Pine Creek Fire Morning Update September 18, 2012
Incident: Pine Creek Fire Wildfire
Released: 9/18/2012
FIRE UPDATE
Pine Creek
Update: September 18, 2012 @ 9 a.m.
Contact: Fire Information: 406-823-6079
Karen Tuscano 406-223-2028
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: Fire activity was minimal throughout the fire area yesterday. The portion of the fire in the North Fork of Deep Creek continues to burn the duff and ground fuels in the rocks.
TODAY'S WEATHER AND PLANNED ACTIVITY: Today's weather forecast is calling for warmer temperatures and lower relative humidity, with gusty west to northwest winds from late morning through the afternoon. The high temperature could reach 84 degrees, with a minimum relative humidity of 12%. Winds are expected to be out of the east early this morning at 4-8 mph, becoming west at 10-17 mph, with gusts to 25 mph in the afternoon.
Today's operations will be similar to yesterday, with the addition of some water bucket drops planned for this morning in the North Fork of Deep Creek. The engines assigned to the fire will be patrolling the fire area and monitoring the fire activity. The helicopter will be available for water bucket drops if the activity increases, or if the portion of the fire in the North Fork of Deep Creek starts to move down slope.
The Incident Command Post for the Pine Creek Fire has moved to the Yellowstone Ranger District, Livingston Office. Loch Leven fishing access site on the Yellowstone River will remain closed until all cleanup efforts are complete. The helicopter is still assigned to the fire, and is stationed out of the Livingston airport. Other fire personnel will remain on the fire until they are no longer needed.
For those who were unable to attend the community information meeting on Saturday, a booth will be available at the Livingston Farmer's Market on Wednesday evening to provide similar information.
PERSONNEL AND RESOURCES ON THE FIRE: There are approximately 30 personnel assigned, including 4 engines and 1 helicopter.
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.
For more information on where drift smoke may be coming from, please go to http://www.osdpd.noaa.gov/ml/land/currenthms.jpg.
For fire recovery and rehabilitation information and requests, please contact the Park County DES office at 222-4190.
For non-emergency fire concerns or smoke reports, please call the Park County Rural Fire District 1 duty phone at 223-3317.
Park County is providing a manned roll off station that has been set up just north of the Pine Creek Cafe on East River Road. The use of the boxes is free of charge to the people in the area cleaning up rubble on their property from the Pine Creek Fire. All food items must be taken to the Divide Road green boxes. One roll off will be for metal, wood, and appliances. Another box will be for items that can blow away, and they will need to be bagged before thrown onto the roll off. This location will be open 7 days a week from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. until further notice. Check http://www.parkcounty.org/ for updates about this service.
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.
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, Lower Deep Creek Bench Road and Luccock Park Road.
The area closure on the Gallatin National Forest is still in effect. The Pine Creek Campground and Trailhead will be closed for the remainder of the year.
A Burned Area Emergency Response (BAER) team has begun assessing rehabilitation efforts on private land, and will begin assessment on the National Forest portion today.
For further information, go to www.inciweb.org.
Visit the Park County DES website at www.parkcounty.org
