Daily Update 07/31/07
Incident: Mile Marker 124 Wildland Fire
Released: 7/31/2007
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Mile Marker 124 Fire
Monday, July 31, 2007
Contact: Laura McConnell, Public Information Officer
Rocky Mountain Incident Management Team A
Phone: 1-406-825-9263
Website: http://www.inciweb.org/
A community meeting was held last night at the Clinton Elementary School. The Incident Commander, Don Angell, as well as the Missoula County Sheriff Mike McMeekin spoke to the crowd of residents about the status of the fire and help them prepare if evacuations should become necessary.
The Mile Marker 124 Fire has become an intense surface fire (instead of burning up into the trees) and continues to move towards the east. This fire has become a regional priority and more resources have been assigned to assist in the efforts. Montana National Guard will also be joining the efforts. Along with other air support the National Guard Black Hawk Helicopter is on loan to the fire.
Today, firefighters will be burning out areas and constructing a dozer line from the top the ridge to Starvation Creek. They will also hold burnout operations behind houses
The concern for motorists and fire fighter safety exists on I-90 and motorists are being asked to please watch their speed and pay close attention to changes in traffic. The Missoula County Sheriff's Department will continue to patrol the I-90 corridor around the clock in the fire areas and are strictly enforcing the "no stopping" and reduced speed limits.
Weather predictions of a cold front moving in today could bring high winds and fan the fire. The cold front will bring in cooler weather but also a dryer air mass over the fire area. The combination of dryer air and increased winds will bring near fed flag conditions for the fire area. Rod Moraga the Fire Behavior Analyst for the fire said that the grasses are as dry as they can get. Every day with the current weather conditions the trees and other fuels dry out even more and the potential fire threat grows.
Mile Marker 124 Statistics at a Glance:
· Time/Date Started: July 28, 2007
· Location: 3 miles east of Clinton MT.
· Cause: Under Investigation
· Fuels: Grass, mixed conifers, open pine with slash
· Size: 1,511
· Containment: 5%
· Resources Committed: 4 helicopters, 2 dozers, Roosevelt Hotshots, 1- type 1 engine, 4-type 3 engines, type 1 engines, 128 firefighter
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