Sawtooth Fire Morning Update
Incident: Sawtooth Fire Wildfire
Released: 9/19/2012
Sawtooth
Update: September 19, 2012 @ 8:00 a.m. Contact: Fire Information 406-363-3556
FIRE NAME: Sawtooth
DATE OF DETECTION: August 30, 2012
CAUSE: Lightning
CURRENT SIZE: 5,021 acres
CONTAINMENT: 40%
LOCATION: 7 miles WSW of Hamilton, Montana
AGENCY: Bitterroot National Forest
IMT: Greg Poncin's Northern Rockies Incident Management Team
Sawtooth Fire Update
COMMUNITY MEETING: An update on the fire status will be presented Thursday by fire officials at the Bedford Building located at Hamilton City Hall at 7:00 pm. The public is encouraged to attend.
SITUATION: The fire is now 40% contained. Objectives to contain the fire on the east side along private property have been completed and the night shift of wildland engines is no longer required to patrol these areas. Stage1 Evacuation Notice/Warnings are still in effect and residents should continue to be prepared for changing conditions.
Today the hand crews are camped on the northern perimeter to assist in containing the fire by building fireline towards Barley Creek. Hand crews on the southern edge continued to build fireline on the bottom of Sawtooth Creek. Firefighters are building a check line around the hot spot in the interior of the fire that was visible on the face in the Owings Creek area. Helicopters are available to assist firefighters on the ground as needed
The fire managers are releasing resources that are in excess to the suppression needs. Incident managers are reviewing what resources are necessary for the next phase of the incident. Poncin's Incident Management Team will begin transition to Halls Incident Management at the end of this week.
A strong high pressure ridge will continue to build over the region this week. This will result in warm and dry conditions. These stable air conditions will aid firefighters, but smoke from all the fires in the region will continue to linger in the valley.
PERSONNEL AND RESOURCES ON THE FIRE: There are approximately 347 personnel assigned, including 9 crews, 5 engines, 2 water tenders, and 4 helicopters.
EVACUATIONS & CLOSURES: The Stage 1 Evacuation Alert / Warning remains in effect. A Stage 1 Evacuation and Alert means that residents may need to keep a close eye on weather conditions and to be prepared to evacuate if conditions suddenly change. Sawtooth Creek Trail #123, Roaring Lion Trail #124, Ward Mountain Trail #208, and Canyon Creek Trail #525 are closed due to fire activity. Blodgett Campground is also closed.
For further information, go to www.inciweb.org
For updated weather, visit the NOAA website at http://www.noaa.gov/
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