Western Wildfire Roundup

[NJFFSA16]

PHOENIX (AP) - A rampaging 2,000-acre wildfire prompted the
evacuation Monday of as many as 700 people on the Fort Apache
Indian Reservation in eastern Arizona, authorities said.
An Indian Health Service hospital was among the buildings
evacuated. Only a crew of eight was left to staff an emergency
room. Officials said more evacuations were possible.
The evacuation was ordered Monday afternoon after the blaze
crossed a trigger point near two subdivisions 5 miles north of
Whiteriver, said Chadeen Palmer, a spokeswoman for the crew
fighting the fire.
The fire was burning out of control Monday evening. It had been
sparked by lightning Sunday in juniper and ponderosa pines east of
an area burned by last summer's huge Rodeo-Chediski fire.
The Rodeo-Chediski fire burned 469,000 acres, destroyed 491
homes and forced 30,000 people from their homes. On the
reservation, the fire charred sacred Apache sites and damaged the
White Mountain Apache Tribe's timber industry, which provides 60
percent of the tribe's income.
Elsewhere Monday, a fire burning on densely timbered slopes near
Yakima in south-central Washington was holding steady at about
2,000 acres.
Residents who had to leave 20 homes Friday, the day the fire
began, were allowed to return. But officials said residents of
another 150 homes remained on notice that they might have to
evacuate.
In western Wyoming, a 23-mile section of U.S. 26-89, a heavily
traveled route to Jackson Hole, was reopened Monday after smoke
from a wildfire lifted.
The route through the Snake River Canyon was closed during the
weekend because of an 1,100-acre wildfire that erupted Saturday
between Alpine and Hoback Junction.
Nearby Yellowstone and Grand Teton national parks were not
affected but officials closed three Bridger-Teton National Forest
campgrounds and suspended fishing and rafting on the Snake River
between Hoback Junction and Alpine because of smoke.
In southern Arizona, a fire that destroyed more than 300 homes
and cabins on Mount Lemmon in mid-June was declared 90 percent
contained Monday. It had blackened 84,750 acres and crews expected
to have it fully contained on Tuesday.
A day-old fire in Montana, about 10 to 15 miles east of Helena,
forced the evacuation of a rural subdivision and had blackened 700
acres by Monday.
Nine residents of about 17 homes in the subdivision near the
small town of York were still waiting to return Monday, officials
said. York had no electricity and service was not likely to be
restored for a few days, said Lewis and Clark County emergency
services coordinator Paul Spengler.
About 20 miles east of Eugene, Ore., two campgrounds were
evacuated because of a 500-acre blaze in the Willamette National
Forest, said David Widmark of the Northwest Interagency
Coordination Center. The fire, which started Sunday, also
threatened five homes in the area but they had not yet been
evacuated.
Fires also were active in Colorado, Idaho, New Mexico and Utah,
the National Interagency Fire Center reported. So far this year,
wildfires have blackened just over 1 million acres, compared to 3.2
million at this same time last year, the center said Monday.
---
On the Net:
National Interagency Fire Center: http://www.nifc.gov


YAKIMA, Wash. (AP) - A dangerous wildfire 20 miles west of here
held steady at about 2,000 acres on Monday and residents who had to
leave 20 homes last Friday were allowed to return, fire officials
said.
About 500 firefighters had contained some 30 percent of the
Middle Fork wildfire near Tampico, fire spokesman Dale Warriner
said. No structures have burned, he said.
The fire is burning in densely timbered slopes in the Cascade
Range. It is the most dangerous of several Washington state
wildfires that cover some 25,000 acres, officials said. No injuries
have been reported in any of the fires.
Residents of another 150 homes in the area remained on notice
that they might have to evacuate, Warriner said.

(Copyright 2003 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)

APTV 07-14-03 2147EDT

[NJFFSA16]

July 17th

SUMMERHAVEN, Ariz. (AP) - Catherine Westervelt wouldn't turn her
eyes away from the pile of rubble that had been a family treasure.
Staring at ashy remnants and bits of misshapen metal, she could
muster only a halting whisper as she tried to talk about the
vacation cabin, built by her father more than 30 years ago.
"It's like losing a family," Westervelt said, beginning to
cry. "It was my dad's. It was his and we lost him three years ago.
It's like losing him all over again because this was the last thing
of his we had."
Westervelt was among dozens of property owners who returned to
Summerhaven on Thursday, a month after a wildfire chased them away
before ravaging the mountaintop vacation hamlet north of Tucson.
The 84,750-acre blaze was contained Tuesday.
Residents found a charred landscape where trees were reduced to
barren trunks and some homes were burned to their foundations while
others remained untouched.
Residents whose homes were spared are free to stay as long as
they want. No decision has been made on when the public will be
allowed up the mountain.
"It's a kick in the head," said Westervelt's husband, Richard.
He was watering two apple trees - the only things left standing on
the property - using a tube running from a barrel in the back of
his pickup.
The fire broke out June 17 on Mount Lemmon, forcing property
owners to flee Summerhaven and surrounding subdivisions. It tore
through the community two days later, as high winds drove flames
through pine forest ravaged by drought and tree-killing beetles.
A total of 322 homes and cabins, seven businesses and four other
buildings were lost during the initial surge and another run
earlier this month. The fire was caused by people, and remains
under investigation.
As its name suggests, Summerhaven has been an oasis in the pines
6,000 feet above Tucson, near the summit of 9,150-foot Mount
Lemmon. It's been a place to escape from triple-digit heat in the
summer and to throw snowballs or ski in the winter.
Summerhaven has about 100 year-round residents, but its
population swells in the summer and on weekends as people head to
cabins, second homes and campgrounds.
Phil Mack, the owner of the Mount Lemmon General Store and Gift
Shop, which was destroyed, said he expects many people to rebuild.
"It's still going to be 25 to 30 degrees cooler than in town
and we're still going to have snow in the winter," said Mack, who
lived above his store. "Tucsonans are going to want to bring their
kids up to play in the snow and we'll be selling sleds and gloves
again."
As Summerhaven residents returned, firefighters across the West
continued their battles in what has been a mild fire season
overall. The National Interagency Fire Center reported Thursday
that 1.12 million acres of forest have burned so far this season,
compared to a 10-year, year-to-date average of 1.89 million acres.
In Wyoming, 15 Boy Scouts and their leaders were plucked by
helicopter from the Shoshone National Forest backcountry, where
they had been cut off when authorities closed a trail because of a
rapidly expanding wildfire. The 1,000-acre fire was burning away
from the Scouts, who had been stranded but not in danger, fire
managers said.
In California, about 760 firefighters worked to contain a
wildfire that had burned 7,000 acres of steep, hilly brush near the
Riverside-San Diego county line. About 600 people were evacuated
from a Boy Scout summer camp as a precaution, and an undetermined
number of residents were forced from their homes.
Firefighters also continued to battle spot fires in the
north-central Washington town of Okanogan, where a wind-whipped
fire destroyed six houses and heavily damaged two others Wednesday.
Dozens of other houses were threatened before firefighters, aided
by aircraft dropping retardant, contained the 350-acre fire,
Okanogan County Sheriff Frank Rogers said.
Fires in Colorado closed Mesa Verde National Park, although
officials said its ancient ruins did not appear to be threatened.
Major wildfires also were reported in Idaho, Montana, New
Mexico, Oregon and Utah.
---
On the Net:
National Interagency Fire Center: http://www.nifc.gov

(Copyright 2003 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)

[NJFFSA16]

7/21

SAN LUIS OBISPO, Calif. (AP) - A wildfire destroyed a house and
four outbuildings and forced about 250 people to flee as it roared
across rolling, oak-studded hills.
The blaze was 60 percent contained Monday after charring 1,500
acres near the community of Santa Margarita, said California
Department of Forestry dispatcher Corrin Clark.
About 200 other homes and 50 outbuildings had been threatened as
high temperatures and wind help spot fires erupt, she said. The
blaze was located in brushy cattle country about 200 miles north of
Los Angeles. Full containment was expected Tuesday.
The fire, reported Sunday afternoon, was caused by a spark from
an off-road vehicle, and the driver was cited for having a modified
exhaust system, said Nena Portillo of the California Department of
Forestry.
Farther south, a fire that charred more than 18,000 acres of
brush in eastern San Diego County was 50 percent contained Monday,
fire officials said. The fire was started by lightning on July 16.
Full containment is expected Wednesday.
In Montana, hundreds of firefighters battled range fires that
have burned across 105,000 acres of the rugged Missouri River
Breaks of the northcentral part of the state.
About 50 people were evacuated from ranches as the fire
blackened stands of ponderosa pine and charred pastures and
hayfields. But calmer, cooler weather appeared to give fire crews a
break.
Elsewhere, a wildfire burned about 1,000 acres of timber and
grasslands in eastern Washington state, destroying 14 vehicles and
some outbuildings. The fire was located about five miles southwest
of Cheney, Wash.
The cause of the blaze, which began Sunday afternoon, was not
known.
It was one of several wildfires in central and eastern
Washington. Temperatures were expected to reach as high as 103
degrees in the eastern part of the state on Monday. No injuries
were reported at any of the fires.
Meanwhile, in Colorado, park officials reopened Mesa Verde
National Park on Monday for the first time since six days, even
though firefighters were still battling a 2,600-acre wildfire that
was 10 percent contained.
All the park's archaeological features were reopening, but a
campground and shops about four miles inside the park's main
entrance remain closed because firefighting operations are based
there, spokeswoman Kathy Crepinsek said.
In eastern Arizona, rain had calmed the 22,550-acre wildfire on
the Fort Apache Indian Reservation, where hundreds of residents
were evacuated for part of last week. No homes were damaged and
none were threatened Monday, officials said.
That fire was 65 percent contained Monday and firefighters hope
to have it fully contained by Wednesday, said Kami Goklish, a
spokeswoman for the team fighting the fire.
Fires also were active Monday in Idaho, New Mexico, Nevada,
Oregon, Utah and Wyoming, the National Interagency Fire Center
said.
---
On the Net:
Nat'l Interagency Fire Center: http://www.nifc.gov/

(Copyright 2003 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)

[NJFFSA16]

7/22

BRUSETT, Montana (AP) - Rising temperatures and wind Tuesday
threatened to revive a cluster of range fires that had burned
105,000 acres (42,493 hectares) of north-central Montana,
threatening isolated farm and ranch homes.
Hundreds of firefighters had so far succeeded in protecting
buildings, including the farm complex where a notorious anti-U.S.
government group holed up in a 1996 confrontation with federal
agents.
However, about 50 people had been evacuated as the fire
blackened stands of ponderosa pine and charred pastures and
hayfields.
The fires made little progress Monday, when the high was only in
the 80s (27 degrees Celsius) , but temperatures were headed into
the 90s (32 degrees Celsius) Tuesday, McKelvey said.
The fires were south of the Missouri River on or near a national
wildlife refuge.
"Beyond a quarter of a mile, there's scorched land, scorched
hayfields and scorched trees," said Brenda Pluhar, whose father's
ranch sits in the path of the fire. "It's just devastating
watching the scenery go up in smoke."
Calmer weather on Monday had helped fire crews in northwestern
Montana, where about 100 homes were evacuated in the path of a
4,600-acre (1,860-hectare) fire just outside Glacier National Park.
Elsewhere, officials said a fire blaze that had charred 1,200
acres (485- hectares) near the community of Santa Margarita was 80
percent contained Tuesday, state forestry officials said.
In Wyoming, firefighters worked Tuesday to protect six homes
about a mile from a 1,300-acre (526-hectare) blaze in Johnson
County and three ranches about a half-mile from the flames.
Large fires also were active Tuesday in Arizona, Colorado,
Idaho, New Mexico, Nevada, Oklahoma, Oregon, South Dakota, Utah and
Washington, the National Interagency Fire Center said.
---
On the Net:
National Interagency Fire Center: http://www.nifc.gov/

(Copyright 2003 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)

[NJFFSA16]

7/23, A sad day.....

BOISE, Idaho (AP) - Two firefighters were overrun by flames and
killed soon after they were dropped by helicopter to battle a
fast-moving blaze in a national forest in central Idaho, officials
said Wednesday.
The fire in the Salmon-Challis National Forest about 130 miles
south of Missoula, Mont., was caused by lightning and first
reported Sunday night. Hot temperatures and wind blew it up from
120 acres to about 1,000 acres Tuesday night, officials said.
Killed were Jeff Allen, 23, of Salmon, and Shane Heath, 22, of
Boise. Allen became a seasonal firefighter in 1999. Heath, a Boise
State University student, had been a wildland firefighter for four
years.
U.S. Forest Service spokeswoman Erin O'Connor said the deaths
were under investigation.
Allen and Heath were the eighth and ninth firefighters to die
since February nationwide, said Alan Hoffmeister, a spokesman for
the National Interagency Fire Center in Boise. Only one of the
previous deaths was by fire, while the others were helicopter
crashes and accidents.
The firefighters had just rappelled to the ground when they were
overtaken by flames.
All firefighters were pulled from the blaze and an investigation
of the deaths was underway. A federal forest fire management team
was sent to the fire, but it was unclear when the fight to contain
the blaze would resume.
"Firefighter safety is the number one priority," Forest
Supervisor George Matejko said Wednesday. "The stand-down ensures
that those involved on the fire have an opportunity to deal with
the impact of the tragedy."
The firefighters were part of a "helitack" crew. Such teams
travel by helicopter to provide initial response to wildland fires,
sometimes dropping crew members on the ground to battle small
blazes before they grow into large fires. The crews are deployed to
remote, steep and extremely smoky environments.
Elsewhere in the West, neighbors armed with water tanks on their
truck beds pitched in to help protect each others' homes as a
cluster of range fires swept across more than 117,000 acres in
north-central Montana.
Residents have built fire lines, watered down yards and helped
neighbors pack up valuable belongings since the fires erupted last
week.
Six to eight outbuildings burned overnight and four head of
cattle were confirmed dead, the first confirmed cattle losses.
Temperatures rose Wednesday and hundreds of firefighters protected
up to 75 buildings, including the farm complex where the
anti-government Montana Freemen holed up in a 1996 confrontation
with federal agents.
Some residents blamed the Bureau of Land Management for one
fire, and criticized the interagency management team that was
directing more than 400 firefighters in the effort to corral the
fires.
The fire started on bureau land and could have been stopped at
20 acres, but bureau authorities would not allow residents to help
suppress it, said Ross Childers, who had two ranches in danger.
Trudie Olson, public affairs director for the bureau in
Billings, said that the bureau has aggressively attacked all new
fires when spotted.
In northern Wyoming, evacuations were ordered after a wildfire
just outside the Bighorn National Forest moved to within a
half-mile of eight mountain homes, bureau spokeswoman Lesley
Collins said.
The blaze had grown to 1,500 acres and was moving northwest.
"With the rough terrain and topography and lack of resources,
they're just having a hard time trying to contain it," she said.
About 250 firefighters were battling the fire, which was started
by lightning Saturday about 20 miles southwest of Buffalo, Wyo.
Wildfires this year have charred some 1.46 million acres
nationwide. That remains a quieter-than-average wildfire season.
Other states with large fires included Arizona, California,
Colorado, New Mexico, Nevada, Oklahoma, Oregon, South Dakota, Utah
and Washington.
---
On the Net:
National Interagency Fire Center: http://www.nifc.gov

(Copyright 2003 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)

[NJFFSA16]

July 24th

By COURTNEY LOWERY
Associated Press Writer
WEST GLACIER, Montana (AP) - Several thousand people streamed
out of Glacier National Park after a wildfire burned into the
western half of the park and officials worried that conditions were
ripe for more fires to break out.
Wildfires have prompted officials to close most of the western
half of Glacier - widely considered one of the crown jewels of the
national park system. The park covers more than 1 million acres in
northwest Montana near the Canadian border and is home to some of
the most spectacular mountain views in the country.
"The purpose of the evacuation is to make sure the fire doesn't
get behind people and they don't have a way to get out of the
park," park information officer Punky Moore said Thursday.
Park spokeswoman Amy Vanderbilt said several thousand people
were evacuated, including concession employees, landowners, campers
and lodge guests.
Park officials also ordered the evacuation of a valley on the
eastern edge of the park because of "red flag" fire warnings
stemming from dry conditions, high wind and low humidity.
Officials said two fires posed the biggest threat, including one
that swelled to at least 6,000 acres (2,400 hectares) by Thursday
morning and a second estimated at nearly 2,000 acres (800
hectares), officials said. The smaller blaze prompted Thursday's
evacuations in the park's western half.
In Idaho, residents mourned the deaths of Jeff Allen, 24, and
Shane Heath, 22, who were overrun by flames after they had rappeled
to the ground to fight a blaze in the Salmon-Challis National
Forest.
The fire, about 130 miles (209 kilometers) south of Missoula,
was caused by lightning and first reported Sunday. Hot temperatures
and wind blew it up from 120 acres (48 hectares) to about 1,000
acres (400 hectares), officials said.
"The dryness of the trees and other shrubs, the high
temperatures of over 100 degrees (38 Celsius) for weeks, the
relative humidity down to around 16 percent - all those factors
contribute to very extreme fire behavior," U.S. Forest Service
spokeswoman Erin O'Connor said.
Another Idaho blaze grew to 14,000 acres (5,600 hectares) in the
Boise National Forest and was about 8 miles (13 kilometers) away
from the small town of Atlanta on Thursday. Isolated summer cabins
were evacuated, and up to 80 residences are considered threatened.
A 122,000-acre (48,800-hectare) cluster of fires in eastern
Montana remained the biggest in the state, but officials said they
were close to containing them.
The National Interagency Fire Center said there were 45 large
fires burning in the West, with 376,564 acres (150,625 hectares) of
active wildfires. Other states with large fires included Arizona,
California, Colorado, New Mexico, Nevada, Oklahoma, Oregon, South
Dakota, Utah, Washington and Wyoming.
---
On the Net:
National Interagency Fire Center: http://www.nifc.gov

[NJFFSA16]

July 27th

WEST GLACIER, Mont. (AP) - Fire officials were positioning
manpower and equipment to battle an approaching wildfire with fire,
but hoped they won't be forced to light a 5,000-acre burnout sooner
than planned because of changing weather in Glacier National Park.
Dangerous though it may be, the strategy could pinch off the
threat to hundreds of houses, cabins and businesses. And there may
be no other choice, fire commanders said Sunday.
"When the weather conditions are right and we have the
equipment and people and resources to do the burn, that's what
we'll do," said information officer Pete Buist. "The exception is
if the fire starts to move quickly. Then we will have to do the
burn quickly."
Officials said the burnout could be ignited as early as Monday
but they hoped to wait until Tuesday.
Only essential personnel remained at the park's headquarters in
West Glacier and much of the western half of the park, where at
least three separate fires were burning, is closed during what
normally is the height of the tourist season.
Late Sunday, finger fires were flaring on the western portion of
a 9,300-acre fire and it was "watch out time," said Dawn LeFleur,
a fire information officer.
She said forecasts call for more hot weather Monday with a front
moving south out of Canada, suggesting increasing wind.
Some limited burnouts, many aimed at protecting buildings, were
ignited Sunday.
Incident commander Joe Stam said his team was proceeding very
deliberately with burnouts, which could take an unexpected turn and
do more harm than good.
That concerns Apgar resident Monica Jungster.
"I'm kind of cringing right now," she told a community meeting
Sunday. "My question is, `Is it dangerous to use this
(backfire)?"'
Stam told Jungster after the meeting that burnout planners are
nationally renowned experts and every precaution will be taken.
"It's not something we take lightly," Stam said. "We're
sweating bullets when we say, 'Go ahead and light."'
The blaze was one of three major blazes in and around the park
that had blackened 44,500 acres by Sunday.
An even larger blaze had burned 18,900 acres in the northwest
corner of Glacier, just six miles south of the Canadian border. The
fire destroyed five dwellings, damaged another and burned 19
outbuildings. About 100 homes and cabins were still threatened.
A third wildfire has burned 16,300 acres inside the park in a
remote area north of Going-to-the-Sun Road.
Large fires were also burning in other states, including
Arizona, California, Colorado, Idaho, New Mexico, Oregon, South
Dakota, Utah, Washington and Wyoming, the National Interagency Fire
Center reported.
Wildfires have turned deadly in Arizona, where a helicopter
crash Saturday killed one firefighter and the pilot. Another
helicopter pilot died Friday in Washington. In Idaho, two
firefighters were killed earlier in the week.
---
On the Net:
Nat'l Interagency Fire Center: http://www.nifc.gov

(Copyright 2003 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)

[NJFFSA16]

7/28 roundup

A look at wildfires around the West:
Arizona: No major fires
California: A 4,300-acre fire in rural Riverside County that
destroyed a home and five outbuildings was 80 percent contained. A
1,002-acre fire that burned into Sequoia National Forest in Kern
County was 95 percent contained. Both were expected to be fully
surrounded by evening.
Colorado: Wildfires were burning on more than 11,880 acres
Monday, but none were considered a major threat to homes or other
structures. A 360-acre fire 25 miles southeast of Meeker threatened
about a dozen cabins and a 2,750-acre fire in Mesa Verde National
Park remained 35 percent contained.
Idaho: A half dozen large wildfires continued to burn on a
combined 37,000 acres. The Hot Creek fire is the largest blaze in
the state, burning on 19,489 acres northeast of Boise. New
restrictions on smoking and campfires were being imposed in western
and central Idaho.
Montana: Fire officials said they might drop incendiary devices
from the air to ignite a backburn in front of a 9,310-acre fire
near Glacier National Park to protect park headquarters and nearby
homes and businesses. Only essential personnel remain at the park's
headquarters in West Glacier, and some of Glacier's western half is
closed during what normally is the height of the tourist season.
Nevada: No major fires
New Mexico: Some crews have been released from the Spruce Fire
Complex in the Gila National Forest of southwestern New Mexico. The
9,452-acre fire was 50 percent contained Monday. The 18,505-acre
Turnbo Fire in the Gila has grown little because of higher
humidity.
Oregon: Lightning started five small wildfires overnight in the
Umpqua National Forest.
Utah: The Black Rock fire has burned 482 acres and was 50
percent contained. The fire is 30 miles west of Spanish Fork.
Utah's largest wildfire of the season, the Bulldog fire, 17 miles
north of Ticaboo in the Henry Mountains, has burned 31,738 acres
and was 85 percent contained.
Washington: More than 1,400 firefighters were battling the
68,539-acre Farewell Creek fire, burning in the Pasayten Wilderness
in north-central Washington. It was about 35 percent contained on
Monday. About 60 miles southeast, the 2,233-acre McGinnis Flats
wildfire on the Colville Indian Reservation was roughly 70 percent
contained. A helicopter dropping water on that fire crashed on
Friday, killing the pilot.
Wyoming: The 370-acre Ditch Creek fire in northern Wyoming was
50 percent contained on Monday, with full containment expected
Thursday. In the mountains northwest of Cody, the Deep Lake fire is
55 percent contained.



(Copyright 2003 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)

[NJFFSA16]

Western RoundUp 2006

CHEYENNE, Wyo. (AP) - A wind-whipped wildfire threatened
hundreds of homes under an evacuation order south of Casper, and
firefighters wearily eyed a Wednesday forecast that could create
conditions for the fire to spread.
Gov. Dave Freudenthal declared a state of emergency as the blaze
covered 7,000 acres, or 11 square miles. Officials said winds
forced firefighters to pull back in places because embers were
blowing across fire lines and creating spot fires behind
firefighters.
"The weather report isn't favorable for tomorrow," said State
Forester Bill Crasper Tuesday night. Temperatures were predicted in
the 90s again Wednesday, and isolated thunderstorms were possible.
The fire was about five miles south of Casper - Wyoming's
second-largest city, near the center of the state. But it was
moving southeast, away from the city, toward scattered rural
subdivisions.
Crapser estimated about 225 firefighters were on the fire, but
said he expected numbers to go up significantly as more crews are
pulled from other fires elsewhere.
"We're still calling for resources all around the country. With
the fire activity going on about the country, resources are hard to
come by," Crapser said.
Elsewhere, cooler air helped firefighters in southern California
advance on a blaze that charred about 7½ square miles and
temporarily cut power in northern Los Angeles County on Sunday.
Germain Aguilara, spokesman for the Los Angeles County Fire
Department, said they hoped to have the fire fully contained by
Wednesday night.
"The crew keeps advancing on it," Aguilara said. "As long as
the wind out there is not erratic, that will help us make
progress."
In Washington state, about 550 Army soldiers were undergoing
basic fire training before being dispatched in 20-person crews to
help on a 141-square-mile wildfire in the Okanogan and Wenatchee
national forests.
In Idaho, a blaze in the Salmon-Challis National Forest, 7 miles
north of Stanley, had grown to more than 25 square miles and was
threatening vacation cabins.
In Montana, a 50-square-mile fire in the northwestern part of
the state near the Canadian border showed little activity, and was
75 percent contained. Meanwhile, residents of nine homes in Ravalli
County were asked to be prepared to leave as a fire southeast of
Lewis and Clark Caverns State Park grew to less than a square mile.
Lightning in northern Nevada also started 10 brush fires in Elko
County along a 100-mile stretch from Interstate 80 to near the
Idaho line, authorities said Tuesday. Five firefighters were
treated after their truck overturned, but the most serious injury
was a broken arm, authorities said.
---
On the Net:
National Interagency Fire Center: http://www.nifc.gov/

[NJFFSA16]

August 21st summary

CASPER, Wyo. (AP) - The last evacuation orders have been lifted
for hundreds of residents and firefighters were being sent home
Monday after reaching 85 percent containment of a wildfire south of
Casper.
The fire had covered more than 11,700 acres, or about 18 square
miles, since lightning started it Aug. 14.
Hundreds of homes were evacuated last week on Casper Mountain,
in central Wyoming about 5 miles south of Casper. Seven cabins, a
barn and two outbuildings were burned, officials said.
Only about 100 firefighters were still working on the fire
Monday, down from more than 500 last week.
Fire crews battled several large blazes Monday in north-central
Washington state, including one threatening a remote community at
the north end of Lake Chelan.
The fire was burning in steep, dangerous terrain about 2 miles
from Stehekin, which is reachable only by boat, air, horse or on
foot. The fire has blackened more than seven square miles, or 4,738
acres. It was 50 percent contained Monday.
The largest fire in Washington has blackened nearly 190 square
miles of forest between the north-central towns of Winthrop and
Conconully. Firefighters estimated the fire at 121,596 acres.
The National Interagency Fire Center reported as many as eight
major fires burning across Idaho, on more than 415 square miles.
They included at least four new fires that started Monday in
southwestern Idaho, on U.S. Forest Service and Bureau of Land
Management territory.
A group of four wildfires in West Texas was 50 percent contained
Monday after charring about 12 square miles since Friday night,
said Laura Polant, a spokeswoman for the Texas Forest Service.
Crews battled 104 degree temperatures and low humidity.
No injuries or deaths have been reported in the fires near
Caddo, Texas, but one hunting cabin was burned. Twelve homes
threatened by the fires were saved, Polant said.
So far this year, wildfires have charred 6.8 million acres, or
nearly 11,000 square miles, according to the National Interagency
Fire Center in Boise, Idaho. By this same date last year, wildfires
had covered 6.7 million acres.
---
On the Net:
National Interagency Fire Center: http://www.nifc.gov

[NJFFSA16]

August 23rd

DAYTON, Washington (AP) - Red flag warnings were posted for wide
areas of the northwestern United States, indicating extreme fire
danger as crews battled spreading wildfires.
Washington Governor Chris Gregoire declared a statewide wildfire
emergency Wednesday, citing the major fires already burning and the
potential for more blazes as weather forecasters predicted
thunderstorms, high wind and low humidity.
"It's very rugged terrain," Gregoire said after a helicopter
tour of the state's largest fire, which had burned across 200
square miles (512 square kilometers). "The firefighters go in and
put up a line, and the fire will jump a mile over the line. ...
We're just hoping now the weather cooperates."
The declaration allows state agencies to spend money and
resources to help local jurisdictions fight wildfires.
Meanwhile, a group of wind-driven fires near Dayton in southeast
Washington doubled in size in about 24 hours to nearly 40 square
miles (102 square kilometers).
Thirty-five residents evacuated from a nursing home were allowed
to return because the smoke had cleared, and some residents of 200
evacuated homes also came back, said Ray Steiger, information
officer at the fire complex.
But residents of dozens of homes near the Coppei River south of
Waitsburg, some on pricey 5-acre (2-hectare) lots, and some people
living along the Tucannon River were warned to be ready to
evacuate.
Red flag warnings or fire weather watches also were posted for
parts of Oregon, Idaho, Montana, Nevada and Utah, the National Fire
Information Center said.
An evacuation order was issued Wednesday for 25 to 30 homes in a
subdivision east of Billings, Montana, as a nearby wildfire grew to
at least 3,300 acres (1,320 hectares), said Mary Apple, fire
information officer with the Billings Dispatch Center. The blaze
destroyed two homes, a barn and several outbuildings Tuesday.
The fire, fueled by timber and grass, was reported Tuesday
morning; the cause was not yet known.
In California, a fire that had burned 480 acres (192 hectares),
or about three-quarters of a square mile (nearly 2 square
kilometers), forced the closure of trails to the summit of El
Capitan, one of the best-known granite monuments that tower over
the Yosemite Valley.
The fire, which started Monday, was believed to have been
accidentally set by people. It was about 30 percent contained
Wednesday.
North of Reno, Nevada, a vehicle struck a wall during a police
training exercise Wednesday and sparked a 50-acre (20-hectare)
brush file that destroyed several vehicles and sheds.
In Nevada's Elko County, a week's worth of fires had blackened
more than 360 square miles (920 square kilometers). The largest
active fire burned nearly 36 square miles, including three cabins,
a trailer and an outbuilding.
So far this year, wildfires have blackened 6.8 million acres
(2.7 million hectares), or 10,600 square miles (27,000 square
kilometers), compared to 6.7 million acres (2.7 million hectares)
at this same time last year, the center said.
---
On the Net:
Nat'l Interagency Fire Center: http://www.nifc.gov/

[NJFFSA16]

Update August 29th

REDLANDS, Calif. (AP) - A wildfire erupted quickly in the
southern San Bernardino National Forest on Tuesday, burning a home
and prompting the evacuation of a tiny mountain community.
It was one of several fires to have started in Southern
California this week as hot weather dried out brush and increased
fire danger.
The fire started about 3 p.m. and burned about 2,000 acres by
dusk, authorities said. The cause was under investigation. The
blaze was about 5 percent contained.
The community of Mountain Home Village was under a mandatory
evacuation order, and nearby Angelus Oaks was under a voluntary
evacuation, said Robin Prince, a forest spokeswoman.
One home and two outbuildings had burned.
Mountain Home Village resident Kevin Bondy said a number of
people were leaving. About 60 homes are in the area.
"You can't see (the flames) from where we're at right now,"
Bondy said. "It's on the other side of the ridge, but I guess it's
enough for them to evacuate us."
Nearly 200 firefighters, along with seven air tankers and three
water-dropping helicopters, attacked the flames as they moved north
into the forest about 60 miles east of Los Angeles.
The fire was burning near the eastern edge of the Santa Ana
River, about 14 miles from San Bernardino.
In northern Los Angeles County, firefighters contained a
565-acre blaze near Santa Clarita. Residents of several closed
streets were allowed to return home. Arson was suspected,
authorities said.
In Montana, residents of about a dozen homes were urged to
evacuate after an afternoon windstorm fanned a fire that had burned
about 18,000 acres and was 40 percent contained.
It made a "pretty good run" Tuesday, information officer Pat
Cross said. The fire was burning in national forests about 60 miles
north of Yellowstone National Park.
In Washington state, more favorable weather was helping
firefighters battle a huge wilderness blaze. Firefighters were
pulled from the lines Monday because of unsafe conditions in hot,
windy weather.
The lightning-caused fire covers about 142,326 acres in the
Pasayten Wilderness in the north-central part of the state. There
are 1,562 people battling the fire, and it is about 48 percent
trailed, said Bud Nelson, a spokesman for the firefighting effort.

APTV 08-29-06 2356EDT

[NJFFSA16]

September 6th

HELENA, Mont. (AP) - Gov. Brian Schweitzer traveled to the
command post for Montana's colossal Derby Mountain wildfire
Wednesday as the blaze entered its third week and firefighters
toiling in hot, dry conditions faced still another challenge: bees.
The trip to the Derby Mountain camp in south-central Montana was
the second for Schweitzer, who was to be briefed by fire managers,
then take an aerial tour if the sky was clear enough. The fire that
started with lightning Aug. 22 has spread across 185,000 acres, or
289 square miles. It has burned 26 homes.
Other states with major fires Wednesday included Washington and
Nevada.
Officials said 45 percent of the Derby Mountain blaze was
contained. Containment consists of natural or constructed barriers,
such as bulldozer lines, that may restrict a fire's spread.
Information officer Joan Dickerson said the west side of the
fire was particularly active Wednesday, when temperatures were in
the mid 80s, humidity remained low and wind blew from the east.
Bee stings among firefighters have been occurring at the rate of
40 to 50 a day, said Dickerson, adding some of those stung required
medical attention for sensitivities.
"We've had a couple of our leaders taken to the hospital," she
said.
Dickerson said she had no explanation for the surge in bee
stings.
An evacuation order that applied to 265 homes remained in
effect, three days after it was issued. An alert for evacuation
readiness covered another 20 homes.
Smoke from the Derby Mountain fire and others triggered
air-quality warnings in southwestern Montana. The Department of
Environmental Quality said the air in Bozeman and in the area of
the fires was "very unhealthy" while Butte's air quality was
"unhealthy." Air was not healthful for sensitive groups of people
in Livingston, Helena, Missoula, Whitefish, Kalispell and Libby,
the DEQ said.
Smoke may linger until Friday, forecasters said.
"We're not sure what the weekend is going to bring," Dickerson
said. "We're prepping for a cold front" that could shift the
wind.
Also Wednesday, the East Boulder Mine in Sweet Grass County
remained closed. The mine was shut down Sunday because of the fire;
about 230 employees are affected, information officer Allison
Jackson said.
In Washington, a second wildfire approached the Canadian border
Wednesday. With a dozen large fires burning in the state, officials
watched for new blazes after a round of dry lightning strikes in
eastern Washington. In the Seattle area, outdoor burning was
banned.
Weekend lightning struck more than 80 places in Washington.
Sometimes days elapse before remote fires are detected.
More than 3,300 firefighters were assigned to the state's 10
largest blazes, which had burned nearly 468 square miles.
The Columbia complex, 40 percent contained on Wednesday, took
priority. It had burned 145 square miles, or 93,225 acres, near
Dayton in southeast Washington. Several hundred residents remained
evacuated, said Virgil Mink, a fire information officer for the
U.S. Forest Service.
Washington's largest burn was the Tripod complex, which had
moved across 163,098 acres in the north-central part of the state.
The fire, 56 percent contained, burned within a mile of the
Canadian border near Haig Mountain. Canadian crews were monitoring.
In Nevada, crew leaders Wednesday awaited arrival of more
personnel to work on fires that blackened nearly 375 square miles
of rangeland across the state's northeastern area during a four-day
span.
Officials reported 32 fires touched off by lightning since
Sunday had burned 240,000 acres. The fires included one that
exploded to 129,000 acres and was 10 percent contained.
There were no reports of human injury or damage to homes.
Information officer June McMillen said the fires were a threat to
scattered ranches and mines, and to wildlife habitat.
---
On the Net:
Incident Information System: www.inciweb.org

(Copyright 2006 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)

[NJFFSA16]

September 7th Top firefighting teams sent to battle Nevada blazes

By TOM GARDNER
Associated Press Writer
RENO, Nev. (AP) - A national command team and three of the top
firefighting teams in the country joined the battle Thursday
against wildfires that have blackened nearly 375 square miles of
rangeland the past four days, threatening ranches, mines and
wildlife habitat.
The Nevada fires are among the largest wildland blazes which
have blackened more than 1 million acres nationally, or 1,563
square miles - slightly more than the land mass of Rhode Island.
The national command team was set up in the Elko Convention
Center on Thursday and will coordinate efforts with the three elite
teams.
"I think all of our large fires are in good shape," Joe Ribar,
commander of the national command team, said on Thursday. "If we
get through today's issues, we'll be on the downhill side."
Those issues include temperatures in the 80s, humidity in the
teens and the ongoing threat of isolated thundershowers.
Fires touched off by dry lightning since Sunday had burned
240,000 acres in Nevada, including the Sheep fire 25 miles
northeast of Battle Mountain in Lander County, which exploded to
130,000-plus acres and was 20 percent contained.
In Elko County, the 80,000-acre Amazon fire near Tuscarora,
which was 25 percent contained, while the 16,700-plus-acre Deer
blaze near Jackpot was 90 percent contained.
No damage to homes or injuries were reported, but the fires
continued to pose a threat to scattered ranches and mines as well
as wildlife habitat, fire information officer June McMillen said on
Wednesday.
In Montana, fire officials were bracing on Thursday for
advancement of the state's dominant wildfire after the blaze
increased to 191,000 acres, with some of the growth attributed to
deliberate burning as part of the fire battle.
South-central Montana's Derby Mountain fire, which started Aug.
22 and has burned 26 homes, increased from 185,000 acres. Further
growth was anticipated because of wind and the density of dead
trees, said Dixie Dies, fire information officer.
"It's real rugged," Dies said. "We can't get equipment in
there." Firefighting includes digging shallow trenches, or lines,
in the ground to inhibit fire growth.
Officials were concerned about the fire spreading further west
into the Boulder River Valley. The fire crossed into the valley -
setting for the movie "The Horse Whisperer" and home to historic
ranches and wealthy vacation homes - earlier this week. So far,
flames have not reached any homes in the valley.
Forty-five percent of the fire was contained.
Plans called for an end Friday to evacuation orders issued
Sunday, with returning residents to remain on alert in case
conditions change and they are advised to leave again. Lifting
evacuation orders will open access to 265 homes, officials said.
In Idaho, three more fires sparked by dry lightning brought the
total number of large blazes burning in the state to 17.
Nine large fires were burning in both Washington and Oregon as
the Pacific Northwest's fire season dragged into the waning days of
summer, when rains usually douse the flames.
In Washington, state and county authorities have advised
residents in much of Eastern Washington to take precautions against
heavy smoke from more than a dozen wildfires in the region.
"It is late in the year not to see any relief in sight and to
have heavy duty fire activity in similar ecosystems in Montana,
Washington and Oregon," said Rose Davis, a spokeswoman for the
National Interagency Fire Agency in Boise.
In California, a 4,230-acre wildfire was raging out of control
in the Los Padres National Forest on Thursday, spreading in all
directions as dry, windy weather and rugged terrain hampered
firefighters, authorities said.
No homes or structures were threatened and no one had been
injured fighting the blaze, which erupted Monday afternoon 10 miles
northwest of Castaic, said U.S. Forest Service spokeswoman Brigitta
Van De Raay.
In Nevada, the latest fires come less than two weeks after crews
contained wildland blazes that scorched more than 240,000 acres, or
375 square miles, near Elko - about 300 miles east of Reno.
The fires meant more bad news for mule deer, antelope and other
wildlife that depend on the high desert's brush and grasses for
food and shelter.

Associated Press writers Martin Griffith in Reno, Susan
Gallagher in Helena and Jesse Harlan Alderman in Boise contributed
to this report.

On the Net:
Incident Information System: http://www.inciweb.org/
Nat'l Interagency Fire Center: http://www.nifc.gov/

[NJFFSA16]

9/12/06

By SHANNON DININNY
Associated Press Writer
STEHEKIN, Wash. (AP) - The battle against a wildfire threatening
this remote lakeside town continued Tuesday, as firefighters cut
trees and vegetation to slow the fire's growth.
Blue skies and light winds greeted fire crews Tuesday at the
north end of Lake Chelan in mountainous north-central Washington,
where an estimated 60 residents have been watching the Flick Creek
fire burn nearby for nearly seven weeks.
Already, the fire has blackened more than 11 square miles, to
within yards of a National Park Service visitor center, a post
office and several other buildings. Authorities ordered a mandatory
evacuation of the boat landing and about 25 homes, largely summer
rentals, prompting 100 tourists to leave.
However, most residents of the close-knit community, which is
reachable only by boat or float plane, refused to leave despite
warnings that they, too, may be forced to flee if the fire grows.
The community is surrounded by wilderness area, the North
Cascades National Park and U.S. Forest Service land. Miles of
trails make the scenic area a popular destination for tourists, who
can escape to a town that does not even have telephone service.
A single road leads around the end of the lake from the boat
landing into the Stehekin Valley, where it reaches a dead end.
Residents have no other way out if fire closes the road.
The 7,576-acre fire was holding in an area called Imus Creek,
but fire managers were concerned that southeast winds could blow
the blaze toward the road Tuesday, said Barbara Budd, a U.S. Forest
Service spokeswoman.
Regular ferry service to Stehekin has been canceled.
About 20 firefighters battled the blaze Tuesday, cutting trees
and vegetation near the road, carefully dodging electricity lines
with the aid of power crews. Still more firefighting resources were
expected to arrive during the day, said U.S. Forest Service
spokesman Mick Mueller.
Chelan County Sheriff Mike Harum also met with Gov. Chris
Gregoire on Tuesday to alert her to the situation and request
additional resources. Gregoire visited Stehekin days after the fire
was started July 26 by a campfire.
Any equipment that does arrive, such as water tenders, still
face a six-hour barge ride to Stehekin, said Deputy Sheriff Maria
Agnew.
"The truth is it could go either way, depending on what the
weather allows," Agnew said. "Obviously, we're looking for
resources to help put the fire out."
Fire managers planned a community meeting with Stehekin
residents Tuesday evening to discuss the fire.
Firefighting efforts continued around the West as the wildfire
season stretched toward autumn.
In California, crews fought a fast-moving wildfire that scorched
more than 30 square miles and threatened to jump Interstate 5 north
of Los Angeles and march into the Angeles National Forest.
The fire, which started on Labor Day in a remote area in the Los
Padres National Forest, has burned 19,523 acres and was 25 percent
contained by Tuesday. Authorities temporarily shut down the highway
in both directions in the area, but reopened some lanes early
Tuesday.
The blaze, which U.S. Forest Service investigators said was
sparked by someone burning debris, scorched mostly chaparral and
brushy hillsides over the last week, but rapidly spread east Monday
afternoon due to hot, dry and windy weather.
In south-central Montana, crews continued to reinforce
containment lines on the southwest edge of the fire that has burned
an estimated 208,000 acres since it erupted three weeks ago.
About a mile of line remains to be built on the western edge of
the fire and managers began releasing a few crews. The total number
of firefighters dropping by about 300 - to about 750.
Early on, the fire burned 26 homes and about 22 other buildings,
and forced the evacuation of hundreds of residents. Two more burned
buildings have been confirmed, managers said. The fire was reported
to be 70 percent contained by Tuesday.
---
On the Net:
Flick fire: http://www.inciweb.org/incident/360/
National Interagency Fire Center: http://www.nifc.gov/

(Copyright 2006 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)