Bachelor Complex Update October 9, 2024

The Little Lava Fire was very active yesterday due to dry fuel conditions and gusty winds. Currently, the fire is estimated to be 14,529 acres and remains 63% contained.  

Weather conditions were favorable today and firefighters made great progress. Dozer line was constructed around the roughly 100-acre slopover that became established east of Forest Service Road (FSR) 45 yesterday near FSR 4188. Just south of the slopover, crews used tactical burning operations along the west side of FSR 45 to remove a pocket of unburned fuel ahead of the main fire to secure this section of the road. Aircraft was very active throughout the day dropping water to limit fire growth and cool hot spots.  

Additional resources arrived at the fire today including one hotshot crew, four engines, and three dozers. Additional resources have also been ordered.

Tomorrow, the priority will continue to be limiting fire progression to the east. Firefighters plan to install hose lays along the dozer line and begin mopping up the 100-acre slopover across FSR 45 near FSR 4188. Crews will continue reducing fuels along FSR 45 to prepare the road as an eastern control line. Resources will also continue to look for safe and effective opportunities to engage the fire more directly on the northeastern edge.

Tomorrow’s weather forecast will be favorable for fire suppression efforts. Temperatures are expected to be 60-65 degrees with light easterly winds.

An emergency fire area closure remains in place for the Bachelor Complex to provide for public and firefighter safety. Firefighters have recently encountered members of the public within the closure area which can hinder fire suppression efforts and is unsafe as the fire isn’t fully contained. A map of the current closure area and the order can be viewed here: https://www.fs.usda.gov/alerts/deschutes/alerts-notices

For current wildfire information, the public can visit centraloregonfire.org or follow fire information on X (Twitter) @CentralORFire.

# # #

Current Situation:  Acreage has decreased to 532 acres with improved ground mapping on the Tiger Creek Fire and 19 percent containment has been achieved with 486 firefighting resources assigned. Full suppression of the fire remains the top priority of the crews operating on the fire.

Crews continued to mop up, monitor, and patrol the south edge of the fire and south end of the 65 road near Tiger Creek as it remains a concern to containment. Hose lays continue to be placed and several were rerouted for better water delivery to the fire line to ease mop-up activity, including the horseshoe area of the fire. Sawyer crews have completed the removal of fire weakened and hazard trees along the fire’s edge to enable safer working conditions for fire crews. Hand line has been completed all the way around the eastern spot fire with hose lays in place to assist in mop-up of the spot fire. A road crew will begin evaluating areas impacted by heavy fire equipment and traffic along the 65 road.

Closures and Restrictions: Access through Forest Service Road (FSR) 65 up through FSR 64 to the junction with Indian Camp is closed. Government Mountain Road/FSR 6511 is closed from North Fork Walla Walla trailhead to the junction with FSR 65 at Tiger Saddle. Government Mountain Rd/FSR 6511 is open from the west to North Fork Walla Walla trailhead. The current fire danger rating is MODERATE and public use restrictions phase A for Umatilla National Forest are in effect. For more information regarding restrictions, please contact Umatilla National Forest Toll-free Information Hotline: 1.877.958.9663. 

Weather: Humidity recoveries overnight were moderate to excellent. A stronger inversion will be expected today and will lift late morning. Moderate cloud cover until midday will be present. Temperatures will be trending warmer. As cloud cover decreases over the day, winds are expected to increase but remain light. Today’s weather will see highs in the mid 50s to mid 60s and afternoon humidity will reach 35-45%. The winds will be westerly at 3-6 mph with a few higher gusts on the ridgelines. Tomorrow, expected weather will partly cloudy becoming clear in the afternoon with temperatures around 55-65 degrees.  

Smoke: Walla Walla’s air quality for today is good to moderate, some residents along Mill Creek may experience smoke as the fire continues to burn. Check out https://wasmoke.blogspot.com/?m=1 for more information.  

Type 3 Incident Command Team, Incident Commander Matt Young   

Location: Bitterroot NF: Railroad Creek/ Skalkaho Creek confluence, 26 miles southeast of Hamilton

Beaverhead-Deerlodge NF: 20 Miles northwest of Georgetown Lake Dam off  Skalkaho Hwy 38 

Start Date: 7/25/2024  

Cause: Undetermined     

Daly Fire Acres: 9,493  Railroad Fire Acres: 1,441  Completion: 56% 

Total Personnel: 230 

Current Status  

With the cooler temperatures, the Railroad-Daly fire showed minor growth in acres yesterday. Fire crews utilized firing operations to burn ground fuels between control line and the fires flaming front from Gird Point Rd to Hwy 38. Helicopters aided firefighters during firing operations to cool down fires edge. 

Today crews will assess the need to continue firing operations in the Gird Point area in efforts to establish an anchor point. Structure protection will continue between Gird Creek Road and Hwy 38. Firefighters will proceed with scouting for natural control features to aid with operations. 

Weather and Fire Behavior  

Today cloud cover is predicted to provide slightly cooler temperatures and slightly higher relative humidity. Wind is predicted to be between 6-9 mph with gusts of 20 mph in the afternoon.    

Clouds and cooler temperatures will help to moderate fire behavior on existing wildfires. Smoke and haze will still be a concern, particularly over portions of Southwest Montana. 
By midday Friday, the HRRR smoke model shows heavy smoke surging into Western Montana from regional wildfires. Conditions can change quickly as weather could stimulate active fires and the likelihood of new starts increases. Please keep track of concentrations at todaysair.mtdeq.us or the Fire and Smoke Map. 

EVACUATIONS 

On October 9, 2024 the Ravalli County Sheriff’s Office issued an Evacuation Warning for residents off of Skalkaho Highway (1700-2500 block) due to the Railroad-Daly Fire. For more information on evacuations visit the Ravalli County Sheriff Facebook page.  

To register your phone number for emergency notifications in Ravalli County visit, http://hyper-reach.com/mtravallisignup.html. 

CLOSURES   

For additional information on the Skalkaho Hwy 38 road closure visit Montana Department of Transportation. 

Beaverhead-Deerlodge National Forest has issued an Area/Road/Trail Closure (Closure #01020824-19) effective October 4, 2024. This Order is for public and firefighter safety during fire suppression efforts of the Fire. Closure information and maps are posted on the Bitterroot and Beaverhead-Deerlodge National Forests’ website www.fs.usda.gov/alerts/bdnf/alerts-notices and www.fs.usda.gov/alerts/bitterroot/alerts-notices. 

Pack Trail Daily Update October 11, 2024

Total Acres: 68,956     Confined: 64%

Total Personnel: 571 

Operations – Today, due to near – red flag conditions, there will be significant fire behavior.  Yesterday, the Pack Trail Fire continued backing into the area of Cowboy Camp, Strawberry Warming Hut and Fish Creek Guard Station near Union Pass Road where firefighters continue to clean up hotspots, patrol and refill tanks for the sprinklers. Crews continue to address hotspots and monitor the fire, which is holding north of Union Pass Road. On the west flank, firefighters continue to patrol the Burnt Ridge area, where fire continues to slowly creep downhill. Structure crews continue to wrap buildings, install hose lays and sprinklers at Elk Track Ranch and in the Gros Ventre area. On the east side, there was active fire behavior overnight and is expected to continue today. Crews are conducting structure protection in the Highway 26 corridor. Yesterday, crews worked in the Union Pass Subdivision to reduce hazardous fuels around homes. On the north side, there was no new fire activity, but some heat remains in the interior and smoke may be visible. Crews continue to patrol the area checking for new smoke and growth.

Safety - Drivers on US-26 may experience periods of smoke today due to high winds. Please use caution while driving, use headlights, and expect to encounter fire vehicles along the road. If planning travel on US-26 across the Continental Divide monitor WY-DOT for possible closures due to fire activity.

Teton Interagency Fire managers are maintaining the  Very High Fire Danger Rating for Grand Teton National Park, the Bridger-Teton National Forest, and the National Elk Refuge. Due to excessively dry fuels, any spark can ignite fire which can spread rapidly, becoming a large fire and exhibit extreme fire intensity. Residents and visitors are urged to exercise extreme caution with fire or possible ignition sources. Always build your campfires away from dry grass, leaves, and overhanging branches to reduce the risk of spreading wildfire. Clear at least a 10-foot perimeter around your fire, removing any flammable material, and make sure your fire is dead out and cool to touch before you go to sleep, or leave the area. 

Weather – Today’s weather and unstable atmosphere brings potential for significant fire behavior. Today will be sunny with temperatures in the mid 60s. The wind will be from the West/Southwest at 12-16 MPH with gusts up to 27. Relative humidity is18-23%. To learn more about air quality, visit Fire.AirNow.Gov. 

Road Closures – The Union Pass Road is closed on the Pinedale District (BTNF) from Mosquito Lake to the Moon Lake Road on the Wind River District (SHO).

Evacuations – The Upper Gros Ventre area (Goosewing and Elk Track Ranches) in Teton County have been put into a Level 2 “Set” Evacuation Warning. Evacuations and evacuation alerts for several subdivisions and ranches in Fremont County, WY remain in place. See the Fremont County Emergency Management Facebook Page for alerts and updates. See the Teton County Emergency Management website updates and to sign up for emergency alerts through Everbridge.

Forest Closures - Closure Order #04-03-24-316 is in effect from October 9, 2024 at 12:00 p.m. through November 1, 2024 at 6:00 a.m. unless rescinded. This order supersedes previous orders, including #04-03-24-315, prohibiting the same or similar acts in the same described area. 

For more information, visit: Facebook: USDA Forest Service - Bridger-Teton National Forest, USDA Forest Service - Shoshone National Forest  Pack Trail Inciweb: https://inciweb.wildfire.gov/incident-information/wybtf-pack-trail-fire 

Rail Ridge Fire Update
October 11, 2024
Central Oregon Wildfire Information: centraloregonfire.org
Email: 2024.railridge@firenet.gov – Phone: 541-208-7111
Social Media, Evacuation and Closure Information: https://linktr.ee/RailRidgeFire
Acres: 174,081 – Containment: 89% – Detection: 09/02/24 – Cause: Lightning – Personnel: 620

Visitors looking to hunt or recreate on public lands over the holiday weekend should be aware that Forest and BLM closures around the Rail Ridge Fire remain in place. These closures are in place to protect members of the public from hazards such as damaged roads, hazard trees, burning stumpholes and unstable ground as well as fire crews and equipment working around the fire. Although the weather forecast is more favorable for fire suppression than it has been in several days, the area has not had any measurable precipitation and the potential for fire activity to increase remains a factor.
 

Operational Update: Yesterday, fire personnel continued the use of the Unmanned Aircraft System (UAS) with Plastic Sphere Dispensers (PSD) for aerial ignition operations to help build depth in the Black Canyon Wilderness. The UAS was also used to fly the smaller uncontained lines on the northern side of the fire, using IR to look for hot spots close to the fires edge. Moderated weather allowed crews to regain focus on the suppression repair of dozer lines, and removal of hazard trees within the fire area.
 

Today, we will see favorable weather conditions again which will allow fire personnel to continue to focus on suppression repairs and mopup, including removing hazardous trees and locating hot spots like stumpholes that are still smoldering. Minimum Impact Suppression Tactics (MIST) are being used to mopup and manage the fire in the Black Canyon Wilderness. On the northwest side of the fire due to the difficult to access terrain, firefighters will be utilizing roadways and natural barriers to create fire breaks as much as possible. The fire team and private landowners are working together to better assess the terrain and access points on the northern side of the uncontained fire area. Opportunities are being explored that would allow firefighters to minimize the growth of this active fire area on Cougar Ridge. Helicopters will be used today to assess helispots and put in radio repeater sites. Air resources will continue to be available to firefighters to utilize as needed to minimize fire spread and severity.
 

The fire team and local agencies continue to work with local landowners, businesses and affiliates who need access into the fire area closures. Due to the multitude of hazards within the fire area, these requests are being prioritized and official escorts are being provided as safety and availability of escorts are feasible.
 

Weather: Favorable fire weather conditions will continue today, however minimum RH values will be a bit drier during the peak heating hours this afternoon, in the 20-30% range. Winds will remain mostly terrain driven and fairly light, with gusts up to 10-12 mph possible in the late afternoon. High pressure will remain positioned over the area through the weekend and into the first half of next week, with dry conditions expected.
 

Forest & BLM Closures / Evacuation Information / Fire Restrictions for the Rail Ridge Fire area can be found at: https://linktr.ee/RailRidgeFire.

PER LEMHI COUNTY RED ROCK FIRE UPDATE 10/10/24 1300 HOURS

There has been a change to zone 6 it has been divided to read Zone 6A and 6B so please look at the new zone descriptions and map

Zone 1: Yellowjacket drainage

Zone 2: Cobalt to Forney

Zone 3: Forney to road #252 to road #103 and back to Moyer

Zone 4: Silver Creek, Rams Creek, and Camas Creek from Hammer

Creek to White Goat Creek

Zone 5: Cobalt to Blackbird and Leesburg.

Zone 6A: Perreau Creek to Rattlesnake Drainage

Zone 6B: Rattlesnake Drainage to include all of Elk Bend and the 93 S Corridor

ZONE 1- Remains in "GO" status

ZONE 2- Remains in "GO" status

ZONE 3- Remains in "GO" status

ZONE 4- has been moved back to "SET" status

ZONE 5- Remains in "GO" status

ZONE 6A- Remains in "READY" status

ZONE 6B- Remains in "READY" status

Containment lines withstand first sustained wind shift

Daily Update: October 11, 2024

Fire Information Phone: 503-854-3366 (8 a.m.-8 p.m.) 

Email: 2024.Bingham@firenet.gov 

Acres: 199      Containment: 75%

Location: Areas of the Mount Jefferson Wilderness, east of Marion Forks.

Start Date: September 30,2024             Personnel:   354                 

Resources: 10 crews | 1 engine | 1 bulldozer | 3 water tenders | 2 masticators

Highlights: Since the Bingham Fire’s start Sept. 30, it has mostly experienced westerly winds, pushing the fire eastward and away from the nearby Marion Forks community and fish hatchery. Firefighters’ efforts were tested Thursday, Oct. 10, with the first sustained winds coming out of the east.

Containment lines held, and the fire stayed within its 199-acre footprint. Meanwhile, overall containment of the fire grew to 75 percent.

Easterly winds are again forecast today between 5 to 10 miles an hour, with gusts up to 20 miles an hour. Crews will patrol containment lines and continue extinguishing isolated hot spots within the interior. 

Firefighters completed contingency containment lines around the community of Marion Forks. Motorists are advised to be mindful of increased traffic in the area as firefighters begin removing equipment. 

Evacuations: The Linn County Sheriff’s Office has reduced the size of LEVEL 3: GO NOW! evacuation areas Oct. 10, converting them to LEVEL 2: GET SET evacuation alerts. The Level 2 evacuation area extends along Highway 22 to a ½-mile west of Highway 22, from Pamelia Road (NFS Road 2246) south to Parrish Lake Road (NFS Road 2266). Please refer to the Linn County Wildfire Map for more information: https://tinyurl.com/LinnCoFireMap. Highway 22 remains open. 

The Willamette National Forest also reduced its closure area Oct. 10 within the same footprint as the county’s Level 3 evacuation zone. Details of the closure order can be found here: https://tinyurl.com/2y4sacl8. The Pacific Crest Trail through the Mount Jefferson Wilderness remains open. Impacted trails include Bingham Ridge Trail, Independence Rock Trail, Marion Lake Trail and Lake of the Woods Trail. With hunting season started, Forest Service staff will work with the Linn County Sheriff’s Office to reduce closure areas as soon as it is safe to do so.

Weather: Drier winds out of the east continue today and possibly into Saturday. Temperatures are expected to rise into the lower to mid-60s, with a 20 percent chance of light rain Saturday.

Garden and Red Rock Fire Update   

Highlights: In addition to the Red Rock Fire, the Southwest Incident Management Team will assume command of the Garden Fire today.

Special Notes: The Salmon River Road and the Salmon River to float boating will remain open. NO stopping from SPRING CREEK to LONG TOM PICNIC AREA. Expect delays from the confluence of the Main Salmon River and Panther Creek and Cove Creek due to firefighting activity to allow the firefighters to do their job safely and efficiently. The Salmon River could be closed due to fire behavior at any time. Be prepared to stay downriver.

Red Rock Fire

Operations: Fire managers assessed the powerline corridor south of Williams Creek Peak to potentially use it as a containment line. Firefighters initiated ignitions off the FR 020 road and along the FR 231 road on the east side to remove fuels and slow fire spread. Dozer line construction along the FS 020 continued towards the south. Dozers also constructed line towards the west from Forney. Crews burned around the Forest Service Guard Station in Yellowjacket Creek to protect the structures. Sawyers also began cutting trees out around the Napias fire, which was estimated to be about 65 acres.

Today, dozer line construction will continue towards the south along the FR 020 road and west from Forney. Crews will continue to extinguish hotspots around Moyer and in Fourth of July Creek. Firefighters will also continue to mop up the dozer line near the cobalt mine on the northwest side. On the Napias fire, crews will begin direct line construction.

Garden Fire

Operations: Crews continued ignitions into the night along Panther Creek to remove fuels and use the creek as a holding feature. The operation is focused on preventing the fire from crossing the Salmon River on the north end of the fire. Today firefighters will secure the burnout in Panther Creek and assess if additional firing is needed along the Salmon River to prevent the fire from spotting across the drainage.

Weather: Very little changes in the temperatures, humidity, and wind can be expected on Friday. It is forecast to be mostly cloudy with temperatures in the lower to mid-60s and the relative humidity at 20%. Winds remain from the west-southwest gusting to 20-25 mph along the ridges. A slight warming and drying trend continue through the weekend.

Smoke: A smoke outlook is available. Additional information about how to protect yourself from smoke. 

Closures: The forest closure order was updated and expanded October 5, 2024.  

Evacuations: Evacuation information in Lemhi County regarding the Red Rock, Napias, and Garden fires. 

Safety: Please stay out of the fire area. There is still active fire behavior in the fire area, including group torching and crown runs. There are multiple roads and bridges that have been destroyed or are impassable. Entry into evacuation zones that are in “Go” status is prohibited. The updated forest closure notice that encompasses both the Red Rock Fire and Garden Fire areas includes multiple road and area closures. Barricade closures will be posted at road intersections and forest boundaries. 

Middle Fork Complex Fire Update

October 11, 2024

Middle Fork Complex Fire Information: 208-992-3045 (8 a.m. - 8 p.m.)

Email: 2024.middleforkcomplex@firenet.gov

Middle Fork Complex: 61,495 acres, 90% completed, 137 personnel

Snag Fire: 33,437 acres, 90% completed, 24 personnel

Goat Fire: 34,920 acres, 20% completion, 225 personnel

Weather: Today the weather will be stable again with partly cloudy skies and smoke hanging around the fire. Temperatures will trend up slightly and be in the mid to upper 60s on the fire with humidity in the mid to upper 20s. Light winds are expected across most of the fire again.

Goat Fire: Crews are focusing on prepping Bear Creek Road south of Warm Lake in the event of spread. Minimal

fire spread expected until inversion breaks mid-day then low to moderate spread rates are expected.

Please be aware there will be increased traffic in the Warm Lake area from firefighters traveling to the Logan Fire near Edwardsburg.

On the southeast side of the fire, firefighters successfully completed the burnout operation yesterday and are now focusing on finishing up prepping trail 099 from East Mountain Trail Head northward. 

Snag Fire: The Snag Fire saw no significant activity in the past couple days. Crews are continuing to patrol and monitor looking for hot spots. 

Middle Fork Complex: Fire behavior on the Nellie and Bulldog is limited to creeping and smoldering with no expected growth. Fire crews will continue to patrol and monitor fire lines and mop-up as necessary as well as continue suppression repair. There is a small patch of intense heat on Nellie, southeast of Scott Mountain that had minimal growth. There is no intense or scattered heat on Bulldog near the perimeter. There is potential for some areas that still hold heat to become more active with surface fire and isolated torching. Also, the temporary flight restriction over the Nellie and Bulldog fires has been lifted.

Notice: General deer hunting season started yesterday. Please be aware of additional fire traffic in the area. 

Closures: The Boise National Forest has issued a revised Area, Road, and Trail Closure Order for the Middle Fork Complex, and Snag and Goat fires. The newly revised closure order and map can be found at the following link: https://www.fs.usda.gov/alerts/boise/alerts-notices.

Please check the Valley County Idaho Facebook page for any updates on evacuation readiness level changes. Residents are encouraged to sign up for Code Red Emergency Alerts to stay informed. For any questions or updates on evacuation readiness, please contact the Valley County Dispatch Center at 208-382-5160. Currently, Warm Lake Road remains open for travel without restrictions.

###

Rocky Mountain Area Complex Incident Management Team 3

Casey Cheesbrough, Incident Commander 

Size: 79,280 acres (2,902-acre increase)

Total Personnel: 929

Containment: 14 percent

Cause: Lightning

Resources: 10 helicopters | 1 UAS | 4 air tankers | 20 crews | 66 engines | 8 dozers | 16 water tenders | 5 masticators | 7 skidders | 5 feller bunchers | 1 processor

Key Messages: Public information officers will be at the post office in Story today from 11 am to 1 pm to talk to community members and answer questions. They will also staff an information board at the Tongue River High School homecoming parade in Dayton this morning.

Another slight decrease in containment—from 15 percent to 14 percent—is due to an increase in overall acreage. Firefighters are making progress, however, as they work on all sides of the fire perimeter.

Current Situation: Throughout Thursday and Thursday night, a significant portion of the firefighting effort was focused on the southern end of the fire. Working from the Sheridan Water Treatment Plant and intake facility, hand crews progressed southeastward, completing two miles of containment line through firing operations. Ground crews received support from an unmanned aerial system (UAS, aka drone) and piloted aircraft. Two hotshot crews and a UAS working the night shift completed firing operations around the water intake facility. These operations are being conducted with the goal of minimizing damage to the watershed, infrastructure, and communities and preventing the fire’s eastward spread. Simultaneously, firefighters and heavy equipment are working along the Red Grade Road, clearing brush and preparing the road to serve as a control feature should the fire continue to advance southward. 

On the west side of the fire, numerous firefighters are spiked out at a second camp near Burgess Junction, giving them quicker access to the fire each day. They have prepared all structures and are ready to conduct defensive firing operations should that side of the fire become more active and advance westward.

To the north, crews are making significant progress, working their way east to west along the 144 Road. They are constructing and securing fireline and are nearing the fire’s northwest corner near Broderick Flat. They are also chipping woody debris and slash that accumulated during the road-preparation project. Aircraft have been assisting ground crews in that area by conducting water and retardant drops. Night-shift crews did not observe any flames or areas of heat near the firelines they patrolled. 

Firefighters are monitoring containment lines on the eastern edge of the fire, ensuring no lingering areas of heat remain within several feet of the perimeter. Crews have progressed southeastward to Crystal Springs, constructing and securing containment lines directly on the fire’s edge. They are starting to backhaul excess equipment and supplies to be used elsewhere around the fire. 

Weather & Fire Behavior: Lower temperatures and higher humidity levels yesterday somewhat moderated fire behavior and provided crews with conditions conducive for firing operations. High humidity levels last night, combined with cloud cover and cooler, moister air today, should reduce the amount of time during the day that the fire will be most active, especially in grassy areas. However, forested areas are still very dry, and fire behavior will remain active. The fire itself and the tactical firing operations could produce abundant smoke. For air-quality and smoke information, go to airnow.gov.

Evacuations and Closures: Sheridan County evacuation levels did not change Thursday. Several county roads in the fire area remain closed. View road-closure and evacuation news releases and the evacuation map on the Sheridan County Emergency Management website: tinyurl.com/2s38bcc5 or call either the Sheridan County Sheriff’s Office (307-672-3455) or Sheridan County Emergency Management (307-752-2174). An emergency shelter has been established at the fairgrounds in Sheridan to accommodate people, campers, and animals. Call 307-752-2174 or 307-683-6965 to make arrangements. Bighorn National Forest lands around the Elk Fire are closed under Order 02-02-06-24-08. The order and map can be viewed here: fs.usda.gov/alerts/bighorn/alerts-notices. US Highway 14 is closed at Granite Pass/Hunt Mountain Road/FS 10 (milepost 38.3). US Highway 14A is closed at Hunt Mountain Road/FS10 (milepost 85.6). View the Wyoming Department of Transportation road-closure map here: wyoroad.info.