With area fire danger at a high level, experts offer safety tips
Given warming weather, dry flora and recent fire activity, the Montana Department of Natural Resources and Conservation has placed the Libby area at a high danger for fire, though a local forester said some conditions have put the area “in a good position for this time of year.”
“A combination of strong winds, low relative humidity and warmer than normal temperatures have contributed to escalating fire potential,” Logan Sandman, Libby Unit Fire Management Officer with the DNRC, said via email. “We received lower than average precipitation for the month of June, and the fire potential is a couple weeks ahead of what we normally see at our lower elevation areas.”
What’s in the area’s favor, Lincoln County Forester Ed Levert wrote in an email, is “that our trees are at nearly 100 percent moisture content from our snowy winter and wet spring. That of course means we have more grass and ground vegetation that will dry out quickly and pose a fire problem later in the summer. Bottom line in my estimation is that we are in a good position, but who knows what the weather will be through August and September?”
Sandman recommended residents take the following steps to prevent wildfires: observe local fire restrictions posted at www.firerestrictions.us; use a fire ring and never leave a fire unattended; always have a shovel and bucket handy and make sure any recreational fires are out and cold to the touch; avoid parking on dry grass and make sure trailer chains aren’t dragging down the road; and when out working in the woods, watch for sparks and have a plan to extinguish anything that may arise.
Levert provided additional tips.
“Ideally residents have created a safe space around their homes, which includes a green lawn 30 feet from the house and trees thinned out to 10 feet between crowns for at least 100 feet from their house,” he wrote. “(Yet) even if you have done all those things keep in mind that in most instances it will be the embers that will burn your house down and not the actual flame front.”
Levert also recommended cleaning needles from gutters, moving firewood next to the house and enclosing deck areas.
“For a free assessment of your home and property call your local fire department,” Levert wrote, adding that “grants are also available for helping home owners with thinning trees and removal of dangerous fuels around your home.”
Most residents are aware of fire-causing activities, Levert wrote, yet he reminded people to “realize that we have entered that time of the year where you must be concerned about where you build a campfire, smoke or drive your vehicle.”
“Communities like Libby are very vulnerable to wildfires and that includes within the city itself,” Levert noted. “If we go into an extended fire season we all need to start focusing in on preparation for evacuations. Let’s hope that doesn’t happen this year.”