USFS WILDFIRE UPDATE: Start date: August 16, 2013 (N. Eightmile) Contact: Mariah Leuschen, Jack Conner, Heather Noel New Direct Information Land Lines (406) 333-9961, (406) 333-9971 Email: minerparadisecomplex@gmail UPCOMING CLOSURE: Gate will be closed at East side of Hyalite Dam including Chisholm, and Hood Creek campgrounds and Palisades, Emerald Lake and Flanders Creek Trailheads will be closed. Windowrock/Maxie Cabin is also closed. Blackmore Day Use Area will remain open. This closure is due to the Horsetail Fire. Map will be available on Inciweb when fully implemented. Additional Trail closures will be implemented today for the Emigrant Fire including the North Fork of Bear Creek #60, Knox Lake #64 and #279 Monitor Peak Trail on the Gardiner and Yellowstone R.D.’s Cause: Lightning Location: Sheep Fire in Tom Miner Basin, North Eightmile and Horsetail Fires along Gallatin Crest, Emigrant Fire – 8 miles south of Emigrant Combined Current Size: Approximately 11,007 acres, 4 fires Containment: 5% Sheep Fire: Approximately 562 acres, North Eightmile Fire: Approximately 411 acres, Horsetail Fire: Approximately 142 acres, Emigrant Fire: Approximately 9,892 acres. Resources Assigned: The Miner Paradise Complex includes: Emigrant, North Eightmile, Horsetail, and Sheep Fires. Additional resources have been requested. Total personnel: 319 FIRE NAME: Sheep Fire DATE OF DETECTION: August 12, 2013 CAUSE: Lightning CURRENT SIZE: approximately 562 acres CONTAINMENT: 0% LOCATION: Sawtooth Mountain in Tom Miner Basin, approximately 25 miles northwest of Gardiner AGENCY: Gallatin National Forest PERSONNEL AND RESOURCES ON THE FIRE: 2 20 person crews, 6 engines, 1 Skidsteer, 1 Tender TUESDAY’S ACTIVITY: Fire burned up to a rock ridge on the northern boundary on Tuesday. Fire crews continued to build direct handline holding the fire about mid-slope along a bench in the Horse Creek drainage. Firefighters also completed a contingency line from Division A to Division Z along the northern section of the fire and heavy air support was utilized to drop water on the fire. A fuel break utilizing a dozer wrapped around to the north and east protecting private lands and DNRC lands. WEDNESDAY’S PLANNED ACTIVITY: Fire personnel will continue to use heavy equipment and crews will construct direct, when possible, and indirect handline working south from the Division A/Z break with dozers and crews along the eastern side of the fire anchor line into a rock band. Former road beds will be utilized to establish fuel breaks. Structure protection will continue. On the northern perimeter, contingency lines may need to be utilized if the fire backs off the ridge moving north throughout the burning period. CLOSURES & OTHER INFORMATION: Tom Miner Basin Closure: on Tuesday a Closure Order in the Tom Miner Basin was implemented on National Forest System Lands affected by the Sheep Fire along the southern portion of the Tom Miner Basin which includes the Tom Miner Campground. Map is available on Inciweb. FIRE NAME: North Eightmile Fire DATE OF DETECTION: August 16, 2013 CAUSE: Lightning CURRENT SIZE: approximately 411 acres NORTH EIGHTMILE CONTINUED: CONTAINMENT: 0% LOCATION: North Fork Eightmile Creek, approximately 20 miles southwest of Livingston AGENCY: Gallatin National Forest PERSONNEL AND RESOURCES ON THE FIRE: 1 20 person crew, 1 helicopter TUESDAY’S ACTIVITY: Fire behavior moved south and east Tuesday. Retardant was dropped along the north and western flank of the fire in the morning and afternoon to aid firefighters in successfully holding the fire along the Gallatin Crest and out of the Bozeman Creek drainage. The 2001 Fridley Fire has continued to slow fire growth. WEDNESDAY’S PLANNED ACTIVITY: Firefighters will continue to hold the ridge line along the north and western edge of the fire to keep the fire from moving into the Bozeman Creek drainage. A 20 person handcrew will continue to be spiked out to aid in fire suppression efforts on the north and western flanks of the fire. Additional fire personnel will continue to scout and access areas for direct suppression tactics further east utilizing the Fridley Fire Burn Scar where possible. CLOSURES & OTHER INFORMATION: AREA CLOSURE – East Fork Hyalite - East Fork of Hyalite closed including Palisade Falls Trailhead and picnic area, Emerald Lake Trailhead and Flanders Creek drainage. Closure map is available on Inciweb. FIRE NAME: Emigrant Fire DATE OF DETECTION: July 21, 2013 CAUSE: Lightning CURRENT SIZE: approximately 9,892 acres CONTAINMENT: 5% LOCATION: South of Emigrant Peak, between Gold Prize Creek and North Fork Sixmile Creek AGENCY: Gallatin National Forest PERSONNEL AND RESOURCES ON THE FIRE: 2 20 person crews, 1 helicopter (shared with Horsetail Fire), 5 engines, 1 logging dozer TUESDAY’S ACTIVITY: Fire actively moved south and east with continued fire perimeter growth Tuesday. Much of the fire burned towards the Absaroka-Beartooth Wilderness and further up the Sixmile and North Sixmile drainages along with burning towards Monitor Peak. Retardant was used to hold the fire line on the west flank. WEDNESDAY’S PLANNED ACTIVITY: Wednesday firefighters will continue to utilize heavy equipment keeping the fire from moving west towards private land and to assist in putting in a hose lay up Sixmile Creek drainage. Crews will continue anchoring direct and indirect lines along the north flank and clearing out fuels for suppression actions as well as protecting the cabin and the green island surrounding the cabin. Crews will start to scout out feature containment opportunities in Emigrant Creek Drainage. Crews will also begin to determine structure protection for the historic OTO ranch in Cedar Creek. CLOSURES & OTHER INFORMATION: The Emigrant Fire Closure will expand to include National Forest System lands along the western boundary, north to Chico area in section 13, 17 and 18, running along the east Chico Peak to Monitor Peak and south to the over to Dome Mountain WMA. The Monitor Peak Trail #61, Trail #62 to Knox and Fish Lakes along with Trail #33 bumping into Trail #60 to Monitor Peak from the South. A full map will be available on inciweb. Southern Expansion of Closure: Additional Trail closures will be implemented today for the Emigrant Fire including the North Fork of Bear Creek #60, Knox Lake #64 and #279 Monitor Peak Connector Trail on the Gardiner and Yellowstone R.D.’s The Forest Service portion of Sixmile Creek Road from its junction with the Dailey Lake Road will be closed until further notice. The Sixmile Creek Trail (#61) and North Fork of Sixmile Creek Trail (#606) will be closed to their junction with Trail #601 north of Monitor Peak. Connector Trail #601 will remain open. People traveling near the Emigrant Fire Helibase are urged to be cautious of fire personnel and the helicopter operating near Conlin Road. FIRE NAME: Horsetail Fire DATE OF DETECTION: August 11, 2013 CAUSE: Lightning CURRENT SIZE: approximately 142 acres HORSETAIL CONTINUED: CONTAINMENT: 0% LOCATION: ½ mile north of Horsetail Falls, east of Flanders Mountain AGENCY: Gallatin National Forest PERSONNEL AND RESOURCES ON THE FIRE: 1 helicopter (shared with North Eightmile Fire) TUESDAY’S ACTIVITY: Tuesday saw lower fire activity along the rocky ridge of the Gallatin Crest but rolling material continued to burn and back down into the Flanders Creek drainage. Firefighters assessed opportunities to control fire spread in Flanders Creek drainage using indirect fire line. WEDNESDAY’S PLANNED ACTIVITY: Fire personnel will construct indirect handline below the sheer cliffs and rock band in Flanders Creek Drainage and continue to determine suppression tactics to keep the fire from establishing in Flanders Creek drainage and moving north; an 8 person District mod will continue to assist in brushing and clearing the area. A fire crew is being prepared to spike out in the next shift or two. CLOSURES & OTHER INFORMATION: AREA CLOSURE – East Fork Hyalite - East Fork of Hyalite closed including Palisade Falls Trailhead and picnic area, Emerald Lake Trailhead and Flanders Creek drainage. Expanded Closure Hyalite Closure: Gate will be closed at East side of Hyalite Dam including Chisholm, and Hood Creek campgrounds and Palisades, Emerald Lake and Flanders Creek Trailheads will be closed. Windowrock/Maxie Cabin is also closed. Blackmore Day Use Area will remain open. This closure is due to the Horsetail Fire. Map will be available on Inciweb when fully implemented. FIRE WEATHER: On Wednesday, temperatures are expected to be a bit lower than Tuesday with high temperatures into the low 80s with relative humidity between 18-25%. A disturbance will come in today creating possible thundercells early afternoon around 1 or 2:00 p.m. Winds will be between 5-10 mph with a new southerly flow on the ridgetops. Due to the incoming weather system winds will likely be erratic and switching from both the north and the south. Wind gusts around the developing thundercells could be gusts to 40 mph. In the valley, a northerly component of strong up-valley flow will mix with up canyon flows; fire behavior will be monitored closely against this incoming weather event. Cooperating Agencies: Custer and Gallatin National Forests, Park County DES and Sheriff’s Department, Gallatin Co DES and Sheriff’s Department, Paradise Valley Rural Fire, MT DNRC. For further information, go to: inciweb.org Each of the fires are currently listed under the Miner Paradise Complex.
Posted on: Wed, 21 Aug 2013 19:30:53 +0000
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