Fire Growth Expands Tuesday Afternoon
Incident: Fool Creek Wildland Fire Used for Resource Benefit
Released: 8/1/2007
Contact: Cathie Schmidlin Phone: 406-466-3560 or 406-466-2524
8:00 am - 8:00 pm
Mike Munoz Phone: 406-466-5341 (Rocky Mountain RD Office)
Acres treated: Approximately 11,492 acres: 6,200 in the Lewis and Clark NF, 5,292 in the Flathead NF.
Management and Status: The fire was active Tuesday afternoon, burning in the Trail Creek drainage and east in the Wrong Creek drainage toward the Bob Marshall Wilderness boundary. Dry air behind a cold front dropped the humidity to 6 percent Tuesday afternoon, allowing the fire to grow rapidly throughout the afternoon. An infrared flight will be requested Wednesday evening so maps can be prepared showing the fire's new boundaries.
Today's Activity: Helicopters are available to drop water on hot spots along the fire's eastern boundary as conditions permit. A 6,000-gallon water tank installed near the West Fork of the Teton River will allow large helicopters to fill their buckets there if necessary. Lookouts will continue to monitor the fire's expected growth. Wilderness cabins have been wrapped with protective foil and pumps are being run to water the area around them.
Personnel/Resources on the Fire: A total of 75 people are assigned to the fire. Three helicopters and one engine also are assigned to the fire.
Air Quality: Anyone wanting information about air quality can contact the Teton County Health Department (406) 466-2562. Information on air quality in areas affected by forest fires in Montana is available at: http://www.deq.mt.gov/FireUpdates/index.asp. An air quality monitoring station is located outside of Choteau to measure air quality. Information on air quality conditions is available throughout the day, go to http://www.satguard.com/usfs, link to Real Time Data and Unit 90.
Continental Divide Trail: A long portion of the officially designated Continental Divide National Scenic Trail remains closed because of the Fool Creek, Ahorn, and Skyland fires burning on the Lewis and Clark NF. Because conditions are constantly changing, hikers should contact the Rocky Mountain Ranger District, Spotted Bear Ranger District, or the Lincoln Ranger District for the latest information.
Restrictions & Closures: The closure in the northern portion of the Badger-Two Medicine area of the Rocky Mountain Ranger District has been expanded to include the entire Badger-Two Medicine from Highway 2 south to the North Fork Birch Creek Trail (No. 121), which remains open. For more information, call Skyland fire information at (406) 226-4333. An area closure is in place in the Bob Marshall Wilderness east of the Continental Divide. The public is reminded to please call the Rocky Mountain Ranger District Office (406) 466-5341 or the Spotted Bear Ranger District Office (406) 758-5376. For additional information on the Fool Creek fire, refer to the Inciweb site (http://inciweb.org/).
Given the range of public safety concerns, the three large fires burning in the Rocky Mountain Ranger District, and the extreme fire danger, the district ranger is considering expanding the area closure to include the entire district.
