Closures are in effect for the Ashley National Forest and on Uintah and Ouray Tribal Lands. Duchesne County Sheriff’s Office has closed county roads in and near the fire area.

• All closures are posted at https://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/closures/7052/.
• Closure Map: https://go.usa.gov/xG8PW

Today’s Operations: On the East Fork Fire, crews will clear vegetation to create defensible space along the Stillwater trail system and Rock Creek Road from Rock Creek Campground to upper Stillwater Reservoir. Along the southeast fire perimeter crews continue building direct and indirect handline from Twin Pots Reservoir to Rock Creek Road. Further south, firefighters are preparing contingency lines from Bear Wallow Road to Pigeon Wallow Road. Significant heat remains throughout the fire area as heavy fuels continue to burn, creating visible smoke in the coming days.

Weather: Today’s temperatures will be 4-6 degrees higher than yesterday, up to 67 degrees. As temperatures continue to increase, relative humidities will decline and fire behavior will become more active. Large heavy fuels continue to burn, and grass and shrubs are becoming more receptive to fire. Weather tonight will be in the low 40s with steady north/northwest winds of 7-10 mph and gusts to 15 mph.

Safety: The public is asked to respect road and area closures. Please drive with caution as firefighters are working in the area and smoke reduces visibility. Drones are hazardous to fire aviation assets and are not permitted in the fire area. Remember: If you fly, we can’t. Firefighter and public safety are the highest priority for Great Basin Team 7.

Duchesne County Sheriff’s Office
Sheriff Travis L Tucker
ROAD CLOSURES
September 11, 2020 4:00 p.m.

Due to the East Fork Fire the following roads are closed by order of the sheriff’s office: CR #114 and CR#113 North of Mountain Home to Moon Lake and the Yellowstone Campground CR#95 from Mountain Home to Rock Creek CR#8 Hanna to Blind Stream We ask the public to respect the road and area closures. Public safety and Firefighters are working in the area to open the closures as soon as possible.

Travis Tucker Sheriff c ●P.O. Box 985• Duchesne, Utah 84021• Tel: (435)738-2015• Fax: (435)738-2637●

East Fork Fire: Fire behavior continues to be moderated by continued lower temperatures. Heavy fuels continue to burn south of Moon Lake and other areas along the fire perimeter. Crews made good progress on containment line between Moon Lake Road and Rock Creek Road.

Center Creek Trail Fire: The Center Creek Trail Fire remains high-up in the wilderness. Team 7 is implementing a suppression strategy that focuses on creating defensible space around infrastructure along Yellowstone Road and continues preparations should the fire threaten to leave the wilderness.

Evacuations: Evacuations are in place for Rock Creek Road and Moon Lake Road. Visit InciWeb for evacuation updates: https://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/7052/

Closures: Closures are in effect for the Ashley National Forest and the Uintah  and Ouray Tribal lands. Information posted at: https://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/article/7052/55389/.

Today’s Operations: On the East Fork Fire, crews will continue building indirect handline along the southern perimeter from Twin Pots Reservoir to Rock Creek Road. Further south, firefighters are preparing contingency lines from Bear Wallow Road to Pigeon Wallow Road. On the west side of the fire crews are clearing brush along the Miners Gulch Trail. Along Yellowstone Road, crews are making good progress creating defensible space around infrastructure by removing vegetation. Road crews are working to improve access for fire crews. Significant heat remains throughout the fire area as heavy fuels continue to burn.

Weather: Today begins a warming trend as temperatures will be 15 to 20 degrees higher than yesterday. As temperatures continue to increase, fire behavior will become more active. Large heavy fuels will continue to burn, and grass and shrubs will become more receptive to fire. Weather tonight will be in the mid to upper 30s with steady north winds of 10 - 15 mph and gusts to  22 mph.

Safety: The public is asked to respect road and area closures. Please drive with caution as firefighters are working in the area and smoke reduces visibility. Drones are hazardous to fire aviation assets and are not permitted in the fire area. Remember: If you fly, we can’t. Firefighter and public safety are the highest priority for Great Basin Team 7.

Resources: 4 Helicopters, 22 Engines, 1 Hotshot crew, 1 Type 2 Initial Attack handcrew, 2 dozers and 2 Wildland Fire Modules. Currently 251 firefighters are assigned to the East Fork Fire. The Center Creek Trail Fire has 29 firefighters assigned.

East Fork Fire: Fire behavior was moderated by continued lower temperatures, lower winds, and moisture. Crews made good progress on the containment line between Moon Lake Road and Rock Creek Road. Fire that spotted over Rock Creek Road has been contained.

Center Creek Trail Fire: The Center Creek Trail Fire remains high-up in the wilderness. Team 7 is implementing a suppression strategy that focuses on creating defensible space around infrastructure along Yellowstone Road and continues preparations should the fire threaten to leave the wilderness.

Evacuations: Evacuations are in place for Rock Creek Road, Moon Lake Road and Yellowstone Road. Visit InciWeb for evacuation updates: https://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/7052/

Closures: Closures are in effect for the Ashley National Forest and the Uintah  and Ouray Tribal lands. Information posted at: https://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/article/7052/55389/.

Today’s Operations: On the East Fork Fire, crews will continue building direct handline along the southern perimeter from Twin Pots Reservoir to Rock Creek Road. Further south, firefighters are preparing contingency lines from Bear Wallow Road to Pigeon Wallow Road. Along Yellowstone Road, crews are creating defensible space around infrastructure by removing vegetation. Significant heat remains throughout the fire area as heavy fuels continue to burn.

Weather: Continued cooler weather with the possibility of light rain or snow will moderate fire behavior today. Snow is expected above 9,000 feet with the possibility of a half inch accumulation. Weather tonight will be in the mid to upper 20s with steady north winds of 8-10 mph and gusts to 17 mph.

Safety: The public is asked to respect road and area closures. Please drive with caution as firefighters are working in the area and smoke reduces visibility. Drones are hazardous to fire aviation assets and are not permitted in the fire area. Remember: If you fly, we can’t. Firefighter and public safety are the highest priority for Great Basin Team 7.

Resources: 4 Helicopters, 11 Engines, 1 Hotshot crew, 1 Type 2 Initial Attack handcrew, and 2 Wildland Fire Modules. Currently 203 firefighters are assigned to the East Fork Fire. The Center Creek Trail Fire has 22 firefighters assigned.

UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE FOREST SERVICE
ORDER: TEMPORARY TRAIL CLOSURE
East Fork and Center Creek Trail Fire Closure Order Order Number 0401-20-05
EXEMPTIONS:
AREA DESCRIBED:
ASHLEY NATIONAL FOREST 
 
 
PROHIBITIONS:
   
Pursuant to title 36 CFR 261.50 (a) and (b), the following act is prohibited within the area described by this order, all within the Duchesne Ranger District, Ashley National Forest until notice to end.
    
Pursuant to 36 CFR 261.50 (e), the following persons are exempt from this order:
Persons with special use authorization or other Forest Service authorization.
Any Federal, State, or local officer or member of an organized rescue or fire fighting force in the performance of an official duty.
Federal or State administrative personnel in the performance of an official duty.
Everything within the boundary described. Starting from the Forest Boundary intersection with the Blind Stream Road Forest Service Road (FSR) 135, to Rock Creek Road FSR 143, up South For of Rock Creek to the Wilderness Boundary, to Mill Flatt Trail along the boundary of the Ashley and Uintah-Wasatch-Cache National Forest to Red Knob Pass along Forest Service Trail FST 025 and Lake Fork River transitioning to FST 061 to East Slide Lake. Moving directly west to Swasey Lakes, then northwest to Yellowstone Creek Trail FST 057, up Milk Creek trail FST 055, around the Timothy Lake Basin North of Upper Carroll Lake, southeast to Mount Emmet, around the ridge to FST 055, along FST 055 to Limekiln Spring Road FST 123, to Yellowstone River Road FSR124, to the Forest Boundary to the intersection of Forest Boundary and the Yellowstone River Road and back along the Forest Boundary to intersection of Blind Stream Road and the Forest Boundary. (Exhibit 1).
 
Road Closures will be in effect on the Blind Stream Road Forest Service Road FSR 135 beginning at the Forest boundary north of Hannah, Utah to the intersection of the Blindstream Road, Rock Creek Road FSR 134, then south along the Rock Creek Road to the intersection with Forest Service Road 198, at the Lower Stillwater Ponds Picnic Area, the Moon Lake Road FSR 131 starting at the Forest Boundary, the Hells Canyon Road FSR 227, Yellowstone Road Creek Road FSR 124 and all associated secondary roads within the area closure.

PURPOSE:
For the purpose of public health and safety due to wildfire 36 CFR 261.53 (e).
 

Susan Eickhoff /s/
Forest Supervisor
Ashley National Forest 

Quick Fire Facts
East Fork Fire

• Fire Location: 13 miles north of Hanna, UT
• Acreage: 49,936
• Containment: 15%
• Start Date: August 21, 2020
• Cause: Natural - lightning

Center Creek Trail Fire

• Fire Location: 5 miles northeast of Moon Lake in the High Uintas Wilderness
• Acreage: 1,120
• Containment: 0%
• Cause: Natural - Lightning

Total Personnel: 208
Incident Commander: Jeff Knudson, Great Basin Type 2 Incident Management Team #7 
Jurisdiction: Ashley National Forest, Ute Tribal Lands, State of Utah 
 
Daily Update - September 9, 2020
 
East Fork Fire: Fire behavior was moderated by lower temperatures, lower winds, and moisture. Crews focused efforts on establishing containment line between Moon Lake Road and Rock Creek Road. Team 7 is working with the Duchesne County Sheriff’s Office to assess damage to property and notify affected property owners.

 
Center Creek Trail Fire: The Center Creek Trail Fire remains high-up in the wilderness. Team 7 is implementing a suppression strategy that focuses on creating defensible space around infrastructure along Yellowstone Road and continues preparations should the fire threaten to leave the wilderness.

Evacuations: Evacuations are in place for Rock Creek Road, Moon Lake Road and Yellowstone Road. Visit InciWeb for evacuation updates: https://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/7052/
 
Closures: Closures are in effect for the Ashley National Forest and the Uintah and Ouray tribal lands. Information posted at: https://www.fs.usda.gov/ashley
 
Today’s Operations: On the East Fork Fire, crews will establish a direct handline along the southern perimeter to from Twin Pots Reservoir to Rock Creek Road. Firefighters are also constructing direct handline along Rock Creek Road to contain fire that crossed the road. Along Yellowstone Road, crews are creating defensible space around infrastructure by removing vegetation. Significant heat remains throughout the fire area as heavy fuels continue to burn.
 
Weather: Continued cooler weather with the possibility of light rain or snow will moderate fire behavior today. Weather tonight will be in the mid to upper 20s with steady north winds of 8-10 mph and gusts to 17 mph.
 
Safety: The public is asked to respect road and area closures. Please drive with caution as firefighters are working in the area and smoke reduces visibility. Firefighter and public safety are the highest priority for Great Basin Team 7.
 
Resources: 4 Helicopters, 11 Engines, 1 Hotshot crew, 1 Type 2 Initial Attack handcrew, and 2 Wildland Fire Modules. Currently 174 firefighters are assigned to the East Fork Fire. The Center Creek Trail Fire has 34 firefighters assigned. 
 
Online Links:

East Fork InciWeb: https://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/7052/
Center Creek Trail InciWeb: https://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/7166/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AshleyNationalForest/
E-mail: 2020.EastFork@FireNet.gov

Phone #: 435-635-8738 
  

 

East Fork Fire: Strong winds yesterday and last night pushed the fire southeast, across Rock Creek Road and into Ute Tribal Lands near Moon Lake. Very active fire behavior the Phinney Lake Fire combining with the East Fork Fire.

 

Center Creek Trail Fire: The Center Creek Trail Fire, east of the East Fork Fire, remains high up in the wilderness. Crews are developing a strategy to keep the fire in the wilderness and away from infrastructure.

 

Evacuations: Evacuations are in place for Swift Creek Drainage west to the Moon Lake area. Visit InciWeb for evacuation updates:

https://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/7052/

 

Closures: Closures are in effect for the High Uintas Wilderness. Information posted at https://www.fs.usda.gov/ashley

 

Today’s Operations: Crews will work to establish line along the southern and southeast fire perimeter to reduce the fire spread toward critical infrastructure. Containing the spread that occurred over the Rock Creek Road will be a priority. Aerial support is not expected today due to high winds, rain, and heavy smoke, though they are on standby if an opportunity occurs. Crews are establishing hose lays in and around campgrounds and other infrastructure.

 

Weather: Unusually strong winds out of the north-northeast are expected today – winds 25-35 mph and gusts up to 60 mph. Lower temperatures and possible snow/rain today could help reduce fire activity. Weather tonight will dip down toward 20 degrees with steady NE winds of 15-20 mph and gusts to 25 mph.

 

Safety: The public is asked to obey closures. Please drive with caution as firefighters are working in the area and smoke reduces visibility. Firefighter and public safety are the number one objectives of Great Basin Team 7.

 

 Online Links 

InciWeb: https://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/7052/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AshleyNationalForest/ E-mail: 2020.EastFork@FireNet.gov

Phone #: 435-635-8738

Highlights: The Fork Fire has continued to hold its current perimeter for several days, despite Red Flag Warnings caused by hot, dry temperatures and high winds. The reduction in complexity and completion of planned work has allowed the incident to downsize and transition to a less complex management organization. The fire will continue to be monitored and patrolled as the west flank in the Rubicon Canyon remains uncontained. This will be the final update for the Fork Fire unless conditions substantially change in the future. 

Operations:  Firefighters will to monitor fire activities and patrol fire lines. Aerial operations will continue to be used as needed and available to control hot spots along the uncontained western edge of the fire.
  

Weather: Warm and dry weather is forecast as high pressure sets up over the region. Winds are expected to be generally light; however, some gusts up to 15 mph will be possible each afternoon. For nationwide smoke and air quality conditions, information can be found at https://fire.airnow.gov/.

Closures: The Eldorado National Forest has issued a closure order specific to the Fork Fire.  Please refer to the closure order prohibiting camping forest-wide except for some designated developed campgrounds. The regional fire closure, which prohibits the use of any ignition source (campfires, gas stoves, etc.) on all National Forest System lands throughout California, also remains in place. Details of these closures can be found at the Eldorado National Forest webpage https://www.fs.usda.gov/eldorado/. A TFR (temporary flight restriction) is in place over the fire area.