Pine Creek Fire Update 9/13/2012
Incident: Pine Creek Fire Wildfire
Released: 9/13/2012
FIRE UPDATE
Pine Creek
Update: September 13, 2012 @ 9 a.m.
Contact: Fire Information: 406-823-6079
Karen Tuscano 406-223-2028
FIRE NAME: Pine Creek
DATE OF DETECTION: August 29, 2012
CAUSE: Human (under investigation)
CURRENT SIZE: 8,509 acres
CONTAINMENT: 51%
LOCATION: Pine Creek on the east side of Paradise Valley
AGENCY: Park County, Gallatin National Forest
IMT: Type III Incident Management Team, Greg Juvan, IC
YESTERDAY'S ACTIVITY: The cool temperatures and light winds helped to keep fire activity low yesterday. A few smokes were seen in the Pine Creek drainage, and helicopters worked the isolated smokes in the North Fork of Deep Creek with water drops. Firefighters worked to put out hot spots in the basin on the ridge between South Fork of Deep Creek and Davis Creek. Engines continued putting out hot spots on the south side of Barney Creek and in the Pool Creek area.
TODAY'S WEATHER AND PLANNED ACTIVITY: Warm and very dry conditions are predicted for the fire area Thursday through Friday. The high today could reach 77 degrees, with the minimum relative humidity dropping to 8%. Winds should be light today, mainly out of the west at 5-10 mph.
Firefighters in the head of Davis Creek have completed their work and will be hiking out today. Engine crews will continue mopping up hot spots on the south side of Barney Creek and in Pool Creek. In the North Fork of Deep Creek, firefighters will monitor the isolated smokes and use helicopter water drops if needed. Firefighters will continue mopping up hot spots in the Pine Creek Campground and along the lower part of Pine Creek trail.
PERSONNEL AND RESOURCES ON THE FIRE: There are approximately 100 personnel assigned, including 2 crews, 4 engines, 3 water tenders and 2 helicopters.
SPECIAL MESSAGES & OTHER INFORMATION: Fuels in the area are extremely dry and receptive to burning. People who are interested in viewing the fire are encouraged to use Mallard's Rest fishing access site on Highway 89, and refrain from stopping on East River Road which can cause serious safety hazards. Loch Leven fishing access site on the Yellowstone River is now the location of the fire's Incident Command Post and is closed to the public.
All pre-evacuation notices associated with the Pine Creek Fire have been lifted. The fire will continue to burn until it receives significant moisture, but fire and Park County officials feel that the risk of the fire impacting residents has decreased. People should expect to see smoke coming from the fire area for the next few weeks.
People are urged to travel slowly and cautiously with the increased fire traffic during the early morning and early evening hours, and school buses on the roads. Be sure to obey all traffic signs and drive defensively.
Residents should be aware that helicopters could still be flying overhead, as they are assisting firefighters on the ground.
Roads closed to travel by the general public include Deep Creek Road and Luccock Park Road.
The area closure on the Gallatin National Forest is still in effect, including the Pine Creek Campground and Trailhead.
A temporary flight restriction (TFR) is in place over the fire area in order to safeguard aerial fire operations.
A Burned Area Emergency Response (BAER) team began assessing rehabilitation efforts on private land yesterday.
For further information, go to www.inciweb.org.
Visit the Park County DES website at www.parkcounty.org
