Sawtooth Morning Fire Update
Incident: Sawtooth Fire Wildfire
Released: 9/23/2012
WILDLAND FIRE
MANAGEMENT TEAM
Fire Information - Sawtooth
Sunday September 23, 2012 9:00 AM
Phone: 406-363-3556
Cause: Lightning
Detected: 8/30/2012
Location: 7 miles west southwest of Hamilton, Montana
Current size: 5,962 acres Containment: 45%
Incident Commander: Roy Hall, Northern Rockies Type-II Wildfire Management Team
Resources:
Air Support: (2) Type 1 helicopter; (1) Type 2 helicopter; (1) Type 3 helicopter
Total personnel: 47
The increase in acreage is due to the more accurate mapping of the Infra-red (IR) flight. IR flights had not been done for six days due to the plane not being available. The growth in the fire perimeter is on the west side of the fire in the Selway-Bitterroot Wilderness.
Helicopter work yesterday included bucket drops to keep the progression in check on any hotspots detected on the IR flights. An increase in humidity and the chance of wetting rain for the next few days will aid in the suppression of the Sawtooth fire. When wetting rain is received, Stage 1 Restrictions will be revisited.
Fire Activity: Smoldering and creeping with isolated torching was observed yesterday on the west side within the Selway-Bitterroot Wilderness.
Management Actions: Suppression rehab efforts began today. Crews continue to mop-up, patrol, and monitor all firelines and monitor fire within the Selway-Bitterroot Wilderness with aircraft.
Evacuations and Closures: Stage 1 Fire Restrictions remain in effect for this area. Information on fire restrictions can be found at http://firerestrictions.us/mt/. Sawtooth Creek Trail #123, Roaring Lion Trail #124, and Canyon Creek Trail #525 are closed due to fire activity.
For more information on these or other wildland fires, and related information visit:
http://firerestrictions.us/mt/
