Incident: Meriwether
Released: 8/19/2007
By EVE BYRON - IR Projects Editor - 08/19/07
George Lane IR staff photographer - Smoke billows high into the air from the Meriwether fire. The Meriwether fire north of Helena kicked up a large plume of smoke Saturday, but didn't expand its perimeter.Amy Teegarden, spokesperson for the Helena National Forest, said the fire is burning trees and other foliage inside the fire line, which is to be expected.
"There is some burning, but it's all within the perimeter," she said, adding that it shouldn't alarm the public.
The blaze has burned 42,438 acres since it was started by lightning July 21 in the Gates of the Mountains Wilderness Area near the Meriwether day use site. As of Friday, 121 people, two helicopters, one airplane and a variety of fire engines and equipment were trying to keep the fire within the containment lines, which are around 75 percent of the perimeter.
Rain showers and cooler weather are expected to slow the fire, and water drops from the airplane should cool down interior areas of high heat intensity.
Access along Beaver Creek Road, at the southeastern edge of the fire, remains restricted to residents and fire personnel. In addition, the public is prohibited from being on National Forest lands on the east shore of Holter Lake, near where the fire started, in the wilderness area.
