Rain did little to aid wildfire efforts
Smoke rises from the South Yaak Mountain Fire on July 22. Officials consolidated oversight of the fire with the Burnt Peak Fire this week. (Will Langhorne/The Western News)
The much-anticipated rain overnight Sunday did little to aid efforts to curtail the Burnt Peak and South Yaak fires.
Officials with the Kootenai National Forest said Monday morning that the difference in temperatures was a nice change of pace, given the high heat of the past few days, but had little effect on firefighting operations. Only about 0.1 inch of rain fell on the larger of the two fires.
“Last night’s weather front was a relief from the heat, but brought wetting rain only to the northeastern area of the South Yaak Fire,” read a statement issued by the agency on social media. “Please remember to be careful on slick dirt roads and be on the lookout for debris falls in the burnt areas.”
Warmer, dryer weather is expected to return as the week progresses.
Still, officials expected the temporary cloud cover and higher relative humidity to translate into diminished fire behavior. At the Burnt Peak Fire, which grew slightly to 3,305 acres over the weekend, they planned to focus on the Callahan and Copper Mountain road areas.
At the South Yaak Fire, crews expected to work along the U.S. Forest Service boundary near homes in the 17 Mile Creek and Kilbrennan Lake areas. The South Yaak Fire was burning over 9,290 acres by Monday morning, up from 5,837 acres on Friday. It rolled over the top of Gunsight Mountain as it expanded.
Officials considered that fire 20 percent contained last week, but that changed as it grew. Now the blaze is considered 10 percent contained. The Burnt Peak Fire has held steady at 46 percent contained since last week.
Evacuation and pre-evacuation orders remain standing for both blazes. In the area of the Burnt Peak Fire, residents in the North Fork Keeler Creek area are on pre-evacuation notice, meaning they should be prepared to leave at a moment’s notice.
At the South Yaak Fire, residents of East Side Road and Kilbrennan Lake Road remain evacuated. Officials reported no structural damage as of The Western News’ print deadline.
Lightning was thought to have sparked both fires. The Burnt Peak blaze began on July 7 while the South Yaak Fire started on July 13. Given the two fires and subsequent evacuations, the Lincoln County Board of Commissioners approved a declaration of emergency last week.